Category: Alaska

Day 59: Blondie takes a ride on the Alaska Railroad

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Day 59: Saturday, July 13, 2013

Nothing could top the thrill of yesterday’s flight-seeing tour to Mt. McKinley and the Ruth Glacier so we decided to take a relaxing railroad ride.

We enjoyed breakfast at the Roadhouse Cafe, another restaurant featured on Man vs Food. After filling up on their delicious sourdough blueberry pancakes,  we wandered  through the Talkeetna Cemetery to see the memorial which honors the memory of the mountain climbers who lost their life attempting to climb Mt. McKinley.

Mount McKinley Climber’s Memorial in the Talkeetna Cemetery
The placques display the names of all the climbers who lost their lives on McKinley
Mt. McKinley Climbers Memorial

Our train adventure was aboard the Alaska Railroad’s Huricane Turn Train. It is one of the last flag stop trains in the country. Passengers can get on an off all along the route. Anyone going camping, hiking, fishing, hunting, or taking provisions to their cabin in the wilderness can get on or off wherever they wish. Since it is a sightseeing trip the baggage car has open doors so passengers can watch the view without looking through a window. The baggage car was piled with back packs, suitcases, and supplies.

We found out when we arrived at the station that we could bring Blondie so Henry ran back to get her before boarding. She was one happy dog when she knew she wasn’t going to be left behind.

All Aboard!

All Aboard!
Blondie wanted to look out the window
Mt. McKinley from the train
Conductor Warren loves his job
Beautiful wildflowers beside the track
Ponds beside the train tracks

Our conductor Warren shared stories about the area and about the railroad. The scenery was spectacular with more views of Mt. McKinley. The train stopped on the bridge over Hurricane Gulch before reversing directions to make the return trip to Talkeetna.

A couple of miles before Hurricane Gulch, we got off the train to stretch our legs
A passenger train goes by on the other track
Shadow of the train on the bridge over Hurricane Gulch
Henry enjoying the train ride
A ride on the Alaska Railroad to the Hurricane Turn
Beth boarding
We stopped at Indian Creek to look at salmon

On the return trip we stopped at Sherman, Alaska to meet author Mary Lovel and buy a copy of her book “Journey to a Dream” which tells the story of moving to the Alaska wilderness with their four children 49 years ago. She signed each book and even handed out a pen with her name and email address.

Home of author Mary Lovel in Sherman, Alaska
Mary Lovel signs her book for Beth

The conductor Warren was disappointed we had not seen any wildlife. Near the end of the trip he spied a moose in a field and ran through the car to tell the engineer to stop and back up so everyone could see the moose. The moose was having none of that and ran back into the woods before I could get a picture. Other than the moose I saw a pair of swans swimming in one of the many ponds we passed.

Day 58: Flightseeing trip to Mt. McKinley

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Day 58: Friday, July 12, 2013

We woke up to beautiful sunny skies. The weather forecast was sunny and warm all day. A perfect day for viewing Mt. McKinley.

We started the day by walking to beautiful downtown Talkeetna.

Welcome to beautiful downtown Talkeetna
Downtown Talkeetna.
House rules at the historic Fairview Inn
Stubbs, the Mayor of Talkeetna. He hangs around downtown.
I had a spinach bread for lunch. It’s kind of like a square pizza with spinach and cheese.

Next we stopped by Talkeetna Air Taxi at the airport to book a flight-seeing tour with a glacier landing. The first flight available was at 4:00 so we returned to the RV park to get the truck and drve to the Talkeetna overlook for a view of Mt. McKinley with no clouds.

Beth and Henry at the Talkeetna overlook
An Airplane flies over Mt. McKinley

At 3:30 a van picked us up to take us to the airport for our flight. There were six passengers on our plane – two guys and a gal from Norway, a man from Maryland, and us. Our pilot Alex was from Georgia.

The flight was one of the most amazing things I have ever done. Seeing the mountains from the air and flying so close to the south face of Mt. McKinley was awe inspiring. It’s a day I will never forget.

Waiting to board
Mt. McKinley is in the upper left beneath the clouds
Shadow of our plane over the mountains
The Ruth Glacier is in the gorge between the mountains
We went really close to Mt. McKinley
View of McKinley through the front window
We were really close to the mountains
Really, really close to the mountain!
We were headed straight to this mountain
Really, really, really close!

Ours was the only plane on the glacier and we had plenty of time to enjoy the jaw dropping beauty around us.

We landed on the Ruth Glacier. Hard to believe it was warm enough to wear short sleeves.
The high round snow covered peak is the south peak of Mt. McKinley
Henry taking videos
Beth with the plane
Loving every minute of our time on Ruth glacier

We flew low over the glacier as we started our return trip to the airport.

Flying over the glacier
Beautiful scenery on our way back to the airport

What a glorious day it was! A day we will never forget. Perfect.

