Hiking Tolkat River

This was our stop, 3 hours on the bus (we only went 53 miles), but what a beautiful 3 hours. We decided to hike the mostly dried up river bed. We thought this would be a fairly easy hike for us since it was flat, and we could see forever, so approaching animals would be easy to see. What we didn't know is that the river is so filled with silt from the glaciers that nothing lives in it and you can not filter it to drink.

I tried to be a little artistic on this hike, I am no where near the photographer Nathan is, but I was having fun. The rocks were so beautiful. I could bore you with lots of them, but I picked my favorite. I could have taken so many pictures of the rocks, but I kept getting too far behind the gang.

Beautiful!

Bonnie, Nathan and the boys hiking ahead of me. The water doesn't look like much and for the most part it wasn't, but there were areas that were really rushing. We had to continually cross small streams of water (it is called a braided river because of all the little streams breaking in and out of the main river.

On one of our crossings I went first. BIG mistake. I stepped on a big, flat, stable looking rock and it tipped. Under normal circumstances, this would not have been any big deal, my foot would have gotten wet, but being 8 months pregnant and carrying the camera, my balance and weight were off. I fell completely on my side so I was laying in the water. Surprisingly the only thing I hurt was my ankle and my hip. I had my hand on my belly to cushion it. Nathan and Bonnie were really upset and worried about me. I was more worried because I couldn't get up and our really nice camera was submerged. I thought for sure it was ruined, but thankfully, we both made it out without any trouble. I was soaked (which actually felt REALLY good-I was so hot), but was dry by the time we got back to the bus.

I love the contrast of the blue sky, white clouds, and green mountains.

This is glacial silt, its whats left when the water dries up. So you can see why nothing lives in it and you can not drink it. It was beautiful, the kind of "mud" you just want to sink your feet into. Everest did, and had a blast, but it ruined some of the pictures I wanted to take. That is life and I am glad he was there to help us remember to have fun.

When we got back to where the bus would pick us up (you can see the shelter in the background), we found a clean flowing stream. We were all very thirsty by this point. Nathan taught Everest how to use the water filter.

Then he showed him how to drink from the filter. I think Everest would have sat there all day filtering water.

Riding the bus in Denali

Everest and I enjoying the bus ride. He loves buses, so this was very exciting for him.

This reindeer (I think), was walking in the field as the bus approached, it just kept going when the bus stopped and crossed the road right in front of us.

Beautiful view. Not many trees in certain areas. Parts of the park have lots of trees, so thick you can barely see through them. It is a great place for the animals, but very difficult to see any.

Daddy and Leaf on the bus. We did our research and knew we had to have the kids in car seats on the bus. It worked out well, because they could see out the window then. When we got off the bus, we just unhooked them and put the seats by the side of the road.

We saw a Golden Eagle sitting on a ridge less than 100 yards from the bus. This was my favorite thing to see. I loved all the other animals too We were lucky and saw Grizzly, Dall sheep, moose, reindeer and the eagle. The only big animal we did not see was a wolf, but they said there are only 30 (I think) wolves in the entire park, so it is rare to see them. They den further than where we went. I loved seeing the eagle, because you never see one this close. It was huge and majestic looking.

Dall Sheep sitting on the side of the road. I have never seen Dall sheep. It was cool to see them just sitting there, like they were waiting to get picked up. The Dall sheep are the whole reason for Denali National Park. The habitat was protected for them in the beginning.

Denali Views

Just wanted to share some of the amazing views we saw from the bus and hiking. Can you see why we loved Alaska?

The views speak for themselves. So beautiful and yet so different. We didn't even see most of the park. The shortest bus distance is 3 hours (you can get off anywhere before that). The bus only goes 30 miles an hour and stops for views and wildlife. We saw plenty of both.

Dog sled demo in Denali

Denali National Park has 6 million acres!!! That is a lot of land. The only way you can see the park is by bus, and there is only 1 road through the park. There are no maintained hiking trails. I wasn't sure what to expect, but it was great. You buy a ticket to a destination, and you can get off anywhere along the way, then jump on the next bus and off when you want again. You can only go as far as you purchase and then you head back. The first 15 miles of the park you can drive in your own car and there are trails, but not as much to see.

