After a year like 2020, it feels good to be back on the road (or in the air) traveling to new adventures. Our Alaskan experience had been scheduled for the summer of 2020 but much like most things last year, it was a bust. So we rescheduled everything for 2021 and here we are!
After a long day of flying and a four hour time change, we made it to Anchorage on Friday, June 18th. The flight into the city was AH-mazing! We flew over white capped mountains, jagged and stretching for the sky.
We traveled to our hotel to meet up with Mia and Barry, our travel companions for these two weeks. A quick dinner and a good nights sleep had us on the road in the morning for Denali.
But first – Thunder Bird Falls for a morning hike to stretch our legs before a long drive north. Just thirty or so minutes outside Anchorage is a small waterfall hidden in the thick of the woods.
We weaved up and down small hills until we reached the bottom of the falls and the ice cold water way. A slow drizzle followed us the whole hike, but the air was crisp and fresh.
Trekking on north, we veered off the main roadway and headed to Talkeetna – a small (population 1247) Alaskan village.
Starving, we ate some Asian food at a hole in the wall (almost literally) and traipsed around the small village, popping in galleries, gift shops and a cheese store. Quaint and eclectic- a definite must on the road to Denali.
The greatest part of the ride to Denali is the view. We crested through valleys and mountains with snow capped peaks all around. Rivers rushed with the force of melting snow. And even at eleven o,clock at night, the sun is shining. ~Gina
Smithie Adventures 