North to Alaska, Part 2

My happy place!

On a trail at Denali National Park.

We certainly enjoyed the cruise and marveled at all we saw of the inland passage of Alaska, but I am most happy and delighted when on land in beautiful natural locations, and we were treated to lots of that on the land portion of our 18 day excursion with Holland America. When the 7 day cruise ended on Sunday, May 21, we hopped aboard the Alaska Railroad in Whittier and headed to Anchorage for two nights. Following Anchorage we headed to Denali for three nights, then two nights in Fairbanks, two nights in Dawson City, one night in Whitehorse and one night in Vancouver before flying back to San Francisco on June 1. This blog post will recount our land travels in Alaska, and I'll do a separate one about our time in the Yukon and our return to California.

Leaving Whittier.

Looking out the domed window of our train car at the still snowy landscape.

A beautiful ride along the water with mountains on both sides.

Mud revealed by low tide.

A tourist trap along the road next to the railroad tracks.

See the Dall Sheep in the lower right corner?

We arrived in Anchorage in time to find a spot to eat lunch before checking into the hotel. The landscape of Anchorage was quite different than the ports of call we had stopped at on the ship. Those little towns were crowded by mountains, but Anchorage was much more open and level with mountains in the distance so this city of almost 300,000 had a more spread out feel to it. We enjoyed walking around and getting a feel for where we were in the largest city in Alaska, and the area where 60% of Alaska's 733,000 people live. While in Alaska all of our accommodations were owned by Holland America; Westmark Hotels in Anchorage and Fairbanks and the McKinley Chalet Resort at Denali. All of our rooms were spacious and nice, though at Denali and in Fairbanks they were too warm with little way for us to moderate the heat. The endless food of the ship was over with only a couple of our meals paid for on the land portion of the trip, and prices were high for everything.

Our luggage delivered to our hotel room.

Sheila and I named this "magic" on our inn to inn hike in Sweden last spring.

It was wonderful not having to deal with our luggage as we moved from airplane to ship, from ship to train and then hotel, to another hotel, another airport, another hotel, etc. The only inconvenience was occasionally having to have them ready earlier in the morning than we would have liked, but that inconvenience was nothing compared to having someone else schlep the suitcases!

Star the Reindeer.

This Reindeer, a domesticated Caribou, was in a yard in Anchorage not far from our hotel.

We were told at the visitor center that this is the 7th Reindeer named Star to live here.

The Anchorage Visitor Center near our hotel.

Very friendly staff, and they gave us each two postcards and mailed them for free.

If you got a postcard from Anchorage from me, I probably didn't buy it or pay postage!

On Monday morning, May 22, we took a Trolley tour of Anchorage.

Mt. Denali as seen from a stop on our city tour 100 miles distant.

Our tour driver said this was the first time it was visible in May from this location.

This would be the clearest view of the illusive mountain we would see on our visit to Alaska.

Land movement resulting from the 1964 earthquake.

That earthquake was the second strongest ever recorded in the world: 9.4 on the Richter Scale. Our tour guide told us some scary and interesting first hand accounts of that event. I found it an interesting coincidence that this earthquake and the great flooding in California were both in 1964.

In Anchorage with the mountains in the distance.

(The tour guide took our picture)

A vintage aircraft as seen from the trolley as we visited a water "airfield."

Here it is in the water looking a bit awkward, but we watched it take off.

I think this plane is landing.

These small planes are of course a major way of getting around in Alaska.

Notice the "half truck" with the plane in front?

This is how they move the planes around on land when the water pontoons are on.

Rob with a bear in Anchorage.

Outside Alaska's biggest souvenir shop.

I bought some post cards.

How far are you from Anchorage?

Much of the world's commerce flows through Anchorage on cargo planes.

The Anchorage Museum behind the trees.

We enjoyed the afternoon there learning more about Alaska.

Rob trying to lift himself in a museum display.

Rob found a yellow bear in the museum.

We both found a bear.

Me with a bright pink, or is it red, bear.

Circinate Vernation: Fern leaves unfurling outside the museum.

A Magpie as I walked around town.

This is the shop where I bought my most extravagant souvenir of the whole trip.

This business is owned by the Oomingmak Musk Ox Producer's Co-Operative, Indigenous women who gather Qiviut, the inner wool of the muskox, have it milled into yarn, and then knit it into extremely warm garments. I bought enough yarn to make a hat or a neck warmer, the most expensive yarn I've ever purchased, but I was smitten by the women and their story, and the beautiful fiber. Stay tuned for a finished product in the future.

