I Thought This Road Was Paved?

Days 7 – 9, Wasilla, AK – Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada

Leaving Wasilla, we drove to Palmer for a stop at the Musk Ox Farm, a non-profit with the goal of "domesticating" a small herd of musk ox.  (www.muskoxfarm.org) This turned out to be a fascinating stop and well worth the time.  The Musk ox is a prehistoric species, which has survived in the arctic tundra through several ice ages.  They have been around for at least 150,000 years and are comfortable in temperatures of 80 degrees below zero Fahrenheit.  The Palmer herd has about 80 animals and offers educational tours for a small fee.  Our guide was knowledgeable and we came away appreciating these special creatures and the farm’s efforts to educate the public.  The Musk Ox Farm also sell items made of Qiviut (key-vee-ute), the fine under hair of the musk ox.  This fur is very soft and warm – several times warmer than wool.

Musk Ox

Musk Ox Farm

As we set out from Palmer, we realized we had a long drive ahead through the Mat-Su Valley to the night’s destination, Glennallen.  The Mat-Su around Palmer is very agricultural and is known for its huge vegetables and also growing hay and other grains.  This is partly why the Musk Ox Farm is located at Palmer.

Mat-Su is the common name for the valley with its two largest rivers being the Mantanuska and Susitna.  The Glenn Highway stretches for miles through the valley, with the Chugach Mountains on the south and the Talkeetna Mountains on the north.  The highway is a series of high mountain passes and it is beautiful scenery along the entire route.  At MP 103 you get your first view of the massive Matanuska Glacier.  We found a nice state park here with beautiful views and where we could take a short walk overlooking the valley and the glacier.

Matanuska Glacier

Matanuska Glacier

In general we had good roads across this stretch but there were some places where we encountered gravel roads for several miles.  The roads in Alaska take a terrible beating in winter.  Many stretches of highway show evidence of frost heave, or permafrost thawing, which causes the pavement to roll in waves.  Of course, the short summer is the only time when the roads can be maintained so many sections of pavement were torn up for re-grading, compaction, and re-paving.  Sometimes there were miles on end of gravel road waiting for new blacktop to be laid.  We had first encountered highway maintenance on the Parks Highway between Fairbanks and Wasilla, particularly around Denali.  With all of the daylight, the crews must work the highway many hours a day and you can literally see progress each day.

The excitement for the afternoon was seeing our first bear!  He was a black bear and looked rather scruffy.  He was enjoying foraging for berries along the road when we came along; he decided he wanted to cross the road (in front of us) and then he kept pace with us as we slowly drove down the road.  It was exciting to see him . . . several feet away and with the windows rolled up!

Hey Bear!

You looking at me?

 We reached Glennallen, where we had a reservation at the Caribou Hotel.  Glennallen is little more than a spot on the road so we were pleased we’d made a reservation as the tour buses (there are many throughout AK) had sewn up most of the rooms.  Glennallen is just outside Wrangell-St. Elias National Park; the southwest part of is dominated by the Copper River.  We had looked very forward to having a Copper River salmon dinner but our hotel’s restaurant didn’t even have fish on the menu.  Really?  However, it turned out to be a blessing as we saw an ad for the historic Gakona Lodge, which was one of Alaska’s original roadhouses.  It was only a few minutes’ drive north and their restaurant had Copper River salmon and fresh from the oven blueberry pie . . .yummy!

Gakona Lodge, one of Alaska's original roadhouses

 

 Exploring Wrangell-St. Elias is not easy.  It’s the nation’s largest national park and most of it is not accessible by car.  We drove to the old town of Copper Center and enjoyed blueberry sourdough pancakes (when in Alaska . . .) and drove down to Willow Lake hoping to see views of Mt. Wrangell.  However, the weather was not cooperative so we settled for enjoying the NPS Visitor Center movie and cultural center.  The Wrangell Mountains are largely volcanic, and Mt. Wrangell is the world’s largest shield volcano, similar to those in Hawaii.  It’s last eruption was in 1884-85 but it continues to show evidence of fumarolic activity, emits ash which covers the snow, and on occasion steam can be seen rising from it.

Copper Center

 

Bear on ceiling!

Fish Wheel at Wrangell Visitor Center

Our indulgence for the day was to drive up to the Copper River Princess Lodge, owned by the cruise line but open to the public.  It is in a beautiful setting and the lobby was more than comfortable.  We enjoyed a coffee break and a walk overlooking the beautiful Copper River.  Refreshed, we drove north, along the west side of Wrangell-St. Elias, hoping for a break in the overcast skies so we could view the Wrangells.  All we ever saw was the snow-covered base of the range, teasing us.

