Known as one of the oldest mining roads in Alaska and situated along the south face of Denali State Park, Petersville Road offers a step back into a forgotten world and foothills of yesteryear.  On a sunny and quiet Sunday morning with little to nothing on the schedule, I decided to head north to the borderlands of Denali State Park and begin to explore this road I had been hearing about since early spring.  One whose write-ups were filled with promises of adventure and majestic scenery along with dire warnings of the need for a four wheel drive in order to even access this remote road. 

Never one to be under swept by a challenge, I eagerly stepped up to see if my own vehicle would be able to handle it.  After all, it had long since conquered “four wheel drive only” roads in the past with obvious ease.

I began my drive a little after 9:00 a.m. in hopes of beating some of the traffic.  Though the somewhat early hour afforded me fewer cars than normal on the road, I was in no way reminded of the road that only 24 hours earlier had left me turning around in frustration by constant lines of traffic and 30 mile per hour streams.  It did serve as a reminder though and helped me come to the realization that the constant migration of road blimps (i.e. motor homes) are here to stay and things will not likely get any better until after the tour season ends.  Ah give me my fall shoulder season. A reminder of exactly WHY it’s one of my favorite times of year. 

After making good time I made my way up to Petersville Road and began to drive west.  The first few miles of the road are in fact met with quaint farms and homesteads.  Given the first 10 miles of the road are paved, the true “exploration” and sense of discovery didn’t begin until I hit mile 11.  Around mile 12 I was greeted by jaw dropping views of Mt McKinley and its south face.  The area is filled with numerous kettle ponds and only add to the views.  As I stopped to take photos, I could only imagine what the area looks like with fall colors.  And up until now the South Denali Viewpoint along the Parks Highway has always been one of my favorite places to stop and see Denali when she is out.  The views I encountered along Petersville Road quickly rivaled and exceeded that location.

As I continued to gaze around me while paying attention to the condition of the road, I noticed some four wheelers parked alongside the road further up ahead.  One thing I must mention is Petersville Road is a prime location for ATVers and indeed there were many times when the area became choked with them.  The common site along the road is four wheel drive vehicles pulling trailers with these “toys” stuffed on the back in vast numbers.  Caution while driving is an obvious must given many that I encountered during my drive did in fact not stop or give you the right away when encountered on narrow and windy roads. 

As I slowed down to pass the ATVers, I noticed them looking off to the right at another of the kettle ponds.  I craned my neck and followed their gaze.  I was in fact glad I did as I saw a cow moose and her calf swimming through the pond.  I stopped for a few moments and took a few shots before continuing on. The area continued to offer various views.  From flat windswept tundra to rolling hills that would eventually lead to the Alaska Range.  I passed the Forks Roadhouse at Mile 19.  Known as “The Forks” by locals, it offers a place to stop and quench your thirst.  However given I was on a mission, I continued on.

It was by this time that the road started getting more narrow and quite a bit more washboard in places.  So much so that my speed at times was reduced to under 10 miles per hour.  I also noticed the road became substantially softer at this point.  I have often heard that there were drainage issues along this road and have even run into a few people that have had their vehicles stuck in the mud and had to wait hours to be pulled out by someone.  Given I was out in the middle of nowhere with no cell service, that was in fact the last thing I wanted to do.  So I remained cautious yet determined.

At mile 26 I passed the abandoned mining camp of Petersville.  With homesteads situated and gracing a lot of “private property ” signs, local guide books warn one not to stop here. However it was here that I found myself in fact stopping and talking to the wife of one of the miners.  I found her to be quite friendly and she gave me some great insight on the road conditions and the history of the area.  She made mention that I could probably make it another 10-15 miles in my car, but five miles ahead I found the road to be so soft and filled with constant water that I determined it was a good time to turn around.  Difficult at best given how narrow the road had become.

Within a few hours of setting out, I found myself pulling back into Anchorage and headed towards home.  There is talk at this time about building a South Denali Visitor Center somewhere along the road within the coming months and year.  The area will obviously change and become commercialized if that is the case.  I am glad I was able to experience a step back into Alaska history along the mining fronts of Petersville Road.

Alaska Botanical Gardens
Anchorage, Alaska

A common sighting pretty much anywhere in Southcentral Alaska. In this case it was at the herb garden of the Alaska Botanic Gardens in Anchorage.