We left Anchorage on Tuesday morning, May 23, to board the Alaska Railroad again for another spectacular train ride in a domed car. The train rides were truly a highlight of the whole trip, and definitely whetted our appetite for future scenic rail adventures. This one was 8 hours long as we headed to Holland America's McKinley Chalet Resort at Denali, but it was very relaxing as we passed through the woodlands between mountains in the vast Alaska landscape. The following pictures were taken from behind the domed windows of our rail car.

The Alaska Railroad Map.

We did the segment from Whittier to Anchorage and then Anchorage to Denali.

We passed through los of forested land.

I heard someone complain about all the trees, but we really enjoyed seeing what some of Alaska woodland looked like as the leaves were first appearing. I found it very special to be in Alaska as spring was just beginning, and now I'd like to see it in summer and fall, not so sure about winter.

The broken up ice on the shoreline of the river we traveled along.

We learned that the spring ice break had happened quite recently.

A view of the grand Mount Denali from the train.

This would be our most spectacular view of the mountain, and our closest.

Here we were less than 50 miles away, but in the park we would be closer to 70 miles away.

A cabin across a still partially frozen lake.

Oh, the beautiful snow covered mountains!

River with mountains behind.

Another view of the river as we crossed a high trestle.

Oh, the mountains!

And the river!

Partially frozen lake and mountains.

The highest point on our train ride to Denali National Park.

More still frozen lake.

Our abode for three nights, McKinley Chalet Resort.

From the Chalet

More view from the Chalet grounds.

At the Chalet.

This sign still reads McKinley National Park, rather than Denali National Park. The history of the name of the mountain and the national park is interesting. The Koyukon Athabaskans who inhabit the area around the mountain have referred to the peak as Denali (meaning high or tall) for centuries. There were other names given to it by other Indigenous people, Russians and other settlers, but in 1896 a gold prospector named it McKinley for then presidential candidate William McKinley. The United States formally recognized the name Mount McKinley in 1917 when the Mount McKinley National Park Act was signed by then President Wilson. The Alaska Board of Geographic Names changed the name to Denali in 1975, but it would take the United States until 2015 to formally and officially name the mountain Denali. The park name changed to Denali National Park in 1980. We heard the mountain sometimes referred to as Mount McKinley by Alaskans since that was the name they had grown up with and used much of their lives.

Early morning, Wednesday, May 24 from the Chalet grounds.

Looking out the window as we ate breakfast in a Chalet Restaurant, May 24.

On Wednesday, May 24, we would board a school bus type bus at the Chalet for a five hour "Tundra Tour" of Denali National Park. We would ride 43 miles on the park road to the current stopping point because of a landslide that has made the rest of the 92 mile road inaccessible by vehicle. The first fifteen miles of the road are accessible by private vehicle and serviced by a free park shuttle that we would take advantage of on Thursday and Friday. The "Tundra Tour" was wonderful, with a very knowledgable bus driver guide who stopped frequently to point out features and wildlife in the park. We did get a small "peak" view of the mountain, but it was mostly obscured by clouds. And we were delighted with all the wild life we saw from behind the bus windows, and some when we got out at rest stops along the way.

Entrance to Denali National Park.

See the back of the Grizzly Bear?

Some Caribou around a patch of snow.

A "braided" river.

More Caribou

Zoomed in on the Caribou.

A Moose.

Another view of the Moose.

Beautiful mountains - I think Denali is behind those clouds.

A Raven nest under a bridge as viewed from a spot where we got off for a rest.

Our bus and some of our companions.

The bridge over the Savage River.

A Grizzly Bear quite close to the road.

Beautiful Tundra.

Dall Sheep on the mountain side.

Zoomed in Dall Sheep.

And even more Zoomed in by the on board camera pointing at the sheep by the bus driver.

An interesting bit of history is that the National Park was originally set aside as a preserve for these pure white sheep, not because of the park's beautiful mountain.

A Ptarmigan.

We saw many of these birds that look a lot like chickens along the way.

They are white in winter to blend in with the snow and brown in summer.

It was fun to see them in transition.

Another moose.

Another view of a braided river.

One thing that took a little getting used to was the long daylight hours. By the time we reached Denali the sun was setting about 11:30 PM and rising around 4:30 AM. All of our accommodations had blackout curtains so there was no problem sleeping, but if we were out in the evening it felt very weird to be in full daylight, but to feel our bodies telling us it was close to bedtime! And though the sun went down for about 5 hours it never got totally dark outside.

