After landing in Anchorage in the middle of the night we slept in the airport and picked up our truck and trailer from storage as soon as we could in the morning and made tracks for Denali National Park. Yep, we tacked our annual trip to Teklanika Campground to the end of our month long road trip adventure.
It was a long drive to the park through heavy rain but we made it to the campground by late afternoon and after eating dinner we promptly fell asleep.
The next morning we awoke to beautiful weather and decided to spend the day recuperating at Tek. We did take a short walk down the Teklanika Riverbed and went to Ranger Casey's campfire presentation in the evening where we learned about hiking in Denali. Emily got to be the bear for the animal safety segment of the talk.
The next day we hopped the bus to Eielson Visitor Center to see the newly opened facility. During the ride we saw bears in Sable and Highway Passes. Eielson Visitor Center is a beauty set in the side of the hill and uses all sorts of different energy sources in order to reduce its environmental impact. We ate lunch next to a couple that could have been in a Woody Allen movie and then took a hike part way down the hill. Later in the evening we attended Ranger Melissa's campfire talk which was a clever presentation about what the animals of Denali like to eat.
On Sunday we had company and we spent the afternoon riding the bus to Toklat together. We didn't see any wildlife along the way but the driver was entertaining and we all had a good time looking at the fabulous views just outside the window.
It was raining heavily again on Monday so we decided to ride toward Eielson again in hopes of finding a dry area to hike. Along the way we saw a young bear on the road in Igloo canyon and a larger bear in the distance on Highway Pass. The rain became more intense the closer we got to Eielson so we stayed on the bus. When we got to the visitor center it was rainy/foggy and the views were obscured. We ate lunch, got back on the bus and rode back to Igloo Canyon where the rain had stopped. We decided to get off the bus at the Igloo Creek bridge and walk through the campground. Then we headed up the road just to stretch our legs a bit more and enjoy the dry air.
As we were walking a bus came around the corner and stopped beside us. The driver said there was a wolf coming down the road and if we waited quietly it would most likely pass by us on the riverbed. So, we hunkered down on the edge of the road and waited for about three minutes when suddenly the wolf appeared from around the corner. He kept coming until he was about 50 yards away and then he went into the brush toward the river. A few seconds later he appeared on the riverbed and trotted downstream. It was an awesome encounter and made for a great afternoon. Back at Tek that evening we attended Ranger Danica's talk about mountaineering on Denali.
The next morning we left Tek, made a brief stop at Riley Creek Mercantile to do some laundry, went to the Visitor Center to have our Junior Rangers sworn in, checked out the gift shop, and then hit the road for Byers Lake Campground. Two flat tires later we made it, but that's another story.
It was a great trip and we had a wonderful time...camping at Tek.
It was a long drive to the park through heavy rain but we made it to the campground by late afternoon and after eating dinner we promptly fell asleep.
The next morning we awoke to beautiful weather and decided to spend the day recuperating at Tek. We did take a short walk down the Teklanika Riverbed and went to Ranger Casey's campfire presentation in the evening where we learned about hiking in Denali. Emily got to be the bear for the animal safety segment of the talk.
The next day we hopped the bus to Eielson Visitor Center to see the newly opened facility. During the ride we saw bears in Sable and Highway Passes. Eielson Visitor Center is a beauty set in the side of the hill and uses all sorts of different energy sources in order to reduce its environmental impact. We ate lunch next to a couple that could have been in a Woody Allen movie and then took a hike part way down the hill. Later in the evening we attended Ranger Melissa's campfire talk which was a clever presentation about what the animals of Denali like to eat.
On Sunday we had company and we spent the afternoon riding the bus to Toklat together. We didn't see any wildlife along the way but the driver was entertaining and we all had a good time looking at the fabulous views just outside the window.
It was raining heavily again on Monday so we decided to ride toward Eielson again in hopes of finding a dry area to hike. Along the way we saw a young bear on the road in Igloo canyon and a larger bear in the distance on Highway Pass. The rain became more intense the closer we got to Eielson so we stayed on the bus. When we got to the visitor center it was rainy/foggy and the views were obscured. We ate lunch, got back on the bus and rode back to Igloo Canyon where the rain had stopped. We decided to get off the bus at the Igloo Creek bridge and walk through the campground. Then we headed up the road just to stretch our legs a bit more and enjoy the dry air.
As we were walking a bus came around the corner and stopped beside us. The driver said there was a wolf coming down the road and if we waited quietly it would most likely pass by us on the riverbed. So, we hunkered down on the edge of the road and waited for about three minutes when suddenly the wolf appeared from around the corner. He kept coming until he was about 50 yards away and then he went into the brush toward the river. A few seconds later he appeared on the riverbed and trotted downstream. It was an awesome encounter and made for a great afternoon. Back at Tek that evening we attended Ranger Danica's talk about mountaineering on Denali.
The next morning we left Tek, made a brief stop at Riley Creek Mercantile to do some laundry, went to the Visitor Center to have our Junior Rangers sworn in, checked out the gift shop, and then hit the road for Byers Lake Campground. Two flat tires later we made it, but that's another story.
It was a great trip and we had a wonderful time...camping at Tek.
1 comment:
What wonderful memories you have made with your family. While the California and highway stuff is interesting, the Tek pics, especially your unique head gear, is how I picture the Huffords. The Russian River in California looked a lot less developed than I would have assumed, isn't all of California paved?
It didn't surprise me that you headed straight for Denali. You seem tireless when it comes to driving to a great destination.
Tah,
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