DIY+Radiance review with pics 18/7-3/8

[alaska_planner]

love the detailed report!!!

i feel like i'm there with you!

can't wait to for the continuation!! :)

[alaska_planner]

i forgot to say that i love the pictures!!!!

especially the food porn at the salmon bake!

it looks yummy!!!!!!!!

[Krazy Kruizers]

Great review!!

And I love your pictures.

[alaskawdw12]

Thanks for posting more trip review...I have been reading and watching everyday to see if you posted more.:) We will be in Fairbanks next June.

Glad you enjoyed your trip. Oh and congrats on your recent marriage.

 

Thank you! :) You're so lucky! Fairbanks is such a great place!!

 

Thanks so much for posting. We are in the planning stages of our Radience cruise next June

 

Thanks for commenting! We absolutely LOVED the Radiance!! You're goignt o hva the best vacation ever! :)

 

Originally posted by krazy kruizers:

Great review!!

 

And I love your pictures.

 

Thank you! I'm so glad you're enjoying it!

 

alaska_planner, thank you so much for all your comments!

 

I'm so happy people are enjoying the trip report, because I'm having such a great time writing it! Sorry there are delays between each post...I'll try to keep it moving :)

Edited October 31, 2012 by alaskawdw12

[alaskawdw12]

First, I just wanted to say to everyone affected by hurricane Sandy that our hearts are with you, and I hope your lives get back to normal as soon as possible.

 

We woke up at 5:30 AM on Monday, got ready and went down with all our luggage to have breakfast. The guy from the front desk put our luggage in storage until the shuttle came to get us.

The day before, we had arranged with the front desk to be taken by the courtesy shuttle to the train station. The train was at 8:15, and they tell you to be there an hour before that. We asked the front desk when we should leave, and they said we should be on the shuttle at 7:00, but then they called us back and told us that there's a big group going to the train as well, and that they had called first, so would it be ok with us to leave at 6:45. We said no problem. So that gives you an idea of how close we were to the train station, if the shuttle can make it there and back in less than 15 minutes.

Like I said, you're told to be there an hour before the schedualed time of deprature. DO IT! When we got to the train station, there were only a couple of other people there. We didn't have to stand in line, and just walked right up and checked in. From 7:15 and onwards a line started to form, that got REALLY long really quickly. People were standing in line for a very long time. We were very happy we avoided that line.

 

We went with the Alaska Railroad Goldstar Service. First of all, I have to say I was really impressed by the Alaska Railroad. They really know what they're doing! Check in each time was smooth, they're well organized (which is something I can't say about Amtrak in Vancouver...but we'll get to that) and we really enjoyed every element of their service.

Originaly, we booked a package deal through Princess, since we were staying at the Princess Lodge, which included the train to Denali, the lodge, and the train to Anchorage. Also here we booked the equivlent of Goldstar Service. But then my genius mom was smart enough to look into the differences between the Princess train car and the Alaska Railroad cars. And what a difference there is! In the Princess cars, the seats are 4 seats around a table, meaning you might have spent all this money on being in Goldstar Service and you're now stuck traveling backwards!! Not to mention, you're stuck with 2 strangers around a table, and they might be obnoxiuos...

The idea of traveling backwards for 8 hours for so much money is crazy to me!! So thanks to my mom we canceled that package and bought the tickets through the Alaska Railroad.

 

About Goldstar Service: we really loved it! I love trains, it's my favorit form of transportation, and I see it as an excursion in and of itself. Traveling across Alaska in the glass dome train car was a dream of mine, so I didn't have to think twice about it. And I was not dissapointed. The glass dome car was really nice, and it's an amazing way to look at the beautiful scenery. We also really enjoyed the complimentry soft drinks and coffee and tea.

Is it worth it for you? Well, that depends on you! I kind of think it's the same thing as a balcony on the cruise - it's nice to have, but it's not worth agonizing over money because of it, or not doing an activity you want to do because you can't afford them both. The scenery is beautiful anyways, glass dome or regular windows.

I thought the scenery was beautiful on all three of our train rides, but there is no doubt the most amazing views are on the way from Anchorage to Seward, then from Denali to Anchorage, and the ride from Fairbanks to Denali is in third place.

Those are my 2 cents on the issue.

Anyways, we really loved Goldstar Service and for us it was worth the extra money, and I would do it again if I went to Alaska again.

One other thing: it seems like the seats in the Goldstar car are assigend to you according to when you book them. We had the front row going from Anchorage to Seward, and the third row on the other 2 train rides, which, like I said, we booked about a week later because we booked first with Princess. So the earlier you book your seats - the better seat you'll get.

