caribou not much in evidence on our trip but it was amazing

by cable, Sunday, August 18, 2013, 17:03 (4119 days ago)
edited by cable, Sunday, August 18, 2013, 23:26

anyway. a few photos will give you the idea.

the Denali HIghway is just 135 miles of fairly poorly maintained dirt road. was opened in the mide 1950s and back then was the only road to the Denali National park. it travels through completely undeveloped land. Being road accessible there are limits on caribou permits [ if you fly in somewhere you can shoot 5 per day ]; i got this Tier I permit which covers this area and a vast amount of other land, some of it nearby.

on the way:

starting up a high trail. we four wheeled and used binoculars many hours each day:

looking back down at the ' highway ':

the season opened on the 10th but the either sex part was shut down on the 11th, before i even headed up there. the only caribou we saw within shooting range was a female, naturally. the weather was warm and the animals were not moving.

this land is so vast and so empty ! in all directions, this is how it looks, a treat for the soul:

sunsets are spectacular:

the only edibles we did score were ptarmigan, ; my stepson John got 6 of them using a combo gun that has a 12 gauge barrel. he used the the little aguila mini 12 ga shells-- six shots and six birds:

the birds are already starting to turn white....autumn has started in this far north place:

we all had a great time. weather was nice [ into the 40s at night but warmer in day ] , food was good, and we still have many chances to fill that caribou tag, and do so some moose hunting, and lots more bird hunting