Having made the booking earlier we were excited to wake to beautiful clear weather again for our flightseeing trip to Mt McKinley on the way south. Drove to Talkeetna, a pretty heritage town that is a National Historical Site & the centre for climbing the mountains here. We were part of a group of 12 on board a single engine Otter aircraft & everyone had a window seat. James was lucky enough to be seated next to the pilot for a super view! We went over th...

This morning Jon showed us his dogs that he keeps for sled-dog tours during winter. James & Geoff had a wonderful time talking, scratching & smooching with these very friendly animals, getting covered in fur while Jon explained about their way of life & work. Continuing the dogs theme we went back to the National Park for lunch & a tour of their kennels including a demonstration & ranger talk. These dogs were all so excited, hoping to be chose...

Our 3 days in Denali were filled with wonderful experiences & more perfect weather. Drove our hire car north "into the wild" & were surprised by several moose ambling across the highway & some others just beside the road later - not what you see in Australia! On the way north there was cloud cover over Mt McKinley but snow capped peaks at lower altitude & we eventually arrived at the secluded Earthsong Lodge on Stampede Rd. This was the way Christ...

After a farewell to the crew we disembarked in Juneau, had coffee stop with our new friends & made a visit to the fabric shop (of course). We left Juneau by plane for Anchorage where we met James who'd just arrived from Calgary. Had a great reunion & Facetime with Sarah back home in Brisbane for her birthday today. Spent our time in Anchorage exploring this unusual little city which is not really like anywhere we've been before. There are wide streets, lo...

Day 6 - Saturday - Dawes Glacier Woke to our arrival at the Dawes Glacier at the end of Endicott Arm & everyone on board was given a skiff ride through the "bergy bits" to near the wall of ice where it meets the water. Pieces were calving off the main face, some making a huge splash, roar & waves as they crashed into the water. This ice is so blue that it's quite different to some others we've seen & the water is a gorgeous turquoise too. What an amaz...