Along the Alaska Range towards Denali National Park

03.09.2014

Wake up again at 6.00am. It takes a really long time with the time change... At 8.00am, we are standing by a small lake, photographing the morning light and an incredible cloud formation in the rising sun.

Breakfast is at McDonald's! At Walgreens, I buy what I should bring to Berlin, who knows where the next drugstore will be found. At Fred Meyer, we buy food for 2 days, because we have to bring everything for the two-day tours in Denali. There is no cafe or anything in Denali. You can only refill your water bottle.

In the sun and initially 55°F (13°C), we roll on the Parks Highway towards the north. Just behind Wasilla, there is a thick wall of fog and it immediately gets colder. Oh no - please don't have such weather at Denali...

But eventually it clears up and the temperature rises to 60°F (almost 16°C). We have an incredible view of Mount McKinley, which others probably rarely have. The top of the nearly 6,200m high mountain, the highest in North America, is almost cloudless.

To the left of us is the Alaska Range, and to the right, a mountain range can also be seen. The colors are incredible with yellow-colored poplars, green firs, and red herbs and bushes against a blue sky and snow-covered mountains.

A moose stands somewhere right next to the road in a puddle and is not disturbed by our photographs. Great! So close!

We stop at Denali Lookout South and enjoy the fantastic panorama. We soon pass a wide valley, more like a plateau, covered with glowing red fireweed, behind it, yellow-colored autumn leaves, high mountains with snow, and an infinitely blue sky. This is the most amazing feast for the eyes.

Denali Lookout South

We only reach the entrance of Denali National Park at 4.30pm and drive to the Wilderness Access Center, where you can pick up the tour tickets.

We have booked two days of tours with a shuttle bus. You can get off these buses wherever you want, the ticket is valid until a certain point. There are fixed stops for those who don't want to wander off the beaten path. For tomorrow, we plan to take the "short" tour to Eielson Visitor Center, a tour that takes 4 hours with 3 bathroom breaks for a one-way distance of about 60km. Considering this, while watching the movie at this Visitor Center, we consider doing the "short" tour again for the day after tomorrow instead of the longer one booked for 12 hours on the bus. They actually exchange our tickets for free because we are still 24 hours before departure. We briefly drive to the larger Visitor Center nearby and ask the ranger there where we will see which animals along tomorrow's route. Of course, it's not predictable, but they have experience with it.

We take a short detour along the publicly accessible road in the park with a beautiful view of the valley and mountains, and then we turn back. We are about 800m high here. We live about a 20-minute drive from the park entrance at the Denali Park Hotel. An out-of-service railroad car serves as the reception. The rooms are located in flat buildings with a parking lot in front of each room. Very practical. The view is of the forest and mountains - quite nice.

The room is okay. We drive to Otto Lake, about 1.5 miles away, and have dinner at Diamond Grill. Delicious salmon and then a great alpenglow outside the door. In the hotel, we quickly pack our things for tomorrow, set the alarm for 5.30am and go to sleep.

Distance traveled: 230 miles/370 km