Denali 2 to Eielson Center
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Mama Grizzly and cub.
Grey haze obscures the view of Denali.
ROF= Ring of fire Odyssey MEF-H = Marine Expeditionary Force- Hargus
AK= ALaska RT journey
Saturday July 22, 2017
Denali 2, to Eielson.
Teklanika camp is 29 miles into Denali from the front gate. You must ride on a commercial park bus to go any further into to Denali Park. You must buy a ticket at the visitors center for this part of the drive into Denali Park.
The bus ride is on a commercial tourist bus- schoolbus- with 30 other people. The roads are bumpy and dusty. There is no other way to go deep into the park to see Denali. You can drive your car 15 miles to Savage River and that has some neat scenery. A ranger checkpoint checks all cars for tickets/ reservations.
My opinion, I do not like riding a bus into this Denali Park, but this is the only way to accommodate the number of people that want to visit this park. I'm sure the Rangers have a reason for this bus transport system. This National Park would not survive this many tourists driving their own vehicle into this park. This would be too much tourist traffic. The dirt roads would be so overused and even worse wear and tear. This is probably the best way for the most amount of people to see the Denali phenomenon.
Riding a bus packed with tourists and taking pictures out the window is not how I prefer to travel. This is the only way to see Denali… into the northroad of the park. On the South side there are some viewpoints on Hwy 3 (rain and overcast the day we left so no view). One guy said they had a Denali view at Talkeetna at 11pm the night before. Talkeenta is Panama City crowded touristy and was very disappointing.
Back to the north, main Denali road. Teklanika camp is 29 miles into Denali Park and a scenic ALaska wilderness camp next to the Teklanika River, 500 yards.
The next 30 miles (on a bus) is to the Eielson center and this is where the ALaska Arctic sub -alpine wilderness really comes to life. It is very unique and take several sets of backup batteries. You cannot take pictures fast enough.
The best chance to see any wildlife will be in this stretch. Bears, … Grizzly Bears - cinnamon colored, almost looked beige to me.
Carribou, a wolf, the ALaska state bird, Mountain Goats/ Sheep. Not a lot of wildlife, but some. Enough to take a few pics.
You begin to see the snowpack glaicer arctic ALaska Range mountains 30 miles to the south.
The Eielson Center is the main jumping off point to get your first real site of Denali.
This drive into the Denali wilderness is beyond breathtaking at the Wilderness scenery. Phenomenal geology, rock strata.
Alaska mountains, river valleys, a dirt road winding through the wilderness of Denali Park.
The bus stops about 15 miles in past Teklanika for a few minutes to take pictures and stretch your legs.
The ALaska Mountain Range are snow capped with many glacier pics. Too many to name here. You will have a map/ Denali NPS map.
The Denali Flora is Alpine Tundra.
Along the way the bus drivers talk on an intercom about the many points of interest and stop when there are wildlife, bears, caribou, wolves, for pictures..
The ALaska mountains change so quickly and rock strata are absolutely beautiful.
Riding a bus with a lot of tourist is not my idea of travel but this is the only way you can see Denali.
At times we pass returning buses and the dust on the dirt roads is choking.
We stop momentarily to see wildlife animals of caribou, and a few bears.
The bears in Denali do not have fish in their diet because of the braided streams are silted with mud. Rivers with grayish, light mud suspension dirt particles clog/ choke the gills of fish and they cannot live in cloudy water. Silted streams do not let fish live. fish do not live in silted, muddy streams. so the Denali bears do not have fish in their diet.
The drive through this Denali wilderness is worth the trip. It is beyond describing beautiful.
At 60 miles into the park we come to the Eielson visitors center.
The Eielson visitors center is a main focal viewpoint for Denali, Mount McKinley, The Majestic highest mountain in North America at 20,310 feet. It is phenomenal to see this valley that leads to Denali.
The only problem is the Denali eco system produces wall clouds/ mountain fog most of the time, and you cannot get a clear view of the Majestic Denali except some years for a few weeks in late September.
For a brief few minutes today we barely saw the south and north Peak of Denali - the next day-, shrouded/ ringed by wall clouds below, before they moved in and up, and covered the total view.
A Marine buddy who was stationed in Alaska had told me not to expect to see Denali, Mount McKinley, as it was wall clouds most of the year except for a couple of weeks in mid to late September. This is exactly what he explained.
stock internet photo. This is Denali w/o the haze.
The eielson center is really the furthest point you should book in your Denali trip.
We took the further bus ride of 30 more miles into the backcountry and it was a waste of time money and resources. Eielson is at 60 miles in and you see a lot. And it’s a long day, back in 6 hours.
Past Eielson, the furthest, last 30 miles to the end point was a waste. We did not see Denali any better. In fact we did not see Denali at all. The last 30 miles went to the end of the road where there were commercial lodges for a price, operating for a profit, on roads paved by the national park system. ? I need to check that our.
There were hiking trails and an airport at the end point lodges but you could not see Denali at all at this end point.
I wondered why the national park system provided a road for a 30 miles to commercial lodges. The bus ride of another 30 miles was a waste of time and money as you did not see Denali, you just went to the end of the road. ?What was that the end of the road,? Some commercial lodges. some hiking trails for people at the lodges. A cabin or two of the pioneers.
The Eielson Center is the last point you should book to see Denali in my opinion.
Take pictures of the Alaska arctic Alpine wilderness it is phenomenal but don't waste going on past Eielson Center.
You never drink twice from the same stream.
Just because you wander doesn't mean you're lost.
Uncle Hargus: Last of the Independents
Have Bear,
Will Travel
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