 

As you can see, it was another rainy morning in Fairbanks.

 

We were VERY sad to be leaving Faribanks. We really fell inlove with the place. Everyone we met there was so nice, it has such a great vibe to it and we just had such a great time there! We would have loved to stay there some more. Fairbanks is definitly not as extraordinarily beautiful as say Seward or Ketchikan, but it's such a charming place, with so much to do. I hope we get to go back there some day.

 

We got on the train, and our car was half empty! They asked who would be interested in eating breakfast, and we decided we wanted to have a little something, since we were up from so early, and we'd only be eating at about 2 PM. The dining car is really nice! We were seated in a booth for 2. Now, don't feel bad about sharing a meal on the train. If you decide to share a meal, they add a Split charge to your bill (I think it was $2) and they split the one meal on to two seperate plates, which we thought was very nice. We shared a breakfast that included waffles, scrambled eggs and a reindeer sausage (reindeer is kosher, who knew?). The eggs were good, but the waffles were kind of dry and not fresh. On the way to Anchorage, we had lunch and dinner on the train, and the food was fantastic, so I don't know what went wrong with our waffles, but I don't think they represent the quality of the food onboard the train, which we thought was great. Lior thought the reindeer sausage was good, but a little too spicey.

 

We saw a moose on the way, which was cool. The scenery is pretty, until you get to the Nenana river, and then it's beautiful and that's really the most beautiful part of the ride.

 

 

We saw rafters in the water, and there were people who had fallen out of 2 of the rafts and were holding on to the sides of the rafts!! Scary!!

 

See the rafters?

 

 

We had checked our luggage all the way through from Fairbanks to the Denali Princess Lodge, which was great, so we didn't have to pick up our luggage, it was going to be delivered directly to our room.

 

When we got off the train we were struck by freezing cold wind. We're talking bone chilling cold. Shivering, we walked across the parking lot looking for the bus to our hotel. There are tons of buses waiting there for all of the people on tours through Holland America and Princess. At the end of the parking lot, past all of those buses, there was a bus to the lobby of the Princess Lodge that was for the independant travelers. On this bus it was only us and another couple, who were from Fairbanks and they came to Denali for vacation. Within 5 minutes we were at the Denali Princess Lodge.

We loved this hotel! Everyone working there was really nice, the grounds of the hotel are beautiful, the main building and the restaurants are lovely and cozey and the view of the Nenana river was the best part of it all. We really enjoyed our stay there, and I would definitly recommend this hotel. I know it's in so called Glitter Gulch, hiss hiss, but Glitter Gulch ain't all that glittery! And we thought it was really great and had a great time there.

Our room was very conveniently located, close to the main building and to where the restaurants are, and also close to the outdoor hot tubs with the extraordinary view of the Nenana river. The room is nothing special. it's a little on the small side, the size of a regular standard hotel room. The bed was nice and comfy, and there's wood furniture.

 

Please excuse the mess!! lol...embarassing...but these are the only pics I have of the room, that I remembered to take quickly while we were scrambling to leave in time to catch the shuttle.

 

 

When we checked in they told us when the luggage would be delivered to our rooms, but I apologize, I don't remember excactly what time she said. I think she said about 6 PM. We dropped our stuff off at the room, and put on long underwear for the first time in our lives. We also put on our gloves and covered our ears with our fleece hats. We were really freezing, and we were cold even with all of that on. We definitly stood out, as everyone else was dressed much lighter than us. We just kept on being shocked by how little other people were wearing! It was very funny. We went over to where the two main restaurants are. The King Salmon Restaurant was just closing, so we sat and waited for the Base Camp Bar & Grill to open, and we were the first ones there. THIS RESTAURANT ROCKS!!!!!! If you're lucky, you'll get to sit next to the breathtaking view of the Nenana river. We were very lucky, and we were seated next to the window every time we ate there!! The service is great and the food is delicious!!!! We didn't think it was expensive at all compared to what food cost us everywhere else in Alaska.

I had the Beer Battered Fish n’ Chips, which was delicious and Lior had the hamburger, which he said was great.

Edited October 31, 2012 by alaskawdw12

[alaska_planner]

thanks for the update!!!! i LOVE your writing style and all the details and tips!!!

thanks for taking the time to share your trip with us!!!!!!!!!! :) :) :) :) :)

[Keith1010]

You review is absolutely fantastic as are your photos.

 

Thank you so very much for taking the time to write and post all of this for all of us to enjoy.

