Day 38, Denali Part 1

We arrived in Denali Friday, July 28.  It was only about 160 miles from where we were in Fairbanks so we had plenty of time and a mostly sunny day.  By the time we arrived, it was nearly clear so we set up quickly and headed into the park to an area that was relatively higher than the surrounding area to see if there was any chance to see "the high one," Denali.  By relatively higher, I mean we were about 3200 feet above sea level while our campground is about 1700.  As we were still about 75 miles from the mountain, it took a little bit to get a fix on it and to set up the cameras to get a decent shot.

Perspective shot from Eielson Visitors Center

Shot of Denali Friday Afternoon.  75 miles away.

Shot from Eielson Visitors Center Tuesday.  30 miles away

 There were clouds around the lower areas and a persistent cloud at the very top but we began shooting pictures on the hopes that we might get a good one to use in this blog.  Our plan is to take a bus Tuesday out to an area called, Eielson Visitors Center, about 55 miles into the park.  Bus is the only way you can get that far into the park.  You can drive in only 15 miles unless you camp at one of the campgrounds a little farther in.  From Eielson, it is only about 35-40 miles to Denali. Hopefully, we have enough visibility to see the mountain and get some closer shots.
The last three days have been relatively good weather and excellent hiking.  Saturday we got on a park bus and went out to the Savage River turn around.  We hiked up the river about a mile and a half.  There were many kinds of flowers and great scenery along the way.  At one point, we saw a couple of Dall Sheep up pretty high on a ridge, but they disappeared  before we could find them in the camera lens.  After riding the bus back and having some lunch and walking Sparky, we headed out to hike to the visitors center, another 2-3 mile round trip.  The evening Ranger talk was about four rather obscure climbers of Denali.  It was pretty enlightening because of who they were.  One was a Muslim lady that determined to climb the highest mountain on all seven continents.  Denali was the last one and gave her the most trouble.  Two others are disabled and in wheelchairs.  They modified their chairs and fitted them with skis and literally had to pull themselves up the mountain. It took them 44 days instead of the normal 16-17.  Another was Japanese and determined to do it in the winter.  It is fairly certain that he made the summit, but was probably blown off the mountain shortly after starting down.
Yesterday we hiked around Horseshoe Lake.  Only about a 2 mile hike but so much to stop and look at along the way that it took most of the morning.  After lunch and a short rest time, we took the park bus to the sled dog kennels for a demonstration of how the dogs work in the summer and the purpose for their continued use here in the park.  It was pretty amazing.  As soon as the handlers started toward the kennel area, all the dogs got real excited, hoping to be chosen for the demonstration.  It didn't hurt that there were treats at the end.  They are amazing animals.

There doesn't appear to be enough band width at the campground to upload pictures.  I will try to include extras in the next post. Last night, we had lots of rain, a frog strangler as some would call it, and things were pretty wet this morning.  We slept in this morning so did not get an early start.  We took the park bus back out to Savage River and hiked the Savage River Alpine Trail.  It was about 4.2 miles  but we started by climbing about 1700 feet.  We took our time and, as the trail was not busy, we had most of the scenery to ourselves.  When we topped out, we were above tree line and very low vegetation.  A perfect place for ground squirrels and pika, a small animal that prefers high, rocky locations.  It took us about 2 1/2 hours to do the trail but when on top, the views were fantastic.  We stopped at a rock to eat some snacks and we could see Denali way off in the distance.  Clouds would breakup and we could see most of the top then it would cloud over again and we couldn't see any of it.  It was also very windy up on top, some gusts were over 30 mph so we had to be a little careful when walking a fairly narrow ridge.  The slope was not vertical, but in a lot of places it was more than 30 degrees.  We had a great hike.  So far, since Saturday, we have averaged more than 17,000 steps each day so we are getting our exercise.  I thank Boy Scout Troop 355 from Marysville for getting me in shape for all this hiking.

View from half way up on the Savage River Alpine Trail

Tomorrow will be a less strenuous day as we take the bus out to Eielson Visitors Center. Sparky is enjoying all the time in the camper because he doesn't rest much on the road.  Till next time and hopefully pictures.