MT. McKINLEY / DENALI NATIONAL PARK
(Alaska Flag)
(Map of Alaska)
All of the images below are thumbnails and can be clicked on for a larger image.
JUNE 27-29, 2007:
I spent three very enjoyable days at the McKinley Princess Wildreness Lodge.
There are two McKinley view points off the Parks Highway, South and North views.
7 minute video of my jounrey along Alaska's George Parks Highway. Click on the �YouTube player below to watch the video. | ||
It was about a one hundred mile drive to Denali National Park from the Princess Lodge.
Most of the park is off limits to private vehicles. The public road ends at Savage River.
Savage River is a beautiful area. I spent a couple hours hiking all around the river.
This dall ram walked right up to me like we were pals.
I probably over photographed this area, but the weather and scenery were perfect.
Denali National Park and Preserve is 6 million acres large. It is larger than the State of Massachusetts.
After eating lunch in the small village outside the park entrance I drove the 100 miles back to the lodge.
10 minute video of Alaska's Denali National Park. Click on the �YouTube player below to watch the video. | ||
|
Hello Everyone, I spent today at Mt. McKinley and Denali National Park. I have been here before but today I was actually able to see the mountain as the weather was beautiful. I didn't even get a small glimpse of it the last time it was here. I am staying at Mt. McKinley Lodge which is about 110 miles south of Denali National Park. This morning after I woke up the sun was perfectly positioned and skies were completely clear for great views of North America's tallest mountain which is over 20,300 feet tall. The attached photo of Mt. McKinley was taken very near my hotel this morning. I drove up to Denali and visited as much of the park as I could on my own. Most of the park is only accessible by shuttle bus. Which I wanted to do until I found out that the shuttle tour took eight hours. I don't think I could stand being on an old school type bus for that long. What I saw of the park on my own was beautiful. I spent most of my time around Savage River. I hiked all around it for about three hours. It was a beautiful area covered in wildflowers along the river and up and down rocky cliffs that surround it. Saw some wild life as well. Several mama ducks of some kind with large broods of babies following them. Lots of squirrels, rabbits and other small critters. But the highlight was when a mountain goat walked right up to me. I would have tried to pet the thing but he had horns and I wasn't sure that would be safe so I back off a couple feet. After the park I spent some time watching some rafters on the Nenana River before driving the 110 miles back to the hotel. Which is a beautiful drive in and of itself on the Parks Highway which runs from Anchorage to Fairbanks. I have a Mt. McKinley scenic flight with landing in the morning. I sure hope the weather is as beautiful tomorrow as it was today. After the flight I am going on a three hour jetboat trip out into the wilderness. Then on Saturday morning I drive back to Anchorage and fly back home at 8:00pm Saturday evening. I have enjoyed this trip very much. I have always loved Alaska, hence this is my third trip up here. Although I had a few rainy days, the weather this trip was far better than my previous two visits. Hope you all have a nice summer. Complete details of this trip with tons of photos and movies will posted on the Internet when I get home. It will probably take me several weeks to complete that project, so check http://timvp.com/travel.html in a few weeks if you have any interest in seeing that. Tim |
There was literally not a cloud in the sky on Friday when I flew to Mount McKinley with K2 Aviation.
Mount McKinley's south Peak is North America's highest at 20,320 feet. The north peak is 19,470 feet.
Days this clear around McKinley in the summer time are very few and far between.
Denali, the "High One," is the name Athabascan native people gave the massive
peak (Mount McKinley) that crowns the 600 mile long Alaska range.
We were flying in a single engine otter.
I have taken many flightseeing flights in a lot of different places, this one was really special.
Our plane equipped with skis landed at the Sheldon Amphitheater under Mt. McKinley
There were three planes on the glacier when we landed, but they soon left leaving the quiet mountain to us.
The mountains surrounding the Don Sheldon Amphitheater were beautiful.
In the picture on the lower right you can see Don Sheldon's outhouse.
Don Sheldon, pioneering bush pilot, built the 'Mountain House' in the early spring of 1966.
We spent about thirty minutes on the glacier before flying back to Talkeetna.
25 minute video of my flight around Mt. McKinley including a glacier landing. Click on the �YouTube player below to watch the video. | ||
Click above to continue to my last adventure of the trip, TALKEETNA, ALASKA.
Custom Search
|
| TIM'S HOME PAGE SITE INDEX | ||
|---|---|---|
| Areas | Description | # of Pages |
| About Me | Current Picture of me and my home. Information about myself. | 2 |
| Biography | Pictorial biography of myself. Pictures range from birth to adulthood. | 4 |
| Family File | Pictures of my family and a little information about them. | 11 |
| Local Spotlight | Pictures, Links, and Information for Indianapolis, Richmond, Plainfield, and Mooresville, Indiana. | 6 |
| Tim's Travels | Pictures, videos and travelogs from my travels around the world. | 200+ |
| Vacation Videos | Over 1100 videos from my travels around the world. | 1 |
 |  |  |
 | ||