As we are encroaching upon the month of August here in South-central Alaska, the feeling of later summer has begun to tip the air.  We swing into our rainy season and the skies have begun their obvious concurrence with that as of late as we have been plagued with dismal grey skies and rain.  The hum of the start of the Alaska State Fair, fireweed in full bloom and the future of turning colors among the wooded canopy linger not too far off in the distant.

And indeed I have noticed the feeling of change as of late.  Hard to believe that we are only days away from the beginning of August.  With a busy month on the horizon existing for me, I continue to finalize my plans for an upcoming camping trip to Kennecott during the second week and a solo camping trip up the Denali Highway existing the following weekend. 

I do admit to being a bit nervous about this endeavor giving the Denali Highway is a very remote tread of 130 miles in territory not covered by cell service.  I drove this particular highway by myself last year, but solo camping will be a new adventure for me.   And of course not to be overshadowed, I leave the last week of August for my “fall trip” around Alaska including a return trip to Katmai for some bear viewing. 

The past week has been pretty much spent in solitary quiet time as  my evenings have been filled with nothing more than reading.  After having finished “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” last evening, I now find myself returning to my regular norm of Alaska genre books.  What remains particularly humorous to me is as I have taken upon my habit of gathering my book and departing to a local restaurant to read it during my lunch hour, the amount of comments I have received from others with regards to reading it.  Waitresses, hostesses and even fellow restaurant goers glance upon its cover before smiling and saying something to the effect of “hey, I’m reading that too!” 

When I went to lunch on Tuesday at a local Mexican resataurant, there were 4 of us in that particular section of restaurant seating that were just there to have lunch and read our book.  The world has been filled with the Harry Potter craze.  Now that I have finished, it’s time to either donate it to a fellow HP fan or turn it in for trade. 

Then I leave that behind to begin the “must be outdoors and experience the rest of summer” craze.   With as much as I have done this summer and as much as I have seen - why do I feel there is only so much more to do?

Somewhere in Anchorage
Southcentral Alaska

I’d say this is a pretty fair assessment of what I tend to do in my spare time. And ironically this pile will probably be read by the end of the week. Then it’s time to take them in for trade and get more.

Snowshoe Hare
Denali National Park, Alaska

The Snowshoe Hare (Lepus americanus) is a common sighting in Denali National Park whose population increases to new levels every 10 years. A common prey to the Lynx, the snowshoe turns white in the winter to help camoflage themselves from predators.

If I had to pick one of my favorite times of day, it would be that lonely stretch of hours between 4:00 - 6:00 a.m. This would be based not on just the fact that I am a morning person, but also because there is something so serene to me to the early dawn hours when the sun is beginning to crest and it greets the world. Where in the summer hours the dew dances on leaves and blades of grass, basking the world in a approach so beautiful. It is for this reason that it has also become one of my favorite times to travel as well.

I awoke bright and early on Saturday morning in preparation for my pre-dawn trip to Denali National Park where I would catch the 10:00 a.m. shuttle bus to Fish Creek. I awoke at a time where some people were just going to bed and was out the door while others were no doubt curling up to their pillows or significant others. There was silence in the air as my car pulled out of my complex and I slowly began to make my way across Anchorage to the outgoing Glenn Highway. There were obvious few people on the roads. Because of this I found myself making extraordinarily good time in which it took me just 2 hours to hit Milepost 135 of the Parks Highway. One of my favorite spots and that of the South Overlook of Denali State Park. It affords a wondrous view of Mount Foraker, Mount Hunter and Mount McKinley itself. And on this crystal clear day its views were ethereal. There was only a slight base of cloud cover around the south face of Denali. I stopped to stretch my legs and hit the rest room before continuing on my way. The ground cover was a continuous carpet of fuchsia as fireweed was blooming in earnest. A mile outside of the South Overlook I encountered a bull moose feeding alongside the road. I pulled over and quietly rolled down my window to just watch. He knew I was there and was ready to bound into the woods. Finally he familiarized himself with my presence and allowed me to snap a couple of shots of him before the semi pulling over the hill caused him to flee.

