The Kenai Peninsula, especially around the Kenai River, is world famous for salmon fishing. Each summer, thousands upon thousands of anglers from all over the world descend upon the Kenai Peninsula to fish the Kenai River and its tributaries, in the hopes of catching salmon.…Read More

The Kenai Peninsula, especially around the Kenai River, is world famous for salmon fishing. Each summer, thousands upon thousands of anglers from all over the world descend upon the Kenai Peninsula to fish the Kenai River and its tributaries, in the hopes of catching salmon. That includes us.

The Kenai River is easily reachable via the Sterling Highway. Cooper Landing, along the Sterling Highway, is one of the more popular places to get onto the river and start fishing. It’s where the Kenai River meets Kenai Lake. The banks of the river are deep with anglers fully engaged in "combat fishing." Combat fishing is where anglers crowd the banks of the river to fish, jockeying for position, sometimes they are as close as 5-10 feet away from each other. Unfortunately, sometimes the combat becomes literal as the close proximities and hooks flying around create short tempers. But regardless, salmon fishing is usually a fun and relaxing activity. Just don't forget the fishing license, as the fish and game do check licenses. You can easily buy a license almost anywhere, convenience stores, lodges, supermarkets, some gas stations, etc.

Starting around early July through the end of July, king salmon make their run up the Kenai River. In late July to early August, the sockeye, or red salmon make their runs. Known for their distinctive red flesh, the red salmon are usually caught using flies, as lures nor bait attract them. Starting in August, the silver salmon make their runs. The silvers are known for being ferocious fighters. Not only can you fish for silvers along the Kenai and its tributaries, but they are also found along the edges of Resurrection Bay, near Seward. At around the same time as the silver salmon run, pink salmon also show up.

I’m very fortunate that my family keeps a cabin on the Kenai River near mile marker 44. Our cabin directly backs to the river, giving us direct access to wade out behind our cabin to fish. When we feel like fishing, we put on the hip boots or waders and wander into the Kenai River. Personally, I find that fishing in the morning hours before 11 AM and fishing after 8 PM seem to be the best hours. I’ve been told that the fish make themselves scare during the middle of the day, as during these hours, the fish are more visible in the water to natural predators, such as bears and eagles. I do find the morning and evening hours, I do catch more salmon. Most of my salmon were caught around 11 PM to 12:30 AM. Remember, this is Alaska in the summertime, and there’s still fairly abundant sunlight at this time.

One thing I really like about fishing is that it does immerse you in nature. There are always birds around, especially seagulls. Somewhere around our cabin, a bald eagle makes its home. There's also a baby bald eagle that poaches our fish every now and then. When we fish, we sometimes leave the fish we've caught sitting on the bank of the river until we come in and start to gut and clean them. One day, a baby bald eagle, came and stole one. It wasn't strong enough to fly away with the fish, so it ate part of it and flew off. The baby bald eagle's "hood" feathers hadn't turned into the signature white hood yet.

There are so many places to fish for salmon, the Kenai is the main river, there’s the Russian River, Funny River, Kasilof and Swanson Rivers. There are numerous fishing lodges and charters in the area, as well as in the town of Soldotna, where the Kenai flows through. People really do come from all over to fish here. While I was in Soldotna, I spoke with a group of guys from Germany that had been coming to fish the Kenai River for several years now.

There are plenty of ways to fish, the cheapest is to put on waders and enter at a public area, like Cooper Landing, where they combat fish. If you have a boat, you can launch out and fish from the boat or anchor near the sides of the river and hop out into the water to fish. If you have some money, you can do a fly in fishing trip. Either way, this is a fun activity, and a good way to connect with nature. It's very scenic on the Kenai, and there is a lot to see, from beautiful landscapes, to eagles and other wild creatures. There’s no guarantee you’ll catch anything, as its dependent on when the salmon runs come in. But if you do catch fish, it can be a lot of fun and very rewarding. Thousands upon thousands of people think so.
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I'm writing this to help others who are looking to stay at the Denali National Park entrance area, which is just outside the park. It seems that most visitors to the park will end up staying in this area. Although modern technology gives us satellite…Read More

I'm writing this to help others who are looking to stay at the Denali National Park entrance area, which is just outside the park. It seems that most visitors to the park will end up staying in this area. Although modern technology gives us satellite and drive by maps, it was still difficult for my friends and I to figure out what to expect until we arrived.