 

Keith

[alaska_planner]

impatiently waiting for another installment!! :D

[crazycruiserdc]

Like you, we are huge Disney fans and have really enjoyed Disney cruises and RCI. I think they are both the best in the industry for all around cruising and entertainment. We are going to try Celebrity next July to Alaska with the same itenerary you had. I'm really enjoying reading about your experience!

[alaska_planner]

i'm looking at your picture of the princess lodge room and it looks very much like the disney value and moderate resorts, in terms of size and layout.

the way the sink and closet are, etc.

[alaskawdw12]

Wow!! Thank you guys so much for your wonderful comments! It was so nice to check in today and read what you wrote!

 

After lunch, we checked out the hotel grounds and then went back to our room to relax a little before our rafting adventure. Knock on the door. It's our luggage!!!! yay! Now that we know everything got here safe and sound we'll really be able to enjoy ourselves.

 

I booked the rafting online at the Denali Park Resort website. http://www.denaliparkresorts.com/rafting.aspx

We picked the easy Wilderness Run, which is really mellow, and anyone could to it. We picked this because of Lior's back, since we were worried about him getting tossed around by big rapids, and we didn't want to go on a raft where everyone's paddeling and he might get a paddle jammed in his back by mistake.

The excursion was through Explore Denali and I can't say enough good things about them! They were so proffesional, they really have it down to a science, everyone who worked there was really nice, you could tell they really knew what they were doing, but they also kept it fun.

 

We were picked up from the Princess Lodge in a van at 6 PM, and driven over to their headquarters, where we met up with the other 3 lovely couples going on the adventure with us.

 

VERY IMPORTANT TIP - I read this in a trip report on these boards before we left and I'm passing it on - there are no lockers at the headquarters. Whatever you're not taking on the raft with you goes in a big open bin. So you shouldn't bring anything you wouldn't want to leave out like that. I just stuck a $50 bill in my pocket (to buy the picture they take of you while you're rafting and to tip our guide) and we both had our driver's license (because my dad taught me that you should always carry ID on you).

 

It's tough deciding what to wear under the dry suit they give you. You don't want ot over heat, but you also don't want to be cold. I think the best thing to do is wear what you would be comfortable wearing walking around Denali. We seperated the fleece jacket from the rain coat, so we were both wearing long underwear, t-shirt and 2 fleece jackets each. We walked outside, got our dry suits and boots, and walked over to the benches to get all suited up.

Like I said, they're extremely organized! I felt like I was joining the army again, LOL. There's a whole system to getting the gear on. The dry suit covers you all the way from your neck to your toes (your feet are in the dry suit as well). On top of that you put on gloves and boots. There is absolutely no way you're getting wet (except for galcial facials! :)). You also put on a life vest, that they make sure is on right and tight. When everyone's all suited up, you get on a bus and drive over to where the rafts are (the place where we got dressed is the place where the rafting adventure ends).

During the bus ride, we were SO HOT!! We started to get nervous that we were overdressed...but the rest of the people were also saying that they were very hot, so we figured it would work out and we'd be ok. Once we got to the starting point, we sat down with our guide Tony, and he went over all the safty rules. Now, always with things like this they go over the worst case scenarios. But Lior can't swim, and I was terrified about his back, and the thought of him panicing in the water, with the guide giving him instructions in a foriegn language...aaaah!!! And the only reason he was doing this was because I love rafting! And now something terrible will happen all because of me!!! You have to remember that on the way to Denali we saw rafters in the water, so that just made it worse!

Tony said at the end that if anyone has any health issues or anything we should come up to him privately when he's done talking. So we went over to him and told him that Lior has metal in his spine and he also can't swim, and basicly that we're considering chickenning out and not going. He was soooo sweet and amazing, he completely reassured us and at the same time didn't make us feel like idiots for being so freaked out. I can honestly say that had we had a different guide there's a good chance we wouldn't have gone through with it.

Tony had Lior sit in the raft in a position that made it pretty impossible for him to fall over into the water.

 

We were off! :) Within half a minute we were having the time of our lives!!!! Like I said, I go rafting all the time, and it's one of my favorit things, but it was Lior's first time, because of his back, and he was LOVING IT!!! This was one of those experiences in your life that you just feel like "wow, i'm so lucky to be here, doing this, right now, with all of these great people". The minute we got out on the water, the sun came out!!! It was the most beautiful day! It was perfection. There are easy rapids along the way that are a lot of fun, and the sights are gorgeous. The lengh of the ride is just right, because the raft gets water in it, so your feet are sitting in glacial water. They remain completely dry, but you feel the cold through the boots and the dry suite. We were all very comfortable the whole time, and only started feeling our feet were cold when we were almost done. So if it had been any longer, we'd already be suffering.