Copper River

Princess Lodge Fireplace

From the menu

Mt. Wrangell is partially capped by the Nabesna Glacier, headwaters of the Nabesna River.  There’s a very friendly NPS Ranger Station down Slana Road, along the Tok cutoff road.  We had a delightful conversation with two rangers who explained that Wrangell is both a National Park and a Preserve.  This concept is unique to the Alaska parks; it allows for people relying on subsistence living within the parklands to co-exist with wildlife and nature.  Legislation supports this concept through the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA).

We continued to the town of Tok, at the junction of the Glenn Highway and the Alaska Highway. Tok is a small town that greets many visitors to Alaska.  If you are driving from Canada, it is the first town you come to.  The visitor center is very nice and has information and brochures on all the regions of AK.  Something for every tourist, no matter your destination in Alaska!

The next morning we hit the road for our longest day of driving, from Tok, AK to Whitehorse, Yukon along the famed Alaska Canada Highway (Alcan.)  This road going east toward Canada is very scenic with the Wrangells in the distance and 65 miles alongside the Tetlin National Wildlife Refuge.  We stopped at the visitor center for a break (mile 1229) and enjoyed the displays and the deck overlooking the refuge.  Also the center docent was doing traditional beading.  Beautiful!

Tetlin Nature Preserve

Tetlin beading

 Again, we encountered road construction.  One section of the Alaska Highway around the Alaska-Yukon border was gravel for at least 20 miles – just like the original Alcan Highway.  This caused us to reduce our speed considerably and made our long day even longer.  Bob remembered that Avis had made him sign a form that stating he would not take their rental car on gravel roads.  It wasn’t supposed to be gravel – everyone told us the Alaska Highway is totally paved now but driving miles and miles of potholed road takes a toll.  That being said, the Alcan is probably one of the great engineering and construction feats of modern times since its 1500 miles was built in less than a year during WWII, and it is one of the most scenic drives in North America.

Along the Alcan

 

Alaska US/Yukon Canada

 

Entering Canada, we cleared customs at Beaver Creek and drove through beautiful western Yukon for the next 100 miles appreciating the scenery and solitude.

Realizing how far we still had to go we decided to gas up the car in the tiny hamlet of Burwash Landing but had to go on to Destruction Bay.  Both these communities are along Kluane Lake, which stretches for probably 40 miles on the edges of Kluane National Park and Preserve.  The park and preserve are huge, roughly the size of New Jersey.  We had hoped for a glimpse of Mt. Logan, Canada’s highest peak and the continent’s second highest peak, however, the clouds and immediate front-range mountains blocked the views.  There are however, views of the St. Elias and many glaciers, and Sheep Mountain where people were stopped with their binoculars looking for . . . yes, Dall’s sheep! This is a beautiful stretch of highway and there are several opportunities to stop at waysides for a much needed break. The Canadian government has done a good job of providing interpretative display boards to enlighten the weary traveler.

Beautiful Lake Kluane

We arrived at Haines Junction, literally the junction of the Alaska Highway with the Haines Highway.  Going east, it was obvious that the land was changing.  We were seeing more ranches and farming but there were a number of roads leading to small lakes and campgrounds.  Eighty miles later we reached Whitehorse, a frontier town along the mighty Yukon River.  Whitehorse, the capital city of the Yukon, is rich in its mining history and also home to two First Nations and their traditional cultures.

First Nations

From the old Whitehorse Inn

 

As we settled in for a couple days at Whitehorse we realized we had lost track of time.  We were off by one day.  Maybe our insight into retirement is to take the time, not worry about the time, and enjoy the journey, bumpy roads and all.  Thanks for traveling with us!

The Great One

Days 5 - 6, Denali National Park to Wasilla, AK

This trip to Alaska is not our first, but we have been looking forward to it for a long time.  One of the things we booked was a tour within Denali National Park. (www.nps.gov/dena/planyourvisit/shuttles) There is only one road into the Park, and driving a personal car is limited to the first 15 miles.  Shuttles and tour buses are the only way to get deeper into the Park.