If you’re not camping in Denali National Park (DNP) then a good portion of your stay will be probably be spent just outside of DNP by the entrance area. The DNP entrance area, also called the Nenana River Canyon, is home to seasonal accommodations, as well as shops, restaurants, and activities. The Nenana River Canyon lodges are the most convenient, as they’re close enough to walk into DNP. But for those who don’t like to walk, there are regular shuttles from most lodges into DNP. The George Parks Highway runs straight through the middle of the Nenana River Canyon area.

The four large lodges in the area are the Denali Princess Wilderness Lodge, McKinley Chalet Resort, Grande Denali Lodge, and the Denali Bluffs Hotel. While some of these lodges either belong to or are partnered up with cruise companies, you can still schedule a stay at these lodges, independent of the cruises. I noticed these cruise company affiliated lodges seem to have the most regular hourly shuttles to and from DNP. There are smaller lodges in the area as well as hostels which have shared shuttle service to DNP.

On the east side of the Parks Highway are the shops and restaurants. Most of these shops and restaurants are on a nice elevated boardwalk. I do recommend some of these restaurants, such as Prospectors Pizzeria and Alehouse. There is a Subway sandwich shop which is open 24 hours, making it a good source of sandwiches for the DNP Discovery Hikes, as other restaurants open too late in the morning. There is a nice little ice cream shop with various local flavors, such as huckleberry ice cream. There is a nice coffee shop which also makes sandwiches, a photo processing shop is there for those that still use film, or want to print out their digital photos. There are also two small markets. The prices in these stores are quite expensive, as outside of any mini-marts in the lodges, these two small markets are pretty much the only markets available to buy groceries and snacks. Also included in the shops are various restaurants, and shops for rafting and off road adventures, as well as aerial tours of the Denali area. Our Nenana River rafting adventure started out here, as well as the shuttle to our off road ATV adventure.

Looking around the Nenana River Canyon area, Mount Healy and the Nenana River sit immediately to the west. The town of Healy is about 10 minutes up the road to north. We would end up at Healy for a few activities, as well as the 49th State Brewing Company for a really good dinner. Looking south along George Parks Highway, the entrance to DNP is about 1.5 miles from the center of the area, and many people make the scenic and easy walk down the trail to and from the park. We noticed that there is a point on that trail where the various rafting companies set up and board the rafts.

We made a few interesting observations of the area. We found ourselves far enough north in latitude that there is barely any darkness, maybe two hours in July. The rest of the time is very bright twilight, most of the time it’s bright enough to read a book outside. This makes for interesting nightlife as you can still do a lot with the extended daylight. 8pm feels like 3pm. Workers tell us that in June, around the solstice, the sun does set, but barely below the horizon, and there is no darkness, just really bright twilight. That would be an interesting sight to see.

It was a bit breezy at times, as it's a canyon area. Plus there was intermittent drizzle. I suggest sweaters, a waterproof jacket, hat that covers the ears, and maybe even gloves. If you're going to hike around outside, I'd recommend mosquito spray or lotion. You could encounter wildlife, as our shuttle bus encountered moose a few times. I'd advise a whistle or something to scare off wildlife should you encounter them while hiking around.