 

We got out of the raft, de-geared :), bought the picture, tipped the fantastic Tony and we were driven back to the Princess lodge.

What can I say, this was one of the major highlights of our trip. We loved every second of it!! If we had more time in Denali we would do it again, and I would go by myself on the Canyon Run. We loved it so much , we felt it was worth coming all the way to Alaska just to do that. It's something we'll cherish forever!

 

Not the best pic of either of us, but who cares!

 

We got back to the hotel at about 9 PM, all excited, and went to the room, because our feet were freezing , so I thought it was a good idea to go run warm water over them in the bath tub. We felt much better :)

We went over to the Base Camp Bar & Grill, and were lucky enough to be seated next to the window again. I don't remember what we ordered...I just remember everything was great! But I do remember we shared the salmon chowder. OH MY GOD!!!!!! that chowder was amazing!!!! Niether of us had ever had salmon chowder before so we had no idea what to expect. Please send us a container of it if you eat at this retaurant. I'll pay for the UPS delivery, LOL.

 

The amazing view from the restaurant.

 

After dinner, it was strieght to bed, tomorrow we're on the 7:30 AM Eielson shuttle. Bears here we come!

Edited November 4, 2012 by alaskawdw12

[alaskawdw12]

Like you, we are huge Disney fans and have really enjoyed Disney cruises and RCI. I think they are both the best in the industry for all around cruising and entertainment. We are going to try Celebrity next July to Alaska with the same itenerary you had. I'm really enjoying reading about your experience!

 

Nice meeting you! Go Disney!!! lol...

I thought the shows on the Radiance weren't very good, whereas the DCL shows are amazing (I esspecially loved the Herculese show on the Wonder, that was awesome), but the Radiance had great activities going on all the time, and everyone on the staff was super nice, friendly and helpful, we had the time of our lives on that cruise!

You're going to have a great time on your Alaskin cruise! It's a great itenerary! Thanks so much for your kind words about my report. I can't wait to get to the cruise part of the report :) I should speed it up...

 

i'm looking at your picture of the princess lodge room and it looks very much like the disney value and moderate resorts, in terms of size and layout.

the way the sink and closet are, etc.

 

You're right! They are very similar in terms of the layout and size.

However, the Disney rooms have 2 queen beds as opposed to one king, so the Disney room is slightly bigger, and it has more furniture and drawers, plus the bathroom is a little bigger, as is the sink area and the closet.

Edited November 4, 2012 by alaskawdw12

[alaska_planner]

great update!!!!!!!

 

and thanks for the tip about the lack of lockers!!

[DizzyDallasDi]

. . . The buffet is made up mostly of pork and crabs and stuff like that, nothing vegetarian, nothing we could eat. So we went over to the counter service, which was selling boxed lunches. Here too there wasn't even one vegetarian option!! Nothing! Lior got a small hot dog in a bun, and all I could eat was a side salad . . .

 

[bolding mine]

 

Loving your review and pictures! I'm confused about this part, though. If Lior is a vegetarian, how in the world could he eat a hot dog? :eek:

[Assateague Island Princes]

Hi DDD, sorry for butting in, but I think - if memory serves me, Lior isn't a vegetarian, just she is.....but I could be wrong....

 

OP - LOVING this review! It rivets me each time I see a new post from you. I've been to AK four times and am busily planning my land only trip for next late May/early June, so I'm relishing some of your ideas and tips for the things you enjoyed near Denali. Thanks again! Keep up the good work!

[DizzyDallasDi]

Hi DDD, sorry for butting in, but I think - if memory serves me, Lior isn't a vegetarian, just she is.....but I could be wrong....

 

You may very well be right...it's entirely possible that I glazed over that. :) I guess the part the puzzled me was "nothing vegetarian, nothing we could eat" so I assumed the "we" meant they are both vegetarians.

 

Now that we've got that settled (or not :)), I can't wait for the next installment of their awesome adventure in Alaska. :D

[alaskawdw12]

Thanks so much for all your kind words!! It's fun to wake up in the morning to all these wonderful comments!

 

To clarify on the vegetarian question, Assateague Island Princes is right, I'm the vegetarian on the trip :) even though I do eat certain fish that are Kosher, and luckily salmon, halibut and cod are all kosher.

Lior also keeps Kosher and only eats meat that comes from kosher animals, so no pork, lobster, oisters etc.

