July 17, 2018 Icy Crown Of North America

Denali RV Park and Motel Day 2

It was raining when we woke up, but we were all excited to go and see Denali.  Denali National Park was founded in 1917 when a naturalist, Charles Sheldon realized that the Dall sheep population was being rapidly depleted.  If nothing was done the sheep were in danger of becoming extinct.  He began to advocate for the preservation of the land, the habitat for the great 5 – moose, caribou, bears, Dall sheep, and wolves.  He had the foresight to ensure that this area became a protected wilderness.  This means that humans do not interfere in the normal cycles of animal and plant life.  Researchers do study here but without inference.  The road and some service facilities are maintained but otherwise it is 6 million acres of unimpaired wilderness.  This is a trailess park.  Man-made trails are only inserted when there is a direct danger to the integrity of the ecosystem.  That being said, you can hike or walk anywhere you choose.

At the beginning of our bus ride the skies were very cloudy and the rain persisted.  The clouds obscured our views of the Alaska Range and the snow-covered peaks.  We were only able to see the greener foothills.  These mountains are at elevation of around 4,000 feet.

At a rest area the clouds began to lift a little.  We saw small white dots on the ridge above, Dall sheep visible with the binoculars.  There were 7 grazing caribou on a gravel bar by the river…also very tiny to the naked eye.

Rounding a bend in the road, we saw grizzly bear.

The Eielson Visitor Center was a neat stop.  Built into the side of the hill it was meant to be as green as possible.

This amazing quilt was created by an artist in residence.  It is hand dyed, silk screened, each square hand sewn and the the whole piece was machine quilted.  It shows Denali in all 4 seasons with every known animal and plant somewhere in the picture.  It is a magnificent piece of art.

We knew that we wanted to get off somewhere and hike.  The decision was made to ride the bus all the way to Wonder Lake and determine our best option there.  We were halfway and as we approached this last stop, the weather broke.  The clouds dissipated and we got our first glimpse of the mountain – Denali.  The sky was blue, it was warmer and the sun was shining.  This was our sign to get off the bus after 6 hours of riding.

McKinley Trail was 2.4 miles each way down to the McKinley River.  We hiked in and as we got to a particularly dense section of trees I got the heebie jeebies.  We had just left a warm, dry, safe bus all by ourselves to hike a trail in the backcountry of Denali, Alaska.  How awesome is that!!!!

As we hiked the trail was fairly flat.   There were 4 men working to install a narrow boardwalk on the existing trail.  Because the trail was so muddy, hikers had started to hike around the trail causing more disruption to the area surrounding it.  We couldn’t imagine how the materials to install the boardwalk had been transported there.  When we asked one of the rangers he told us that sled dogs had brought many supplies in over the winter.  Helicopters were also used.  The men themselves have to carry the lumber long distances.

We could see more of Denali’s peak.  She stands at 20,310 feet.  Legally this is still Mount McKinley.  The park and the mountain were renamed several years ago to honor the native Athabascan people who named her Denali or “High One.”  The bus driver said that Denali never disappoints…she was correct.

There have been a few places in nature where I have experienced a deep sense of reverence, spirituality, awe and wonder.  I can recall these experiences vividly.  Standing in that alpine meadow, looking at Denali, was one of those moments for me.  I came on this ride to see bears and stuff…the mountain…not so much.  Now that I have been here, experienced this…there are no words…I am so profoundly grateful to be here!

At the river, after we doused ourselves in bug spray, Kyle jumped across the water to the gravel bars.  He got to hold a set of caribou antlers with the skull still attached.

Kyle took off his socks and shoes and waded across so he could put his feet in this glacial river.  When he got back he saw a small mouse beneath his pack.  The mouse didn’t seem to be too afraid of us and he posed for pictures.

We emerged from the woods and waited only a couple of minutes before a returning bus came by and picked us up.  On the way back, we saw another grizzly even further away than the first.  Some people saw that she had a dark brown spring cub with her.  We saw some caribou and some more tiny white dots…Dall sheep high up on the mountains.

Pictures of Polychrome Pass.

We were almost back to the park entrance when we saw a female moose standing in the road  ahead.

Walking back to the Jeep we saw this mother moose and her calf.

Reflecting on the day, this 14-hour day, most of it spent on a school bus riding on a gravel road, doesn’t sound so appealing.  All of these buses, all day long though, are filled with people…people from all around the world come here to see this.  How lucky are we?!?

Too tired to cook dinner, we went back to the Salmon Bake…I think that they have pretty good beer…49^th State Brewing Company McCarthy Stout!!!