Moving On: Denali Nat'l Park to Matanuska Glacier State Park

In the morning, we had a good breakfast of eggs and ham, along with the last of the rolls we bought for sandwiches.  With the RV packed up, it was time to head to the park’s main Visitor Center.  As I looked at the skies to the west, I noted it was a clear blue morning.  I commented to David that maybe the people traveling into the park would be treated with the mountain out.  As we drove east, we caught our first full view of Mt. Denali at a turnoff before reaching the Savage Creek area.

We stopped for photos and enjoyed the warm sun on our faces.  While we didn’t see any wildlife on our drive out, we were fortunate to have the view of the mountain out our right window.  What a glorious and sunny day. The temperature was forecasted for the 70’s today.  I was very comfortable in slacks and a short sleeved tee-shirt.

At the Visitor Center I got my US National Parks passport book stamped and we watched a movie in the theatre.  We enjoyed walking around the inside of the center, admiring the art work from several of the recent “Artist in Residence” participants.  Denali is an inspiring place and the paintings and sculptures on exhibit were equally inspiring.

Our next stop was the dumping station at Riley Mercantile.  We also treated ourselves to an ice cream cone before heading to our campsite in the Riley Creek CG.  A rather large mixed use campground, we were able to find a nice spot near the back of the first loop road.  Set up for the night, we settled in for dinner and a movie.

The next morning I was awake a couple of hours before David, so I spent some time working on the photos that I wanted to post on Facebook later in the morning from the Mercantile where there was free WiFi.  I noticed both during the evening as well as the morning, that there was a significant amount of noise at the Riley CG.  During the evening and early the next morning helicopters and small airplanes could be heard overhead.  We also heard the train whistle around 8pm.  In the morning, there seemed to be a lot of early morning activity on the road which could be heard at our campsite.  For future reference, I would probably not stay here again.  The main reason I booked here was due to the proximity to the dump station and mercantile.  A better option would have been the Savage Creek CG where they also allow RV’s although David would remind me that after four nights of being totally self-sustained in the RV, it was nice to get out to the dumping station and to take on fresh water.

After showers and breakfast, and some time at the Mercantile for coffee and to upload some photos to Facebook, we were ready to move on down the highway, towards Palmer and the Glenn Highway.  It was 11:00am.   As with our last RV Adventure in 2010, we found ourselves stopping in Cantwell for gas.  We knew we didn’t have to fill-up there, as we only needed enough fuel to get to Wasilla and the Holiday Station there.  Cantwell is notoriously expensive (roughly fifty cents more than Glitter Gulch or Talkeetna).  We bought 15 gallons at $4.67/gallon, enough to safely get us to Wasilla.

In Wasilla we filled up on gas at $3.97/gallon less an immediate five cent at the pump discount with the Holiday credit card.  Another nickel would be rebated on our billing statement as a new card holder.  We also had to buy propane as we had run the generator and tank dry earlier that morning at Riley Creek.  Propane was $3.70/gallon, but was also discounted 15% off with the Holiday card.  For anyone planning a trip to Alaska and expecting to use quite a bit of fuel, the Holiday Store credit card is well worth the effort to obtain before your trip.  You can apply online and it takes less than a couple of weeks to get your card.  The “new card” discount is good for 90 days after issuance.

In Palmer, we stopped at Carrs (a Safeway brand/affiliate) to stock up on some needed groceries.  Since it was approaching dinnertime, we decided to buy some fried chicken and sides at the hot food deli.  The chicken was on the dry side, as though it had been under the heat lamps too long, but it was OK.  We were back on the road by 4:45pm, with plans to stop at Matanuska Glacier State Recreation Site for at least photos . . . and maybe to overnight.  Unfortunately with our late start out of Denali NP, we were unable to make the stop at the Musk Ox farm in Palmer.  I was actually looking forward to it, but it was already 5:00pm as we passed the turnoff to the farm.

The drive along the Glenn Highway as very nice; the skies were partly cloudy but clear enough to see around the valley to the mountains.  It was nice to be making the drive in better weather than the last time we took this route.  I recall that evening being rainy, with clouds on the mountain tops and fog in the valley below.  The view from the Matanuska overlook at MM99 was beautiful.  We continued on the couple of miles to the state park.

After driving the campground loop that had 12 campsites, we opted to set up in the large paved rest area instead.  All overnight parking was $15/night but we preferred the sunny open area with the beautiful view to the thick wooded area, of the campground.  There are two cash only pay stations, one at the entrance to the campground and the other in the main parking lot of the public use area and overlook facing the glacier.  Both areas had toilets for public use.

With the RV parked and set up, I took a walk down to the small shelter that faced the Matanuska Glacier.  There I met a couple who were picking wild raspberries.  They had already filled a quart sized ziplock baggie and were more than helpful in showing me where to look and what to pick.  For a brief moment, I had visions of Christopher McCandless from “Into the Wild” fame who died from eating poisonous berries he picked near Denali NP back in the 1990’s. 

I took some photos and picked a few berries to take back to show David.  We went back out and picked a small bowl full.  While smaller than what you would buy in the supermarket, they were juicy and sweet.

Back at the RV, we popped some microwave popcorn and settled in for a couple of hours of TV that we brought on our laptop.  This had become our evening ritual after dinner and before bedtime each night.  A nice way to wind down from the day’s activities.  When we went to bed, the inside temperature of the motorhome was 78F thanks to the early evening sun.