Alaska- The Denali Highway

August 16- Solitude

This morning’s weather was as bad as yesterday plus a whole lot of wind to go with it. Back in April, I scored a lottery pass to Denali to be able to drive our car the extra 15 miles into the park that is normally not open to the public, but seeing as the weather was even worse and there was no hope to see the mountain, we decided to blow it off.

We had a full day in front of us anyhow so the extra time would come in handy. We made a quick stop for some sweets, then on to a place that was recommended by George to grab sandwiches to eat in the car- all was delicious!

Our drive today was across the 130 mile Denali Highway, with the first 110 miles being dirt. This is a road that is off limits to most rental cars unless, like us, you rent from a local dealer that allows it. It was the beginning of hunting season and we had been warned that there would be a lot of local traffic but there was nary a car the whole way.

The good news is the rain stopped but the low clouds never fully lifted. What we could see of the scenery was beyond magnificent; it truly is incredible to have mountains completely surrounding you but to have it that way nor 100 plus miles at the least!

We stopped at one point to let Billy fish one of the picture perfect streams that flowed through the vast tundra. Within a bit less than an hour, he caught three large graylings.

The entire 130 mile crossing took us almost six hours, with stops, including the second highest mountain pass in Alaska at 4,086’; it was very nice for me as Jenny drove almost the entire way.

(Scenes from along the highway):

After exiting the Denali Highway, we got caught up in some of the most massive highway construction projects I have ever seen. The Richardson Highway that runs north to south on the east side of Anchorage was quite incredible. As far as we could see, there were pine forests. And for the first time, we saw the Trans- Atlantic pipeline which runs 800 miles from Prudhoe Bay on the Arctic Ocean- a wild scene to see this massive oil pipeline snaking through the forests.

When I was trying to make hotel reservations for this night, there was a lot that went into the consideration. There were very few options available that were within reason as far as time, distance and covid requirements. Most of the places I tried were closed for this year, so I ended up booking at a historic lodge that actually got fairly decent reviews, but I warned Billy and Jenny that I was quite nervous for the stay.

We checked in at the bar where we met the owners and grabbed a basic meal. The owners couldn’t have been nicer and we really enjoyed talking with them. He was an Army officer stationed here before they bought the lodge. The place is now for sale as they are planning on moving back to the Fort Worth Area.

When we got to our cabin, it was certainly a throwback to at least the 1950s.

All was good, we could deal with the spiders, the lack of an operating smoke detector and the generally more-than-well-worn feeling but it all came to an abrupt halt for me when a mouse ran across my path- an Alaskan size mouse. Anyone who knows me knows, I don’t do rodents- they carry a million diseases; Billy always jokes we should invest in the expanding foam spray company because I am constantly filling gaps to try and stop them from entering my homes.

Well sh@t… 11:00 at night – in the middle of nowhere… no choice but to suck it up. I hope dawn comes soon because come first light, we are out of here!