Talkeetna Camper Park
After staying a few days in Wasilla to resupply in Anchorage before the next part of our adventure, we’ve stopped in Talkeetna for awhile. The small town of Talkeetna is the headquarters for most services for climbers for Mt McKinley. During the peek climbing season of late March through early June, climbers and their supporters congregate here. The West End Cafe, a local bar and restaurant, is decorated with interesting climbing memorabilia from many of the early climbs.
We had great hopes of having an opportunity to see Mt McKinley but unfortunately the cloudy weather persisted. In 2008 we were able to see the mountain by hiring a bush flightseeing plane to fly around it. This time we decided to try for a river view.
We signed up for a 4 hour float trip on the Chulitna River. Because the water is so cold (approximately 34 degrees), the outfitter provided wet weather gear. We each wore heavy rubber boots over our hiking boots. Putting the rubbers boots on was difficult. To slide over my hiking boots, they gave me a size 14 boot! Here I am trying to walk with the boots that are several inches longer than my hiking boots. Clomp! Clomp! Clomp!
By the time we were appropriately dressed, we felt like stuffed animals.
Had rain seriously been threatening, we would also have worn rubber fishing bibs. Although the sun shone part of the day, it was chilly on the river.
Mt McKinley was never visible due to the cloud cover, but we were able to see many bald eagles, especially juvenile ones.
Juvenile bald eagles, up until 3-4 years of age, are mottled brown color.
As we floated along we saw a small black bear swimming across the river. The current was fairly strong, but the bear swam directly across.
The brush was thick along the river and the bear quickly disappeared from view.
Back in Talkeetna all the rain that Alaska has had this summer has resulted in beautiful flowers.
The colors are beautiful!
Decorations are whimsical. Decorated moose adorn many shops:
I don’t know what to call the moose above, but the moose below might be “Mountain Moose”.
At our campground, the old vending machine is decorated with Tin Man.
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