Talkeetna, Alaska!!

June 28, 2022 / Ed Armstrong

This is a quaint park in the center of town. Notice the motorhome in the background. I arrived early today and was able to find an open parking spot right in the center of town.

This seems to be the closest grocery store and sells all kinds of items, including specialty coffee.

How can you not love a store with moose antlers in the front? I bought a cup of chaga tea from this gentleman. The tea is made from the birch tree. It was ok, but not great. I think next time, I will pass on the birch tree tea and simply buy coffee.

This store was dedicated to making wooden spoons. They also made other nice wood products. It made me wonder how they could pay their rent? I did not think there would be a large demand for left and right handed wooden spoons. No question, they did quality work here!

Talkeetna has an active runway right in town. They are quite famous for having flights to view Mount Denali. I was surprised that I could walk right up and walk on the runway. Notice a plane coming in for landing in the background.

I have been captivated by the rich colors of flowers in Alaska.

I am looking forward to trying some of the salmon products in Alaska!

Talkeetna has some unique businesses. They seem to be a combination of hippie mixed with wild frontier.

Talkeetna has their own brewery in town (Denali Brewing) and I had fun sampling a flight tasting of 6 of their beers.

The winner of the tasting was Denali Lager. I bought a 6-pack to enjoy during the trip. It is fun supporting small, local businesses that are creative in developing new products.

Denali State Park!!

June 27, 2022 / Ed Armstrong

I left Denali National Park this morning and headed south to the adjacent Denali State Park. The drive was beautiful, and the State Park provides some great views of Mount Denali. Denali is the highest peak in north America and is always covered with snow. The weather was beautiful with clear skies, minimal clouds, and no smoke from the nearby forest fires. This provided a spectacular view of beautiful Denali. All along the drive, cars pull over everywhere and people take photos of this truly beautiful mountain.

This view of Denali from the southern viewpoint in Denali State Park if a great view of this spectacular mountain.

The water, trees, and mountains of Alaska are gorgeous!

This is the view of Denali from the northern viewpoint in Denali State Park. Denali is rising up behind the smaller peaks in front of it.

It is a cause of celebration to see such amazing scenery!!

Denali is Simply Beautiful!!

June 26, 2022 / Ed Armstrong

I had the opportunity to go on a hike near the campground and the entrance to Denali National Park. The area is spectacularly beautiful! From the green trees, to the water, to the mountains, to the sky, Denali is truly amazing!

Looking closely at the glacier runoff, it is filled with silt. Fish cannot live in it because of all the silt in the water.

I love the colors of Alaska. I do not understand why I waited so long to visit such a beautiful location?

This fresh water stream was beautiful and very clear

Here the clear fresh water stream is flowing into the glacier runoff river. The cloudiness is the silt from the glacier.

The trees are a bit different and I was surprised to note that the pine cones were quite red in color.

Grizzly Bear!!

June 25, 2022 / Ed Armstrong

I liked the reflection of the water flowing down from the melting snow and glaciers.

I went on a hike today and this sign was at the beginning of the trail. Reading this certainly causes you to pause and reflect on the balance of seeing beautiful scenery and wildlife with the risk of being attacked by a bear. I was by myself, but certainly had my bear spray immediately available!

This fellow was fun to watch as he zoomed around the ground.

I liked watching the light break through the clouds to isolate one section of the mountain range.

The simplicity and richness of the flowers in Denali is beautiful!

This bird was splashing around in the water and did not mind me walking up to him to take his photo.

It looked ominous as the clouds started building up over the mountain range.

This caribou found relief simply standing on the patch of snow to cool down a bit.

Mount Denali!!

June 24, 2022 / Ed Armstrong

It was a “hot day” by Denali standards with a high in the mid-60s. This male caribou found a patch of snow to lie down and cool off.

This neighbor was looking for his own patch of snow so he could cool off too.

Back near the visitor center, this mamma moose and her calf were enjoying an afternoon meal.

Denali National Park!!

