Denali National Park - 2
/After three nights at the Riley Creek Campground in Denali National Park, we still couldn’t get enough of the place. We learned that Teklanika Campground at Mile 29 on the Park Road had campsites available, but people who drove to the campground had to stay for a minimum of three nights. Fine with us!
We booked one and got a permit to drive to the campground with stops allowed along the way. The only caveat, once we parked at the campground we couldn’t drive anywhere else other than our return trip three days later.
We could have purchased a ‘Tek Pass’ for $32.75/pp which would have allowed us unlimited rides on the camper bus from the Tek (Teklanika) Campground to Mile 43 and back. A caveat for the Tek pass was you needed to leave the bus before it arrived at Savage River. If you didn’t, you would be required to buy a new pass to get back to Teklanika. Sounds complicated and it kinda was. We didn’t feel the need to purchase the passes.
We set out on the Park Road from Riley Creek in mid-morning in hopes of seeing Denali again. It was bright and sunny with big, fluffy clouds floating along in a pale blue sky. It turns out that that viewing Denali from within the national park is not all that easy. The best viewing spot is Mile 9 on the Park Road and the mountain wasn’t showing himself at all. It’s estimated that only ~30% of people who visit Denali National Park actually get to see the mountain. Glad we already had the chance to see ‘him’.
We had hoped to stop at Savage River for a quick hike, but it was already crowded with no available parking spots. Once we passed through the check station at Savage River with our permit, however, the traffic and the crowds went away. We figured we’d check out Savage River on our return. Park buses constituted most of the traffic now with very few private vehicles on the road. Because we could, we dawdled on the Park Road en route to Teklanika. A well-graded, wide gravel road in good condition, we took our time stopping frequently for views and walking where we could.
A caribou was walking down the middle of the road and we slowed to a stop to watch him. Unfortunately, a park bus was coming from the opposite direction and the caribou darted off the road.
There were several gravel turnouts with great views. The fireweed was in full bloom now and added vibrant pink color in the foreground of the vistas. An interesting note… fireweed gets its name not from its color, but rather because it is one of the first flowers to bloom in post-fire burn areas.
While at the check station, the attendant asked us if we were familiar with the ‘sheep clock’. No, we were not. Evidently for ten minutes past each hour, all traffic stops in a certain designated location so that animals can cross the road. Hmmm… I wonder if the animals got the memo and know to wait till it’s safe to cross. When we came to the sheep clock, we stopped and waited, but no sheep crossed our path.
It took us nearly two hours to drive the scenic 29 miles to Teklanika and it was early afternoon by the time we chose our first come/first serve campsite. Teklanika is a well laid out campground with vault toilets, fresh water, trash bins and lots of park to explore.
One day we walked ~4 miles RT along the Park Road stopping at an overlook on the Teklanika (Tek) River. The weather was perfect although whiffs of smoke were noticeable at times due to wildfires to the north. We explored the campground area, talked with the camp hosts and other campers and followed rough, narrow paths through the woods along streams that fed the Tek. It felt good to be away from the main camp for a few days. The only thing we missed was reading our morning newspaper and it was easy to forego that pleasure to be in these surroundings.
Another day we rode our bikes 16 miles RT on the Park Road, enjoying the scenery and quiet… the only sounds were the crunch of the tires on the gravel and an infrequent park bus. Ground squirrels and rabbits skittered across our path and startled ptarmigan fluttered up when we approached. Otherwise, only one brief glimpse of caribou butt, no bear, no fox. Life was easy and pleasant at Teklanika.
And three days were gone just like that. On the return trip, we stopped at Savage River as planned. This time it was less crowded and parking was not a problem. We walked the easy 2-mile Savage River Loop admiring the plethora of wild flowers along our path.
We secured one more night at Riley Creek Campground so we could take showers and do laundry before heading out again. The 49th State Brewery seemed like a great option for a late lunch/early dinner, so we headed back to Healy. Both the lunch and the draft craft beer were great.
Parked in the the 49th State Brewery front yard is a replica of the “Magic Bus”, the movie prop from the movie “Into the Wild”, the story of Chris McCandless and his odyssey and subsequent death in the the Alaskan wilderness. The actual bus is in the process of being restored by the Museum of the North in Fairbanks.
We headed out early the next morning to continue north on the Parks Highway towards Fairbanks. We’d seen the Grande Denali perched high on the cliffs above the highway and Denali Village and wondered what it was. It turns out the road up to the top was more impressive than seeing the hotel itself. Whoever planned the switchbacked road up the steep incline had a good sense of humor.
We continued on, but we never drive for long without finding a reason to stop, stretch and explore. It’s only a 120-mile drive from Denali to Fairbanks, but Nenana was on the way so we stopped. Nenana is known for two things. First, President Harding visited the town by rail in 1923 driving in the ‘golden spike’ to celebrate the completion of the 470-mile long Alaska Railroad from Seward to Fairbanks.
The second notable thing about Nenana is the Nenana Ice Classic, an Alaska tradition since 1917. When will the the Tanana River ice break up at Nenana? At an average thickness of 42” on April 1st. Townsfolk plant a tripod two feet into the ice at a specified location. The tripod is connected to a clock which stops the second the ice goes out.
For $3, you can buy a ticket between February 1st and April 1st betting the date and the exact time the river will break up. In 2023, the winning date and time: 4:01 PM Alaska Time/ May 8th. The jackpot was $222,101! Too early to buy a ticket for the 2024 Nenana Classic, but we’ll keep it in mind.
As we continued north towards Fairbanks, we were confronted with a difficult decision. What now? Fairbanks for a few days? Further North? Maybe start heading east and rejoin the Alaska HIghway? Decisions, decisions! Any suggestions?