There are several shuttle options and we decided to take the green shuttle, which is a basic school bus with more comfortable seats, pack your own lunch and hopefully the driver will offer some insight into what we are seeing.  We got very lucky!  Our driver has been driving these tours for 23 years and offered just the right amount of commentary.  The destination for the day is Eielson Visitor Center, 66 miles down the Park Rd.  The hope for the day is to see Denali (Mt. McKinley) and wildlife, especially bear.  Let’s get the suspense over with . . . we didn’t see the mountain and we didn’t see a bear.  But, we did see moose, many caribou, eagles, and Dall sheep.  And, we had a wonderful eight-hour drive through dramatic and beautiful Denali National Park.

Flag over Denali National Park

The word “Denali” means “the Great One” in the native Athabascan language.  At 20,320’ the mountain is the highest peak in North America.  It was originally named after President McKinley in 1897 by a local prospector and is quite often still referred to as such on many maps and registers.  Denali is more than a mountain; it is six million acres of vast wilderness and inspiring landscape around every corner.  Not only is the mountain “the Great One” but the Park is a great national park.

Park view

Park view

All bus tours take off from the Wilderness Access Center (different from the NPS Headquarters and Visitor Center) and each type of tour travels the same road, just varying distances.  Our choice to go to Eielson was based on having a full day of tour without it being exhausting.  It took us 4 hours to get to Eielson, we had about 40 minutes there, and about 3 hours back to the WAC.  The day was overcast but not cold or drizzly.  There had been a number of fires in Alaska and the valley’s air quality was not great so we pretty much knew our opportunity to see the mountain was doubtful, at best.  The Denali Park Road parallels the Alaska Range, going west into the Park.  There’s not a better side of the bus to choose, because there is only one road; going into the Park you will see one side of the road and coming out you will see the other.

As mentioned, the first 15 miles of road are open to the public.  At mile 11 there is a wide-open viewpoint where on a clear day you can see Denali . . . we didn’t see it but we did get our first sense of how big this Park is.  It’s worth noting that both Bob and I felt a great sense of tranquility while riding down the road in a modified school bus; I think most of the other people on the bus felt the same sense of quiet and solitude.  The operative word in that statement might be “most” and I found myself wondering what the foreign tourists thought of some of the American tourists.  Having lived internationally, we are rather sensitive to that perspective.

A short distance from the WAC is the Savage Campground, where campers and hikers can wave the bus down and get a ride deeper into the Park.  Mile 15 of the Park Rd. is the end of the pavement where the road crosses the Sanctuary River, and also the point where a NPS ranger comes on board the bus to welcome us.  Our ranger said she had grown up in the Park; Denali is her sanctuary.

A bit further down the road we came to our first rest stop (mile 30) just past the Teklanika campground.  The facilities are quite nice and of course after an hour and a half on the bus we were all ready for a brief stop.  Again, there’s no shortage of scenery and opportunities for photos.  Look in any direction and it’s beautiful.

It’s worth noting that throughout this trip we saw wildlife.  The big four are bear, moose, Dall sheep, and caribou.  We had actually seen a cow moose and her babies the day before alongside the road just inside the entrance to the Park.  On the bus ride we saw many caribou and were excited to see several Dall sheep.

Dall Sheep

Eagle

 

 











In particular, one Australian gentleman had an eye for spotting wildlife and everyone’s eyes were peeled for the hope of a bear sighting.  Our driver had told us to shout out “stop” if we saw anything of interest; he would then position the bus, backing up if necessary, so that we could get photos. 

Departing the Teklanika rest stop we began to climb in elevation to Polychrome Overlook.  The name comes from the kaleidoscope of colors from the exposed volcanic rock that you can see from the high overlook.  The Polychrome portion of the drive is dramatic, rising quickly with many tight turns, and the views are equally dramatic . . . and colorful.  The bus did stop at the overlook area so everyone could take plenty of photos.

View from Polychrome Overlook

View from Polychrome Overlook

Winding our way off Polychrome we entered the Toklat, a broad valley with a braided riverbed, and our last rest stop.  The steep cliffs are often dotted with Dall sheep and we were lucky enough to see some.  The riverbed is lined with tundra leading up to the steep slopes of the Alaska Range.

Toklat braided riverbeds

View from Toklat

A few minutes later and we arrived at the Eielson Visitor Center. (www.nps.gov/dena/planyourvisit/the-eielson-visitor-center)  Named for Carl Eielson, a famed Alaskan aviator, the visitor center is outstanding.  It is partially bermed, and the buses park on the roof.  The beautiful facility incorporates many sustainable features and has been recognized architecturally and within the National Park Service.  The displays are informative and there is a nice art museum featuring some of the works by Denali artists-in-residence. 

