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| A very stoic bull moose in Denali National Park. |
DENALI NATIONAL PARK, ALASKA, SEPTEMBER 3-6, 2024
ATHABASCAN (DENE) LAND
LOGISTICS:
We departed Anchorage and drove to the Talkeetna turn-off where we ate lunch a the Denali Brewing Company. Then we made our way to Grizzly Bear Cabins. After checking-in and stowing our gear we made the drive out to Mountain Vista parking area. We took a hike to the Savage River and enjoyed the pleasant weather.
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| Posing with ebikes in front of the Denali National Park sign. |
DAY 1: (9/3/24)
The week after Labor Day has become the traditional time for us to make a visit to Denali National Park. The crowds are smaller, the air is crisp, and the fall colors are stunning. We drove from Anchorage to Grizzly Bear Cabins making two stops along the way. The first was at the Alaska Bicycle Center where Mrs. Huffy purchased an efatbike. She made plans to have it prepped so we could pick it up after our trip. The second stop was at Denali Brewing Company where we had a superbly delicious lunch.
Arriving at our cabin we stowed our gear and drove out to the Mountain Vista parking area for a hike around the Savage River area. On our way we stopped to make reservations for a bus ride into the park the next morning. We were surprised to see many of the busses were already full. This time of year usually has fewer visitors and is considered to be the shoulder season. When we mentioned it to the guy working behind the counter he said there really hasn't been a shoulder season for the past few years. It seems the secret is out and everyone wants to visit when the fall colors are at the peak. This results in a busy season to the end.
Liz had made a quiche while we were in Anchorage and that's what we ate for dinner. Of course, we spent a couple hours driving back and forth on the park road on Moose Patrol. We saw a bunch of cars stopped on the road ahead of us. As we got closer our suspicions were confirmed, there was a big bull on the edge of the road. Photographers with all sorts of various photography gear had quickly gathered to get pictures.
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| Fall colors in Denali country. |
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| Clouds and colors. |
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| Photographers along the Denali Park Road. |
We caught the early morning bus bound for the East Fork. That's as far as the park busses can go due to the continued construction work around Pretty Rocks. Our driver was wonderful and offered lots of interesting commentary. Along the way we saw Dall Sheep, grizzly bears, and a bull moose. We thoroughly enjoyed the ride and were surprised when an entire class fo elementary school students boarded the bus at the Savage River Campground on our way back. They were going to see the sled dog demonstration which they were very excited about. It was fun listening to them and their teacher talk about their trip.
After the bus ride we went to check out the ebike rentals at Bike Denali. We decided to return the next morning and rent ebikes for a ride toward the Savage River. Dinner was procured from the Thai Food truck located in the Grizzly Bear Cabins parking lot. Following that we headed out for another evening of Moose Patrol.
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| The view from inside a park bus on the way to the East Fork. |
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| Bears feeding on blueberries in Igloo Canyon. |
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| Signage at the East Fork, which is the turn around point for the park busses. |
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| A bull moose resting amongst the bushes in Igloo Forest. |
DAY 3: (9/5/24)
The sunrise was fiery and the weather beautiful on this morning. We were excited to get to the ebike rental place and start pedaling the park road. It was exhilarating to cruise along the road through the crystal clear air and colorful landscape. After a while we stopped at a small pull-out and had lunch while taking in the views. Continuing our journey we almost made it to Mountain Vista before turning around. By the time we got back to bike rental place we had gone 27 miles round trip. It's definitely an activity we will do again.
That night we ate dinner at McKinley Creek Lodge. We saw they served caramel apple pancakes for breakfast which sounded very enticing. So, we made plans to return the next morning as we made our way back to Anchorage. And, that's what we did.
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| Mrs. Huffy and ebikes along the edge of the park road. |
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| Mrs. Huffy and the moose rutting area sign. |
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| A colorful sunrise. |
DAY 4: (9/6/24)
The pancakes were excellent and we enjoyed them very much. It was a perfect way to end the trip. We made the drive back to Anchorage stopping at many of the scenic viewpoints along the way hoping to see Denali, but, alas, no luck. Then the trip was over. But, already we're looking forward to the week after Labor Day next year! |
| Another bull moose. |
