Alaska Day 14, A Surprise Waterfall

Day 14

 Friday June 15

      On the website of the twenty best hikes in Alaska, Keswugi Ridge in Denali State Park received rave reviews.  The entire trail is twenty-seven miles.  Obviously not a day hike. But, I still considered perhaps doing five miles then turning back. Then I read a few reviews of the trail that described the first two and a half miles.  It reminded me of the Upper Dewey Lake trail, steep and full of rocks.

     Instead, I revisited a trail where I encountered two different herds of Dall Sheep. I didn’t expect to have the same results, but one or two sheep would have been nice. 

     The furthest you can drive on the park road is fifteen miles.  From there you either take the park service bus or you get a special permit.

    There’s a small parking lot that holds perhaps fifteen cars.  When I arrived, I was the second car.  By the time I left, cars were parking along both sides of the park road on narrow shoulders.  I timed this well. 

     The trail is called the Savage River Trail. The main trail is a mile round trip.  At the half way point there’s a bridge across.  There’s also a sign telling you this is the end of the maintained trail.  Seven years ago, I only walked fifteen minutes beyond the sign.  By then I had encountered the Dall Sheep and was completely content with life.

     This time, I hiked an hour or so beyond the sign.  While I didn’t encounter any living Dall Sheep, The scenery was certainly worth the effort.  BTW, the “living” quantifier is just that.  I’ll spare you the details.

     However, I did encounter a surprise waterfall.

     After a while, the trail began to look more and more like a game trail.  The path thinned and became a little less stable. I finally turned around when I encountered my third major washout.  While I didn’t encounter any sheep, it was still a great way to start the day.

     Back at the parking lot, there was a couple unloading their SUV and blocking me in.  One of them griped about the parking. I pointed to my vehicle and told them they could have my spot.  It seemed the quickest way out of the lot.

      Lunch was back at Prospector’s Pizza.  Imagine a meatball sandwich made with elk.  Delicious.

      It was only mid afternoon, and after that lunch I just wanted to walk. I found a five mile double loop from the Visitor Center parking lot that fit the bill.  As trails go, this one was pretty easy.  The inclines were like ramps and the trails well maintained. There were some nice views, too.  

     The wind was picking up and we were promised rain.  At that point, I called it a day.  I had one more stop though.  I noticed some railroad trestles along the highway, and knew the Alaska Railroad train to Fairbanks was about to leave.  So, I parked myself at a highway pullout and simply waited. My patience was rewarded.  

      After a stop back at the room to put the camera battery on the charger, I went off to run one errand, topping off the gas tank. I was down to a half tank and was driving to Fairbanks the next day.  I don’t know about the rest of you, but I appreciate a full tank when I’m heading out.

      The promised rain started while I was gassing up.  It was never heavy, just steady.  But still, I stopped back at the 49^th State Brewhouse for another of those Black Lagers before heading back to the motel.

Coming Up,

Betting on a break up, an annual tradition