6/10/13

After an early breakfast this morning, we walked down to the main lodge lobby for our nature hike.  Unfortunately, Lana wasn’t feeling well so she stayed behind.  Our guide was a free spirit who had been a massage therapist/ski bum in Colorado.  He was quite knowledgeable about the flora on the walk though.  The trek was not for sissies, however.  We donned rubber mucking boots and he handed out walking sticks.  Much of the trail was uphill and muddy and it rained off and on.  If Lana had to miss an excursion, this was the one to miss!  We saw lichen, mosses, windflowers, many flowering berry bushes (blueberry, lingonberry, currant), and bracket fungus.  The locals used to hollow these out and put their embers from the fire in to carry from hunting spot to hunting spot.  We came across a stream where the ice was still quite thick – we could see the stream running below the ice.  We got back just in time to board the coach for a short ride to the train station.  Our group had a glass-topped coach and the views on our way to McKinley were great!  Kelly and I stood out on the open platform for a while taking shots of the scenery.  I can see how people can fall in love with the beauty of this state.  There is only one problem here and this is spelled: W I N T E R!  In Fairbanks, the temperatures ranged from -65 to +95 this past year!  The local college kids have a tradition of donning their bathing trunks and bikinis and having their picture taken in front of the large thermometer on campus when the temperature reaches -60!  The other thing about the cold temps is the stress on the cars.  All of the local cars have a plug hanging out of their grills.  At every parking lot, there are electrical stands where you can plug in when you park.  There is a pad in the car, which warms the engine block, radiator and oil pan.  At any rate, we had a lovely train ride and got to Talkeetna around 5 PM.  We then had an hour bus ride to our hotel, which is located just 40 miles from Mt. McKinley (Denali).  The views were terrific, but the mountain was obscured by clouds a bit.  We are hoping that they will clear away.  We had a lovely dinner in the Mountain View Restaurant and then came back to our rooms.  Lana and Kelly are going to do laundry tonight, but I think I will do it tomorrow