Growing up, Justin Bickley didn’t feel like the outdoors were for him. He thought of “outdoorsy” people as hyper-masculine, and wasn’t particularly excited by childhood fishing camping trips with his dad and brother. He was more inclined to catch minnows and listen to James Taylor at the campfire while his family fly-fished nearby. Decades later, Bickley is redefining what “outdoorsy” means to him as he carves out a niche in Alaska’s packrafting community and serves as an ambassador for LGBTQ Outdoors.
Bickley spent much of his childhood moving around the country in a military family, with stints in Oklahoma, Alaska, and Alabama. As an adult, he found himself drawn back to Alaska, where he had memories of camping on the Kenai peninsula as a child. “I had just quit drinking and I thought, I’m ready to actually become myself,” he says of the move.
Shortly after arriving back in Alaska, Bickley was introduced to packrafting by friends. “I ended up doing Campbell Creek with them, and then that became my whole summer,” he says. “I was on Campbell three or four times a week,” he recalls. The following year, he decided to take a Level 2 paddling skills course with the Alaska Packraft School, where he met the school’s founder and lead instructor, Jule Harle.
During the course, Bickley opened up to Harle about his ongoing discontent with his job as an elementary school teacher. At the end of the course, Harle signed his copy of her guide book, adding, “Quit your job.” Three months later, he did. Bickley now works for the Alaska Packraft School as a director of operations, running behind-the-scenes logistics for its courses. He also completed instructor training and now helps teach paddling courses for the school.
Since working for the school, Bickley has joined a number of packraft expeditions, getting to experience remote locales across Alaska. “I’ve always liked seeing people doing expeditions,” he explains. “It just never really seemed like something I could do. And Jule opened my eyes in that level 2 course. I was like, ‘Oh, maybe this is like something I could do with my life,’” he recalls.
His most memorable trip to date was the Lakina Traverse in Wrangell St. Elias national park—a four-day trip that included a 12-mile stretch of continuous Class III river. “I think that’s the most beautiful place I’ve ever been,” he says. “There’s a sense of accomplishment from being out there and the connections with the people you’re with,” he adds.
In addition to working with the Packraft School, Bickley is the Partnerships Coordinator and an ambassador for LGBTQ Outdoors, a national nonprofit focused on inclusion for LGBTQ+ individuals in the outdoors. In July, he’ll help lead a group of 20 members of the queer community from the Lower 48 on an Alaskan adventure and packrafting trip. Bickley says affinity groups like LGBTQ Outdoors are important because they foster “a sense of vulnerability that reinforces trust.” He continues, “It allows you to feel like [your community has] got your back, no matter what. They know the stuff about me that I wouldn’t necessarily feel comfortable sharing with other people.”
Bickley says that being visible as a gay person in the adventure community allows others to see that they belong in the outdoors. “Creating safe spaces for people creates an access point for them into the outdoors world,” he explains. “Feeling like they can have a community that knows them, and trusting them to support. And I think trust begets trust,” he adds.
Bickley’s passion for inclusion in adventure sports is a long-term commitment, and he hopes it will leave a lasting impact. “I’ve never had LGBT role models in the outdoor industry,” Bickley explains. “Realizing that I can do it… it makes me want to help other people realize that they can do it, too,” he says.
Emily Sullivan is a photographer and writer focused on outdoor recreation, environmental wellness, and community empowerment. She is based on Dena’ina lands, where she can usually be found skiing, packrafting, or berry picking.
