Today I was able to venture further into Denali NP by taking a tour bus. Originally the tour was to be hours but the park road is closed at mile 45 so instead it was 5 hours. The tour buses are converted school buses (same as the free shuttle) and they are able to travel beyond the Savage River stop onto the unpaved portion of the road. If you want to see the park beyond the pavement and do not want to go hiking off into the wilderness, this is what you want to do. There is probably a greater chance of seeing wildlife and there are breathtaking views of the Alaska Range that you dont get in the first 15 miles of the road. Take a bus tour if to Denali. You will not regret it!
I ordered a lunch from the lodge and picked it up before the bus arrived. For $18 you get a sandwich, apple, cookie, granola bar, bottle of water, Andes mint, a moist towelette and a reusable lunch bag. I guess the $18 was worth. The bus picked up those of us staying at the Bluffs Lodge and the rest of
the group was picked up from the bus depot in the park. Luck was on my side again and the bus was not quite full so I did not have to share a seat with anyone. The provides cans of water for anyone who needs a drink as well as a snack bag with chips, a cookie and fruit snacks. There is also a booklet on Denali and its history, animals and peoples. Again, well worth the cost!
Our tour guide was a lady (I dont know that she ever said her name) who has lived in the area since 1975. Her knowledge of the park was great but she also gave us her first hand account of changes in the park since she has been there. Changes to the infrastructure as well as to the landscape. Mainly pointing out how trees are growing in higher elevations than they used to, which signals warming of the park. The tree line is creeping ever higher up the mountains.
A bit beyond the park headquarters she spotted a photographer looking at something and pulled over. It was a Northern Hawk Owl at the top of one of the
spruce trees. That was a good find as its to see them. Then further up were a bunch of cars so we slowed down. Two bull moose were putting on quite a show battling it out to see who would be boss. They were hard to see as they kept moving in and out of the trees. Luckily, the bus has a video camera that feeds TV screens so you can get a better view of the wildlife. We watched them for quite a while and started to drive off but noticed there was at least one cow (female moose) also back there in the brush. Very exciting and our only moose sighting of the day.
The bus continued along to Savage River and went through the check point. We passed many buses going both directions during our tour as well as cars, hikers and bikers. There are a few campgrounds along this stretch of road and a special camping bus brings people and their gear out here. Many people with their big backpacks heading out to explore the wilderness.
The little station at the other end of the bridge is the check point for anyone trying to head further in to the park. Due to the road closure, mostly everyone can drive in to a certain point for the rest of the summer season. Usually only permit holders, tour buses and campground buses can continue on.
patches of reds and vibrant yellows. The first snow of the season has already occurred and our driver said there was one day about a week ago where they could not go out because of the snow. But its mostly melted now except for a few small patches. The mountains have their first dusting, which they call termination dust here as it signals the end of summer. I love a snowy mountain so I was glad to see some snow up on the peaks.
There is only one rest stop on the tour now and that is at Teklanika River. Its a 10 minute stop to use the bathroom and check out the views. Then back on the bus. A short time later someone yelled Bear! and the bus stopped. Sure enough, there was a grizzly! It scared up a flock of ptarmigan (the state bird of Alaska) and came out of the bushes.
