8/15-19/2021

Denali National Park is the fourth national park in Alaska we are going to visit. Since the Alaska Denali Star Train tickets were sold out before we could snap, we took the Park Connection bus from Anchorage to Denali instead. It turns out that an alternate is a good option. The bus ticket costs $100 per person and the total travel time is about 6 hours, cheaper and less travel time than the train. The bus ride is very comfortable, and we have a coffee/restroom break at Talkeetna. We arrive at McKinley Chalet around noon. Our room is not ready, so we go right to the Karstens Restaurant for lunch. McKinley Chalet Resort is on the shores of the Nenana River and a short distance walk to the commercial area of restaurants and shops. The room is comfy with a separate sitting room. The resort provides shuttles to the park and on property.

After settling in, we take the shuttle to the park to check it out. Again, the visitor center is closed due to COVID-19, but the gift shop is open, so we get the bear spray for $50. Since most people carry bear spray while they hike, having one with us provides a sense of safety protection. Dinner is Chinese/Thai take-out. The food is pretty good. After traveling for a while, we always want to have Asian food as comfort food, whether authentic or not.

On Aug. 16, we ride the park’s free Savage River Shuttle to the Savage River Loop Trailhead. The Savage River Loop Trail is a beautiful flat trail along the river. It is an easy hike for us and is pretty scenic. While waiting for the return shuttle, we decide to hike a small portion of the Alpine Trail to get a feel of the trail. Then we ride the shuttle back to the sled dog kennels near the park headquarter. Twenty-four sled dogs were in the kennels. All dogs start to balk loudly and jump up and down to their tiny houses when we walk in. Somehow a little mouse gets into the area under the bushes. One of the dogs catches the mouse finally, but the ranger takes it out of the dog’s mouth. It takes 15-20 mins for the ranger to get the mouse out of the area and calm down the dogs. It is a pretty funny scene for us. Since the next shuttle back to the visitor center is still an hour away, we hike on a roadside trail near the bus stop. Back to the resort, we have dinner at Karstens Restaurant.

On the third day, the 17th, we take the Eielson Visitor Center Transit bus, 66 miles into the park. This transit bus is the most popular bus route in the park. We made the reservation a couple of months in advance at $60 per person. The weather is cloudy and occasionally drizzling. Since we are on the bus most of the time, we don’t worry about getting wet, but in the beginning, we do fear that the poor visibility may prevent us from spotting any wildlife. It turns out to be a perfect day trip. We spotted so many wildlife, Bears, Moose, Caribou, Dally Sheep, and birds along the way to the visitor center. We spot a grizzly bear not too far away from the road before our bus driver does. We get a good shot of it. The bus arrives at the destination before 1 pm. Initially, we thought we would ride the same bus back, but we changed our mind at the last minute to spend more time exploring the area. We do a couple of short hikes then walk down on the Thorofare Ridge Trail. We spot a black bear lying down on the river bed and eventually move to a nearby tree from a far distance. What a treat!

On the way back, we get on an empty bus called a camper sweeper to collect the campers or visitors left behind. The bus driver is super informative. He cracks a few jokes and talks about permafrost. Because of climate change, the permafrost in some areas in the park is thawing to cause the landslide. He points out several permafrost landslides along the road. He says that one section of the road we drive through is sinking at the rate of 12 inches per day. The workers are constantly adding gravels from the river below. We don’t think we want to drive through it by ourselves even if we are permitted. We see even more bears, moose, and caribou on the returned bus. We take about 800 hundred pictures on that day. It is super awesome to see so much wildlife.

After a nine-hour tour and another hour of shuttling back to the town, we are hungry and crave good food. We want a take-out from that Chinese/Thai place, but the waiting time is about one hour and 45 mins, so we go to a Serbian restaurant, Moose-Aka’s, the next block. The restaurant has a 5-star review on Tripadvisor and has a long waiting time too. Somehow the host messes up the seating queue. After two hours, we finally are seated. We order Turkish coffee, which is different from the coffee we usually drink. We have a Russian Salad surprisingly similar to the one we make at home. The appetizer sampler platter and other main entrees are all very delicious. The staff apologized for keeping us waited so long and paid for an appetizer. It is a long day.

Today, Aug. 18, is the fourth day in the park. The weather is the best so far, partially cloud and sunshine. We go back to the park and ride the Savage River shuttle again to hope to see Denali Peak. We hike through the 4.1 mile Savage Alpine Trail, starting from the south side and exiting the north end. The hike is terrific. It can be challenging at some points but not too hard. The view at the top is fantastic. Disappointingly, we don’t see Denali Peak due to the cloud. Back to the town early, we have the Thai food for dinner without a long wait.

On the final day in the park, before catching the 4 pm train to Fairbanks, we do a short Horseshoe loop hike and have lunch at the Karstens Restaurant. The resort offers a complimentary shuttle to the Train Depot and handles all the luggage. We are in the GoldStar Service Class of Denali Star Train to Fairbanks. The GoldStar Service Class includes the dinner on the low deck. Due to COVID 19, we have an option not to share the table with others, which we choose along with the other 10% of the passengers. We have been very cautious about social distance and not having contact with others on this trip. The train ride is great for us to see the remote area of Alaska. At the end of the journey, the experience of picking up the check-in luggage is horrifying. The bag claim area at the depot is not big. The room is full of passengers waiting for their luggage, shoulder to shoulder. It is a perfect place for the virus to transmit. Unfortunately, one of our two bags is the last one coming out. After 45 mins horrifying scene, we wonder if we might get the virus now. We pick up our rental car at the airport, and we are on the way to our Airbnb place at Fairbanks.