Our friends Don & Debbie came for a visit.
But first a pic with the grand kids when we were home for a visit in Texas.
Formerly known as Mount McKinley. 20,310 feet tall, the tallest mountain in North America.
McKinley National Park was created in 1917, in honor of former President McKinley. In 2015. President Obozo renamed the National Park and the Mountain to Denali, which is the original Athabascan name
We took the 8 hour bus ride into Denali and saw the mountain. I (Nancy) was so excited to see it so close up. We'd seen it from far away and then as we flew over from Fairbanks but this was the best. As it is in a National Park, masks were still required everywhere. The park is over 6 million acres or wilderness, so must still be a Covid hotspot.
It is estimated that less than 30% of all the people who visit Alaska ever get to see the entire mountain, as it it so tall it creates it's own weather and is usually shrouded in the cloudsWe took a hike
The dogs at Denali are actually working dogs. All winter long there are sled dog teams that patrol the park with Forest Service Rangers to prevent poaching and other illegal activities in the park while the roads are all closed.
The Horseshoe Lake loop trail is a great hike, it takes you through the forest and around the lake to the Nenana River. We saw a mother moose with her calf in the lake, along with several Beaver damns
Of coarse we had to enjoy a cold beer after the long hard day of hiking and sightseeing.Katmai National Park and Brooks Falls
Katmai is about 290 miles Southwest of Anchorage and is only accessible from the air or water. It is about an hour and a half flight from Homer. Katmai is a little over 4 million acres and contains thousands of brown bears. It also is famous for having many volcanoes, and Mt. Novarupta, which was responsible for the largest volcanic eruption in the 20th century
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Great picture of the Homer Spit from the float plane on our way to see the bears.
We did see the bears catch a few fish but the Salmon run really started a few days after we left and is really strong now for any of you who want to watch it live streaming on the Explore.org webcam.
https://explore.org/livecams/brown-bears/brown-bear-salmon-cam-brooks-falls
Back in Soldotna
There is a Russian Orthodox Church in Soldotna, AK that we toured.
The Alyeska Tram in Girdwood is a nice day out.
Had to have a drink at the Salty Dawg!
The guys went fishing and caught a few fish. Halibut and Alaskan Cod.