View of Denali on our first trip - the clouds cleared only briefly
Quite a bit of excitement for us since we came to our work destination. We enjoy meeting (most) people as we do our daily tasks at the RV park. We have met people from most of the lower 48, Germany, Russia, Isreal, England, Ireland and other places. It is very interesting for us to talk about the lifestyle we have chosen. Living in a motor home does not appeal to everyone who travels in one. Many do like the idea of the freedom we have, but they understand the need to follow their own direction. Having lived in the worlds we have, we can understand each point of view.
As mentioned in the last post, we have purchased our "six-pack" of tickets for the shuttle bus rides into Denali National Park. The park only allows certain vendors to drive the 90 mile park road in the tourist season. Buses (similar to school and public transport) are the main traffic on the park road. (A personal car may be driven to the 15 mile point.) Their are several destinations for the buses and different types of bus tours. Some are luxurious (relatively speaking - it's still a bus!), while the method of travel we take is a little more rustic. We choose the shuttle buses for the freedom to get out and walk along the route instead of being driven by an individual bus schedule. The shuttle buses allow you to get off and then catch a later bus to and from your destinations.
Our first trip into the park was a trip to Wonder Lake. The scuttle on the lake's name is those who first saw it wondered how they had missed it before or, an alternate version, that they wondered how the lake got there. It is a pretty large, deep glacial lake. It is also home to some of the hungriest mosquitoes known to man. There were many animal sightings on our first trip.
Second year cub - cubs stay with Mom for two+ years.
Grizzlies only have babies every 4 years.
Cub with Mom.
Gorgeous fox - we actually saw him catch a small mammal for dinner earlier.
Arctic Ground Squirrel - and yes they can be pests jus tlike their cousins.
The round trip out to Wonder Lake is about 11 hours. This makes a person tired.
We came out of the park and had our first meal at the Denali Alaskan Salmon Bake. Normally we would not mention a restaurant in the blog, but this is also where Tom enjoys playing at the Open Mic Nights. They start near midnight since most of the participants work in the area and lots don't get off till 10 or 11. It is a challenge to play here with the pool table just in front of the stage, but the audience and the musician are learning a lot about each other and having fun while doing it.
Tom at Open Mic Night
There are a lot of other activities locally. We're both participating a little more in community activities this trip. Sally's been to Knit Night at the library and is helping a fellow workamper relearn the skill. Besides the Open Mic night at the Salmon Bake, Tom's also played at a community center open mic night at a much more reasonable hour (7:30). We also go to attend the Alaska Shakespeare Festival performance of The Comedy of Errors at 11:59 PM on the day of the Summer Solstice. That's midnight, folks, and it was outdoors without lights! The play was very funny (as intended). It's obvious a lot of work went into the production and that the participants are very talented.
Shipwreck scene from A Comedy of Errors
Creativity in set design and props should be noted.
The RV park staff also got to attend the local Cabin Night - a participative dinner theatre. The idea is that you are at a 30's Alaska roadhouse. The food is good, the atmosphere is rowdy and the entertainment is amusing.
Scene from Cabin Night in Alaska
Our second trip out in the park was another Wonder Lake tour. Our plan was to get off the bus at the Eilson Visitor Center 66 miles into the park and take some of the short hiking trails there. The weather was lousy, we had snow at the 3000 foot level (this is in June), so there was little chance of seeing the mountain. The animals were out in force, we saw moose, bear and and others, but we still lack a wolf spotting in two trips. 4 to go, wish us luck, as we wish you luck also. Thanks for tuning in!
It snowed enough to build a min snowman.
The views weren't so pretty in the snow, but we did see the sow and cub again.
Mom nursing the little guy in the snow.
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