Various workers have told us that the Nenana Canyon Area is basically closed down during the winter, and only starts to come to life around early May. This is when workers arrive to prepare the lodges and businesses for the imminent arrival of the tourists when the lodges open around mid-May. Then town closes down around September when the lodges close down. A lot of these workers are either students, some locals from surrounding areas, and nature enthusiasts who use the job as a means of financing their hiking treks. Our rafting guide was a medical student who goes either hiking or kayaking in the evening after his rafting job. But I must that regardless of the business, all of the workers were very professional, nice, and efficient, and kudos to them and their management. They really did make our time in the area a really wonderful one.
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The cruiseships dock along the main business street. The way the town fills in the space between dock and Mount Roberts. It is a very narrow space and the mountain with waterfalls makes a lovely background. If you have the time and inclination, hop on…Read More

The cruiseships dock along the main business street. The way the town fills in the space between dock and Mount Roberts. It is a very narrow space and the mountain with waterfalls makes a lovely background. If you have the time and inclination, hop on the Mt. Roberts Tramway for awesome views of the city and Inland Passage. Juneau is wet, either raining, misting or foggy. The town plans for that well with canopied walkways, but bring a rain coat and use an umbrella when the crowds are thinner. We did not venture to the State Capitol Grounds, but we heard grumblings that a certain lady governor, never went there either. Just like other Alaskan port cities the shopping area has a disproportionate amount of jewelry stores. We did find one interesting shop, Cariloha, that sold products made from bamboo. I bought bath towels that are very soft, dry fast and cool. Russian influence from Alaska's past is cherished here and most shops have nesting Matreskha dolls. They can be quite expensive. I waited until the last day of our cruise when the on board Russian art went on sale and I bought a nesting set with a Christmas tree as the largest figure. Very happy with that. Jade is the Alaska state gem stone and we found many fine jade carvings to choose from. We had fun photo ops with bears and lady governors. Did hear when we were back on board that a mama bear and two cubs were prowling the garbage cans just uphill from the shopping area.   Close

Ketchikan was our first port, pop. 14,000 mainly dependent on fishing, logging and tourism. The area is rich in Native American culture with strong influnce from the Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshan cultures.I was ready to go ashore as soon as the boat was tied up.…Read More

Ketchikan was our first port, pop. 14,000 mainly dependent on fishing, logging and tourism. The area is rich in Native American culture with strong influnce from the Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshan cultures.
I was ready to go ashore as soon as the boat was tied up. My husband wanted to wait until the time for our shore excursion. I left him and set out for a walk about.
I considered attending service at the Lutheran Church of Ketchikan, but after looking at the flight of stairs I would have to climb, I figured the service would be over before I got there. At the shop next to the dock I did find a $1 coke machine and took a stash of coke cans back to the stateroom. Also found trinkets and post cards.
The harbor was abuzz with float planes and eagles.
Both were interesting to watch.
In the afternoon we were dropped off (by our tour guide from the shore excursion) near Creek Street. This notorious section of Ketchikan was once lined with brothels. Bill rested on a bench near the start of the Creek Street board walk. He chatted with a local character and his dog. I went in search of food and drink. Came up with a coffee shop for lattes and sinfully rich muffins for our noontime meal.
We visited Dolly's House, a museum of a brothel. There were romanticized pictures of Dolly at several ages, and by golly she held her looks for a long time. The men of Ketchikan must have been kind to her. Her house was overfilled with trashy trinkets...some we recognized from houses of our elderly relatives. There was a hidden bar in a hall wall, left over from prohibition days. Dolly also had a secret backdoor entrance for the married men to sneak in unobserved.
Most of the other brothels on Creek street are now shops. We visited a few before returning to the ship.   Close

We left the Beach House and Seward in the morning, en route to Homer and the Sadie Cove Wilderness Lodge. The drive traces a good part of the Kenai Peninsula, a fairly rugged area with thick forests and mountains meeting the sea. There…Read More

