DAY 4 – June 21
Talkeetna to Denali National Park
Breakfast was at the Talkeetna Roadhouse. We shared a table with a family from Anchorage who also had an 8-year-old named Noah. The boys shared interests in Nintendo DS and LEGOs, and hit it off well.
After breakfast, Tina and the kids found the town's new playground while I prepared the RV for travel. We drove to Denali in nice weather, making several stops. Our favorites were the Veterans Memorial and the North Denali viewpoint (although Denali was not visible).
Storm clouds overtook us just as we arrived at the park entrance. We had lunch in the RV, and the stopped long enough for us to got on the bus for the sled dog demonstration at 4:00. Heavy rain poured down while we were on the bus. We drove past a moose standing in the divider in the middle of the road. The rain stopped just as the bus arrived at the kennel.
We had time to greet the dogs before the demo. The kids especially enjoyed seeing a litter of puppies. We stood for the demo since the bleachers were wet, but the sun came out and it got quite warm. The demo was fun and informative, and Julianna got to ask the ranger a question.
After the demo, we checked in to the Riley Creek Campground. We had reservations to stay at Teklanika, but that campground was closed due to ice. Riley Creek has spacious sites with lots of trees, and was amazingly quiet. There were restrooms with running water, and the nearby Mercantile had a convenience store, showers, and a laundry. While we were disappointed not to be at Tek, Riley Creek was not a bad alternative at all.
We built a campfire to roast hot dogs and make s'mores. We packed our daypacks for tomorrow's bus trip and tried to make it to bed early, although we were still up past 10:00.
Next: Day 5, Denali National Park
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