Hatcher Pass: again and again

Hatcher Pass is one of my favorite places in Alaska. We came here multiple times to hike and explore, but the pass remains closed until mid July. On our way home from Denali, we decided to drive the pass. 

As we approached the pass, we noticed a few people paragliding off of the mountain.

We parked at Summit Lake and took a short hike.

Paragliders were preparing to takeoff again, so we sat and watched for awhile. It was neat being so close to them and at one point one of the guys flew right past us! This is something that I really want to do sometime!

The tundra plants are turning from green to red for autumn, but the fireweed (above) is still in bloom.

I made one final trip back with Courtney and Dangerous Dan to climb Murphy Peak. We anticipated this to be a technical climb requiring ropes, but it turns out we didn't need them after all. Unfortunately I decided not to take my camera, so these are from my cell phone. We parked at the Independence Mining town, where the buildings are in the photo below.

This climb happened at the very end of August, and as you can see, there was still a bit of snow.

View from the top! See the white in the distant horizon? Those aren't clouds, it's Denali! 

This section was so fun to walk thru. There were little streams of water bubbling under the ground. A wonderful sound.

Now all of the fireweed has turned red, making for an enjoyable view after a fantastic hike!

Denali: Horseshoe Lake, Bark Rangers and another visit to Denali State Park

The next day we went to the visitor center where the kids became the newest Junior Rangers at Denali.

We watched a film showing how the park and it's inhabitants transform in different seasons. Then it was time to say goodbye to our friends as they were heading back to Anchorage. Asher drew this sweet picture of all of us together, yes that's rain and a rainbow. He drew it our second night of camping with them while it was raining.

We headed off to hike Horseshoe Lake.

View from the beginning of the trail.

Looking out over the dam you can see how deep one side is compared to the other.

One spur of the trail takes you out to the river.

A great spot to relax and enjoy our surroundings.

We finished our hike just in time to catch the last dog sled demonstration of the day. The park is patrolled in the winter by a dog sled team, who are affectionately referred to as "Bark Rangers". They are also used to transport materials thruought the park in the most efficient manner. Snow machines break down and don't work in super low temps, but dogs are reliable. When it's time to harness into the sled, the dogs are so excited, they're actually jumping for joy. We watched them race the cart around the area then be released back to their dog houses.

Meeting one of the current "Bark Rangers".

The newest dog sled team is only 3 weeks old. An Alaskan tradition is to name all dogs in a litter according to a theme. These pups were named in honor of the park's centennial. Here's Party.

Both kids were extremely sad when we left the park. It's now their new favorite and they couldn't stop talking about going back. Looks like we'll have to make a return trip someday.

Here's some of our views on our way back to Denali State Park. We decided to camp at the North Overlook, in the same place as we did on our way up.

This time we had a better view of Denali, and no rain!

Denali is the tallest peak, just left of center, behind the black mountains in front.

The next day we stopped at the State Parks, War Memorial and another overlook to view some glaciers on our way south to Hatcher Pass.

This bear hangs over the doorway at the visitor center, ha!

Checking out glaciers.