We left the Beach House and Seward in the morning, en route to Homer and the Sadie Cove Wilderness Lodge. The drive traces a good part of the Kenai Peninsula, a fairly rugged area with thick forests and mountains meeting the sea. There are plenty of good spots along the way for hiking or picnicking. We didn’t have too much of a chance to stop though, as we had to catch a water shuttle in Homer. We ate lunch at Odie’s Deli in Soldotna and then continued along to Homer. We had been advised by Sadie Cove that we should get fishing licenses and bait in Homer to have for our time at the Lodge. To keep a King Salmon, it’s necessary to have a separate stamp on the license. They were fairly expensive, so we only got them for the day we planned to do a King charter in Soldotna on the trip back. For the lodge, we were told we’d be more likely to catch a halibut. Frozen herring is apparently the bait of choice for halibut, so we grabbed a bag and hoped for the best. We hauled all of our gear down a steep ramp to the water taxi. After we were loaded up, we headed out of the harbor and out onto the bay. Because so many of the areas near Homer are only accessible by boat, there were quite a few water taxi companies in town. We settled in and admired the scenery on the way out. The lodge owners, Keith and Randi, and their summer help, were waiting for us on the rocky shore next to the lodge. We pulled in, unloaded our gear, and were given a tour around the Lodge. It was a warm day (by coastal Alaska the upstairs rooms (with a great view overlooking the water) and Laura’s parents were adjacent to the dining area. We had a great salmon dinner that evening and did some fishing for salmon from shore. Apparently the wind was too strong to go out to the floating dock and fish for halibut. We didn’t have any bites, so we went up to our rooms to settle in for the evening.   Close

Laura and Richard drove into the Kenai Fiords National Park for a day of hiking. The park’s only road ends at the visitor center near the base of Exit Glacier. There are several shorter walks around the visitor center that go up near…Read More

Laura and Richard drove into the Kenai Fiords National Park for a day of hiking. The park’s only road ends at the visitor center near the base of Exit Glacier. There are several shorter walks around the visitor center that go up near the glacier. A much longer walk climbs up the mountain to the base of the Harding Icefield. We took this trail and were treated to some incredible views of the glacier, the valley, and the surrounding mountain ranges. It was quite impressive getting a view of the glacier from above. We stopped for a break and saw some dots out on the glacier. We got out the binoculars and saw some hikers far away making slow progress up the ice sheet. On the other side of the glacier, we saw something moving much more quickly. We noticed that it was a black bear barreling along. We marveled at the ease at which it handled the uneven terrain. It covered the ground quickly and in little time, it was out of sight in the brush on the other side of the glacier. We climbed up the trail and encountered more and more snow as we got up higher. It was mid July, but not far removed from early spring in that area. Laura stopped at an overlook about 2/3 of the way up and Richard continued to the end. The trail goes over a flat area before making one final climb just past an emergency shelter. It was almost entirely covered by snow and it took some care to make sure I didn’t sink into a deep snow bank. At the top, there is an incredible panoramic view of the icefield. The glacier broadens out and stretches as far as the eye can see. Looking back toward the trailhead, it’s possible to see the glacier valley and all of the surrounding mountains. After taking about half a CF card worth of pictures (to make sure every angle and exposure were covered), Richard returned down the trail and re-joined Laura at the overlook. We encountered more people as we approached the shorter trails near the visitor center. After returning to the Beach House, we met up with Laura’s parents and had a fantastic dinner at the Exit Glacier Salmon Bake. It has a well recognized sign out front that says "Cheap Beer and Lousy Food". The food was great (featured fresh salmon and halibut) and the local Alaska microbrews were fantastic. It really hit the spot after a long day hiking.   Close

Richard, already a single-engine land pilot and flight instructor, took a sea-plane lesson in a Piper Super Cub on floats. Located in Moose Pass (about 30 miles inland from Seward), Alaska Float Ratings offers seaplane instruction for pilots, as well as sight-seeing flights for…Read More

