The first thing we encountered was a vantage point where one can see Mt. McKinley. Denali, by the way, is the natives' name for the mountain. The mountain was clear and very beautiful from this point. It looks closer than from Talkeetna.

After enjoying the view of Mt. McKinley or Denali for a while, we rode on up the highway. Before very long, we spotted a herd of Caribou just off the road. It was easy because there were eight or ten cars stopped alongside the highway watching them (grin). The Caribou were moving continuously while feeding but I got a few photos of them. The background in the first picture is typical of that throughout the park.

We drove on up the park road until we got to Savage River. Along the way, we saw Dall Sheep high on the mountain sides and another herd of Caribou lying in the snow. They apparently do this in order to cool off. They were too far away to bother to try to photograph but seeing them was fun. At Savage River, we spotted an Artic Ground Squirrel surveying the world from his hidden position under the Permit Station office. There was also a male Willow Ptarmigan parading around on the bank alongside the turn-in to the parking area. The Ground Squirrel dashed off shortly after this photo but the Ptarmigan apparently wasn't bothered by my presence and continued to display and call as I photographed him.

A little farther along the highway, we found a Snowshoe Hare which didn't run as soon as we approached as most of them do. I got several shots of him on the shoulder of the road. After a while, we encountered another Ptarmigan who was parading along the highway. He too seemed so involved in his mate search that he paid little attention to me.

All the way up the highway, we were seriously looking for bears. The Brown Bears of Denali are one of the primary sightings that most people come to see. Finally! When we had almost reached the end of the 30 mile drive, just before the Teklanika river rest stop, we saw a line of cars beside the road (unpaved at this point) with people lined up at the top of a drop-off down to the river bottom. We, of course, stopped and asked what they had seen. A professional photographer I had met earlier pointed out two families of bears across the river at the riverside. The first family consisted of a cinnamon sow with a dark yearling cub. The first photo is of the sow and the dark cub to the right partially hidden by the blurred tree limb in the foreground. He immediately browsed into the saplings and disappeared. The second and third photos present better views of the sow alone. For some reason, probably genetic, most of the Denali Brown Bears are actually light colored as the sow in these pictures.

We wended our way back to the entrance area, seeing a lot of same wildlife on the way out. No opportunities to improve on the photos I already had of them though. We stopped by the camp store and picked up a few items for snacks and light lunches on the road. Then had dinner in "Glitter Gulch" at The Salmon Bake, a great restaurant offering traditional Alaska food. We were joined for dinner by the Dinkins, a couple we met at the bear viewing. Interestedly, they are avid UF fans from Ocala - small world. We went back to the motel after dinner, downloaded images and hit the sack. All in all, a really great day!