Denali to Willow ~Alaska Trip Day 23

There are working sled dogs at Denali National Park. We could pet some and watched them demonstrate a pull with a buggy instead of a sled. One mama, named Annie, had a litter of 4.5 week old puppies. This is the National Park's 100th birthday so they named them party, cupcake, happy, etc.

The visitor center had interesting displays. We learned that mosquitoes are beneficial for the berries, hence for the bears. (Who knew they pollinated? My children have often asked why God created mosquitoes!) A humorous blueberry pie recipe was preserved including the killing/butchering of a bear for fat in the pie crust, picking gallons of wild fruit and the yield was humongous (3 dozen pies maybe) that were kept outside, frozen naturally, to use all winter.

Jr. Ranger badge earners

Speaking of blueberries, we found another patch as we drove south on the Parks Highway. These were more difficult to pick than those on the hillside, but we gathered a few more to sweeten our weekly pancake breakfasts.

Still no display of Mt. McKinley, so we stopped at a turnout close to a supposed nice viewing spot, walked down the 4-wheeler path to Sheep Creek, and found an animal skeleton in the water before going to bed.

We have filled our gas tank up 15 times in the 3 weeks of our trip! Many, many miles!