By the time I reached Cantwell Flats, a small fog cover had begun to gather at the base of each lake, stream or wetland throwing up plumes of fine mist. It softened the landscape around me and only added to the beauty. Especially since by that time the first shards of light were coming over the mountains casing the sky into pink and amber hues with the first glimpses of the sun. I stopped for awhile at Cantwell Flats to take in the beauty. I watched a caribou herd wander by on the flats and snowshoe hare bound across the road while porcupines ambled beside them. Of course some weren’t so lucky in their passing. It was only after I reached Cantwell when I began to see the low lying and ominous cloud cover begin to build over to the entrance to Denali National Park. Despite the weather forecast for crystal clear and sunny skies, it was only then I saw that it once again wouldn’t happen as predicted. The cloud cover would grace us throughout the day and from the view of the park, the North Face of Mt. McKinley would be socked in over clouds. The views of her majesty I saw would be those I saw back down the road at the south overlook.

Since I had made such good time on the road and arrived at the park in under 4 hours, I found myself with an extra hour to spare. I decided to drive in to the park and head to the Savage River overlook. The area open to passenger cars. There were a multitude of snowshoe hare and willow ptarmigan bounding along the road. At one of the pullouts I pulled over and again just began to park and watch the wildlife. I do this quite often and find it is a great way to not only allow them to become comfortable with you, but also brings them closer to you. By the time I left some 5 minutes later I was surrounded by about 20 snowshoe hare eating the wisps of grass along the road. I would later find out that the snowshoe hare are having a banner reproductive year and their population this spring exploded. The snowshoe hare seems to go in 10 year cycles. After the 10th year (this year) the population growth will in fact bottom out. Along with it, the lynx population tends to bottom out in the park as well. Especially given lynx are dependent on snowshoe hare as their main source of nutrition.

Finally I made my way back to the Wilderness Access Center and sat on one of the benches in the loading zone to the shuttle bus. For those of you that have never been to Denali National Park, the shuttle bus is a relatively inexpensive way to view and experience the park. Between mid-May and September, it is in fact the only way you can travel beyond the Savage River Checkpoint. One thing I learned yesterday was that the enjoyment of this trip is very dependent on how enjoyable the shuttle bus driver / guide is as well. Last year on my journey to Wonder Lake, I had a wonderful experience on a shuttle bus with an experienced driver who not only liked to fill everyone in on the history of the park, but was also willing to take the extra time when it came to helping people locate wildlife. Lets face it, the majority of people that go on the shuttle busses are wanting to experience their hopes of course in seeing Denali, but also are wanting to see the areas rich habitat of wildlife - i.e. wolves, grizzly, moose, caribou, sheep and more. The passengers on the bus work work together and with the shuttle bus driver in locating wildlife. That affords the perfect shuttle experience. Whereas last year I was journeyed to Wonder Lake and a full 11 hour day, this particular day I was journeying to mile 62 on the bus to the location of Fish Creek / Stony Hill.

As the crowds and line began to fill for the 10:00 a.m. shuttle I found myself chatting with a couple in front of me from Pennsylvania. Of course once they found out I was from Alaska, I was bombarded with questions from where to see the best wildlife to the best restaurants in Alaska. I think the most humorous question I answered was from a japanese tourist standing behind us who asked if every coffee shop in Alaska makes coffee as strong as he has encountered. I hid my smile at that and went on to explain it all depends on your luck of the draw and the barrista serving you. Finally we all boarded the bus and I quickly claimed my spot. Fourth from the front on the left side — and of course it was a window seat. Tourists from every location began to board. I heard french, italian, french canadian and a few other languages being spoken. However the group around me was a group of college students from around the US that is up in Alaska for some type of physics program at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. One of those particular students grumbled and groused and I quickly learned that I did not make friends when he asked me if he could switch seats with me (he was in an interior aisle seat) and I said no. I was simply not willing to give up my window seat. Not only had I arrived an hour early and waited in line for it but I wasn’t about to be “downclassed” from going to a crowded aisle seat. That’s like going from first class to coach. Sorry, not going to happen! I learned that this college student held a grudge because there were several times during the trip that he used his aisle seat as an excuse to block access to what could have been some amazing photography shots for me. By the end I was a little soured at the constant harassment and attitude I received and between that and the shuttle driver, was glad when the tour was over. Next time? I’m going to Wonder Lake!