Looking out our bedroom window at Denali around 1:00 AM.

This view down the river from the Chalet looking at the highway reminded be of sliding hillsides on some California north coast highways. Mountains can be hard to keep in place!

On Thursday, May 25, we took the free park shuttle to visit the sled dogs. Denali National Park is the only National Park that keeps sled dogs. These teams of dogs do valuable work in the wilderness of the park during the winter, helping to patrol and maintain the park. Currently there are 30 highly trained dogs kept for this purpose, and we enjoyed getting to visit them and see some of them work.

Most of the dogs rested on or near their dog houses as hundreds of visitors passed by.

Rob petting Bos'n.

There were only a couple like this one looking for strangers' attention

Here a harnessed team is starting a demonstration.

Now the dogs that had been so quiet and docile are all excited as some get to work.

It is very obvious how much these dogs love to work pulling a sled.

Of course without snow, the sled they pulled was on wheels, not runners.

Coming around in front of the spectators.

Stopping on command to be shown off.

They all got treats for their performance.

Two moose very close to the trail.

After the dogsled demonstration Rob and I took a two mile trail back to the visitor center.

We made sure to keep our distance from these moose and to be on the lookout for other wildlife.

Our beautiful trail through the forest.

A view of the mountains from the trail.

Looks like acorns?

These are Moose droppings!

Other evidence of moose - bark peeled off the trees.

After lunch at the Visitor Center Restaurant we took the free park shuttle out to the Mountain View Trail for a short hike.

Caribou as seen from the bus.

A view toward the cloud enshrouded Denali from our trail.

Back at the Chalet on Thursday night we sat by one of the campfires and listened to music.

On Wednesday night we took in a dinner show dramatizing the climbing of Mount Denali.

We enjoyed the entertainment at the Chalet more than that on the ship.

Friday morning I walked around the Chalet grounds and the grounds of the Princess Cruise Line owned resort next door. The views of the river and mountains from the Chalet grounds were beautiful, but the neighboring resort had wonderful views as well, and interesting landscaping.

A bear sculpture at Denali Princess Wilderness Lodge.

View down river from the Wilderness Lodge.

A Dall Sheep sculpture.

We figured we had just enough time for another shuttle ride in the park before our afternoon departure from Denali. We headed to the end of the free shuttle line to Savage River and decided to take the two mile round trip hike along the river that would go down one side, across a bridge and come back the other side.

The top of Mount Denali is peaking through the clouds, left of center.

A view from the bus just before we got off for a hike at Savage River.

Starting down the Savage River Trail.

An Arctic Ground Squirrel posing.

It seemed to be saying, "Or do you like this pose better?"

The Arctic Ground Squirrels look a lot like Prairie Dogs. Our "Tundra Tour" guide said they are her favorite animal in the park and she kept trying to get a good view of one from the bus, but they were more illusive along the road. We had fun watching this little guy and others along our hike by the river.

Looking upstream along the trail.

Another view upstream with the mountains in the background.

A Bear!

Up ahead on the trail, so this became our turn around point about 1/4 mile before the bridge.

Can you see the hikers on the other side of the river?

They were making lots of noise and making themselves look big as they passed the bear on their way back up the other side. On our way back up the trail we encountered a couple who were National Park Volunteers on their way down to check on the bear and help park officials decide if the trail needed to be temporarily closed. By the time we were back on the bus we learned that the trail was closed since the bear was clearly staying near the river by the trail finding food there. We had a very interesting conversation with the volunteer couple who have been campground hosts for several years at Wonder Lake. However since Wonder Lake is not accessible by road due to the landslide they are now stationed near the park headquarters and doing bear patrol. They were carrying bear spray so we asked if they had ever used it. The man replied, no, but he would have if he had been carrying bear spray on September 11, 1986 in Glacier National Park. He was attacked and mauled by a Grizzly Bear there, but luckily survived after a helicopter rescue and a month in a hospital. He showed us the scars on his arms from that attack many years ago that has not deterred him from continuing to enjoy the wilderness.

On our way back up river.

A Pair of Harlequin Ducks.

Savage Rock across the River.

