Day 2 in Denali

Got up early today to head out to see puppies. We went out to Homestead which is Jeff Kings place, who is 4 time Iditarod winner. Got to hold 5 week old puppies most of whom howled for their breakfast. they were so cute. Next we got introduced to the adult dogs and were given demonstrations on training, socialization, and naming practices. Each year they breed one to two litters. Each litter puppies are named by subject, like Greek gods, or sandwiches, or characters from a movie. The litter they had this year were named for famous explorers. Next we heard stories of what it is like to run the Iditarod. It’s quite the sport. Then at the end, Jeff came and we were able to hear some of his stories and ask questions.

After the dogs, we went into Denali park visitors center and walked one of the shorter trails, then ate lunch. Then we took a bus tour out to Mile 15 of the park. It started to rain but luckily, if was just one of those brief showers then the sun came back out. We did see another Moose, and a caribou which was quite far away. Tried to spot some Dall sheep but didn’t see any. We were able to spot Mt Denali through the clouds. Was not the best viewing but we could see it 70 miles away. The Mountain View’s were spectacular.
After returning to the hotel, Paul had arranged for us to go to a dinner show. This was located on the property of the hotel. It was served family style with salmon, ribs beans, corn, salad, and a berry cobbler. Then the entire waitstaff entertained us with stores of early life in Denali. It was very well done.
Getting to bed early tonight as we are getting a bit worn out.Read more