Our Memorable Journeys

Day 13 - 9/3/2018 - The Mountain is Out

Today's Weather: High 64, low 43, bright sunny skies

"The Mountain is out" is a catch-phrase used by locals which means that Denali is in full view. It is said that only 30% of the people who visit Alaska get to see any part of the mountain. Well, today was the 13th day of our trip, lucky 13, I suppose, because we woke up to a bright sunny day without a cloud in the sky. We walked back to Riverfront Park to see if the view of Denali was better than yesterday….and it was. This was the 3rd consecutive day "The Mountain was out" for our visit.

Talkeetna is a funky little town. It is a turn-of-the-20th-century gold mining center and has retained much of its early Alaska flavor, except it’s the busiest place we have been so far! Log cabins, a roadhouse and clapboard storefronts line the dirt streets. Main Street is the only paved street in town. This is where climbers base themselves for their assault on Denali (formerly Mt. McKinley). The three large glacial rivers: the Talkeetna, Susitna, and Chulitna join to form “The Big Susitna River”.

We drove north on the Parks Highway to the McKinley Princess Lodge to have lunch. This drive was especially enjoyable to Tom because for most of the way the mountains were directly in front of us so that he, as the driver, could enjoy the view while keeping his attention on the road ahead. We stopped at Denali Viewpoint South and walked the 800 ft. uphill trail to a magnificent overlook with dramatic views of Denali and the Alaskan Range: Mt. Foraker, Mt. Hunter, Denali, and Moose’s Tooth. Rising 20,310 feet into the heavens, Denali is North America’s highest peak. Denali means “The Great One” or “High One” in the Athabascan language. As we started up the path we met a Native American woman coming down who smiled and proudly proclaimed “this is my mountain”…….just priceless!

When we returned to Talkeetna to our cabin, we opened the blinds and enjoyed a great view of Denali right through our cabin window.

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