Can we get to the Alaska part already? Yes, here it comes - Denali National Park

The next morning, I packed up, had breakfast in town and then drove south towards Denali National Park. The road was in very good condition and I did not encounter much traffic. Sometimes 5 or 10 minutes would go by without any vehicle coming from the opposite direction. Fall colors were already showing here and there.




After about 2 hours I reached my destination, the Aurora Denali Lodge in Healy, close to the park entrance. The room was fitted with a small fridge, a microwave oven and a coffee machine.










As the hotel doesn’t offer breakfast service per se, they provide a small plate with yoghurt, a fruit, a hardboiled egg, a granola bar and a juice drink, which is left in the fridge every evening. I found this to be a nice gesture; at least you don’t have to leave the place with an empty stomach in the morning.


Once settled in, I went off to the park, which was still a few miles further south.


As the park road is only accessible to private vehicles for the first 15 miles or so, my first order of business was heading to the park headquarters to secure a ticket for a bus ride further inwards the next day. Space was available only from 1:00 p.m. onwards, but since I was just a party of one it was no problem to get a ticket for that time slot.

After that I went to see the sledge dogs at the park’s kennel.






Funny that one of them is named Nucha; our last family dog was named Nacha.

There is a complete show with the dogs pulling a sledge and all, but this would certainly be more impressive in winter when there is actually snow.

After the dog exhibition I took the car and went as far into the park as private cars are allowed. The fall colors had already set in and provided an amazing backdrop, but Denali/Mt. McKinley remained hidden in the low clouds.










The following morning, with improving weather and the bus tour starting only in the early afternoon, I ventured into the park again and lo and behold, Denali – “The Tall one” - was cloud-free for a few moments.




At the end of the road accessible to the general public, by the bridge crossing the Savage River, is a curious rock formation, the Savage Rock, which to some – with a generous dose of imagination – resembles a face.






From there I headed back at a leisurely pace towards the bus depot to catch the green transit bus for my afternoon tour, which would last about four hours, roadside and restroom stops included. Though they resemble school buses, these offer a legroom more suitable for adults and are not too uncomfortable to ride on.


In several instances our driver would stop and point out wildlife on the roadside or at a certain distance. We were lucky enough to see a willow ptarmigan, several Dall sheep, and a grizzly bear.










The furthest the transit bus would go was the Toklat River East Fork, where we had about 20 minutes until heading back.






On the return trip we were also treated to a brief view of a moose cow, though I was sat on the wrong side of the bus and did only get a wee glimpse.




That makes sightings of three of Denali’s “Big Five“: moose, caribou, Dall sheep, grizzly bears, and wolves. Not bad at all. And who knows how many caribou and wolves saw us without us noticing them?!

Close to the park headquarters and bus depot, already on the accessible road, we passed a larger group of cars parked roadside and several people carrying cameras with lenses longer than my forearm, staring intensely into the forest. Once at the buses’ point of departure, I took my car and drove the few miles back into the park to where the group had gathered. It turned out that they had spotted a couple of moose bulls, but these had lain down in the brush to ruminate. I waited for about half an hour and even got to (barely) see the antlers of one of the animals with my binoculars, but their digestion went on and on and they showed no intention to get up and showcase themselves in their entire glory. Tough luck!

All in all I have to consider myself very lucky though in having seen some of the signature wildlife in the park and in having been blessed with several hours of sunshine during my visit.