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A 16-day adventure by Diane Read more
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  • Diane and DarrylAlaska - Denali to Glacier Bay
    Day 1

    Fairbanks: Museum of the North

    June 12, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 68 °F

    For our first day in Alaska, we got oriented by spending the day at a really great museum run by the University of Alaska at Fairbanks. The scope spanned from natural history (lots of taxidermy animals), cultural heritage (indigenous, gold rush, etc.), more recent history (WWII occupation of the Aleutian chain and oil pipeline) and art—both contemporary and historical.

    There were two films, one on the science behind the aurora borealis and one on bowhead whales. They are strange-looking creatures. Their head is 1/3 the length of their body. The bowhead skeleton in the photo was just put in place just a week before we arrived.

    In the late afternoon we strolled around the very small and quiet city of Fairbanks. Later we had the best-tasting salmon and halibut for dinner (outdoors in the bright sunshine at 7pm).    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAlaska - Denali to Glacier Bay
    1
    Day 2

    Fairbanks to Denali by Rail

    June 13, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 55 °F

    Our 3-1/2 hour train ride in the domed rail car was a spectacular introduction to the land north of Denali National Park. We followed the river most of the way, with snowy mountains in the distance (not Denali). We saw some Dall sheep (massive curled horns) high up on a ridge at one point, and some moose out in a meadow (pretty far away).

    The train dropped us off at Denali where our hotel bus was waiting to bring us all up to the lodge. After lunch we caught the hotel shuttle to the park entrance where we took a 2+ mile hike around Horseshoe Lake. From the train we had seen two moose in the lake but they had moved on by the time we got there. We also saw loads of evidence of beavers but no critters. Very scenic and relaxing day. We’re meeting a couple from Boston for dinner whom we met while on the train.    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAlaska - Denali to Glacier Bay
    11
    Day 3

    Denali - Wow!!

    June 14, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 55 °F

    We had the best luck today with the weather and wildlife sightings. There’s a thing here called the 30% club, meaning that only 30% of the time visitors are fortunate enough to catch a glimpse of Denali. The other 70% of the time it is obscured by clouds. Today it was 100% visible all day, putting us in what our guide called the 10% club.

    Our narrated bus tour took us about 60 miles into the park. Private vehicles can only travel 15 miles into the park, so it was a great way to go. Our driver and many of our fellow passengers were great at spotting critters out the windows. Then driver Joe would maneuver the bus into a good angle for photos. There were only a few animals on our wish list that we didn’t see (the elusive wolf, lynx and fox). But we saw so many more we weren’t expecting to see. Lucky us!

    Animals sightings today: Snowshoe hare, caribou (several sightings), two different moose sightings, two different brown bears (grizzly), a fairly rare gray pika, ravens, magpies, Arctic ground squirrels (look like prairie dogs), and a couple of different Dall sheep. Yay for us!    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAlaska - Denali to Glacier Bay
    Day 4

    Soaring Over Denali

    June 15, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 50 °F

    Darryl and I started the day with a flight-seeing trip over the park. We were in a 6-passenger Piper twin engine plane with a pilot who has flown in Denali for 20 seasons. It was another sparkling clear day and the views were phenomenal! Even the pilot was taking his own photos and remarking on how far we could see. On yesterday’s bus tour, and especially on this flight, our guides pointed out a rarely viewed peak— Mt. Deborah, which is 200+ miles away near Anchorage and usually obscured by clouds.

    While flying near the Denali summit we saw small dots that we could make out as a group of climbers starting up from the 17,000 foot base camp. There was a cluster of maybe 40 tents at that camp perched on a glacier. Denali’s summit is around 20,300 feet, so those climbers were near their goal. There are two other base camps located below for climbers to acclimate.

    Pilot Dan also pointed out ski tracks threading the needle between a smooth powdery surface and a craggy cliff edge — yikes! He is not aware of anyone skiing there ever before (other spots, yes, but not at that elevation). We flew over many of the significant glaciers in the park. Muldrow glacier is currently surging downhill at 3 feet per hour!

    Back on the ground we took an easy 5-mile hike near the visitor center. No animal sightings, but the wildflowers are really coming out—lupine, wild roses and more. We ended the day at our new favorite restaurant (having eaten there the night before), meeting up with a couple from the Boston area who we met on the train, and kept running into on our various activities.    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAlaska - Denali to Glacier Bay
    Day 5

    Back on the Train — to Talkeetna

    June 16, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 50 °F

    We started the day with getting COVID tests for our upcoming Glacier Bay cruise—fun, fun. The cruise company requires both vaccination and a negative test, which makes us feel pretty safe about getting on a small ship with 75 other people.

    Anyway, we boarded our train heading south from Denali to the small town of Talkeetna. If anyone knows the Northern Exposure TV show, this was the quirky town that Cicely, Alaska was modeled on, even though the show was not even filmed in Alaska.

