We woke to true weather predictions and the sky did not have a cloud in it. We packed up for a hike and headed to the bus to catch a ride to Sable Pass where we could get a glimpse of Mt McKinley (Denali). The first bus was full and we caught the second. The high one did not disappoint and was shining in all the 20,300 ft of glory. Simply gorgeous. The day was about 65 degrees and we wanted to walk down sable pass and see what animals were out and about.
We did see some Dahl sheep, WAY WAY up on the ridge. Looked like little rice specs. And that is all we saw in the 5 mile trek down the pass. The hike was spectacular.
We caught the bus at the Igloo Creek Campground and made it to the Teklanika rest stop where the bus broke down. We thought about hiking the two miles to the campground, but figured once we started the rescue bus will show up. We ended up waiting 90 minutes for a walk we could have done in 45. But we met some really nice people who were waiting too. We finished out the night watching the fire in the campground and enjoying the beautiful night.
The 4th day I decided to bake some biscuits in the Dutch Oven over the fire. I still had two bundles of wood but since collecting was allowed here, I gathered several large loads so I could have a fire until we left. The biscuits did not turn out ton well as they were not homemade and the container had popped open sometime during the week and were not “fresh”. Oh well. They still tasted ok.
We cleaned up camp, the TC, and packed up to head back south. I had another appointment in anchorage and we didn’t want risk or rush the 5+ hour drive. We have gotten the packing down to 5-10 minutes and with the pups walked and freshly satisfied with treats, we headed out of Teklanika Campground and back out of the Denali Park Road.
We had been fortunate and had seen an Eagle, caribou, Dahl sheep, rabbits, squirrels, marmots, and ptarmigans so far, and this time the park did not disappoint. On the drive out, three brown bears were grazing doing the road and we had about 15-20 minutes to watch them. They were as close as 20-30 yards from the truck. These were the first brown bears (grizzlies) we have seen.
We finished the drive and stopped at the little village at the entrance of the park to browse the shops and get some lunch.
We continued the drive south on AK 3 (parks road) and camped at a site recommended be iOverlander at the Susitina River crossing 1hr north of Wasilla. What a neat place to camp with lots of spots, plenty of space, a 1-mile beach for walks. Very nice.
Here are some additional photos of the past two days.
https://www.overlandadventureexcursions.com/photos-albums/nggallery/album/20250806-07-denali-day-3-4