Denali National Park, oh how I love thee!

The name of our trip has always been “Denali Sabbatical Trip 2022” when I was putting the itinerary together.  So, on the day we left Fairbanks and headed to the namesake of this adventure, to say we were excited was an understatement.  The road up there was a continuation of the frost heaved and pot holed surface we were familiar with, but it seemed exceptionally brutal during that stretch.  We did suffer some damage to the truck that we have already arranged to have fixed when we get home, but it will not affect our travels, so we hope…

We arrived the park in time for me to jump onto Ranger guided/driven bus tour:”Denali Wilderness Tour”.  This 5 hour bus ride took me and 51 of my new best friends on a comfy school bus to the end of the park road.  Our ranger Daniel orated the entire trip telling us history, science, nature, geology, meteorology all about the 6 million acre park/wilderness preserve.  The road used to be 99 miles long, but due to a catastrophic landslide in 2019 caused by melting permafrost, the road ended at mile 43.  That’s where we turned around.   I grabbed as many pictures and video’s that I could.  Meanwhile, Vic stayed back at Riley Creek campground (near the entrance of the park and park bus depot) to work on his book: chapter 4 and to tend to our traveling companions Agi and Bodi.  I had ridden my bike up to the bus depot to catch the tour and rode my bike back after we returned.  I showed up to the camper at around 10pm and found a hot dinner waiting for me and nice glass of red wine.  It was cccccccold out there!  I think the temps were in the mid 40s during my short but cold and wet bike ride home.  

The next morning was Vic’s turn on a ranger bus tour.  His was the “Denali Natural History Tour”, about an hour or so shorter than mine and from his reports, not very informative.  He was disappointed but at least he got to go out on the road and see what the park is all about. Below is a combination of the sights we had on our tours. 

Teklanika River

A moose wayyyy off in the distance

Beautiful mountains of the Alaska Range, not Denali

A caribou (the tiny dot)

Savage Cabin used by the mushers in the winter

Our comfy mode of transport during our tours

Once Vic returned from his tour, we had a quick lunch and then headed up to the sled dogs kennels. There, were delighted to witness a team in action along with a fun lecture on the history of the dogs and how they are used today in the park.  Their main job is to move the rangers/mushers in the winter throughout the wilderness preserve to perform the various tasks they need to do: build research equipment on the glaciers, cut trails for the winter visitors, build/fix bridges, etc.  After their presentation we were free to go around and meet all the dogs up close.  I was in heaven!!!

Vic had to tear me away from these amazing beauties because we needed to move further into the park to our next campsite at Savage River Campground at Mile 15 of the park road.  (The road is marked by the mile so you know how far in you are from the entrance). We settled into our campsite and proceeded to make our campfire dinner.  This time we had grilled Alaskan reindeer sausage. So yummy! After dinner, Vic attended the nightly ranger lecture of “Be Bear Aware!” It was led by Ranger Jim.  Now, Vic is convinced bears are lurking behind every tree and bush.  “I wish I wasn’t so bear-aware…”, he says.  We each have our can of bear spray and are pretty confident how and when to use it.  We’ve been getting training on it’s use every where we go.  

Our site at Savage River, sausages ready to go on the fire

The amphitheater at the campground 

Ranger Jim 

Ranger Jim brought a bear pelt to the lecture

After breakfast the next morning, Vic and I put on our hiking boots and set out to do the Savage Alpine trail: 4 miles, 1500 feet

We started the hike from the river, way down there

Mount Denali “The Great one”, about 60 miles away 

Beautiful fireweed flanking our path

 

elevation gain, and described as “strenuous”. It was a gorgeous sunny morning and though it was a challenge, the views we got of Mt Denali were well worth it!  I know I look like a dork in the video below,but I just didn’t care.  The hike was fabulous!

Vic took the rest of the afternoon to work on chapter 4.

After 3 days at Savage River, we moved campto Teklanika Campground.  This was a real treat.  Normally, personal vehicles are not allowed in thepark road after mile 15, but if you are lucky enough to get a reservation at Teklanika (mile 29),you get a very special pass that allows you todrive past the check point and only to the campground another 14 miles into the park along a dirt/gravel road.  We did not have the glorious weather we had the day we hiked the Alpine trail, rather it was rainy and the road was sooooo muddy.  Mother Trucker and Her Backpack have never been so

coated. 

It was a gorgeous drive with just us and an occasional Park Ranger Tour bus or the camper shuttle bus

 

Wash me!  The mud that was super coating the back stairs was awful!  We had to keep touching them each time we had to put them out or in. Yuck!

We picked a lovely site at Teklanika where we stayed for 3 days.  We packed a lunch and hiked down to the Teklanika Rest area where we enjoyed the views and then down to the river where we expected to meet a bear…

Vic and the dogs standing by the Bear Aware sign

Picking blueberries 

We saw no bears.  😅

Our drive out of the park on our last day was filled with mixed emotions: what wonder and beauty we just got to live and breathe in for 7 days, and sure wish we could have seen wild animals.  I actually said as we were meandering the 29 miles back to the entrance of the park, “I sure wish we could see a wild animal on our way out.  Would that be great?” At mile 12, we were passing over a river bed and there they were!! A mother moose and her baby!!  We stopped the truck, put our 4-way flashers on (like the rangers told us to do), stayed in the truck and got the best pics ever! 

We are forever grateful to the men and women who fought and continue to fight to preserve these amazing wonders.  The experiences we had during this time will not be forgotten.