 

what I meant by "The buffet is made up mostly of pork and crabs and stuff like that, nothing vegetarian, nothing we could eat"

was that there was no vegetarian option or a nice salmon or cod option and also that the buffet consisted of mainly pork and crab cakes, so even Lior couldn't eat there (if it had made sense for him to eat there I wouldn't begrudge him a good meal :)). So we were really surprised and frustrated, and I felt bad I didn't know in advance that the buffet was not for us...but I couldn't find the menue of the buffet online. I just assumed it would focus on Alaskin fish, but I was very wrong...

 

In general, my advice to true vegetarians going to Alaska is to come prepared in advance with a list of retaurants that you've checked their menues and you know there's something that's right for you there. I found myself thinking many times thank god I eat fish, otherwise I don't know what I would do.

The Cookie Jar in Fairbanks was the one place we ate at that had a lot of vegetarian options. In the other places there was either one option - take it or leave it - or none at all. And there was even one place in Seward that we had to leave after reading the menue, because there wasn't a single thing a could eat in there. To avoid the frustration, which is hightened because you're hungry, just come prepared knowing excactly where you're going to eat, because there are Italian restaurants and Thai restaurants, which I'm sure have vegetarian options. Vegetarians deserve to eat too!! :)

[volunteer cruiser]

Looking forward to more comments and pics. I am hanging on every detail because I will be in Alaska for 13 nights but starts with cruise tour and ends on Radiance. With my extended family going I am not ready to do a DIY.

[alaska_planner]

hmmmm....i was hoping for an alaskan update to take my mind off of other things......... :rolleyes: or perhaps this :eek:

[alaska_planner]

We left Ivory Jacks, and drove into the woods to go meet Mary Shields, a real dog musher, who was the first woman ever to complete the Iditarod. We drove up to her lovely house and huge yard together with another 4 cars.

This tour was one of the highlights of our entire trip. It was really something special, a unique experience that we'll cherish forever. Mary immidiately makes you feel welcomed, and we felt like we were visiting an old friend we hadn't seen in a long time, not a stranger. The way this tour works is she offers the tour once a day, at 3 different time options, and the first person calling for a specific day is the one who decides at what time the tour will be that day. She also bakes something special for each tour, or makes ice cream. We were the first to sign up for July 20th, so we got to decide on the time of the tour, and since it was our honeymoon she said we get to choose what she makes. I told her to surprise us.

The group was small and nice. The tour starts out in her garden, where she grows flowers and veggies, and gigantic cabbages. She explained local floewrs to us, let us sample some of the food, and drew our attention to the berry bushes she herself planted (!!) on the roof of her house.

 

Then we went into the dog pen, where she introduced us to each one of her dogs, telling us about their part in the pack and different personalities. Let the petting begin!!

 

We then left the pen, so that Mary could let the dogs off their chains and let them run wild, while Mary continued to explain about the dogs, caring for them, putting her life in their hands (well...paws) etc. We then walked over to a sitting area, where Mary shared her AMAZING and inspiring life story with us. It was just so amazing hearing all about her life and adventures, we felt very fortunate to be there. She showed us the equipment she uses when out mushing - tent, snow shoes, sled, doggie wear - and told us all about the life of a musher. I even got to try on the snow shoes and demonstrate breaking a path with them.

Then came the best part - howling with the dogs. Mary started the howl, we all joined in, and then the whole dog team howled back for about a minute. It was magical. A bunch of us had tears in our eyes. Sitting there in the middle of the woods, hearing those sounds, with the inspiring Mary Shields...it doesn't get better than that!

We were invited into Mary's beautiful cabin home, where we were treated to the honeymoon cake, tea and coffee. We gathered around the table, and Mary showed us pictures from her adventures, and had us try on some of the clothing she wears out there. She had books of hers you could purchase right there, and she gave Lior and me a book as a gift for our honeymoon. The tour was supposed to be 2 hours and 15 minutes, but our group was really into it and asking lots of questions, so we ended up being there for 3 hours. Like I said, we will cherish this forever. It was a truely authentic Alaskin experience, that you can't get anywhere else. 2 paws way way up!! Don't miss it if you're in Fairbanks.

 

 

 

 

The snow shoes demonstration. You can see the tent and sled in the background, and the pots she uses when in the wild.

 

Our honeymoon cake!