Tundra sod roof @ Eielson

Not Denali but beautiful!

Way behind this mountain is Denali

Weather forecast for Eielson

On a clear day, the view of Denali is unsurpassed.  We didn’t see it . . . and if any consolation, we were told only about 30% of all visitors to the Park see “the Great One.”  

The return bus ride was equally as beautiful as going out to Eielson.  It was a great day viewing Denali National Park even though we didn’t see the mountain or bear!  However, we had two more chances to see the mountain, and bear can be anywhere, so we are still hopeful for the next day’s drive.

Driving south from Denali National Park, the highway has two viewpoints of the mountain.  They are appropriately called the North and the South views.  The north yielded nothing and by the time we reached the south view, the clouds began to part.  While we were walking down the pathway, just for a moment, the tip of the mountain (20,320’) was visible.  By the time we got our cameras ready, it was obscured again. 

South Viewpoint along Denali Highway

We cannot complain.  I’ve been to AK twice before, once in 1977 with my brother, and again in 2004 with Bob.  On both occasions I saw Denali in all its magnificent glory.  While Bob was working in the Aleutians, he saw Denali from the air.  Spectacular!

The Great One, Denali, 2004 from Talkeetna

Denali, 2004, from Talkeetna

One of my favorite Alaskan villages is Talkeetna.  It’s a favorite gathering place for Denali climbers and it has become a common day-trip for tourists from Anchorage.  I was surprised at how busy little Talkeetna has become!  We enjoyed lunch (the restaurant had an “I Can See Russia” burger on the menu), and a walk around the hamlet, appreciating the historic buildings and character but being very aware of how much it has changed over the years.  I miss the Talkeetna of 1977 and 2004!

 

We had a perfect ending to our day of driving from the Park.  Our lodging reservation was at Wasilla, which has become one long strip mall of a town.  But the Agate Inn (www.agateinn.com) was indeed a hidden gem and we arrived just in time to help the owners feed their reindeer!  We wished we had planned to stay longer in these comfortable accommodations.

Reindeer @ Agate Inn

Another great day in Alaska!

Land of the All Night Sun

Days 1 – 4, Seattle, WA – Denali National Park, AK

After a fun 4^th of July weekend with family it’s time for us to take another trip!  Our flight from Seattle to Fairbanks had been delayed two hours prior to the date of departure but then was delayed again so we didn’t leave SEA until nearly 11:00 pm Sunday.  Flying up over the coast of Canada and above the Inside Passage of Alaska was beautiful and made us excited for what we would be sailing through in a couple weeks.  We landed in Fairbanks, retrieved our luggage, and walked outside to get the shuttle at 1:30am AKDT . . . and it was still dim daylight, or sort of dusk.

 

Fairbanks @ 1:34am

Alaska is often called the Land of the Midnight Sun but as we tried to settle down for a good night’s sleep we discovered the sun filters in around the hotel’s blackout curtains and it’s pretty much dusk all night long with sunrise at about 3:30am.  According to the weather sources, Fairbanks is experiencing nearly a 21 hour-long day this week.  That’s quite a difference from our 15-hour day in Southern WA.

We were off to explore Fairbanks and started at the Alaska Coffee Roasters on Geist Rd.  www.alaskacoffeeroasting.com  You know it’s going to be good coffee when people are standing in line outside the door and patiently at that!  The coffee was very good, but they also have an extensive food offering; we enjoyed sharing a raisin walnut cinnamon roll, homemade of course!  Thanks to either the coffee shop or a patron but someone turned in my prescription sunglasses, which I’d left on the table.  Glad I didn’t lose them!

 
The sun was blazing hot in Fairbanks with temperatures reaching about 88° F, which is quite high for July.  Also, we could feel the 46% humidity, which was rather surprising.  However, we didn’t let the weather deter us from exploring Georgeson Botanical Gardens at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. 

Delphiniums

Peonies

Lovely!  It happened to be peak Peony time and the flowers were amazing.  Also, the vegetable gardens were quite impressive.  It’s true that cabbages are huge in Alaska!

Cabbages

 Probably the “must see” site at Fairbanks is the Museum of the North, also on the grounds of UAF.  www.uaf.edu/museum  The building design is beautiful, reminiscent of mountains and glaciers. 

