Leg #: 11 (Day 36-40)

Location: Denali National Park

Mileage Driven leg/total: 183 / 5299 miles

Road Conditions: No issues inside the park as the first 15 miles of the road were smooth as glass pavement (no frost heaves!) and then the rest is packed smooth gravel.

Weather: Weather has changed in the last few days and it is now mostly cold, overcast and rainy and in some places very windy. Very winter PNW-like. High 68 / low 41. We are so glad we packed our winter and rain clothing gear. Weather forecast indicates this will be one of most rainy and cloudy summers on record.

Tofu Status:
• All systems working, including heater which has been needed on this leg almost every morning.
• We stayed at Teklanika River Campground which is a dry campground and we were required to stay at least 3 nights and we were not allowed to move the van once parked at our campsite. Lithium batteries were at 55% SOC after 3 days. No generator. No solar. We are pretty happy with that. 🙂

Highlights:
• Wildlife Sightings: Dall sheep (protection from hunting was reason this park was created in 1917), caribou, moose, Rock and Willow Ptarmigan (Alaskan State Bird), Arctic Squirrels (sooo stinkin’ cute). Not as much wildlife as we wanted to see, especially bears.
• Due to Pretty Rock rockslide in 2021, the 95 mile primary road is closed near mile 41. We thought there might not be enough to do in just the front 1/2 of the park, but we had a great time and now have a reason to come back when the roaf reopens in 2026.
• Private vehicles are restricted to first 15 miles of the park except for those with a camping permit at Teklanika River Campground. We were given this special pass to drive our van to Mile 29.1. This was a great dry campground with only 30 sites so not many other people. No cellular coverage. We used the green hiker buses to move around the park Perfect relaxation opportunity.
• There aren’t a ton of curated hikes in Denali but there is the option backcountry hike most places in the park. We hiked along the Teklanika River for a few hours and the following day backcountry hiked up to Mount Margaret. It was only 2 miles each way but with 1838 feet of climbing. There was a bit of bushwacking through tall shrubs at the beginning, singing to alert the 🐻of our presence, but we were rewarded with awesome views and 0 other hikers once on the tundra. It was well worth the effort.
• We did also complete the Savage Alpine, Savage River, Horseshoe Lake and Taiga Loop trails. The Savage Alpine hike was tough and started with several miles of switchback climbing, followed by beautiful ridge walk and then an incredibly steep, loose rocky descent to the river. No switchbacks on this section. Our knees were feeling it the next day.
• Tony celebrated his 52nd birthday 🎂 while at the park. A hike, a long bike ride, his favorite tofu scramble and protein energy balls completed the day.
• Tony biked the road from the park entrance to Savage River three times while at the park. He said it was amazing with smooth roads, few cars and great views.
• Denali NP was a bucket list place for both of us and it did not disappoint. Mountains everywhere, glaciers, wide open spaces, braided rivers and wildlife. It exceeded both of our expectations.

Lowlights:
• Weather wasn’t the best, but we wore lots of layers and all our rain gear and we made the best of it.
• Mosquitos! They can bite through multiple layers including long sleeved t-shirt and a heavy flannel and a puffy coat all at once. Not even sure how that is even physiologically possible but I have numerous bites to prove it is. We have a new array of bites each day. My electronic Bite-Away device and Benadyl are the only things getting me through the constant itching.
• No Denali sighting from the park due to the weather, but for us that wasn’t the primary reason for our visit.

Tiger (Provan) Sightings: Tony = 2, Tracey = 0

Next: Denali STATE Park and Talkeetna, AK