July 5, 2009

July 5, 2009

We have pretty much seen all that Fairbanks, AK has to offer. So we pack up the house and head south towards Anchorage. As soon as we leave Fairbanks the sky begins filling with smoke. Ohhh, I remember reading a snippet in the paper this morning about forest fires southwest of town. The smoke gets so bad at times we have to close the vents. If there are any scenic mountains on the drive south we are missing them.

After a couple hours, we arrive in the small town of Healy. Aimee and I decide to spend the afternoon knocking a few more golf balls into little holes. Compared to Fairbanks this golf course is in a little better shape but the holes are more tightly packed together forcing us to dodge a few errant golf shots. Nevertheless I end up with a pretty respectable score.

Healy is just north of Denali National Park. We have been calling the park every day for the last couple weeks trying to get a spot at a specific campground without success. It is all a little frustrating since Denali is the size of a small state at six million acres. All the park system would need to do is clear two acres to free up some space. It is not like the park provides any services other than an outhouse and fee collection at this campground.

Fortunately we have the national parks figured out to some extent and we call them again and lo and behold they suddenly have lots of space. Go figure. We make our reservation and head straight to the park. Denali has only one road into the park and cars are not allowed much past the entrance. The public must generally take a bus once inside the park. Teklanika campground is the exception and it lets us drive 29 miles into the park. What I didn’t realize is that the road is dirt and gravel past the first fifteen miles. Our home on wheels hates bumpy roads. Driving very slowly we pull into the campground at 8pm.