June 18, 2012 – Denali RV Park and Motel, Denali Park, Alaska

We took a little more time than usual to get going this morning. Our stop was only 2 hours away, so Karen thought it was a great opportunity to do the laundry before leaving. What a deal at $2 a load for washing or drying. Where we are camped tonight it is $3 a load and where we did the laundry last was $2.50 a load. Since we don’t go to the laundromat, it may not be that out of line, but is seems high. While the laundry was being done, we visited with some people that we have been meeting over and over again since Glacier National park. One couple is from New York, one is from Texas, and one that we have met a couple of times is from Oregon. It is amazing that we keep meeting at different stops and are able to share stories of our experiences on legs of the trip up here, what we each have seen, and where we plan to go next on the trip.

We had another beautiful day today, just like yesterday. The sky was sunny and the high in the low 70’s. We are staying about 8 miles out from the Denali National Park entrance. The location is in the same area our Bed and Breakfast was located during the trip in 2000. Karen commented today that when we were here in 2000, she never thought we would make it back here again. Who knows what life has in store! It is an adventure and we are loving the journey.

After we set up the RV, we left Harry and Penny here and went into the park to get tickets for a bus ride into the park tomorrow. You can drive your private vehicle only 13 miles into the park. So tomorrow the narrated bus tour will take us 54 miles into the park and last about 8 hours. We did drive the 13 miles today and saw a herd of caribou.

Caribou Herd

On the way here, we saw a moose and calf again, but our view was from the back as they headed into the bush. Back at the campground again, we went to the office to arrange for someone to walk the dogs while we go into the park tomorrow. The people who do the dog walking then came over to meet the dogs and get any special instructions. They will come in and take the dogs out twice while we are gone.