Our 2007 Driving Tour Of Alaska - Denali, Day 11

May 18, Day 11. Up around 8:15 AM and headed for the Park. We stopped by one of the gift shops in Glitter Gulch because they were offering a sale on fleece items and I have a real affinity for fleece vests and jackets - they're a great weight for Florida winters (grin). Ran by the camp store to pick up some items we forgot last night and headed out the park road. This is the last day we can drive to the 30 mile point and we didn't want to waste the opportunity.

We quickly ran across a pair of Willow Ptarmigans soon after passing the the Park Headquarters complex. We had seen a lot of males strutting around and calling but this was the first pair we've seen. Here are photos of the pair and the female and male individually.

   

A little farther up the road, we encountered two Caribou in a creek bed right beside the road. They were moving slowly as they fed on the sparse grasses on the creek bed and edges. I got out of the car and walked along the edge of the willows that lined the bank, getting closer. Before long, there was a crowd observing the animals. Several tourists tried to approach the Caribou and, as they did so, the animals moved away - but closer to me. I got a lot of shots but like this one best.

We drove on up the park road to Savage River. Savage River has a parking area and trail along the river for about a mile and a half with a footbridge across the river for a return trip on the other side. There is a longer trail that takes off at the foot bridge and goes some 10 miles farther along the river but you must climb a bit to access it. When we made a rest stop in the parking lot, Dot was looking through her binoculars and spotted some Dall Sheep low on the mountain side near the foot bridge. We decided to hike out the trail to get some closer shots of the sheep. We got out there and had to climb up on a ridge but sure enough, there were a couple of Dall Sheep browsing farther up the ridge. We stayed there for some time until the sheep moved out of sight over the ridge.

   

As we hiked back to the parking lot, We spotted a Hoary Marmot feeding among some of the rocks and cliffs near the trail. The Marmots along this trail are fairly well acclimated to people so don't run quite as quickly as those in less frequented locations. He posed for me for a few minutes before retiring into the rocks.

We also saw some Harlequin Ducks on the bank of Savage River. We've seen a lot of these ducks but usually as they swam rapidly away from us. These sat calmly for a few minutes and I got a couple of shots before they hit the water and paddled away.

As we approached the proximal end of the trail, a friendly Artic Ground Squirrel came out of the grass to greet us. He had apparently been fed by tourists because he did not hesitate to approach us. He seemed to have a real affinity for my hiking boots, running up to my feet and chewing on the leather of the toe. Dot got a picture of this odd behavior. Anyway here is a portrait for which he posed (grin).

We made it back to the car and continued our trek up the park road. We wanted to do the entire 30 miles since this would be the last opportunity to drive it ourselves. We saw more of the usual wildlife, except bears, but at long distances. Well up the road, almost to the end, we found a large group of people standing on a bridge observing a Raven's nest. There was an excellent view of the nest from the bridge which was on the same level as the tree top. While we watched, both parents came in with food for the young chicks. I got several shots of the feeding.

When we got to the 30 mile rest area at Teklanikna, a couple from Anchorage, the Selvigs, that we had encountered repeatedly along the road pointed out the cinnamon sow and brown, yearling cub from earlier visits sleeping on the river bed. We waited for a long time for them to waken and, finally, mom got up, roused the cub and wandered off to feed in the river bed.

   

As the sow crossed the river and then went out onto the snow bank, the cub apparently was unsure about getting wet and cold. He stood up at the stream edge and again at the edge of the snow, appearing unsure about the water and snow, before following his mother. You could almost hear him saying "Gee Mom . . . this is going to be wet, cold and miserable . . . do I really have to come?"

   

To which she probably answered "Oh come on, it won't hurt you and when we get onto the snow, we'll play." He did and they did.

After playing on the ice and snow for a while, the two bears came back to the gravel bar and began to dig and eat roots and/or tubers. At this time of year, they feed heavily on the Eskimo Potato, a flowering plant that grows from tubers and is found on the gravel banks of the river beds.

   

After watching the bears for an hour of two, we headed back down the road in the direction of the entrance area, seeing the usual animals, which were now becoming common. At, oddly enough, the same creek bed where we saw the Caribou earlier, a crowd was watching a Porcupine crossing the bare creek bed heading for the willows along the bank. He was in a hurry but I got there just in time for a couple of shots.

On several occasions, we had seen a Moose in the vicinity of the Park Headquarters but he/she was always too far back in the woods to get any photos. On this pass along the park road, we found the "Headquarters Moose" fairly close to the highway. He/she was wearing a tracking collar but I managed to get a shot where only a small part of it was visible and that could easily be removed digitally.

We had arranged to meet the Selvigs at the Salmon Bake where we ate last evening. The evening was recorded for posterity on Liz Selvig's camera by one of the waiters. She contributed the photo to the cause. We had a delightful dinner and good fellowship before calling it a another really great day and heading for the motel.