2018 Valdez, AK

My stay at Valdez was timed with the salmon run and the first night I was there they were in the weir with the seal lions catching them. As the days went and the run got stronger the sheer number of fish was amazing. Instead of filling maybe 1/3 of the area in front of the weir they totally filled it and you could look outside it and see them.

There were also seals and sea otters in the area but none of them came into the weirs and they seemed to stay away from the sea lions. The sea gulls were everywhere, trying to grab bits of fish.

Every day started out foggy but then it burned off by around lunch time. Early one evening I headed back up the highway to see if the light would be right on Bridal Veil Falls, sure enough it was and I even saw a rainbow in the falls.

I found a good camping spot (no hookups) right across the road from the water and a very short drive to the weir. I made a few trips a day, sort of timed by the tides. High tide the sea lions would come in very close for the salmon, low tide I went further down the road to the large mud flats. That’s where the eagles hang out for the scraps.

 

Click here for more images

Advertisements

2018 Beaver Dam Farewell

Before leaving the beaver dam I spent a bit of time taking images of it and the creek.

Departure day and what do I see when I looked out the back window of the trailer at 0630 but a moose cow and calf next to the pond in addition to two of the beavers working. I grabbed the camera and went out, staying well back from the water. She spotted me and was leery, disappearing into the bushes quickly. She eventually came into sight as she left the area.

As I kept scanning to see her I spotted another cow and calf way across the area near the tree line.

The beavers continued to work on the dam, unimpressed by the moose or me. If I were to rate camping spots this would be at the top, simply the best and the one I’d love to return to some day. 

2018 Beaver Dam

This was such a wonderful place I returned to it after leaving Denali. A lot of time has been spent observing the residents. This Northern Harrier has a female chick who has fledged. Four times I’ve seen the adult fly around with something in its talons and heard calling between her and the chick. Then the chick would fly up and catch the food in mid air as the adult dropped it. I’ve seen and photographed falcons doing this (2016 OR coast) but didn’t know hawks would do it. I was never able to capture the action, not surprising since the adult’s territory covers a large area and they are usually high up and away when it happens. Binoculars made seeing it possible.

The beavers have been industrious as usual, but they don’t keep regular hours, I have to watch for them. One afternoon I was able to capture one eating off a branch it cut down and dragged into the water. Every once in a while it would stop to either scratch or groom. Great fun to watch and every time I look at this image I grin. 

Did manage to see a cow moose relatively close and as she was moving away I realized she had a calf with her, but it was even further away.

I’ll miss this place but have some very good memories to take with me!

Click here for more images

2018 Denali Bears

My last 5 nights in Denali NP were spent at Teklanika cg, 29 miles into the park. Once at the campground you are not permitted to drive around until you leave. In order to travel I purchased a pass, called a TEK pass, that enabled me to hop on any shuttle and go as far as the Eielson Visitor Center which is a 6 hour round trip. That was as long as I wanted to be away from the dogs and provided many photography opportunities. The bus drivers would stop for wildlife viewing whenever possible so it worked out very nicely.

I got to see many grizzly bears, some were simply too far away that while I took photos I won’t upload them. Others are closer to the road and were great subjects.

I saw this bear 3 of the 4 trips out, and sometimes 2 times a day, on the way out and on the way back.

I did include a couple of images of a sow and her 2 cubs laying out in the grass enjoying a sun bath simply because they looked so utterly relaxed.

For the most part I saw sows with 2 cubs, some were born this past winter, others appeared to be 2 or 3 years old. This was the only single bear I got some good images of and it was fun to watch.

 

Click here for more images

2018 Denali Assorted

Denali National Park has spectacular scenery and a variety of wildlife. After spending 6 nights at Riley campground at the entrance to the park I moved inside the park 30 miles to Teklanika campground. Wow! I’m so glad I did. Once at Tek you are not permitted to drive your vehicle anywhere, you must make use of the shuttle buses by purchasing a TEK pass. The pass allows you to get on any bus headed further into the park, distance determined when you purchase the pass. I got a pass that would get me to the Eielson VC, at about mm 66 or so. This was plenty distance for me and it meant a round trip of 6 hours. About the max I’d be comfortable leaving the dogs in the trailer. I used the pass each of the 4 days I was at the campground and it paid off.