One of the activities for kids was a dog sled demo. In the winter the road is not plowed so they patrol the park by dogsled teams. We road the bus to the dog sled demo. Here are the boys petting one of the females.

The dogs were all very friendly. The boys enjoyed getting to pet all of them.

Isn't this sweet. This was Everest's favorite dog. He liked hanging out with the dogs so much, we decided to hike to the kennel area the last day. We got within sight of it and Everest had a slight meltdown so we turned around and went back.

This is the rangers hooking the dogs up for the demo. I don't know if you can see, but all the dogs are standing on their houses. They were all so excited to get picked. It was fun to see their energy, they LOVE to run.

Here comes the sled. They were flying around the corner and then the 2 lead dogs got into an argument, no big deal, they just tried to run each other off the trail. It was interesting to hear about the dog sleds, how and why they use them and the history of the dog sled. The talk was a little long (30 minutes) for Leaf, but when we tried to leave the stands, the dogs went nuts, so we stayed where we were.

Trip to Denali National Park

We drove to Denali National Park, it is a 4-5 hour trip (without kids). We decided to make a few stops on the way. We found a nice lake to have a picnic lunch. The boys, Bonnie and I played at the lake while Nathan made sandwiches for lunch. Then we sat on the dock and ate. It was beautiful and very quiet. We only saw a few cars in the park and no one on the lake.

Denali Mountain (also known as Mt. McKinley). Denali is the Native name for it. Seeing the whole mountain is a rare occasion. It is usually covered by clouds. The park rangers explained the weather pattern on the mountain, it made sense as to why it was usually covered by clouds, but at the moment, I can't think of the explanation. (This was from a view point along the road to the park)

Mountains along the way.

Denali Park- The first day we were at the park, we just did some hiking near the visitors center. The boys were into pretending to be kitties, Everest even has shoes on his hands. Uncle Denis and Aunt Mena have a cat that the boys fell in love with. So they hiked along the trail on all fours, meowing. They both have on bear bells, so they made plenty of noise.

Hiking, Bonnie carried our day pack (water, food, diapers, etc), Nathan carried Leaf or Everest and sometimes both. I carried the camera and extra lenses. We got an Ergo carrier for the trip (what Leaf is in). I have had a lot of slings to carry my babies, but this is probably the best one. You will be seeing it more often, as the baby can use it and I am sure, that is where the baby will be most of the time.

Nathan and Leaf taking a break to enjoy the view. Leaf would not look at me for a picture.

Hiking in Alaska

During the Cold War, these early radar detectors were put up in Nome to alert the US of a Russian invasion. These massive structure are still standing today. We could see them out Doug's front window. There are 4 of them identical to this one, sitting on top of the highest hill in Nome. We decided to take a drive to see them one night. It was a beautiful night, we saw a herd of musk ox on the way up. There is a huge crows nest at the top of the smaller structure, you can see Doug climbing to check it out.

This is the view of Nome from the radar towers. It was beautiful, and windy that night. Bonnie was flying into Nome that evening. For some reason, Nathan told me she was getting in around 9:30. We went to the radar towers around 8:30 thinking we had plenty of time. We kept getting calls from Bonnie, but the reception was bad, we thought she was calling from her layover in Kotzebue. After 30 minutes of trying to connect with her, Nathan realized, she was in Nome waiting for us to pick her up. We jumped in the truck and raced back down the mountain to pick her up. We felt terrible, the terminal closes about 10 minutes after you deplane, so she had to wait outside for us. Some welcome to Nome, haven't seen you in a while. Sorry Bonnie. Luckily Grami is wonderful and thought the whole thing was funny. We are so luck she is easy going and wonderful.

When we got back to Anchorage, we went hiking with Nathan's grandparents, Grami, and his aunt Mena and Uncle Denis. We went to a place right outside of Anchorage called Flat Top. We didn't get anywhere near the top (it is about an hour and a half hike-and that is if you are not a great grandparent, 8 months pregnant or under the age of 5). It was very cloudy so we didn't even get to see the top. We had fun hiking and saw a lot of people on their way up and down the mountain.