 

We left Mary's a little after 5 PM. We headed to Walmart, which is across the highway from the Hampton, to get some basic things - water, energy bars, shampoo, conditionar and soap. The Walmart is open 24/7, so it's very convenient to have it right acroos the street. We were exhausted from traveling the day before, and we had gotten up at 8 AM , so we just didn't feel like going out. They have a Subways right there at Walmart, and there was a nice size line of locals getting sandwiches, so we decided to just get two subs, go back to the hotel, eat, shower and just take it easy. BIG MISTAKE! I'm sure Subways was fine, since they had a line there the whole time we were there, so the food wasn't just sitting there. I think we're just not used to processed cheese, because we don't have that here...which lead to the most terrible evening and night...we both were sick to our stomachs...I'll spare you the details, but lets just say we steered clear of Subways and processed cheese the rest of our trip...tomorrow is another amazing day in Fairbanks!

 

such cute dogs!!! you think she'd notice if i dognapped one of them???? ;)

[alaskawdw12]

Thanks again everyone for reading! I'm so glad people are finding this helpful, since I'm having such a great time writing it.

Sorry I haven't written in a while, so much to do, so little time :)

 

We got up early in the morning, ready for our Denali adventure. I purchased tickets for us online for the 7:30 AM Eielson Shuttle. I picked that specific time because I wanted to make it to Eielson in time for the 1 PM free ranger led Eielson Stroll, and have some time before that to check out the visitors center and for Lior to rest his back a little from the bus ride. But I also didn't want us getting up too early and not enjoying the day.

I really wanted to be the first in line for the shuttle, to get the front row on the bus. Since the shuttle service from the Princess Lodge to the WAC only starts at 7 AM, and I didn't want to be stressed out, we booked a taxi in advance to pick us up at 6:30, and they also offered stopping at Subway (at no extra charge) for us to get something for lunch. The price was $35, and since according to the Princess Lodge website the shuttle from the hotel costs $10 per person round trip, I figured we're just spending an extra $5 and getting there way before everyone else.

 

A couple of comments on this:

1. When we took the Princess shuttle the next morning we didn't have to pay, nor did we pay coming back from the WAC in the evening, after the Eielson shuttle. So I don't know why it says on their website and on the in room info tv channel that their shuttle costs money. Maybe sometimes they charge and sometimes they don't and it's the luck of the draw? I'm sure the Alaska experts on these boards know the answer.

2. Subways is literally right across the street from the hotel and not a big deal to get to (still, it was nice that we didn't have to wake up even earlier to go get food, but I'm just letting you know).

3. I read a post on these boards claiming that the Princess Lodge offers a ride to the visitors center and to the WAC for guests who want to be there before the shuttle service starts at 7 AM. I didn't see any information on this at the hotel or on their website, and I also asked them about getting to the park before the shuttles started and they said they couldn't help other than calling me a cab. But I think it's still worth asking! Maybe they offer a new service or maybe the person I asked didn't know. Anyways, You don't lose anything by asking.

 

The person we talked to on the phone from Denali Taxi Shuttle and the woman who drove us were both extremely friendly and nice. There was another guy in the taxi with us going to the Wonder Lake shuttle.

 

Anyways, the taxi picked us up on time and drove us over across the street to Subway. After our Subway fiasco in Fairbanks, there was no way we were taking any chances when getting on an 8 hour bus ride! So we just got 4 plane rolls to take with us, and we also had energy bars and preztles we got at Walmarts in Fairbanks and 3 big bottles of water we purchased at the hotel. don't forget food and water, it's very important! It's a long day, and you want to enjoy it. From Subway we drove over to the WAC, where people were still in line for the 7 AM bus. Lior went over to buy a cup of coffee in the meantime, and then we sat on the benches there.

When the 7 AM bus loaded, it was pretty empty. I'd say more than half the bus was empty. The guy working the loading platform (who was very nice) tried to convince us to get on that bus, since we were already there and the bus was so empty. But I really wanted the front row next to the driver, so we passed on his offer, and were the first ones in line.

Soon after the bus left, people started showing up for our bus, so it's not like we were there crazy early. Actually, the couple that came after us you could tell that they were aiming to be first in line and were surprised and a little annoyed someone beat them to it. Victory!! lol.

 

Waiting for the bus, freezing and happy!

 

The 7:30 bus rolled in, and we hapilly got on the bus first. Our bus was almost completely full. It's important to note that the first row behind the driver and the seat across from it (meaning, the first row to the right of the driver) are over the wheeles. So the floor is raised up in thos seats. I'm 5'10, so sitting in those seats would have been a very bad idea. We sat in the second row on the right, so that way we could still see out the front. To begin with I was a little upset, since I knew that for one portion of the ride the views would be on the left, and here we went to all this effort, and we're on the wrong side of the bus.

