DENALI NATIONAL PARK

 

 

Catching up on a part of our Alaska summer that I wasn't able to blog much about at the time.  Either because we were too busy, too tired, or there was no Internet.  Or all of the above.

 

We stayed in Denali in mid-July.   Dall sheep were just one of the animals we saw there for the first time.

 

 The scenery all along the road was beautiful, even though we were not among the lucky one-third of Denali visitors who get to see Mt McKinley shining in the sun.   Clouds hung over these lower peaks  ... and  raincoats were the costume of the day.    

 We stayed at Teklanika Campground while we were there.  At 29 miles up the road, it is the furthest place where you can drive a private vehicle.  From there we took the Park Service bus along the rest of the road through the Park.   

It's a hop-on/hop-off, so at any time you can get off to spend some time exploring or hiking.  (Just hailing the next bus when you're ready to go further or go back to camp).

 

The first day,  we took the bus straight through to the end of the trail at Kantishna, the site of a reconstructed miner's cabin from a brief gold rush in the early 1900s. 

  This ride was  an all-day excursion with several planned stops and frequent spontaneous ones for wildlife sightings.

The second day, we rode just part of the way stopping for a while to explore and spend some time at the Visitor Center, which is about half-way up the road.

  All of our drivers were great about waiting for wildlife photo stops as long as they could stop in a safe place.

  This was the cause of one of those stops -- and I was proud to be the first person on the bus to spot this grizzly guy and shout out.    

It's kind of  funny to hear the shouts "bear on the left", "moose on the right", etc.  Sometimes you hear "oops, rock bear".  Once somebody yelled "mosquito in the bus".  

More wild Denali animals in a future post.

This weekend,  I am linking to SCENIC WEEKENDS (thank you to Gemma) and to SATURDAY CRITTERS (thanks to Eileen).  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comments

[Linda]

WOW! That is stunning! Are you starting to see Autumn there? It's starting here...every day more so!

Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com

[NatureFootstep Memes]

such a beautiful country! Love all about it. And cute animals too. Thanks for sharing :)

[Mary]

Such an impressive landscape! Absolutely gorgeous!

[Carver]

Fantastic shots from Denali. What an amazing state Alaska is.

[DeniseinVA]

Incredible photos Sallie. The scenery is breathtaking and seeing all that amazing wildlife. I would be over the moon on this trip. Hopefully I will get out there one day. It has been on my bucket list for a very long time. Thank you for visiting my blog and leaving such sweet comments. I appreciated them so much. Happy traveling and I look forward to your next post when you get a connection.

[Janice]

Beautiful scenery and wonderful feeling to be so close to nature.

[Karen, Pixel Posts]

Wow, what fabulous scenery. I love that one of Mt McKinley .

[Penelope Puddlisms]

Truly beautiful shots of a massive landscape! What would a trip be without the chatter and humor of fellow passengers? Mosquito on bus … how funny would it be if someone photographed that?

[Stewart M]

Conservationist or no, any mosquito on my bus would be dealt with rather harshly!

What a wonderful looking place.

Cheers - Stewart M - Melbourne

[Lady Fi]

So many animal sightings - how lovely! Had to laugh about the mosquito on the bus though.

[Yogi]

Great shots, I love the sheep and the grizzly bear.

[Ida P. Krause]

This would be fantastic to do in person. Those Sheep are so cool looking and how exciting that you spotted the bear.

[Rajesh]

Beautiful shots of the place. Very scenic.

[Christian]

A wonderful place and great animals.

[June]

Breathtaking! How fun that you were able to experience this beautiful part of the country! We were just watching a program on Denali on PBS!

[Sondra-SC]

I know this is one summer you won't soon forget! I've enjoyed my virtual trip along with you! The photos are awesome!

[ken schneider]

You were lucky getting close enough to those sheep for a decent photo. I could hardly tell the rams from the ewes in the flocks we saw while there a couple of weeks before you. We camped 3 nights at Camp Denali in Kantishna the second time we visited Denali. Wonderful experience, but I won't rub it in about how we saw the mountain every day (oops I said it!).