    Talkeetna has lots of charm, along with a river (actually 3 rivers—Talkeetna means ‘where the rivers join’) as well as views of Denali and the rest of the Alaskan Range when the weather permits. Upon arrival it was raining, so no views. That’s ok, our cabin by the river was great, and we liked our dinner bowls at The Enchanted Bowl.    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAlaska - Denali to Glacier Bay
    1
    Day 6

    Talkeetna - Rafting + Avoiding Mosquitoe

    June 17, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 57 °F

    It was nice to have a bit slower start to the day, cooking our breakfast in our 2-bedroom ‘cabin in the woods’ (1/2 mile walk from town). After breakfast we found a route through the woods to avoid the walk on the main road to town (which is a bit like a highway!). It wasn’t long before we pulled out our mosquito net headwear, and slipped on the citronella wristbands and ankle bands (moderately effective). The mosquitoes here are large but slow, so it’s not too hard to swat them away. Still, we did suffer a bit.

    We were planning to take a 4-hour raft (float) trip down the Chulita River, but COVID has really affected staffing in Alaska, so a 2-hour trip on the Talkeetna was it. Our rafting guide was a 16-year old who grew up in Talkeetna, except for a 2-year period when his teacher-mom moved the family to a small indigenous village, and another year or two in Washington state. It was interesting to get some insight on what it’s like to grow up here—lots of fishing and taking dares to jump in the icy river.

    Sadly we didn’t see any wildlife on our float trip. And even the weather didn’t cooperate to see the mountains, but at least the rain stayed away.

    We spent the last part of the afternoon browsing the shops, taking photos of the cute signs and picking up reindeer sausage pizza and wine to take back to our cabin. Near the end of the day the clouds cleared enough for some nice views of the Alaska range, but the mosquitoes drove us inside for a game rather than lingering at the riverside. The constant daylight sometimes makes it hard to remember it’s bedtime, but we’re getting used to it.    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAlaska - Denali to Glacier Bay
    Day 7

    Talkeetna - Biking & Train to Anchorage

    June 18, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 64 °F

    After another breakfast at the cabin, we picked up some rental bikes for a ride on a trail that follows the rail line. The bike shop owner convinced us to try the fat-tire bikes and it was a good idea. The trail was wide, but a bit bumpy in places and we just comfortably bounced over them! The bikes were surprisingly light, so it wasn’t as much work to ride as we thought it would be.

    The Chase Trail goes out to a remote community in the woods (which also borders the river), so we were passed by several rugged individuals on ATVs who were probably going into town (Talkeetna) for supplies.

    We had picked up a picnic lunch the day before, so we found a spot on a gravel beach at the river for lunch.

    Another short stroll around town found us at the ranger station, which is where a lot of the climbers check in before their adventure. Today there were 377 climbers currently on the mountain, and over 1,000 registered to go up.

    We had plenty of time for a homemade ice cream snack before it was time to say farewell to our cabin host and catch our train for Anchorage. The views from the train gave us our last glimpses of Denali and the rest of the mountain range. We also spotted a couple of moose.    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAlaska - Denali to Glacier Bay
    Day 8

    Anchorage—Alaskan Native Heritage Center

    June 19, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 63 °F

    We can’t say we’ve really seen Anchorage, but this trip isn’t about cities. After last night’s chaotic unloading of luggage at the train station—they just forklift crates of luggage out of the train for passengers to plow through to find their bags—we plodded up the hill to get some sleep at our hotel a half mile away. And today after getting a quick breakfast, we got a ride for a day at the Alaskan Native Heritage Center.

    This is a museum about the people of Alaska and how they lived. Nearly all of the tour guides and docents were part of a high school internship program. The museum featured demonstrations of dances and songs, indoor games/sports (what else are you going to do during the long winters?), and the different types of homes, depending upon the region of Alaska.    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAlaska - Denali to Glacier Bay
    Day 9

    Juneau Rain Hike and Aboard Uncruise

    June 20, 2021 in the United States ⋅ 🌧 54 °F

    The next day found us in the state capital of Juneau. This is a remarkably small town - you can't even drive to it without taking a ferry part way. Since we didn’t have to check in with our Uncruise ship until the afternoon, we had most of a day to explore. We started with a walk around the gift shop tourist area of Juneau, and down on the empty cruise ship docks. Because of COVID restrictions, none of the big cruise ships will be in Alaska until mid-July.

    We took a flight of stairs to get above the town, walking along a quiet road and into some of the residential neighborhoods. Eventually the homes ended and we crossed a bridge over the river and returned along a trail following an old flume. The flume was originally for an early hydroelectric plant dating from 1893.

    Rain favored us with its attention—after all this is the Tongas Rain Forest, and we were glad to board our cruse ship and dry off.    Read more

  • Diane and DarrylAlaska - Denali to Glacier Bay
    Day 10

    Funter Bay Kayaking and Bushwhacking

    June 21, 2021 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 52 °F

    After breakfast we loaded into kayaks to explore Funter Bay. The kayaks are on a platform with rollers at the aft of the ship and you get into the kayak with no worries about tipping over. They then just gently push you out into the water (and pull you back up at the end).

    After lunch we went on a hike, but Uncruise rightly calls it bushwhacking, because there are no trails!! Our guide leads the way, with bear spray, and you climb over, under and through the forest. Beware of the stinging plant called Devil's Club! (To join the club, you need to get stung?) We saw bear trails but no bears and were careful not to disturb these trails, and the bears use them for generations to find food.    Read more

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