Richard, already a single-engine land pilot and flight instructor, took a sea-plane lesson in a Piper Super Cub on floats. Located in Moose Pass (about 30 miles inland from Seward), Alaska Float Ratings offers seaplane instruction for pilots, as well as sight-seeing flights for everyone that tour around the Kenai Peninsula. Seaplanes provided an entirely different kind of flying experience. Getting into the small plane (even by single engine standards) was way more involved than opening the door and stepping in. A good part of my first lesson was spent learning how to balance on the float and pull myself into the small front-seat cabin. The instructor sat in the back. After my struggle getting in, it was impressive to watch the instructor deftly cross the small cable in the front to do the pre-flight check on the other side. The instructor pushed us off the dock and we started the engine as we floated away. Unlike on land, where you have the luxury of starting the engine while stationary, in a seaplane you need to have a strategy in advance for where the plane is going when you start up. Everything happens quickly – you can be drifting towards rocks or another plane in no time. After we got out on open water, I got some experience handling the plane on the surface before we did our first takeoff. The instructor walked me through the sequence and I was able to handle it without much trouble. The scenery was absolutely incredible. We could see snow-capped peaks in every direction as we passed over the dense forest a few hundred feet below. We flew low over a few ridges and set up for some landings on a nearby lake. It took some practice learning the technique, but I was starting to do a few on my own (with a close eye from the instructor) by the end of the lesson. We landed back at Trail Lake and the instructor parked the plane at the dock. After a short walk down the road and an excellent lunch at Trail Lake Lodge, it was time for my second lesson. I was able to get into the plane a bit easier than the first time. We took off and headed for another nearby lake. After the first landing, we shut the engine down to enjoy the quiet of the wilderness for a few minutes. Used to taxiing around busy airports with airplanes everywhere, it was a nice change of pace to only have to watch that we didn’t get too close a loon drifting near the shoreline. From there, we took off and headed over to Bench Lake. It would take all day to hike there, but we arrived in just a few minutes. At Bench Lake, I had a chance to really work on my landings. After several times, I started to get more reliable as I learned how to use peripheral cues to judge height, being careful to add power at the right time to avoid dropping in too hard. On one of the circuits around the lake, my instructor saw a moose peeking out through the high grass. After several more landings, it was time to head back to Trail Lake. I made a decent landing and my instructor had me handle more of the parking maneuver back at the dock. It should seem obvious that seaplanes don’t have brakes, but the practical impact of this became apparent when the instructor cautioned that we’d need to cut off the engine early enough to make sure we didn’t float into the expensive seaplane parked at the dock ahead of us. I took her warning to heart and ended up cutting off the engine too early, leaving us floating back from the dock, with no chance to reach it without re-starting the engine, only to cut it off a few seconds later. We went back inside and I had the privilege of joining some of the other instructors for some bush plane hangar flying (a term used by pilots to talk up the experiences, sometimes harrowing, of prior flights to the amusement, horror, or awe of others in attendance). The other pilots showed some pictures of flights they had done in the Alaska bush and it left me longing to have more time (and money) to complete the seaplane rating. That would need to wait for another trip, however. After a great day, I said good-bye to everyone at Moose Pass, and made my way back to Seward to join Laura and her parents.   Close

Amazingly, the bad weather had blown off, and the clouds were clearing. Our last day in the park was going to be another with great views and great photos. We left our bags by the door when the breakfast bell rang (as instructed…Read More

Amazingly, the bad weather had blown off, and the clouds were clearing. Our last day in the park was going to be another with great views and great photos. We left our bags by the door when the breakfast bell rang (as instructed the night before) and headed to our last breakfast at North Face Lodge. Breakfast, as always, was delicious, then we boarded the bus for the ride out of the park.
We stopped by Wonder Lake and Mirror Lake for pictures and stopped again when we came across a 2-year old grizzly walking down the road. We got some very good photos of that bear. We had many more fabulous views of McKinley as we wound our way out of the park. Near the end of the road, we saw our first caribou up close. It was a bull with an incredible rack, and we got more great photos. It was a truly amazing sight.
At the park, we grabbed a quick lunch at the visitor center, which was passable. Richard thought his "Wonder Lake Cheeseburger" was decent. Then we checked in for our train. North Face Lodge transferred our luggage directly to the train. The train ride back should have been as amazing as the ride to Denali, but we were all tired and slept off and on during the trip. We did see King salmon in the river as the train went by, which was pretty amazing that they were big enough to see clearly at speed. We continued to have views of McKinley, slowly shrinking in the distance as we headed back to Anchorage.
When we got back, we caught a cab to the Ramada, checked in, and headed back to the brewpub for dinner. We turned in early.   Close

Day 4The dinner bell summoned us to breakfast. The food was wonderful. Each morning there was a warm cereal (different each morning), cold cereal, and a plated breakfast. The staff took real pride in each meal and explained what we were being…Read More

