" I'm not versed in river travel so would have to go with experienced people."

Tom,  if you went on an outfitter trip, it wouldn't matter.  They would likely pair you with a more experienced paddler, and most will give some ww training before you hit the gnarly stuff.
All you need is the time and money - arctic trips run about $10,000 Canadian, plus the cost to get up there.  Doing it myself was about half that.


somebody else asked if I did get a sheep - I did get a half curl ram, just barely legal - it was the first legal ran I saw in 11 days scouting and 8 days hunting - since he was only a little bighorn, I named him "Custer"