June 23, 2022 / Ed Armstrong

Since I started driving through Canada and Alaska, I have been trying to catch a photo of a moose. This special lady was enjoying breakfast near my campsite and decided to come out of the shadows and eat some leaves in the sunshine. Finally, I found a moose I could photograph!!

After a few minutes, she moved so her whole body was in the sunshine.

She was having a great time eating breakfast, but right after this photo was taken, she ran back into the forest.

I later went on a hike and was captivated by the flowers along the trail.

These dainty purple flowers were pretty!

I loved the symmetry with these white flowers. Everything is so green in Alaska.

I love all the rich colors in the flowers!

Later on the hike I crossed a walking bridge over a beautiful stream.

Water a lush greenery is a beautiful theme in Alaska!!

Muskox!!

June 21, 2022 / Ed Armstrong

The University of Alaska has a research facility that studies large animals including the muskox.

The muskox are quite strong and powerful!

This is a bumper sticker that everyone needs!

Fairbanks Tour!

June 20, 2022 / Ed Armstrong

Since I started driving in Canada and Alaska, I have been trying to get a photo of a moose. So far, this hefty fellow is the best I can do. Hopefully, I can photograph a live moose soon!

It was amazing to watch this pontoon boat come in for a smooth landing next to our boat!

After a few minutes, the pilot took off and had a very smooth liftoff!

The tour included hearing from a guy who trains dogs that pull dogsleds! I was impressed with the dog power!

I learned that reindeer are domesticated caribou. These guys are losing some of their fur for summer.

Since I have been in Alaska, I have noticed that it has rained for a little while each day. This has resulted in very green foliage everywhere and many beautiful flowers. I love the colors in this flower.

This woman was gracious and allowed me to take her photograph. This coat has the modern convenience of a zipper, otherwise it is like a traditional coat worn in Alaska made from different animal furs. The hood is incredibly amazing to me! I think that many layers of fur are needed to survive 60 degrees below zero during winter in Fairbanks.

Although these guys are no longer alive, they demonstrate the fierce intensity when moose fight.

Maybe it is because I have lived so many years in Arizona and Texas, but I have been absolutely captivated by the intensity and variety of green colors in the foliage throughout Alaska. I find myself simply staring at the trees and marveling at the thickness of the forest.

It has been said that “everything is bigger in Texas.” However, Alaska likes to point out that their state is much, much larger than Texas (plus California, plus Montana). Alaska is truly huge!!

Fairbanks!!

June 19, 2022 / Ed Armstrong

The Museum of the North was quite impressive! There were excellent displays that discussed the people, animals, and industries in the area. I spent hours going through the exhibits. It was tough for photography because no flash was allowed inside.

More modern art was also included in the museum.

Artwork of native peoples in Alaska was interesting.

The size of the bison is truly impressive!

The size of the moose and the moose chair amazed me.

The wingspan of this owl was certainly surprising!

Remember the movie and book about the guy who went to Alaska, burned his money, and ended up dying in this bus? It is going to be moved to the Museum of the North.

This is a beautiful scene as I was driving into Alaska. The mountains are so incredibly impressive here!

Alaska is #50!!

June 16, 2022 / Ed Armstrong

I am happy to have the opportunity to explore all 50 states!!

In terms of traveling, today was a big day for me. I traveled from Whitehorse, Yukon to enter Alaska! This is the first time I have been to Alaska. It is also the 50^th state I have visited and the 49^th state I have visited with a motorhome. Maybe I should rent a motorhome in Hawaii so all 50 states are addressed? I am really looking forward to exploring Alaska!

When I crossed the Alaskan border today, my odometer read 4,080 miles so far for this adventure. That is a long journey that started 21 days ago and is filled with many fun stops along the way!

I loved the pink colors shining on the mountains!

I started driving quite early today and I loved the sunrise shining on the mountains as I drove through Haines Junction, Yukon. I had to pullover and take some photos from the driver’s seat. I saw two moose, but those rascals ran into the trees before I could grab my camera. There were many elk enjoying the day, but I did not see any bears today.