Wow...... that is about all I can say after today! We left the hotel in Fairbanks at about 8AM for the train depot and boarded our Princess domed car for a 4 hour train ride to Denali National Park. Once we got on the train, we had some breakfast in the dining car........a bit pricey though. What
an incredible ride........the scenery was gr
eat. Here we were in the middle of the Alaskan wilderness on a train, traveling through spruce forests, passing streams, lakes, etc. I cannot even begin to describe the experience. This is what I have been waiting months for! We had a reserved table in a very nice domed car, but I spent almost 100% of the time on the outside platform between cars, taking photos. Part of the time I was on the platform at the very end of the train, therefore could look and take photos in 3 different directions. It was extremely noisy and windy, but great! There were cars on this train from Alaska Rail, Celebrity Cruise Lines, Royal Caribbean, Holland American and Princess. E
a
ch company had its own domed cars, all attached and being pulled by an Alaska Railway engine. Each car was a different color, h
ad its own logo and was a sight to see as we went over bridges, around bends, etc., etc. Unfortunately we did not see any wildlife along the way. BUT, we did see snow capped Mt. McKinley (the highest peak in North America) along the way. It was an extremely clear & beautiful day & we were told that only about 30% of rail travelers actually see Mt. McKinley because it is usually hidden in the clouds. Everything was just breathtaking.
We arrived in Denali approximately 12:30 PM and were taken by coach bus for a 10 minute ride to the Denali Princess Lodge where we will spend one night. Once we arrived at the lodge, our luggage was already in the room...... it was taken here by truck very early this AM. After a quick lunch of pizza we boarded a bus (luxurious beige school bus) for a 17 mile "Natural History Tour" into Denali Park. This was quite interesting as we saw more great scenery; mountains, forests, streams, etc. etc. We even saw some caribou off in the distance at one point. I just kept snapping away on the camera, and have not had a chance to look at most of the photos yet. After a long day we arrived back at the lodge at 6:30PM and headed off for an excellent sockeye salmon dinner. It is now approximately 9:30PM and I am exhausted ........this had to be the most exciting day yet, except for when we saw the moose on Sunday. Tomorrow we leave Denali Park and take another train to Mt. McKinley Lodge. That should also be quite exciting as we venture through another part of the Alaskan wilderness.
an incredible ride........the scenery was gr
eat. Here we were in the middle of the Alaskan wilderness on a train, traveling through spruce forests, passing streams, lakes, etc. I cannot even begin to describe the experience. This is what I have been waiting months for! We had a reserved table in a very nice domed car, but I spent almost 100% of the time on the outside platform between cars, taking photos. Part of the time I was on the platform at the very end of the train, therefore could look and take photos in 3 different directions. It was extremely noisy and windy, but great! There were cars on this train from Alaska Rail, Celebrity Cruise Lines, Royal Caribbean, Holland American and Princess. E
a
ch company had its own domed cars, all attached and being pulled by an Alaska Railway engine. Each car was a different color, h
ad its own logo and was a sight to see as we went over bridges, around bends, etc., etc. Unfortunately we did not see any wildlife along the way. BUT, we did see snow capped Mt. McKinley (the highest peak in North America) along the way. It was an extremely clear & beautiful day & we were told that only about 30% of rail travelers actually see Mt. McKinley because it is usually hidden in the clouds. Everything was just breathtaking. 
We arrived in Denali approximately 12:30 PM and were taken by coach bus for a 10 minute ride to the Denali Princess Lodge where we will spend one night. Once we arrived at the lodge, our luggage was already in the room...... it was taken here by truck very early this AM. After a quick lunch of pizza we boarded a bus (luxurious beige school bus) for a 17 mile "Natural History Tour" into Denali Park. This was quite interesting as we saw more great scenery; mountains, forests, streams, etc. etc. We even saw some caribou off in the distance at one point. I just kept snapping away on the camera, and have not had a chance to look at most of the photos yet. After a long day we arrived back at the lodge at 6:30PM and headed off for an excellent sockeye salmon dinner. It is now approximately 9:30PM and I am exhausted ........this had to be the most exciting day yet, except for when we saw the moose on Sunday. Tomorrow we leave Denali Park and take another train to Mt. McKinley Lodge. That should also be quite exciting as we venture through another part of the Alaskan wilderness.
2 comments:
Wow! These are awesome pictures and good writing, fun to read. Looking forward to more!
Sounds like you are getting more and more excited as you are there exploring. Nice to know Alaska has lots of great things to offer besides you know who.
Jane
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