Day 4

The dinner bell summoned us to breakfast. The food was wonderful. Each morning there was a warm cereal (different each morning), cold cereal, and a plated breakfast. The staff took real pride in each meal and explained what we were being served as the food was brought out. After breakfast, the day’s field trip options were described, and we had to select from the Strenuous, Moderate or "Naturalist Foray" options. The Strenuous option was described as "destination oriented," presumably meaning that come hell or high water you were going to get there. At the other end of the spectrum, was the Naturalist Foray, which was described as a "vehicle-based excursion." Having said that, the naturalist foray was a great opportunity for people with HUGE cameras who wanted to spend a lot of time setting up tripods and taking serious photos.
Richard took the strenuous option and climbed to the top of the ridge behind the lodge and the sister property "Camp Denali". The guide, Matt, was knowledgeable about the animal and plant life and the local history. Matt pointed out a large dug out area likely caused by a frenetic bear digging for a bear burrito. We don’t know if it got it. There were nice views of the Alaska Range and the valley north of the ridge. The group ate lunch at the top of the ridge and watched the clouds move past McKinley.
Laura opted out of the options. She stayed in the room and read, relaxing and enjoying the peace and quiet. Laura’s parents took the Naturalist Foray and reported back that they learned all about the local vegetation, about the differences between dry and wet tundra, and about the geology of the area. They were extremely impressed with the knowledge of their guide.
Dinner was fabulous – fresh salmon. Each meal also had a vegetarian option. Salad greens came from their hot house garden on site, and all of the food was extremely fresh. It was an amazing feat for being so far removed from civilization.
After dinner, Richard and Laura walked down to Wonder Lake again – through the clouds of mosquitoes – and saw scoters and other waterfowl on the lake. We also saw ptarmigan chicks along the side of the road. We went to bed late again after another long, but enjoyable day.

Day 5
Dinner bell for breakfast again. Wonderful breakfast again. Pick a trip again. Richard did the strenuous hike, again. The big difference was the weather. The bright, warm, sunny days were gone. It was cold and rainy. The excursions went much farther into the park than the previous day’s. The strenuous hike walked along the Toklat River and then turned up a valley and climbed on game trails up to a pass. The weather became increasingly worse during the climb. As we climbed higher, the wind picked up, it got colder, and the rain changed to sleet. "I had never hiked in sleet in July before." At times, the wind was strong enough that we had to walk backwards. Drew did a great job of keeping everyone together in low visibility and helping out when people had trouble due to the weather. As we descended down the other side of the ridge, the weather improved, the rain lessened, and it returned to being cool and overcast. The landscape was interesting in that there were no signs of civilization – not even a trail. Hiking in Denali is a very different experience from most National Parks. Elsewhere, you are not supposed to go off the trail. In Denali, there are no trails. Drew explained the geology of the area and identified plant life. We learned at the evening wrap up, that we were the only group not to see any wildlife.
Laura and her parents took the naturalist foray. We saw Dall sheep and lots of grizzlies. The weather was awful, though, and it was difficult to get pictures without getting the camera wet – even with a dry bag. It was cold and very windy at each stop. We also stopped at the Eielson Visitor Center, which features bull antlers locked together. (The moose died stuck together.)
Another good dinner. It was pork – not my favorite – but it was prepared well. I was wishing I had taken the vegetarian option – gnocchi. Another recount of the days’ experiences, instruction on the following day’s check-out procedures, and we headed to the room to start packing.   Close

Richard got up early and went running. Again. There was easy access from the Resort to the Denali Park Entrance area via sidewalks and trails. He did a loop trail (about 7 miles) through the park entrance area and as he got…Read More

