Denali Summer Solstice

Wow!  Can't believe how fast June is flying by!  I was lucky enough to spend the summer solstice in truly the Land of the Midnight Sun!  June 21st had 21 hours of direct sunlight in Denali...the other 3 hours its like the sun is just behind a dark cloud.  Work brought me up to Denali on the 21st, and I didn't have to pick a group up until the 24th, so I had 2 1/2 days on my own to explore Denali!  Denali has one 85 mile dirt road into the park, and you have to take their buses, so no private vehicles, which actually is pretty sweet!  I wouldn't want to see private vehicles and RVs driving themselves on their scary exposed one lane dirt roads!

It was great to see the green up of the park and a lot of early summer flowers in bloom, much different than our earlier visit in late May!  The skies were dramatic with sun and clouds, but unfortunately 'The Mountain' did not reveal itself during my 3 days in the park.  That's OK, maybe another time! 

 

 



 

View from camp



Still enjoyed the views, had some great wildlife sightings of a spruce grouse and chick, some caribou with decent racks already, a nice blonde grizzly and one of her two sleeping cubs...don't worry, all from the 'safety' of the road!  Did a few hikes on their few established trails...alot of Denali is pure wilderness, they encourage you to camp and hike off trails as long as its not in a wildlife closure area!  Since I was by myself however, I decided to stick to the trails!

A few more wildlife photos from Denali can be found in 'Alaska Wildlife' at https://picasaweb.google.com/chilipepperphotography

The weather up here has been pretty okay!  It's actually hotter towards Denali, bc your in the interior of the state and not having the maritime climate which keeps things nice and mild, low 50s high 60s!

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