June 29th-July 4th: We left Pioneer Park in Fairbanks and set sights on Denali NP. This part of our 2013 trip I missed because, sadly, my mom had died and I flew out of Fairbanks at that time to be with my family. When I flew back to meet Sean, it was to Anchorage. So, we both missed this iconic park and were excited to experience it this time.
Headed down the Parks Hwy.
Keep seeing signs for "Fire Activity Ahead". This hwy has been recently shut down due to wildfires this season. Luckily, we hit the area while they had it open.
We finally got to the pilot car section through the active wildfire area.
Firefighter rented trucks.
Starting to see why they had the hwy closed...
Still some areas actively smoking. There is a firefighter on the far right of this photo.
The backlog of the hwy.
Starting to see mountains!
Nenana River
A moose decided to walk out on the road!
Yay!!! We never stopped at this sign because of the amount of people always here, lol.
After checking in, you have 3 loops full of campsites to choose from. The game is, check out is 11a and so is check in, so you got to hurry for those good spots, lol.
Found our resting spot for the next few days.
After getting settled in, we decided to hike to the Visitors Center. We used McKinley Station Trail.
It takes you under a train trestle!
Train Depot.
We rested at the Train Depot for a moment and were trying figure out the train schedule when this little guy showed up.
Tons of people in here...
Diagram of the mountain range and Mt. McKinley.
We made sure to attend the Ranger Session with Kayla at 7:30p - Scat Happens. In this picture, Kayla is showing us a lynx fur that was found in the preserve. This was so interesting, and it turns out I really know my poops, lol. I got all 4 poops named correctly and Sean got 2. Finally, I won at something!
Wolf paw print casting.
The next morning Sean attempted to let me sleep in a little and I caught him making us breakfast.
In the meantime, Skittles was keeping guard watching for squirrels. These pups had the greatest time stalking these squirrels.
We walked down the the sign on the Parks Hwy for a picture.
Then it was off to the Sled Dog Demo. There was a huge line for this... we are not used to these long lines, lol.
Loaded up on the 2nd bus. I think a total of 6 buses were taken to the demo.
Look how sweet!!!
This guy was in love with the pup!
The puppies!!!
Grade A good dog.
Look who's presenting.. Kayla!
Sled Dog Demo
We decided we would hike Rock Creek Trail instead of fight for a bus seat. There were lots of mosquitos on this trail!
There were pretty views after our uphill climb.
We made an amazing dinner after.
Then, another Ranger Session with Jessica at 7:30p - Bear knowledge.
That night, we noticed it was very clear and decided to go up Park Rd as far as allowed to see if Mt. McKinley was visible. We weren't ready for this...
Absolutely clear skies, taken at 9pm.
We heard a funny noise while we were walking back to the truck and realized there was a family of ptarmigan on the roadside. Not the greatest video of them.
Ptarmigan chick!!!
Beautiful view of the train trestle from the road.
The next morning, we loaded up on our bus to go down the Park Rd. Unfortunately, the Park Rd is closed beyond mile 43 for repair due to a rock glacier melting causing the road to sink and become unsafe for travel. Our plan was to go all the way we could and then have the bus driver drop us at Sable Pass to bike the rest of the way back. In the photo, our bikes loaded up on the front.
Patty, our bus driver, lives in the area and stays through winter.
Mt. McKinley July 1st.
End of paved section. We stop here for a Ranger to come onboard to explain rules and answer questions.
Daylon, the Ranger who stopped in.
Dall sheep.
Closest photo we could get of Mt. McKinley on the bus tour.
This was the turning around point for the bus.
Saying goodbye to the bus!
More Dall sheep.
Dall Sheep
Wolf paw print.
Beautiful tundra...
This was about the point that my rear brake failed. That made things quite dramatic, lol.
We thought it best to take a shuttle back to town from the Ranger Station. We completed 24 miles on this bike ride, faulty brakes and all.
Sean kept his helmet on for safety, lol. After this bike ride we were pretty wiped out, but took the pups for a long walk. Unfortunately, there was no Ranger Session this night.
The next day, we went for $6 hot dogs in town, lol. We were really there to go to the gift shops, but when in Rome...
When we walked back to the truck, we had seen this from a distance, but couldn't figure out what was going on here. Very unfortunately for this person, their vacation hit a snafu...
When we got back to the motorhome and took the pups on a walk, we found this guy near the campground causing a moose-jam.
We long the dogs away from all the craziness of the park moose-jam down to the bridge near town.
Nenana River
Took the pups to play in the water.
We walked back to the campground and smoke started to roll in, then ash. We saw these military ospreys come over the park.
Our last day in Denali NP, we decided to hike up to Mt. Healy Overlook.
The trail was quite steep, but manageable.
The overlook,
We hiked a bit further up.
Sean's new friend, lol.
Back to the railroad.
Last Ranger Session before we leave tomorrow!
July 4th, Happy Independence Day!!! Packing up to head out.
Our moose friend stopped by on our way to the dump station. Goodbye little friend!
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