Richard got up early and went running. Again. There was easy access from the Resort to the Denali Park Entrance area via sidewalks and trails. He did a loop trail (about 7 miles) through the park entrance area and as he got to a clearing he nearly ran into moose! Although they were initially startled and moved away (he moved away as well), they went back to grazing. He got some great photos of a cow and calf. (Yes, he took the camera running.) He said that they sounded like horses eating. It was an amazing experience seeing such large animals so close.
We ate breakfast at the buffet at the restaurant on site, which had really good breakfast! We had pancakes and sausage and scrambled eggs and fruit and potatoes and biscuits with gravy…you name it. We picked up some groceries at the general store across from the resort, then went back to catch the bus into the park. We hauled our luggage onto bus, then we dropped off the luggage at a kiosk while we did some shopping at the store in the park and went through the visitor center.
We picked up our luggage and went to meet the North Face Lodge bus at the train station. We all visited the bathroom one last time before the long bus ride into the park. (It turns out that there are bathrooms all along the road, so we ended up stopping for several bathroom breaks on the trip.) Our bus driver, Drew, met us and got everyone herded onto the bus and on our way.
Drew provided a continuous narrative on the drive into the park, pointing out substantial information about the mechanics of the bus, the geology of the area, and the wildlife along the way. The weather was spectacular and probably one of the warmest days they had all summer – mid to upper 70s – with scarcely a cloud in the sky. We saw grizzly bears with cubs, bear burritos, wolf pups (which we heard whining for their mothers), bull moose, a cow moose, caribou, and Dall sheep (aka "sheep dots").
The caribou and sheep were very, very high up in the mountains. The sheep were barely visible as more than mere white dots on the green hillsides. Bear burritos are Arctic ground squirrels that make a good appetizer for a hungry bear. We learned that the grizzlies in Denali are much smaller than the grizzlies along the coast – what a difference it makes to have a diet of berries rather than a diet of fat, juicy salmon! (Apparently it takes a lot of work to catch a bear burrito.) Many of the grizzlies in Denali are light colored, almost white, rather than the dark brown so familiar in pictures.
All along the road, off and on, we saw Mt. McKinley growing in the distance. We stopped for dinner near the East Fork of the Toklat River – about half way through the drive. We had pasta salad, salmon, fruit, bread, cheese and lunch meats, PB & J… The food was yummy but not plentiful enough. They ran out before we were full. After waiting for everyone to go (one at a time) to the only restroom (i.e., outhouse), we loaded back onto the bus and continued the ride. Just before Eielson Visitor Center, the road got much narrower as it negotiated the mountain passes. We were impressed with Drew’s ability to maneuver the bus around the tight corners with approaching buses. We were running behind, and the wildlife stops became more rushed. That was when we saw the bull moose wading in a stream, a cow moose in a lake and several species of waterfowl.
Wonder Lake came into view and marked the end of the drive. At that point, Mt. McKinley had grown to dominate the landscape and the entire horizon to the south. We soon arrived at North Face Lodge and learned that we were back at summer camp. We were herded into the main dining hall, where they went through all the rules, explained where gear was available, and where we were supposed to be and when (including the dinner bell summoning for meals). We learned that we would be assigned seats at meals to ensure mingling, that we would select outings from several options each morning, that we would prepare and pack our lunches, and that we would be expected to share our daily experiences with the group at dinner time. Although our hostess was very nice, I think she might be an elementary school teacher in the off-season. We received our room assignments via roll call, and went off to take our luggage into our rooms. (The luggage was left by our doors by the staff while we were in orientation.)
Richard and I headed off on a hike through the tundra to Wonder Lake. Richard thought the mosquitoes were bad, but there was a breeze. I didn’t think it was too bad. Then we got to Wonder Lake and the swarm hit. We walked back along the road, which was sheltered, so there was no breeze, and we walked, completely enveloped in a cloud of mosquitoes the whole way back. There were little mosquitoes and big mosquitoes and loud mosquitoes and quiet mosquitoes – every kind of mosquito you can imagine. Some were the size of quarters or a large horsefly. As far as we could tell, the size didn’t matter if it bit you. It was miserable.
By the time we got back to the Lodge (around midnight), a deep dusk had set in, and Mt. McKinley was a pink glow. The rooms were nice, had private bathrooms with running water (toilets and full shower/tub) and sinks, and had queen beds. We headed off to bed.   Close