This post will be about the scenery,  I’ll admit I do not take enough images of that and some of the wildlife.

There were plenty of Caribou, from the cows and calves to some bulls. Dahl sheep were high up on the mountains, tiny white specks when viewed with your eyes.

I was fortunate to see quite a few bears and will follow this post with one about them once all my images are processed. 

 

Click here for more images

2018 Alaska, near Denali

After a rather long stop in Fairbanks, staying at Chena Lakes Rec. Area except for 2 nights at Walmart I went down the Parks Hwy. to the Anderson Riverside campground. We were literally on the riverside and it was a nice change from Fairbanks. This is the Zenana River. I stayed there 3 nights, several friends with Casitas joined me and left before I did.

Next stop is just south of Cantwell. As I was heading south to one of the state parks that claim views of Denali I passed a huge gravel turnout next to a river. That looked very good to me so I turned around and headed back to it. What a great spot! I can look out the rear window of the trailer to a
beaver dam and mountains. Mountains on all sides, really, but I also have very fast cell signal so I can stay in touch with folks, etc. Good area for walking the dogs and playing fetch with Concho.

I’ve been spending time watching the beavers when they come around to work on the dam. Yesterday morning there were two of them. This morning only one. They travel upstream when they leave so they may have a lodge or another dam up there.

This morning was a really good one. Not long after the beaver left I saw something coming upstream from below the dam, by the the time I got back to the camera (on tripod) I realized it was an otter. It saw me and went under and continued upstream. Oh well, this is an ideal area for otters, too, so I’ll pay more attention.

Went back to the trailer for a bit and noticed something pass by the side window then Concho started looking out the rear window and growling. Had to check it out and it was a fox! I grabbed the camera and got a few shots off through the window. It moved up in front of the truck so I stepped out and stayed by the trailer to get some more images. The fox seemed a bit curious about me and didn’t immediately run off so I was able to get several images. What a thrill. It was so dark I looked it up online. Turns out the Red Fox in AK can have several coat colors including a very dark one called Cross Fox. Its head is extremely dark and this one has a beautiful coat, a bit wet after crossing some water, though.

Turns out I also have a good view of Denali right here. 

Click here for more images

2018 Heading to AK

My route north from Yellowstone had to go through Bozeman this time meaning I would be taking some new roads. What an amazing state Montana is! I passed through many miles of wheat fields and pastures, not much traffic but what country to see.

After crossing into Canada near Glacer/Waterton NPs I went right through Banff, stopping at the Columbia Icefields Visitor Center for the night.

 

From there I made it to just north of Grand Cache where I found a very nice (and free) user maintained camping area. No designated sites as such, plenty of grass, a great spot to relax for 2 nights.

After that it was on to Dawson Creek and the Alaskan Highway. I stopped one night at a long rest area next to Muncho Lake. It was sunny then rained, then sunny and an rain again. Met some other folks traveling to AK, including one couple from France who had their small RV shipped to the souther tip of South America. They have been traveling from there north with a year and 4 months allotted for the travel. What an adventure! When I left that spot the next morning I saw a caribou, some woods bison, stone sheep, and assorted small bears, no grizzlies. When on the road even though I am always on the lookout it is very hard to stop to photograph the wildlife.

This trip I stayed in free spots(except at the ice fields), mostly larger rest areas with other travelers. The last night before I got to the Fairbanks area I had a rest area to myself, sort of. Around 9 pm I happened to look out the window facing the woods and saw a snowshoe hare….then I saw another one. The windows were really dirty so photographs were pointless. When they seemed to leave I went out and cleaned the windows. Then I checked again, they were back with their buddies. The day had been totally bereft of wildlife until then so I had some fun photographing the hares. They’re now in their summer coats, thought their feet are still white. I don’t know if they stay white or are just the last part to change color. Anyhow it was fun and of course the next morning when I walked the dogs they smelled the critters all over the place.

Click here for more images