[Michelle]

those are some lucky critters to live in a more pristine environment

[Dianne]

I will probably never get to Denali, although my neighbor sports a bumper sticker that reads, I climbed nunatak. I asked him what that was and he said it was in Denali. I take it that it is a mountain? Too bad you did not see Mt McKinley. I have seen the Alps and I think they might be as high or higher. Also those mts. On the big island of Hawaii. Very impressive.

[Hazel]

Have just watched the video "Heartbeat of Denali" after Googling the name of the Visitors' Centre video. No wonder you are staying in Alaska as long as possible to see and experience as much as possible!

[EG CameraGirl]

A dream vacation!

[artmusedog and carol]

Fantastic photography of a beautiful part of the country and love all the animal shots for SC ~ Happy 'Trails' to you !

artmusedog and carol (A Creative Harbor)

[Alexa T]

Alaska... so lovely pics with magnificient and amazing views, landscapes and sights, also!! Hope you'll post more.. i know it's hard...too busy, no free time or energy, or the PC is too slow, as well! All the best!

[Eileen]

Hello Sallie, I love your Dall Sheep. I would love seeing the wildlife from Denali..The Grizzly Bear is cool. And the mountains views and scenery there is gorgeous!
Thanks so much for linking your post with my critter party.. Have a happy weekend!

BTW, congrats on being first this week. The linky for my critter party starts at 12:30 Am Eastern time. Thanks for the comment.

[Mary Howell Cromer]

That would be an amazing adventure and your image shares are great!

[Marie]

Such amazingly gorgeous scenery! Mt.McKinley is so beautiful! And love the Dall sheep shots and the Grizzly--glad he wasn't a rock bear! :-)

[Gunilla]

Beautiful scenery and wonderful critters. Maybe not the mosquitoes though.

[Hazel]

I get your blog a day late! There seems to be something new and stunning round every corner. The animal photos especially, are super!,,

[orchid]

As I was born in the sheep year, I checked 'Dall Sheep' with picture page :-) I was impressed by thier outstanding horns♪ I'm happy for your great bus tour at Denali, Sallie. It must be fun to enjoy wild life by these flexible type of bus. Yey, first person to spot grizzly guy♡♡♡ I enjoyed the fun atmosphere during the ride.

Sending Lots of Love and Hugs from Japan to my Dear friend in America, xoxo Miyako*

[Gaelyn]

Denali is so on my list, whether I see the mountain or not. From what I've heard about the size of the mosquitoes there I'd be shouting about them too. But the bear is a much better sighting.

[Aimee]

LOVED those Dall sheep! Very nice:)
Blessings,
Aimee

[SandyCarlson]

That America consistently tells its story on brown signs like the ones here tells us we can do something consistently all over the place-and that our story is in some ways simple and timeless and available to everybody. Love it. That goat is my new angel!

[Rainfield M Penang]

So, You mean that you have sharp eyes. Haha...

And no, You got me this time.

I have no knowledge about that, thus I never consider them edible.

That's always safe.

[Amy]

wow stunning scenery!

[Felicia]

the dall sheep are gorgeous as is the scenery.

[Gemma Wiseman]

Splendid mountain colours. And the mountain sheep could almost pass as mountain goats. Intriguing photos. A beautiful place.

[Hildred Finch]

We have Dall sheep here in the Similkameen, - come and see them!!!!

[TexWisGirl]

those buses sound like a lot of fun! rock bear - haha. :)

that scenery shot is gorgeous.

[diane]

I think you did extremely well bogging during such an exciting trip. I find that I have to wait until I'm home before I have the time. The hop on hop off bus sounds a great idea and lots of fun spying wildlife or not. The scenery is breathtaking clouds or not.
In answer to your comment: Patients don't have to walk up the steps to see their doctor
There is a road way that goes around for a gentler walk or to drive and there is a big car park on the street or there is an elevator from the railway station to the street level but it is still a bit of a slope.

[Barb]

What views you had - and bonus critters! My friend, Di, spent a summer driving one of those buses at Denali. She has good stories.

[Tom The Backroads Traveller]

WOW! Talk about a scenic weekend. Great, thanks for sharing. Tom The Backroads Traveller