August 7 - Denali NP Day 1

On Sunday, we took our time packing up, hoping for the rain to stop.  It finally did, so we headed north to Denali at about 11 am.  Along the way, as we crossed over the mountain pass just south of Denali, we saw what happens to rain at the higher elevations this time of year.

Another 20 miles or so and a few thousand feet lower, we arrived.

We found ourselves a nice corner spot at the Riley Creek Campground.  Not much of a view here other than the woods around us.

Our first stop in the park was the Visitors Center, where we watched a short movie, looked over all the displays, and tried to figure out how we're going to spend our next 5 days here. 

We had enough time to take a drive 15 miles out to Savage Creek, the end of the paved part of the Park Road and the furthest you can drive on the road (unless you have a reservation at the Teklenika Campground, which is about 29 miles out).  There are some great views along this part of the road.

No view of Mt. McKinley today - it's somewhere behind these mountains and clouds.

We did also see a moose far away from the road, so far the picture didn't really turn out, a bunny rabbit, and a photogenic beaver hanging out at the pond.

Tomorrow we'll do some hiking.