The Talkeetna Experience

We drove down to Talkeetna on July 8th. Our campground is near "downtown" Talkeetna (year round population of +/- 800). During our visit we have visited many gifts shops and indulged ourselves at a few fine restaurants. (Restaurants: Don't think St. Elmo's or PF Chang's here. It's more like a very rustic Erika's or Bonge's Tavern with names like The Roadhouse and West Rib Pub).

We went on a journey up 3 rivers with Mahay's, a jet boat experience. The boat draws 12" of water. Seats probably 35 people. The boat is powered by 3 turbo charged diesel engines. The rivers are the Talkeetna, Susitna, and Chulitna. All 3 rivers have salmon runs each year. We're still amazed that fish can swim hundreds of miles and return to their birthplace. The Susitna and the Chulitna are fed by the glaciers of Denali. Except where the rivers narrowed, the depth of the water was 2-5 feet in depth. The Chulitna reached a depth of 30 feet in the narrows. We saw a black bear with two cubs. We also saw a mock up of an Indian village and trapper's cabin. Going 25-40 mph on 2 feet of water is a thrill. We were gone for 3 1/2 hours. Lots of fun. Ask Mary Ann about the final 500 yards of our "cruise".

We took a flight out of "Talkeetna International Airport" (it's paved and everything) with K2 Aviation. Our plane was a twin engine 10 seater. Our group was briefed by the office manager and she hoped that we would see something nice on our flight. No promises. The fact of the matter is that our flight was the first of the morning and it served as the exploration flight for the entire flight tourism industry in Talkeetna. As our flight approached the mountain ranges, our pilot was advising the ground operations as to what was "socked in" or visible. Luckily for us, the cloud patterns made almost everything visible and safe to approach and fly into. We flew around Mt. McKinley (20,320'), Mount Hunter (15,000'+), and Mount Foraker (17,000'+). We flew over Ruth Glacier, Tokasitna Glacier, and Kahiltna Glacier. The largest was Ruth Glacier that is 3,000 ft. thick and 44 miles long. Each one was gorgeous with the blue ice and water pools. We spent our money wisely on this one. Worth every penny. On our return to the airport, we passed over 3 moose foraging in the streams and many "homestead cabins" out in the middle of nowhere. These cabins have no roads (access by seaplane or ATV), no water (unless hauled in), no electricity (unless generated on site), and no sewers. Many of these are not summer homes but are year round homes, Yep, 15-20 FEET of snow and temperatures down to 30-40 degrees below zero. A life style which wasn't appealing when I was 30, let alone at my present age. We were again awed by the beauty and ruggedness of this land. Truly a sight to behold.

Mary Ann went on a Denali Zipline Tour. The tour included 9 zip lines, 3 suspension bridges, and 1 repel. She claims it was fun and would do it again. I had sprained my left bravery muscle so I was unable to join her. The tour took about 2 1/2 hours to complete.

Welcome sign for the 4 block downtown area