On the way out, we saw five grizzlies in one area. These two cubs were tussling near their mother. They would fight with each other, then pull a small tree down to get the bark or berries.
We also saw more Dall sheep, but these were much closer to the bus.
We stopped at Polychrome Pass again and this time got our picture from a different vantage point.
As you might be able to tell from the picture, the weather was not as nice for this trip.We left our bus at Eielson and found the trail open! We crossed the road and started our hike up to the ridge. We stopped about halfway up for a photo.
We had a great view of the visitor center from the ridge.
Once we neared the top, the wind began to howl! Across the valley the weather was even worse.
This was the first time the tripod failed us when we wanted a picture together--the wind blew it down! Luckily, a tour guide from Czech Republic (who climbed McKinley 2 years ago) was also at the top and took our picture.
Not long after that, four caribou crested the ridge south of us. The first three were not afraid, but the fourth one skirted the area below the ridge west of us.
The weather remained the same--winds gusting! Bob took a picture of me trying to lean into the wind.
The wind was so strong, my hair was blown completely up and out!
Denali was covered in clouds, but still a great view from Alpine Ridge.We found a sheltered area below the ridge where we ate our lunch.
This is a picture of the ridge we climbed. We were on the hump to the left of the picture. We had to walk across the saddle to get there.
We enjoyed our bus ride back to the rv and had a restful evening. We would have to move out of Tek on Thursday.As we were leaving the campground, we picked up a young man who is a photographer. He needed to get to the entrance before noon to make a call to the east coast. We thoroughly enjoyed talking with Coby and found out he sells his pictures at the Saturday Market in Anchorage. You can check his photos at kissamoose.com He showed me one still in the camera of a caribou in full run--like the Mustang emblem.
Once back to the main visitor center, we parked the rv, rescued the car (can only drive one vehicle to Tek) and rode around looking for a campground for 2 nights.
We got a great view of the Alaska Train trestle.
We made it back in time to catch a bus to the dog sled demonstration area. The dogs here belong to the park and are working dogs, not racing dogs. Work dogs weigh 80+ pounds, race dogs are about 50 pounds.Coho wouldn't let anyone but Bob pet him--probably because Bob got down to his level.
The ranger used this sled for the demonstration.
Once the dogs saw the harnesses attached, they all started barking asking to go for a run! Coho was one of the lead dogs!From the sled dog demo it was back to the entrance.
Coby told us the best meal going was seafood nachos at Princess Lodge, so Bob and I headed there for dinner. He was right! For $20 we got more than we could eat! Thanks for the tip Coby!
Thursday and Friday night we stayed at McKinley Campground in Healy, north of Denali. Friday afternoon we were scheduled to go on our first ever white water rafting trip. The trip didn't start until 1:30 so we spent some time geocaching in the park. This was another entrance sign.
Finally, it was time for the rafting trip. I was a little nervous, but mostly excited. They dressed us all in wet suits, gloves, and caps so we would stay warm even when we were soaked. Our guide, Jack, was from Idaho. He is a college student who spent the last 2 semesters in Costa Rica! He was a great guide and we had a blast! We rode the rapids through the Nenana Canyon in Denali 12 miles downriver to Healy. I can't wait to go on another rafting adventure!Sorry, no pictures as our camera wasn't waterproof and it stayed behind. We did purchase the picture that a photographer took after we went through a rapid. You'll have to see it when we get home.
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