Denali National Park

This...I think so far...was the highlight of the trip..at least for me!

I got to take a small plane around Denali Mountain and then land and walk on a Glacier! 

Ruth Glacier is a glacier in Denali, and from the top of the cliffs to the bottom of the glacier it is a height exceeding that of the Grand Canyon. 

The plane ride was 2 hours long and I was the co-pilot.. it was awesome! So awesome! 

Talkeetna Alaska is located at the confluence of three rivers, the Susitna, Chulitna and Talkeetna. 

Talkeetna began in 1916 and it mayor is really tiny....Stubbs ..the cat..was elected following a successful write-in campaign by voters who opposed the human candidates. However, according to NPR, the cat could not have been elected as a write-in candidate because "The tiny town has no real mayor, so there was no election." Stubbs ' position is honorary as the town is only a "historical district". Stubbs died on July 21, 2017, at the age of 20 years and 3 months. He was the best mayor Talkeetna ever had! 

While we were in Trapper Creek....just outside Talkeetna, our microwave/ Confection oven made a horrible wheeze sound and died! Just like that! 

We had to drive into Wasilla, Alaska to try to find a replacement, with a little luck on our side a man in Lowe’s told us about a store nearby and we found the perfect replacement...but the only problem was that in was in Anchorage, Alaska...good thing that was our next stop!

Fairbanks Alaska and the Arctic Circle

I was going to keep us in Fairbanks for a few days, but I changed my mind and we ended up staying for 7 days..it was Glorious!

North Pole Alaska is right outside of Fairbanks, so of course we had to go there! 

They have a Santa house and the Santa Claus House is one of the top attractions in Interior Alaska and has welcomed millions of visitors from all over the world! Located next door is the Antler Academy (of Flying & Reindeer Games) this gives you the chance to step inside the pen with Santa's Reindeer Team....Of course I had to do that!

In Fairbanks...we panned for gold

Traveled down the Chena River in a paddle boat, saw sled dogs working and a real Indian village

Drove the Ice Truckers Highway to the Arctic Circle..what a ride that was!

Pierre drove Bender into a ditch!

We went to the University of Alaska Museum, Fairbanks 

The Great Alaskan Highway (Alcan)

We stopped in Calgary Alberta because Navi was acting sick and I wanted him to see a vet. He had an upper respiratory infection so he was sneezing and coughing, they gave him some antibiotics, but I didn’t want to travel so quick, so we stayed in Calgary for a couple of days. I wanted to go to Edmonton, but with the extra time we took for Navi we bypassed it, and headed for Grand Prairie. 

Next stop was Dawson Creek, the start of the ever famous Alcan Highway! Mile marker 0

We stayed in Dawson Creek for 3 days and saw a little of the area. 

After seeing Mile Marker 0 

we drove out to Kiskatinaw Bridge. The Kiskatinaw bridge is a must see when in the Dawson Creek area, located about 17 miles north the bridge offers a gorgeous view of the river valley and is a wonderful piece of history from the original Alaska Highway route. This historic bridge was built by the US Public Roads Administration to replace the original timber trestle and it has an amazing nine degree curve. 

The Historic Kiskatinaw Bridge remains on a former piece of the original Alcan highway and is a tourist attraction due to its history, wooden deck, scenic setting, and unusual form.

We stopped in Fort St. John, it is located on the upland prairies north of the Peace River, Fort St. John is one of the sunniest places in the province, especially in the winter and spring, this city holds British Columbia's record for most sunshine ever recorded! 

Next stop was Fort Nelson this is located in the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality and is home to an extensive variety of wildlife, wildlife found in the area include animals such as moose, black bear, grizzly bear, caribou, deer (white-tail and mule), elk, bison, stone sheep, mountain goat and wolfs. This is where we spotted most of the animals! 

We were going to stop in Liard Hot Springs but we passed the only RV site and could not turn around! 

So we stopped for the night on the Tetsa River. 

Then it was on to the Yukon, Watson Lake, we stayed downtown Watson Lake and walking that night we came across the Sign Post Forest 

This is a collection of over 80,000 signs and is one of the most famous of the landmarks along the Alaskan Highway. Visitors may add their own signs..if you can find a spot! 

Next was Whitehorse Yukon, most of the residents of the far north Yukon live in Whitehorse, it is the Capital City! The territory's two great highways, the Alaska and the Klondike cross here. 

We drove around and visited the area because we had lots of daylight.... durning summer solstice the sun rises at 4:27am and sets in the evening at 23:36 am! 

The last night was in Beaver Creek Yukon, a very small town 18 miles from the border of Alaska! 

It took us 6 days traveling the Alcan to reach Alaska...we didn’t get to see as many animals as I was hoping for but it was quite the experience! The Alaska Highway...also known as the Alaskan Highway, Alaska-Canadian Highway, or ALCAN Highway was constructed during World War II for the purpose of connecting the contiguous United States to Alaska across Canada. It begins in Dawson Creek, British Columbia, and runs to Delta Junction, Alaska, via Whitehorse, Yukon. It was completed in 1942 is approximately 1,700 miles! 

We entered Alaska by way of Tok Alaska! We were very excited...we did it! Esprit was brilliant!

Next stop 

Fairbanks Alaska!