Alaska: Day 3

Denali day!

We woke up super early for the bus tour of Denali - and it didn't seem that early because it was so bright out from the mid-June all-day sun! The buses are the only way to get into the park, which keeps the animals and environment safe from tourists running ramshod everywhere in their own cars. You can pick times throughout the day, but the early one is the best chance of seeing the best and biggest wildlife.

Dawn in Denali National Park

Within minutes of setting out, we left the treeline and entered the willow-bound tundra. We had had lovely views of Denali the previous day, but got to see her again here:

The white mountain is Denali

On the bus tour, we got to see:

• Dall sheep
• Moose (our first!!)
• Porcupines
• Willow ptarmigans
• Arctic ground squirrels
• Caribou

The caribou in particular were so close, numerous, and beautiful as they munched on the ground cover. I also loved the ptarmigans, which are the Alaska state bird.

The bus system really seems like the way to go. At first it's annoying not to have the freedom to drive around at your own pace, but the guide tells you all about the park, the animals don't care about the buses (the guide said the animals pay them not much more mind than a passing cloud), and each bus takes about 20 cars off the road. A few other national parks use the bus system, such as Zion, and I could think of others who would benefit. For example, ones that are so crowded that you can hardly find parking (Yosemite, Acadia) or ones where tourists injure or kill animals (or are injured by animals themselves).

After the bus tour, we took a hike around Horseshoe Lake, where I was thrilled to find a beaver dam!! We didn't see the beevs, though.

Beaver dam in Denali - Horseshoe Lake

The glacial water is always so blue and beautiful. Here are the beaver lodges, too.

Beaver lodges in Denali - Horseshoe Lake

On the way back, we visited Matanuska Brewing; I forgot to mention this was our first visit together to Alaska, so this was our first beer check-in within the state of Alaska. Only a few left to go.

My friend Burt met us for dinner at Alaska Chopped and Chowdered, where we enjoyed salmon and halibut. The salmon season is beginning, and everything was tasty. The restaurant was closing and it was still super bright out, which was disorienting. Throughout the trip, we'd be going, going, going, then suddenly tiredness would hit us like a ton of bricks around 10:30. The days of the midnight sun are beautiful, but disorienting!

Our road