Everest found a flag in Denis's garage and just had to take it with us. He is obsessed with the American flag. He wanted to bury it so people knew we were Americans. It is amazing how entertaining a flag can be for a 4 year old.

All the gang (minus Nathan, Leaf, grandma and grandpa), checking out the view, looking for moose and taking a rest.

Later that evening we had a fire on the back porch. Denis and Mena have an amazing house with beautiful windows all around. This picture was taken around 10:30 or 11 pm. The sun is starting to set a little. In Anchorage it was darker than twilight, but not quite dark from about 12:30 to 4am. It was really cool, but weird. We definitely stayed up much later than we normally would.

Everest on a walk around Denis and Mena's house (I think). I wish I would have taken more pictures of thier plants. Due to the many hours of sunlight, some of the veggies and flowers they grow are HUGE. Mena had rhubarb growing in her yard, the leaves and plants were enormous!

The Village of Teller

Teller sits right at the edge of the water. We drove right up to the water and got out to look around. The sky was amazing!

 

It is hard to see all the ice floating in the water, but there was a lot. It was all flowing with the tide. It was really cool to watch. We were amazed at how much ice was still in the water in mid June.

The road coming into Teller. These are a few buildings, houses, sheds, etc.

We met an Alaskan Native who is a famous dog sled racer. His name is Joe, and he is on Doug's advisory board. He was fishing with his daughter when we drove by. We stopped to chat and watch him. He was trying to catch 50 pounds of fish for his sled dogs, before the tide went back out. He said 50 pounds of fish will feed the dogs for 2 days! You can see him in his boat, he has a long fishing net he is putting out. He lives directly across the street from the water.

Joe showed us his sled dogs, all 28. This is where they are in the summer and some of the winter. Notice how high the poles are....he said they get that much snow that the dogs can slip right off the poles, so they have to be at least 12 feet high. He also showed us the huge shed and kennel system he built for his dogs, as far as sled dogs go, these dogs have it made.

Joe uses the old fashion wooden sleds when he races. He built this one himself over 20 years ago, it has no metal parts. It is held together by thick ropes, that he waxes to keep it strong and from fraying. It was really neat to see.

Thanks to Joe for taking the time to show us around.

Notice how bundled up we ate. A bunch of neighborhood kids came over to see Joe's puppies, they were all in shorts and tank tops. Even the little ones who were about 2. It wasn't freezing outside, but it also was NOT shorts weather.

Road to Teller

Doug took us to the Eskimo village of Teller. I think it is the only village you can drive to. Brevig Mission is 6 miles across the water from Teller, so we could see it. In the winter the water is frozen so they snow machine from the villages, and in the summer they can take a boat, but they have to wait until the ice completely breaks up.

It was a beautiful day for a drive. We saw a lot of wildlife and some great scenery.

Reindeer on the side of the road. Everest was so excited to see reindeer. They are like caribou, but a little different, I think their legs are shorter and something with their antlers. It also has to do with migration, you see reindeer in the summer and caribou in the winter in the Nome area.

We stopped at a place in the river that the ice hadn't completely melted yet. Doug had a great time with Leaf. Teresa, did you notice? Go NC State.

Here is the ice, isn't it beautiful? It is glacial water so it has the beautiful blue in it. We played here for about an hour. While we were here, we heard and saw some of the ice calving-falling off into the water. It was loud.

This is the reason for the calving. It looked like it was raining under the ice. We thought it was chilly, but it was warm enough to melt the ice.

There was a ptarmigan in the bushes. Doug and Leaf sat/laid on the side of the road watching it for about 5 minutes. Everest got excited and ran up to see it and it flew away.

This is Teller from a distance. It is right at the edge of the water. It is so beautiful with the water and mountains in the background. Brevig Mission is directly across the water, it is hard to see in this picture.

Doug and Leaf checking out the views of Teller.

Doug let Leaf drive into Teller. He was so proud of himself. We were only going about 5 miles an hour and didn't see another car.

Thanks Doug for showing us Teller and around Nome, we had so much fun.