Days 84 & 85: Denali

August 4/17

Notice the date? I can tell that living on the Old Calendar for almost three months is having its effect on me. I asked someone to verify the date on a form I was filling out at Denali: “It’s August 4, right?”

“Sir, it’s August 17.” Then in a great PR move, the young lady went on to say: “Isn’t it great, what being on vacation can do? Just make you forget about time altogether.”

Touché! That was so much better than saying something like, “Sir, does the home know you are out by yourself?” I really appreciated her tact.

Yesterday (August 3/16), Fr. Thomas, Fr. Peter and I took off on an overnight road trip to Denali, the Alaskan word for Mt. McKinley. Denali National Park is the third largest in the system, second only to two others, both in Alaska. It is about 220 miles (350 km) north of Anchorage.

En route, we knew things were going to get good as we took a side trip to Talkeetna, an authentic Alaskan town in the bush. Think of the TV show Northern Exposure. We walked into one shop where the good-natured shop owner greeted us with, “I can see the three of you have left the wives at home.” I don’t know what gave us away. We had already been compared to ZZ Top at the roadhouse where we had just eaten lunch.  I thought they were used to men with long beards in this part of the world.

We ambled around town then headed back to the main road. We hadn’t gone far until there was a moose sighting. He strolled from the right-of-way into the trees where we could see him but not get a good picture of him.

We did get caught in traffic before we made it to the park, as the DOT was out doing roadwork on one patch of road surface. It didn’t mean that traffic merged slowly from two lanes into one. It meant that traffic ground to a full stop since the main road only had two lanes to begin with: one going north and one going south. We waited awhile and probably lost an hour of travel time.

Once we did get to Denali, we went to the Visitor’s Center to plan our next day. Wouldn’t you know it? In the gift shop, the lady at the register asked if we were professional Santas. “No,” said Fr. Peter. “But I’m Moe, he’s Larry, and (Fr. John) is Curly.” Everyone laughed.

One of the grizzly bears, this one a sow (female), seen on the journey.

We made reservations for our bus trip into the park the next day. Access is strictly limited. But found we could drive 15 miles (24 km) on our own. Since we certainly had enough daylight, off we headed for the initial drive into this splendid wilderness. About 10 miles (16 km) in, we saw traffic stopped ahead and tourists walking around the road with cameras aimed. It was another moose sighting. This time, he afforded everyone ample opportunity to take multiple photos. As Fr. Thomas said: “This was worth the price of admission.”

Our bus tour left at 9 a.m. on Tuesday. So, after reaching the limit of our drive, we left to find lodging, dinner and a good night’s sleep.

We were told to be at the Wilderness Access Center at 8:45. We were there by 8:00, and near the front of the line when we boarded our bus and met Sheryl our bus driver. “Is the Santa Claus convention in town?” she laughed.

“You’ll find out at Christmas,” we promised.

Clouds obscure North America's tallest mountain, but many of the breathtaking mountains of the Alaska Range are still visible.

It was truly a marvelous day! God’s creation is so marvelously displayed before us with every turn in the gravel road. We would travel 66 miles into the park. It would be an eight-hour event, with one new wonder unfolding after another. We basically followed the twists and turns of a glaciated river valley up one mountainside after another, affording us magnificent vistas of mountains, valleys, streambeds and glaciers.

The Great One, Denali, eluded the view, obscured by intervening peaks and clouds. Finally Sheryl points out a patch of white, in the “V” between distant summits. Denali! It will be our only glimpse. Although our day started out comparatively sunny, in itself unusual for the area, by the time we reached our terminus at the Eielson Visitor Center, mile 66, rain set in and hopes for a clear sighting vanished.

A large Dall ram perched high on a cliff, dwarfed by majestic mountains in the background.

Yet, we were not daunted. We saw beautiful white Dall sheep high up rocky crags, caribou on ridges, a young wolf pup in dense underbrush by the roadside, and maybe a dozen bears roaming around, eating berries to fatten up for the winter. In one of the latter’s case, the sow came right up to the bus sniffing a path in front for her cubs. Before we made it back to home base, our moose from the previous evening obliged everyone with more photo opportunities at virtually the same spot from the night before.

With such animal delights abounding, we certainly did not feel cheated. Simply to behold the scenic beauty surrounding us was overwhelming. The sheer size of the lesser summits in the range dwarf our perspective, not to mention the massive majesty of the Great One. That America’s highest peak went unseen by us did not tarnish the magnificence of this experience for us.

Bless the LORD, O my soul!
O LORD my God, thou art very great,
Thou art clothed with honor and majesty.

Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment,
who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain…

Thou didst lay the foundations of the earth,
so that it should never be moved.

Thou didst cover it with the deep as with a garment;
the waters stood above the mountains.

At thy rebuke they fled;
at the voice of thy thunder they hastened away.

They went up over the mountains;
they went down into the valleys,
to the place which thou hast founded for them.

Thou didst set a boundary that they may not pass over,
that they may not return to cover the earth.

He sendeth the springs into the valleys;
they flow among the hills.

They give drink to every beast of the field…
The high hills are for the wild goats;
the cliffs are a refuge for the badgers.

He appointed the moon for seasons;
the sun know its going down.

Thou didst make darkness, and it is night,
in which all the beasts of the forest creep about.

The young lions roar after their prey,
and seek their food from God.

When the sun rises,
they gather together and lie down in their dens…

O LORD, how manifold are thy works!
In wisdom thou hast made them all.

– Psalm 103/104