Denali National Park

Got a very early morning start from Healy to drive into Denali ahead of the tour and shuttle buses run by the National Park Service. Our special permit allowed us to drive our van through the park, stopping whenever we could do so safely. Incredible landscapes all along the Park Road. Got to see and photograph a gray wolf and grizzly sow with cubs, and saw Dall’s sheep and caribou at a distance. Denali appeared from behind the clouds as we approached the Eielson Visitor Center and we got some spectacular shots. We made our way to Skyline Lodge at Kantishna at the end of the road about 90 miles from the front entrance, and spent two nights there. The next day we managed to get a sightseeing flight in a Cessna 206 around Denali, and got some photos of the summit as well as some climbers on their way up. The drive out was just as spectacular two days later, especially for seeing a large herd of caribou crossing the road right where we parked to watch them grazing on the slopes.