Denali National Park

Day 81....9:15 AM....53 degrees....raining....low clouds....headed to Cantwell which will be our headquarters for Denali National Park

The Parks Hwy was completed in 1971 

And has some of the grandest scenery that Alaska has to offer

But not today I'm sorry to say

At 20,310 feet, Denali is visible from the highway, weather permitting

The Parks provides the most direct highway access to Denali

Igloo City

Construction to be completed in summer 2016...need to hurry

Broad Pass provides a top-of-the-world feeling for the traveler

One of the lowest summits along the North American mountain system

Summit...2,409 feet

Scenery.....weather permitting

Cantwell RV Park...blueberry season

Interesting unit

Time for the clouds and rain to go away so we can see the views

This year, the National Park Service celebrates the 100th anniversary

of its establishment by Congress in 1916

Next year in 2017, Denali National Park achieves its own centennial

Denali Visitor's Center

with lots to see 

Wilderness Access Center where you buy your ticket to ride the Green Bus

6 1/2 hour dressed in layers with your own lunch packed

and yes....the Captain is along with me

Our first caribou

The first 15 miles of the Park Road is open to all vehicles

Entering the Permit Only area of the road with Matt and his mother welcoming us

Ryan our driver grew up in Winfield KS

Matt is a volunteer ranger....he comes every summer to help

One of our potty stops

Teklanika River braids

The "white" spot is a Dall Sheep

Cathedral Mountain in the clouds

You can see some of the Denali range with snow

Yes you get this close....one bus stops while the other passes

Hang on...Polychrome Mountain...5,790 feet

Just wide enough to pass.....close your eyes

We have some friends that would have gotten off the bus

Your turn out so the bus can come by

Most visitors see only a fraction of the Park from the 92-mile Park Road

There is about a 30 to 40% chance of seeing "the mountain" even inside the Park boundaries

The crown jewel of the park is Denali, North America's highest mountain

But not today

 Summer weather in the Park is cool, wet, windy and snow

Temperatures range from 40 to 80 degrees

The only way to see the interior is to ride the "bus" in the summer

The Park Road was built in 1923

Dall Sheep

It is a 12 hour tour to the end of the road....Kantishna

You can ride your bike or hike into the park but you can not drive your vehicle

Please show yourself Denali....know you are over there

Sure hope a bus isn't coming around that corner

There is a bear...believe me

They start closing the park in September...no winter traffic

Caribou

Your bus stops and you look but you do not talk

We stopped and looked

And our bear was in no hurry to leave

There were 5 buses stopped with cameras clicking

You wait for them....this is their home

Moose Lake but they haven't seen a moose for 40 years

Our Green Bus

Jimmy Carter had a final act.  In December 1980, with only weeks left in his presidency, he signed into law legislation that established over 100 million acres of new national parks, preserves, and wildlife refuges in Alaska.  Mount McKinley National Park, enlarged from two million acres to six million, became Denali National Park and Preserve, with new boundaries to encompass entire watersheds and the home ranges of wildlife populations

Today, hundreds of thousands of park visitors travel by bus every summer on the single road through the park.  But weather permitting.....you may or you may not see Mount Denali, the crown jewel of the park.