20,308 Feet

Thursday, June 16 through Saturday, June 18, 2016  Start: Fairbanks, AK  End: Denali National Park, AK

Denali from Eileson viewpoint

the road to Denali 

Mike at Eileson viewpoint with Deanli in the background

That's the height of the tallest mountain in North America, Denali.  We made reservations before we left Tok for Denali National Park.  We just looked to see what was available in the future and picked 3 nights and we lucked out!  We had beautiful weather for all 3 days, sunny with great views.

We stayed at Savage River Campground, 13 miles in on the Park Road.  We checked out the visitors center which is still having an identity crisis (Mt McKinley or Denali?) and it had some well-done wildlife exhibits.  Vehicles may only go to mile 15; the rest of the road (to 92 miles) is accessible only by bus or shuttle.  We stayed in a secluded spot in the campground and its really quiet.  The park makes a big deal about keeping things wild and they even monitor the noise level.

Savage River campground

Thursday we could see the top of Denali from the road to our campground, it was a beautiful clear day that got to almost 75 degrees! 

Friday we took one of the bus shuttles out to Eielson Viewpoint, at mile 69.  It was four hours out and back.  We got stupendous views of Denali, a rare experience since 60% of the time its covered in clouds.  We saw a grizzly bear and caribou on the way, not many animals about with the warmer weather.  The bus hugs the edge of the cliffs on the way making for a dizzying drive.  We stayed at Eielson to take a short walk in the tundra before re-boarding for the return.  

Saturday we struck out on our own.  In the morning we took a hike near the visitors center around Horseshoe Lake.  We saw a bull moose and a mother and baby moose, up close and personal!  

Bull moose near Beaver dam on Horseshoe Trail

mother and baby moose

Made my morning!  Then after lunch we struck out again and took the Savage River loop trail.  Mike discovered an ice flow over one of the hills and spotted caribou way up on the mountain side.  

Savage River

Savage River loop trail

Ice flo on Savage River loop trail

The wind was blowing pretty hard and we were rocked to sleep that night, tired but thrilled with the sights.

Denali had a different feel for a national park.  It's very environmentally conscious, almost to the point where you don't feel welcome.  It's definitely a place where you need to strike out on your own exploring and allowing time to soak in. We were so fortunate to have sunny days with good views, a good guide on our bus and the opportunity to hike on our own.  

We're on to Anchorage this week, heading south.