THANK GOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

A few comments on the bus ride:

There is one portion of the drive that is on a very narrow cliff. And I mean VERY narrow. Sometimes while driving, a bus comes from the opossite direction and then the bus drivers have to pass each other without one bus falling off.

Yes, the view is breathtakingly stunning and amazing, but I was possitive that this is where I was going to die. I have come all the way across the planet to find my death here in Denali, rolling down the side of a mountain, in a bus, screaming. I just knew it. This is how I'm going to die. I can laugh about it now, but at the time I was NOT happy.

 

And here are my tips:

1. If you are not like me, and are not bothered by driving on narrow roads at the egde of mountains above the abyss, you should definitly sit on the left side of the bus. The view is GORGEOUS, it's why you came to Denali in the first place, and you'll enjoy every minute.

If you are like me, do yourself a favor and sit on the right side of the bus. You can still look over to see the views on your left, but you can also look away and pray to whatever god you believe in, promissing you'll give up whatever vices you may have if you just make it out of this bus alive!!!!

If you are like me, please don't let this trip report freak you out of going on the shuttle. This portion of the road doesn't last very long. Once you get to the first rest stop it's over. The ride into the park is totally worth it!

 

2. If you're like me, I think you'd actually be better off sitting towards the back of the bus rather than the front. Since I'm the driver in my group of friends, I'm used to being behind the wheel. It was totally nerve wracking watching the guy drive and manuver his way around other busses. I just hated watching the guy drive, it was freaking me out. On the way back, since we just got on a bus and sat wherever there was room, we were at the back of the bus, where I couldn't see what the driver was doing, and I was much calmer. There's nothing you can do about it, so you may as well not think about it. So if you know you're like me, you should sit in the back, not the front. In terms of scenarey and animal sightings it makes totally no difference if you sit in the front or in the back.

 

Again, don't let this discourage you from going into the park. I knew it was coming, and it was actually the one activity I was most worried about on the whole trip. Yes, that part of the road was terrible for me, but I think the main thing that was bothering me was that I didn't know how long this was going to last. Once you know that it's just that one small part, and that once it's over it's over, you feel much better. So keep that in mind.

 

I've read that the majority of shuttle bus drivers in Denali provide great narration. Our driver was very sweet, but he didn't speak English...so it goes without saying that we had a silent driver the entire drive in. If this happens to you, you can get off the bus anywhere you want or wait at one of the rest stops and get on the next bus that comes by (if there's room). We were not interested in standing around and waiting for another bus. It was more important to us to get to spend time at the Eielson visitors center, and also the people on our bus were really nice, and the woman sitting behind us was amazing at animal spotting and explaining where the animals were. Plus, we knew we were switching buses on the way out, so maybe we'd be luckier with that driver.

 

Before going, I was very nervous about being stuck on a bus for 8 hours. I'm happy to say that the time just flys by! Before you know it, you're already at Eielson. Like I said, the views are amazing, but the wildlife was the real reason why we were there!

 

And here's what we saw:

3 male moose!!!

too many caribou to count.

too many Dall sheep to count, including one that was right on the road, and a group of 25 of them together on the edge of a mountain.

10 BEARS!!!!! Including 2 different momma bears with two cubs each.

We even saw an almost Discovery channel moment, when a young caribou by mistake walked by one of the momma bears and her cubs. The caribou suddenly realized what he had done, and stopped dead in his tracks. The momma bear stared at the caribou. The caribou stared at the bear. It was a stare down! Everyone on the bus was holding their breath. But it was a PG ending when the caribou just walked off and the bears went on with their buisness.

 

 

Very important tip - you must bring binoculars on the bus. Most of the animal sightings are far away and sound like this: "you see that patch of green? To the right of it there are three white dots? Those white dots are the bears". Without binoculars, all you're going to see are white dots. With binoculars, you'll get to see animals in their natural habitat, which is what you came to see. There were people on the bus without binoculars, and they were not enjoying themseleves half as much as the rest of us.

Binoculars you bring to Alaska have to be waterproof. We purchased ours online from Amazon. Bushnell H2O 8x25. We LOVED them!! Great binoculars, compact and light weight, so they were easy to carry around. On the whale watches I checked out the binoculars they let you use, and thought ours were better. We got them for a great price, which I can't remember right now...lol. As for how may binoculars you should bring (one per person or share a pair), that's already up to you. We really enjoyed each having our own pair and getting to look at the animals for as long as we wanted (I mean , whens the next time we'll get to see bears in the wild?), but it's definitly not a must. I put this in the same catagory as the balcony on the cruise and the Goldstar Service on the train. It's nice to have you're own, but you don't have to.