Our shuttle bus driver took that moment to board the bus and introduce himself as Wayne. And later went on to explain that this was his first year and that he had never worked in tourism before. An inkling of doubt began to creep in. I knew at this time the positive experience I had during 2006 was not about to be mirrored. We set out and as Wayne went through the rigamarole of the rules and regs, we passed several animals alongside the park road (snowshoe hare and ptarmigan) without him even slowing down. In fact several times we seemed to be cruising well past the parks 20-35 mile an hour speed limit that they had instilled. We had passed the Savage River ranger station when we began to barrel up the hill. It was only after people were screaming at him to stop because they had seen several types of animals that maybe he got some hint that people were here to see - wildlife. Now there’s a concept. He lost points with me when he ran over a snowshoe hare and turned into a hair covered pancake. Wayne did have a good sense of history about the park and his insights were in fact interesting and even humorous in some places. But I already knew my history about the park. I was there to see the wildlife.

Over the course of the afternoon the park was teaming with sightings. We saw a bunch of snowshoe hare and then the first caribou sighting right over the pass from Savage River. Again Wayne stopped only after one of the shuttle people yelled at him. As the day passed the more caribou we saw. So much so that they quickly became the dominant animal we did see. Little did I know that the caribou would become a role to an experience later in the day unlike I have encountered in my 30 years here.

Our first break came at Teklanika in which we stopped. After a quick use of the restroom I quickly realized I had not brought enough water with me. A mistake that would leave me dehydrated by the end of the day. After the break I walked over to the overlook to look at the Teklanika River and heard a group of people showing everyone a bear that had converged on the gravel bar. I looked and I looked but never saw one. In fact out of the six bears we saw that afternoon, I only ended up seeing one of them. I was either missing it or I’m going blind.

By the time we reached one of my favorite stops at Polychrome Pass that I decided to get out and stretch my legs and hit the slopes for a little more of a hike than I planned. Meaning I scrambled up one of the rock facings and upon looking down I realized - I’m afraid of heights. And Polychrome Pass is always good for giving me a supreme sense of vertigo. I reached the top of the rock outcliff and found myself frozen in place. My knees began to tremble and I became afraid to step anywhere - forward or back. But it sure was a beautiful site. Shortly after I cursed my senses into working I slowly climbed down and boarded the buss before we set off to Toklat River.

No sooner had we arrived at our turn around point of Fish Creek when out of the corner of my eye I saw something silver tipped ambling among the sedge grasses. There was no way I was about to miss this. So I quickly yelled “STOP ! BEAR !” and old Wayne got the hint and stopped the bus while all of us rolled down our bus windows in an effort to see the beautiful grizzly that was feeding several hundred feet from us. Finally a bear sighting I could see. Ironically enough this was the exact same location last year where there was another run in with a grizzly bear.

Some hikers were hiking amongst the tundra and didn’t see the grizzly bear charging down the hillside towards them. When they did they stopped and froze. Though it looked like the female in the group was about to take off running. Where was I? With 35 other people sitting in the shuttle bus on the hill overlooking this entire scene. The charge only ended up being a bluff charge but I’ll never forget the look on their face when they approached our bus and asked for a ride back. I guess their hiking experience was over by that point. Stony Hill and Fish Creek is an area prime for grizzly bear. Especially in the late summer and early fall. After giving it some thought between the different seasons, I’m of the opinion that fall is my favorite. So much more wildlife to see and they are in their prime at that time. Fattened up from summer reserves and preparing for the winter ahead. I can only hope that I’ll have a good sense of luck and will be a winner for the 2007 road lottery. I hope, I hope, I hope!

As is always the case, the trip back was quicker than the trip in. We had just neared Polychrome Pass again when we encountered a bull caribou directly on the road In fact walking down the middle of the park road. Now all Aramark employees are told not to approach these animals too closely, to give them space and above all - do not stress them out. But old Wayne decided he was behind schedule and figured it was the moment to pass the caribou. He would attempt to speed up and pass and the caribou would begin to lope more quickly ahead.

After five minutes of this it was quite obvious that the caribou was becoming stressed. He started to turn to face the bus. At that time something in my snapped and I told Wayne to back off and that it was obvious he was stressing the animal out.

No sooner had the words left my mouth when the bull caribou turned once more and then charged the bus. As he raced by the side of the bus the whites of his eyes were showing and his eyes rolling in fear. Quite simply that was one pissed off caribou.

