Denali National Park Alaska-1

When we started planning our trip to Alaska, Denali was at the top of the list of must-do’s. So much so, that it was the only place where we made a reservation. And we made that reservation in January since we were told that the camping farthest into the park fill up that far in advance. So we picked a random set of dates in the middle of July, made reservations for Teklanika campground and figured the rest of the details would work out.

In Denali, there are 2 sets of buses, tour and shuttle. We opted for the shuttle. Everything we had read was right on target – the shuttle drivers were just as knowledgeable about wildlife and the ride was fantastic.

The Alaska State Bird, the Willow Ptarmigan. It turns completely white in the winter.

Road construction is everywhere.

The arctic hare – it also turns completely white in the winter. A pattern?

Our Denali adventure was made all the better by sharing it with great friends Phil and Kathy.

Dirt roads = grime and dust everywhere.

Learning all about Wolverines at the nightly ranger talk.

The Park road originated as a route for prospectors to reach their gold mine claims. Today it’s mostly used by buses. After riding the length of it, it’s easy to understand why private cars are rarely allowed. The drop-offs are too steep and high, the road too narrow and shoulders are mostly nonexistent.

We made it!

Wonder Lake

Some of the dropoffs were both spectacular and scary!

Lots of caribou during the bus ride.

Sitting by the fire in the evening.

Another ranger talk – about native languages throughout Alaska.

We got to meet a Denali sled dog, Vista. The sled dogs in Denali are bred as freight dogs – throughout the winter, rangers use dog sleds to patrol for poachers and to haul lots of material to various parts of the park for later maintenance projects. Vista was a friendly pooch who loved to be petted.

Turns out that the Denali sled dogs are most comfortable between -10 and +10 degrees temperature. Great for Denali. Not so great for the lower 48 climate.

A summer sled for exercising and training the dogs.

Fireweed. We learned that fireweed blooms from the bottom up. When it reaches the top, summer is over and winter is about to set in!

The top of Denali from the Denali south overlook along the highway.

 

But if not…