 

The rest stops are really nice. The first rest stop has a bunch of short trails, and the view is amazing. We even saw a bear off in the distance on the side of a mountain across from us! The second stop is at Toklat river, which is also beautiful and they have a bunch of animal horns out on display, for guests to pick up and see how heavy they are. The moose horns are crazy heavy!!

There are lots of bathrooms at both stops and they're actually nice and big.

 

From the first rest stop. Pictures don't do it justice...

 

Like I said, the time zoomed by, we were having a great time, and at a little after 11 AM we were at the Eielson visitor center. Mount Mckinley was nowhere to be seen, hidden behind thick fog. The visitors center is small, but it has great exhibits. There's a very interesting film about climbing Mount Mckinley, and I esspecially loved the different furs they had there, so you get a chance to see what it would feel like to pet a bear or a wolf. We sat at picnic tables and ate our rolls.

At 1 PM we joined the sweet ranger for the Eielson Stroll. This walk is about 45 minutes to an hour long, and super easy. You can walk the trail by yourself, but we prefer to do it with a guide, that way we can learn about what we're looking at. We really had a great time!! We learned a lot, and there was a ground squirrel that was near us the whole time, so the ranger explained a lot about them.

Please note that there's a a free guided ranger hike at 12 PM that's more chanlenging and lasts two and a half hours, and you need to sign up for it. We couldn't do it because of Lior's back, but it's probably very cool.

I wouldn't ride into the park and then right back out. The visitor center is great and you can do the trails around it by yourslef. For me, that's what made the ride worth it, since I'd rather be out and about than on a bus.

 

Our srtoll was over at 2 PM. We headed over to the dispatcher to sign up for the next available spot on a bus. He wrote our names down and told us to be over by the buses in 10 minutes. when the bus was ready to go, and everyone who came in on it was back on, the dispatcher could check how much room was left on the bus. We got on together with another couple from our original bus and a guy from the 7 AM bus (we were all on the guided walk together). It's very well organized, and very easy.

 

Our driver on the way back was amazing! He's been doing this for 28 years, and he really knew everything about everything! What a difference...too bad we didn't have him on the way in, but that's ok, we were lucky enought to have him on the way out. On the way out we even got to see a bear up close! He wasn't on the road, but very close to the road, and that was the perfect way to end the trip. We were pretty succesful, seeing 4 out of the big 5, and our driver said that the wolf population in Denali is having some trouble, and that since the beginning of the season he had only seen one!

 

We were again extremely lucky with the weather, since we got a nice day with no rain. Also, I just wnat to say that we were pleasently surprised with the buses and the seats, which we found to be comfortabel.

 

We were back at the WAC at about 5:45 PM. We walked over to the bus station for the hotel shuttels, waited a little while until the shuttle came and then we were back at the hotel in no time at all. We went over to our ussual restaurant for the last time :(, had a fantastic meal and then for desert we went to the River Run Espresso, for coffee, tea and one of their cinnamon rolls, since the smell of them had been driving us crazy! It was good, not great, the smell is more impressive than the taste, but it was good.

 

Exhausted from our long amazing day, we went back to the room. I fell asleep by mistake, and Lior, being the best husband in the world :), got me into bed and packed up all of our stuff.

 

Tommorow is a great morning spent at the front of the prak and then the train to Anchorage!

[alaskawdw12]

Toklat River

 

How do moose handle it?!

 

Mount Mckinley. Use your imagination!

 

Eielson Stroll

 

Ground squirrel

 

Great, now I'm craving a cinnamon roll...lol

 

Sorry there are no pictures of the animals (except for the ground squirrel and the one Doll sheep). I spent the whole time looking at the wildlife through the binoculars...

anyways, it would be pretty much the same as all the pictures everybody else posts, except not as good...lol...since I'm not a great photographer.

Edited November 9, 2012 by alaskawdw12

[alaska_planner]

great update!!!! i can't wait to hear about the rest of your visit to denali and the rest of your alaskan adventure!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)

Edited November 10, 2012 by alaska_planner

[Cat54]

Great review. We were planning on taking a cruisetour for this trip but after reading your review I will be planning on the land portion myself. Thanks for the information. It will be very helpful.:)

[alaskawdw12]

Great review. We were planning on taking a cruisetour for this trip but after reading your review I will be planning on the land portion myself. Thanks for the information. It will be very helpful.:)

 

Wow! That's great! I'm so happy to hear :) you'll have a great time!!!