20 Years Later - McCarthy and Kennicott

I hadn't been to the McCarthy/Kennicott area in 20 years and Bryant had never been there, so we figured it was a good long weekend adventure to take our friends who were visiting us. Right after Bryant got off work, we headed to the Klutina River just south of Glennallen for the first night.  We had hoped to have some luck at red fishing, but none were to be found that evening by us or anyone.  At one point, we debated not even going further east as the weather forecast was not very promising and the rain seemed to be on an on/off cycle for the past 12 hours, but we all lacked another plan so we continued on. 

Beware!  2 - 3 hours of Gravel Ahead!

After enjoying some short hikes around the Wrangell St. Elias Visitors Center, we bounced along the 60 miles of gravel road capturing some great scenery along the way. 

Chitna River

 We arrived that evening and set up camp close to the Kennicott River.  I was surprised to see how beautiful the Root Glacier looked up in the valley, because that particular scene never stuck in my memory.  I guess it is a reminder why some places need be visited more than once to appreciate what they have to offer. 

The new bridge across the Kennicott River

The hand tram cable car over the Kennicott River was replaced by a user friendly bridge for pedestrian and bike traffic, which was a much needed improvement as the campgrounds on the east side of the river have exploded compared to 20 years ago.  The little town of McCarthy is less than a mile from the campground, but tourists are not able to drive vehicles past the campground even through there is a service road for the National Park Service and locals 1/2 mile south of the main camping area.  We didn't mind not being able to drive because we all had bikes.  The first evening we made our way into McCarthy and enjoyed appetizers at the only restaurant in town.    



Kennicott Copper Mines

The next day we biked up toward the Kennicott Mine, which is on a gravel road 5 miles north of McCarthy.  The National Park Service has also done some renovations with the old copper mine buildings.   Past the town of Kennicott (if you can call it a town!) is the Root Glacier Trail and it is a great trail to either bike, run, or walk on. We had to dodge a few raindrops early in the day, but the afternoon was better than expected.  The gradual bike ride back down into McCarthy is a lot of fun!

Root Glacier Trail

That evening I was able to scrounge up some firewood and we all just hung around camp talking and eating.  It turned out to be a fun weekend.  Now along with my old memories, I have new memories from the area.  For more pictures of our trip to McCarthy and Kennicott: 

https://plus.google.com/photos/108360286648812110649/albums/6139664785078559265?authkey=CIbhwpeb7IanIw

Kesugi Ridge Overnight

On the 4th of July, we had the pleasure of camping out and enjoying the great view of the continent's largest mountain, Denali or Mt. McKinley as many insist on still calling "the great one."

We had friends coming to see us for a couple of weeks in July.  One was arriving a few days earlier than the other and had hoped to make a quick trip to Denali National Park. The park itself is 4 hours from where we live and once one arrives at the park, even in good weather the mountain is not something you can see from the entrance, but it is a long bus ride into the park, which requires reservations and in the end becomes more than a "quick trip."   It hardly seemed like a trip someone would enjoy having already spent 20 hours traveling from Italy to get to Alaska.  The clear blue skies lent to the decision that a trip to Denali State Park would be a much better place to bring our guest.  

Backpacking 3 miles with 2000 feet of climbing seemed the way to welcome a friend to Alaska., who was looking forward to spending as much time outdoors as possible.  Although Bryant and I had been adventuring together for 12 years, we had never backpacked together.  We each had a history of having backpacked, so it wasn't too surprising that we went into our gear shed and found all the equipment we'd need.  Bryant was even able to produce a water filter that I was quite convinced he didn't have or wouldn't be able to find.  

Within 4 hours of leaving the house we had a tent set up on top of Kesugi Ridge near a little lake with great views of Denali.  

The next day we day hiked beyond our campsite to the ridgeline up above the camp which afforded us beautiful views of the Talkeenta Range opposite of the Alaska Range that Denali is a part of.

Looking East at Talkeetna Range

After returning to camp, we packed up, hiked back to the car, headed to Talkeetna to car camp in town for the night and enjoy a meal in a local restaurant.

Bryant and I at a Denali State Park pull out on the Parks Hwy.