But in the end it only shows that even under the most protected of circumstances like the wilds of Denali - one never knows what will happen. And one will never know what type of day will have there. The importance of the enjoyment of the park is as important as the guide you get.

It’s a game of chance. Flip the coin and hope for the best!

Cantwell Flats
Interior Alaska

Yesterday I proved to myself that it is possible to head up to Denali National Park and into the park and back to Anchorage in one day. It makes for a very long day and is deemed the “suicide run” but in the end it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be when it comes to physically taxing. Obviously I have a long write up coming on my experiences, including an event that has never happened to me. And that is being on a shuttle bus and having a bull caribou charge it head on.

There is a saying among locals when it comes to Denali that you can tell a good day in the park on whether the mountain is “out”. Towering to an elevation of 20,320 feet it is indeed difficult to see anything BUT this jeweled spectacle from anywhere in the vicinity given its grandeur. And in all my years here I have had that “luck of the irish” so to speak in that there has only been one time when I’ve been in the park where the mountain hasn’t at least made an appearance. And that was earlier this spring when it began to snow as soon as I entered the park.

Luck looks to remain on my side as I depart for Denali tomorrow morning at a little after 4:00 a.m. Early weather forecasts for the area are for a beautiful sunny day tomorrow. And given Denali tends to create its own weather fronts, it is really hit or miss. You take a chance every time you plan something this far in advance, as it can change literally within minutes. Yet I do hope that the weather forecasts prove true.

Tonight will consist of packing my bags and making sure everything is in order inluding my camera being cleaned and powered up. This particular weekend was supposed to originally consist of spending an entire weekend in the park. But alas so much has changed since then that I will be satisfied just being able to spend a day up there before coming back. I won’t be headed all the way back to Wonder Lake as I will at the end of August, rather only to Fish Creek / Stony Hill. But I hope the “big 5″ are prevalent and the luck I generally hold while in Denali continues when it comes to wildlife.

If there’s any one thing I look forward to it is hitting the road that early. There’s nothing as calming to me as driving just as the sun is beginning to crest over the mountains in an effort to greet the world. In fact I already have that yearning to hit the road.  This is in fact probably the first time since spring I have taken a road trip anywhere by myself.

Its all about finding simple pleasures.

If you like special effects. If you grew up with the story of them like I did.  Or if you just like sweet looking cars and shiny things. Then run don’t walk to see the Transformers.

After a day filled with meetings for 6 out of the 8 hours I was at work, I so desperately needed a break. Especially after I attempted to put my new rack on my mountain bike to find it was the wrong size.

Then I came inside to find out my GCI cable modem was down. So I took myself off to see it. Now I had heard it was good. But this defied good.

Excuse my language but that was one bad ass movie! I am definitely going to see it again in the theatre. Now if only I could manage to get my own bumble bee.

Jeff King has always held a no nonsense and serious approach to dog mushing. Settled amongst the hills of Denali National Park, Goose Lake Kennels is a meticulously run business with obvious pride in ownership.

The King family has worked hard to get where they are and this pride shows through in his work. Obviously someone doesn’t win the Iditarod multiple years running on a fluke. I have always been interested in the enriched history of the Iditarod and have always found one parallel about him in books that mention him. That he is serious and not known for being all that patient.

So when I started reading “Running with Champions; A Midlife Journey on the Iditarod Trail” by Lisa Frederic, I began to read with pursued interest. Especially given Lisa was a dog handler for many years in Jeff’s kennel. I’ve also heard that underneath that gruff exterior Jeff is somewhat of a wiley fox but has a great sense of humor. Which showed in the following passage:

Jeff lifted a small puppy to his chest. “Then there are these guys, named after the presidents - Nixon, Carter, Truman.” He pointed to a white fuzzy puppy with a short tail. “His name is Lincoln, but he answers to the name Stumpy!”

A soft squeal from one of the guests turned everyone’s eyes toward her. The woman was staring down with horror, her mouth shocked wide. One of the puppies had climbed ujp her leg, his tiny front paws wrapped tight around her calf, his little backside perceivably undulating. No one knew what to say until finally Jeff shook his head.

“We call that one Clinton.”

Despite being only 50 pages in thus far, Running with Champions is itself off to a good start and is gaining ground.