This morning, I got up early and walked to the Savage River Campground bus stop. The free "Shuttle Bus" was supposed to arrive at 7:10 a.m., and it was right on time.
I road the two miles up to the Savage River Bridge where I hopped off on the west side of the bridge. I took a quick photo across the river to the east side parking lot and the Savage Alpine Trail going up the mountain.
The Savage River Bridge at mile 15 is as far as you can go in your own vehicle. It's also a checkpoint for all the buses going into the park where a ranger boards each bus and gives a short spiel about the park and the care visitors should take while enjoying the park.
I started with the Savage River Loop Trail.
It's a two-mile skinny loop that goes down one side of the river a mile, crosses a footbridge, and then returns a mile back up the other side. It's a popular walk/hike, but there was no one on it when I started this morning around 7:30.
For those that don't want to do the whole thing, there is the Savage Bar Trail that gets you to the edge of the river and is only a half-mile round-trip.
However, due to the heavy rains the prior week, the sand bar was still flooded and the Savage Bar Trail wasn't fully open.
It's a nice little walk along the river.
A ranger told us Dall Sheep had been hanging out in the mountains near the bridge, so I scanned for sheep as I walked.
Soon, the footbridge came into view.
While I was standing there, I was trying to get a picture of the iridescent colors of a Black-billed Magpie.
They are pretty birds that aren't seen in the eastern U.S.
Then I looked up, and a single Dall Sheep was coming down the rocks.
A guy in a blue jacket was coming down the east side of the river, and I was trying to will him to stop and let the sheep come down. But he kept coming .... and so did the sheep.
Clearly this sheep was acclimated to humans.
I took a little video as it came down and started up the trail on the other side.
Cool. After it was out of sight, I continued across the bridge.
Since going off-trail in Denali isn't prohibited, and I read that it was scenic below the bridge, I turned left on the other side and went off trail just a little ways.
This is looking downriver below the bridge, .....
and this is looking upriver to the bridge from below.
I didn't go very far before starting back.
When I looked up, the little sheep was coming right at me.
It paused briefly and looked at me.
Then it just kept coming.
These photos aren't zoomed or cropped at all. I could have reached out and pet it.
Well, that was a nice wildlife encounter and personal moment early this morning.
I continued back up the river on the east side.
By the time I got to the bridge, the buses were lining up, but there was still no one in the parking lot for the trail.
Just before reaching the parking lot, I got myself situated and turned left onto the Savage Alpine Trail.
The fine print on the sign indicates the "Trail ascends 1250 feet". Hmm. I knew it was steep, but I didn't realize in climbed that much. Oh well.
I started up and stopped to take pictures and .... catch my breath. I use picture-taking as an excuse to rest quite often.
I made my way up and around the first rock outcropping, ....
and I was thinking "That wasn't so bad".
Then I climbed to the next outcropping and admired where I'd just come from with the first outcropping and the bridge ....
and the river well below.
I thought that at any minute I would be cresting the trail and heading back down the other side. Nope.
The climb continued.
And then I saw I had a long way to go up the mountain.
It was cold and windy up there, so I put on my coat, had a little snack, sucked it up and hiked some more.
Looking back after gaining more ground and elevation.
Had it been a clear day, there would have been a great, albeit distant, view of Denali.
I have to say I was happy when I saw the trail headed right toward a lower ridge rather than continuing to the top of the peak.
View from the summit of the trail. The Savage River is a long way down from there.
After taking in the views, I started down toward the hump on the left in the photo above. From there ....
the trail took a sharp left as it continued downhill.
To that point I had seen a few Arctic Ground Squirrels, but this one posed nicely.
Shortly after that, I saw my first human coming up the trail from the opposite end. After a threesome went by in this section .....
I got a shot of this Golden Eagle, which was likely on the hunt for one of those ground squirrels.
That was the second Golden Eagle I got a photo of on this visit to Denali. Seeing them isn't that common and getting a photo where we can actually verify what it is has been elusive in our travels, so I was happy and lucky to get this shot.
The terrain and vegetation changed drastically as I continued my descent into the valley making the hike pretty diverse from end to end.
As the trail flattened out at the bottom, it traversed a more heavily treed area.
As the trail passed alongside a stream and I passed a small group, I turned and took a photo looking back up the valley.
The trail ended less than a quarter mile from the Savage River Campground bus stop where I started this morning, so it was an easy walk back to the campsite. I really enjoyed the hike. The first half was steep and challenging, and I was glad I took my hiking poles, but the views and the exercise and the early morning peacefulness were worth the effort. Again, on a clear day when you can see farther would boost the hike's rating up another notch in my opinion.
So, I got in six miles or so this morning and returned to our rig at noon. Linda had taken the Jeep to the Visitor Center to check emails and make a couple phone calls. She got back shortly after I did.
I had done the preparation to leave last night, so all I had to do was get a shower and we were ready to go.
We pulled out of the Savage River Campground and headed toward the entrance. We hitched up the Jeep in the first large turnout. Then, just before getting to the turn for the Riley Creek Mercantile, we saw a moose with her twins.
I was on the phone and scrambled to end the call and get a photo.
That was a fitting farewell to this visit to Denali National Park as it was a moose-intensive stay.
We turned in to the Riley Creek Mercantile where we went to the dump station and filled our fresh water tank. While there, I went inside to the camping registration desk to let them know we had vacated our campsite and they could open it up tonight for someone.
And with that, we said goodbye to Denali feeling grateful for another wonderful experience.
I hike the Savage Alpine trail in 2016, only I hiked the other direction. That is I started near the campground. This way it is a moderate mostly 3-5 percent grade to the trail summit and an easy but steep walk downhill for the last portion. I agree that it is the best trail hike in the park.
Posted by: Alfred Florida | Thursday, August 29, 2019 at 06:16 PM