Day 5 pt. 1 - Denali Sled Dogs!

This is the day Holden had been waiting for. Early in planning this trip, we learned that the Denali NP has its own sled dog team and keeps a kennel in the park. Holden could not wait to meet them. Then in May we saw on Instagram that a new litter of puppies had been born in the kennel and that there was a Puppy Cam. Holden has been obsessed ever since.

Walking up to the kennel we first saw all the grown dogs with their own log house kennels. Then, as we made our way to the puppy kennel, Holden's spirit left his body and entered Nirvana when he saw all the puppies curled up and sleeping one by one on the steps. The puppies were adorable and he was beaming just looking at them.

We watched a short demo of the dogs running as a team and learned more about the program. After the demo, the big bus groups left and both boys had a chance to pretty much watch the puppies all on their own. They were both so happy and delighted.

After we said goodbye to the sled dogs, we grabbed a few things at the gift shop, ate our picnic lunch then headed for one last hike at the park around Horseshoe Lake. The water was so clear and pristine. The trail led down along the Nenana River, where we got a good preview for our next activity later in the day: Whitewater Rafting!Read more