Museum of the North @ UAF

The museum houses a very interesting history of Alaska, focusing on five geographic regions of Alaska and featuring the natural and cultural history of each region.  We were particularly interested in WWII, when Japan attacked the Aleutian Islands.   Bob worked for a couple years (2002-04) on Shemya Island, the next to the last island in the Aleutian chain so he has a keen interest.

In addition to the historical presentations at the Museum of the North, there is an impressive art gallery featuring 2000 years of Alaskan art.  The museum also offers special exhibits and unique collections.

Alaskan Native Kayak

Native Masks

Our second day in the Fairbanks area was a bit cooler and very smoky.  The news said there were over 3 million acres of forest fires burning throughout Alaska.  Several large fires were burning near Tanana, northwest of Fairbanks, and dense smoke was filling the valley compromising air quality.

We drove about 8 miles northeast of Fairbanks to view the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS).  There is a nice viewing area with informative displays along a section of the pipeline.  If you are tall enough you can reach up and touch it.  Bob was impressed by the pigs!  What?  A pig is like a big industrial bottlebrush that cleans out the pipeline, assuring that the oil continues to flow its 800-mile length.

Retired Pig

TAPS

 



Our destination for the day was to relax at Chena Hot Springs.  The springs feed a small lake lined in large boulders, which we favored and also an indoor swimming pool.  The water temperature is about 105° F so soaking time is limited but the waters are said to be very therapeutic.  Being long-time fans of hot springs, we both thought this one was heaven.  Discovered in 1905, the springs have been known for their curative powers for over a hundred years.

Chena Hot Springs Rock Lake

To cool off, we visited the Ice Museum, also on the resort property.  Resident ice artists, Steve and Heather Brice have won world championships 16 times (combined) and their representative work is impressive.  Bob enjoyed stepping up to the Aurora bar for an Appletini (Vodka and apple juice), served in a take-away ice sculpted glass, obviously not a long-term keepsake!  Chena has taken advantage of their geothermal source and is partially operating the resort using their own power.  We were able to take an informative geothermal energy tour and also view their impressive outdoor and greenhouse gardens, which provide most of the produce for the resort’s restaurant.  The owners use the hot springs water to generate about 80% of the power requirements for the facility - a very unique system using only 165 degree water.

Bob enjoying an Appletini

Ice sculpture Aurora

 The 56-mile drive to/from Chena is a very straight but beautiful road, traveling through the Chena River State Recreation Area.  Keep an eye out for moose; we saw three in three different locations!

Day three in Alaska found us leaving Fairbanks, driving south toward Denali National Park.  Again, the forest fire smoke obscured the views but we enjoyed what we could see.  We took a brief stop in the village of Nenana, which holds an annual spring ice breakup lottery, called the Ice Classic.  This has been an Alaskan tradition since 1917 and this year the pot grew to $330,000!  We may have secured our future by purchasing a couple tickets!  In addition to the Ice Classic, 

Nenana Ice Classic Tripod

Nenana has a rich history having been the place where President Warren G. Harding drove the Golden Spike to mark the completion of the Alaskan Railroad in 1923.  Rumor has it that this may also have been the place where he contracted pneumonia, which he died of just barely three weeks later.

Golden Spike

 



We arrived at Denali National Park in the mid-afternoon and enjoyed the displays and films at the Visitor Center and the Wilderness Access Center.  Denali is the third largest National Park, encompasses over six million acres and had about 531,000 visitors in 2014.  It’s an impressive number because most of the Park in only accessible from mid-May to mid-September.  We are looking forward to seeing more of the Park tomorrow but on our way out of the Park we came across a Mama Moose and her two babies . . . exciting!

Mama Moose

and her babies!

We are staying in Healy, a small town about 10 miles north of the Park.  Our evening ended with dinner at the 49^th State Brewing Co., (http://49statebrewing.com) which served a good variety of cold beer, and offered an interesting menu item. 

Yak Burger, anyone?

The bus from the movie “Into the Wild” is on display on the grounds of the 49^th State Brewing Co. It’s a sad story but serves as a strong reminder that Alaska is wild . . . and there is inherent risk in exploring the back country.

Into the Wild bus @ 49th State Brewing Co.

We’ll take a safer route tomorrow . . . we signed up for a Green Tour Bus to Eielson Visitor Center, 66 miles out the Park Road.  Come along for the ride . . . Denali may be in sight!