I had at first not been all that enthused about this Savage River hike. Yes, it was beautiful at the beginning, but I had no idea how stunningly beautiful it would reveal itself to be. We were delighted by our experience with the cute little Arctic Ground Squirrels, and indeed, even the bear sighting. There were many highlights on this trip, and the Savage River hike is at the top of the list. I'm just disappointed we didn't get to follow the whole trail.

More view of the beautiful stunning mountains as we left Savage River on the bus.

Another Caribou.

Here's one looking a bit skinny after a long winter.

After lunch back at the visitor center I got in one more short hike on a trail behind the visitor center.

View from the bus of a train trestle as we left Denali, Alaska.

Friday afternoon we said a bittersweet goodbye to Denali National Park as we boarded a bus headed to Fairbanks. We made one stop along the way at Nenana, a very small town along the railroad that was the sight of the ceremonial completion of the Alaska Railroad in 1923. There didn't seem much to the town when we got off the bus, but there turned out to be lots of places to spend tourist dollars! I bought a postcard, and we got ice cream cones.

The old Nenana Train depot.

Now a museum - seeming very much under construction inside.

Commemorating the first visit of a U.S. President to Alaska in 1923.

Warren G. Harding was there to drive the ceremonial gold spike.

We heard from a tour guide earlier that it took him many attempts to drive the spike due to his inebriated condition. We also learned that he died just 18 days later in San Francisco.

Railroad bridge, Nenana, Alaska.

A poster advertising the 2022 Nenana Ice Classic.

This annual event began during the construction of the railroad in 1917.

It is a money pool to predict when a tripod set on the icy river will fall due to the ice break-up.

This year it occurred on May 5, less than 3 weeks before our arrival there.

We would stay in Fairbanks for two nights. For the most part we were not all that impressed with the city of Fairbanks. There were lots of shuttered businesses in the part of town we were in, though we did find a very good Mexican restaurant for dinner and there was a nice path along the river nearby. The highlight of our stay in Fairbanks were the two excursions we took on Saturday - a Paddle Wheel River Boat tour and a visit to Gold Dredge Number 8 next to the Alaska Pipe line.

Welcome to Fairbanks sign.

A stature near the river.

An Antler Arch in Fairbanks.

View of the mountains south from our 8th story hotel room.

We immediately turned off the heat when we arrived in our room, but that didn't help. The windows could not be opened, so we called room service to see what could be done to cool the room. The solution was to send us a fan which when pointed directly at the bed made sleeping tolerable.

The paddle wheeler we would ride down river for a scenic and informative trip.

First attraction on the river was this plane.

The pilot communicated to our boat via the PA as she took off and landed.

Taking off.

In the air.

Coming in for a landing.

Next to our boat.

Taking off again.

Looking downstream toward the beautiful Alaska Range.

Next attraction: the sled dogs of Trail Breaker Kennel right next to the river.

Trail Breaker Kennel is now owned and operated by Susan Butcher's husband and daughters. Here we heard a description of the dogs and their work given by Susan Butcher's daughter and saw a demonstration of the dogs pulling a vehicle around a track. Susan Butcher, who died from cancer in 2006, became famous as the second woman to win the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in 1986. She was also the second four-time winner of the 1,000 mile Iditarod.

We got off the boat at Chena Village.

This is an Athabascan village, depicting life of the Indigenous people over the centuries.

Caribou/Reindeer along the river at Chena Village.

Dressed in beautiful fur regalia.

A food storage shed.

Susan Butcher's racing sled and picture of her with some of her dogs.

A display back at the gift shop where we got on the paddle wheeler.

After leaving the river we headed to Gold Dredge 8 where we would take a tour, pan for gold and learn about and see part of the Alaskan Pipe Line. I was not enthused about gold panning. Growing up in gold country I have tried my hand at gold panning and didn't think I needed to do it again. I remembered it as "back breaking" labor not worth the effort for the little bit of "flash in the pan." Rob and I were both surprised to enjoy this gold panning adventure. Perhaps that was due to comfortable benches to sit on, and enthusiastic young coaches? Anyway, together we got $18 worth of gold that I had made into a zipper pull, and we caught a bit of gold fever.

On board the excursion train to Gold Dredge #8.

The panning venue.

Much more comfortable than kneeling by the river!

Gold Dredge #8.

Our guide telling us about the pipeline.

The pipeline we went under to get to Gold Dredge #8.

Sunday, May 28, we headed to the Fairbanks airport where we had to claim our luggage before going through passport control and boarding a charter plane to the City of Dawson in Yukon Territory, Canada.