Friday, July 5, 2019

2019 Alaska - Denali to Fairbanks

We had a leisurely start to our day, as nothing was scheduled until our 2:15 departure to Fairbanks. After breakfast we took the shuttle into Denali to hike a couple of trails and then walk back to our lodge. 

Compared to other National Parks like Rocky Mountain, Denali has a pretty sparse trail system. There are a few trail heads in the vicinity of the visitors center, but the vast majority of the park is true wilderness. People with backcountry permits are assigned a zone in which they can camp, and need to navigate with a topographical map. Sometimes people get lost, and search and rescue operations are launched to find them. We stuck to established trails near the park entrance, so no worries.

We hiked to this suspension bridge which was recently rebuilt. Sled dogs hauled the construction materials to the site.





We also hiked the Horseshoe Trail down to a lake built by overly diligent beavers. 


The beavers had built a succession of dams across a creek, and decimated a lot of the trees surrounding the lake.





A moose, looking a lot like a bay horse, swam across the lake.




Fireweed is in full season for a week or two.

It was overcast this morning, with low lying clouds. Perfect for hiking, though not so good for Denali sightings. We're glad our tundra wilderness tour was yesterday.



It's the Fourth of July, but we'll see no fireworks tonight. First of all, I don't think it gets dark enough for good fireworks. Secondly, that's all become moot as the drought has necessitated a ban on outdoor fires. and fireworks. Thirdly, I went to bed at 10.

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