Day 57: Searching for Mt. McKinley

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Day 57: Thursday, July 11, 2013 Teklanika Campground to Talkeetna, Alaska. Talkeetna Camper Park Site 34. 182 miles traveled.

The sky was still overcast as we drove the 30 miles from Teklanika to the Denali National Park exit. Our chances for a clear view of Mt. McKinley on our drive south on the Parks Highway were looking pretty slim. Mt. McKinley, at 20,320 feet tall, is the tallest mountain in North America. On a clear day there are overlooks along the highway between Denali National Park and Talkeetna where the mountain can be seen. We were keeping our fingers crossed the sky would clear.

The views were spectacular as we drove along.

There were still clouds in the sky as we exited Denali National Park and crossed Riley Creek
Our view out the front window of the truck as we drove south on the Parks Highway
Spectacular view at one of the overlooks on the Parks Highway
Our first view of Mt. McKinley from a Parks Highway overlook
Our first view of Mt. McKinley from a Parks Highway overlook

Then finally, parts of Mt. Mckinley came into view at one of the overlooks.

Stops at a couple of other overlooks were disappointing with clouds completely covering the mountain. Finally, as we drove into Talkeetna, we were rewarded with spectacular views from the Talkeetna overlook.

Finally! A beautiful view of Mt. McKinley from the Talkeetna overlook as we entered the town of Talkeetna
Denali (formerly known as Mt. McKinley), 20,320 feet tall, is the tallest mountain in North America

Happy happy happy! We checked into our campground and watched the Alaska Railroad trains load and unload passengers right behind our campsite.

The Alaska Railroad runs right behind our campsite
Our home in Talkeetna

We enjoyed a great dinner on the outside patio at the West Rib Cafe and Pub which was featured on an episode of The Travel Channel’s Man vs Food. An Alaskan Crabcake sandwich for me and Halibut and Chips for Henry hit the spot.

Day 56: Rainy Day in Denali

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Day 56: Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Our plan for the day was to ride the bus up to the Polychrome Overlook and take a hike. When we awoke to a steady rain we decided to wait to see if it would clear up. The rain continued all day so we took a couple of short hikes around the campground instead.

Morning walk near our campsite
We took a walk out to the Teklanika River in the rain
The stream runs along the edge of the campground
Wildflowers growing in the middle of the riverbed

The rain finally let up a little later in the afternoon so we spent the rest of the day relaxing by the campfire.

Henry and Blondie enjoying the fire
Now this is the kind of view I like out our back window

Day 55: Wildlife but no mountain view

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Day 55: Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Our search for wildlife continued as we boarded our bus at 9:40 am. The 120 mile round trip to Kantishna and back took us all day. Our bus driver and tour guide Wayne kept us informed about each area we went through. The weather was overcast and rainy all day.

Our first two wildlife sightings were Grizzly bears. The first was close to the road, the second farther away.

Our first wildlife sighting was a Grizzly Bear
Second Grizzly sighting of the day

Next, we saw two different herds of Caribou before stopping at the Toklat River rest area. There we saw Dall Sheep on two different mountains. The Dall Sheep look like white dots on the mountain without binoculars or a telephoto lens. The pictures aren’t too good but you can tell they are sheep.

Caribou grazing in Denali National Park
We watched this Caribou herd as they moved quickly through the field
Beautiful view from Toklat River rest area
Three Dall sheep. The two rams are butting heads
Four Dall Sheep
Close up of one of the rams.

There were Caribou grazing on top of a ridge before we stopped at the Eileson Visitor’s Center for a stroll in the rain on the Tundra Loop Trail.

Another group of Caribou up on a ridge
Eielson Visitor’s Center
Wildflower on the Tundra Trail at the Eielson Visitor’s Center
Another wildflower on the Tundra Trail
Arctic Ground Squirrel, otherwise known as suicidal ground squirrels because they run out in the road right in front of vehicles.

And then there were moose.

Our first moose sighting was this cow by a pond
A big bull moose in the bushes

The Denali Park Road ends in Kantishna where several gold mines once operated. One of the mines was owned by the Quigleys. When the couple got divorced, Fannie Quigley built a cabin and lived there alone. When the national park expanded its boundaries the several privately owned lodges located there were allowed to continue to stay open.

Fannie Quigley’s cabin at Kantishna
We were on the bus for almost 10 hours

As we began our return trip we stopped at Wonder Lake where on a clear day there is a view of Mt. McKinley. In Denali National Park the chance of seeing Mt. McKinley is only 30% and the chance of seeing a bear is 90%.

A young bull moose
Moose in a pond in Denali National Park
We stopped at Wonder Lake where on a clear day you can see Mt. McKinley

Other than stopping to watch some Dall Sheep far off on the side of a mountain we didn’t make many stops to view wildlife on the return trip.

Total wildlife count for the day: 13 Caribou, 12 Dall Sheep, 2 Grizzly Bears, several Arctic Ground Squirrels, and a Ptarmigan (the state bird of Alaska) flying low to the ground by the bus. A great day!