Setting up camp, Carlos Cabins south of Denali National Park
Mt McKinley (Denali), from Alaska Highway
Mt McKinley (Denali), from Alaska Highway
Store, Talkeetna
Flowers, Talkeetna
Mt McKinley (Denali), from Talkeetna
Our fellow travellers for the next three weeks duly assembled in the foyer of our hotel at 7.30 am and after general introductions and some administrative formalities our leader Charlie coordinated the loading up of our mini-bus and trailer. Apart from our leader Charlie, there are thirteen visitors of whom eleven are Australians, one is German and one is a Hungarian Canadian. The bus we’re using is jammed packed with no spare room and very little leg room too and we’re towing a fully enclosed trailer the size of a small horse-float in which are our big bags, tents, eight large food eskies and other general supplies. We left Anchorage at 8.30 and headed north on the main highway that links Anchorage to Fairbanks. The blue skies and temperate conditions gave everyone a sense of optimism as we headed into sparsely populated areas dominated by boreal forest, taiga and numerous small lakes. The boreal forest that covers much of the Alaskan mainland is dominated by birch trees interspersed with spruce. The low lying areas are poorly drained and are typified by taiga which is bog dominated by spindly black spruce. The permafrost, starting a metre or two below the surface prevents deep root penetration and many of the spruce trees struggle to withstand the strong winter winds. Our first stop was at Talkeetna where with bright blue skies the view across the Talkeetna River was dominated by a snow capped Mt. McKinley (locally referred to as “Denali”). This is the highest mountain peak in North America. We wandered through the very touristy township of Talkeetna and observed numerous giant mobile homes some towing vehicles behind. Many are apparently owned or hired by USA citizens from southern states heading up the Alaska Highway to enjoy cooler summer months in these high latitudes. We partook of a local delicacy; namely reindeer sausages served in a chilli sauce. Incidentally, when this meat is consumed in Alaska, it is referred to as reindeer but when the animal is seen running across the tundra it is called a caribou! We then headed off further north stopping on a few occasions for further photo opportunities of Mt. McKinley. Eventually we arrived at Carlos Cabins which are situated just to the south of Denali National Park. This was to be our home for the next three nights and very quickly we all pitched our tents and set up camp. Across the road was a local pizza place and pub and we all headed over for a pleasant de-brief on the day’s activities. When we returned to our tent at nearly 11 o’clock and it was still broad daylight. Before kipping down for the night we had to store all foodstuff and other attractants in the locked trailer to discourage the local bears from attempting to wreck our night’s sleep! Tomorrow we spend the day inside Denali National Park.