Denali National Park

National Parks

Denali National Park

The most common way to really see Denali National Park during the summer, is by taking a guided tour bus or the park shuttle (as private vehicles are not allowed beyond mile 15 of the park road). Most tours and shuttles will take you to Wonder Lake (mile 85) or to Kantishna (mile 89) which sits at the end of the Park. The return trip is almost 180 miles and with stoppage time, it takes an entire day. For those that are short on time, there are flight seeing tours. However, in my opinion having come this far, one should definitely take a ride inside the park to enjoy the amazing flora and fauna this park has to offer, up close.  We chose to take the National Park shuttle to Wonder Lake primarily for the following reasons:

  • The park road taken by all the buses/shuttles is exactly the same. The National Park owned shuttle is at a fraction of the cost of the private shuttles.
  • The last 4 miles between Wonder Lake and Kantishna is not very scenic, as it does not offer any views of Denali, and adds a couple of hours to an already long bus ride. So, we chose to go only up to Wonder Lake.
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 Wonder Lake
 Eilson Visitor Center
Gallery

We had booked the National Park shuttle a couple of months in advance (strongly recommended if you are travelling during the busy months). Our shuttle was to start from the WAC (Wilderness Access Center) at 6:45 AM. We packed a picnic lunch from McKinley Park as no food or drink is available once you depart the WAC.

The ride through the park offers extraordinary views of the Alaska Range and Denali on clear days. The road crosses mountain passes and wetland tundra and we saw several grizzlies and cubs, moose and Dall sheep all through the ride, till we reached the wonderful Wonder Lake. This place captures what is perhaps the quintessential Alaskan landscape: the Alaska Range Mountains reflected in the still waters of Wonder Lake. There’s nothing like standing out on the tundra and enjoying the solitude of the wilderness. Also close by is the Reflection Pond which offers one of the most iconic and often-photographed images of the mountain. (Unfortunately, we had a cloudy day, so we skipped this). However, If you are on a Wonder Lake-specific shuttle, be prepared to walk over two miles from the Wonder Lake bus stop to reach Reflection Pond. Alternatively, ask your driver to be let off the bus before it leaves the main park road for a campground spur road, and your walk will be about a third of a mile each way. If you get off the bus early to walk to Reflection Pond, carefully track how long it takes you to get to the pond, so you can make sure you walk back with enough time to meet your bus as it drives up the campground spur road and hits the main park road.

We spent around 30 to 45 minutes at Wonder Lake and on the return trip, we were lucky enough to catch a few glimpses of Denali towering over the clouds. It is an unforgettable experience witnessing this snowcapped majestic peak. It’s been a couple of years now, however every single time I close my eyes and think about this moment, I can see Denali. I know I will need to return if/when this picture starts fading away. Veteran bus drivers in Denali say that only one in three days offers glimpses of the mountain. If you are lucky enough to catch good weather, however, you can view the mountain from many places along the park road.

We also stopped over at the Eilson visitor center (mile 66). The area is famous for its amazing views of Denali and Alaska range on clear days, and it is not uncommon to see wildlife on the surrounding hillsides. While we did not get glimpses of Denali from here, we were lucky to see a mother grizzly closely accompanied by her 3 cubs. Park rangers at Eielson are ready to answer your questions, provide information, or just spend a few minutes chatting as you take a break from the bus. Several ranger programs are offered throughout the day from Eielson. We spend a couple of hours here and did a portion of the Tundra Loop trail.

Finally, after a very tiring day, we bid adieu to Denali and boarded a shuttle to take us back to the WAC.

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Driving from Anchorage to Denali

Drive

Driving from Anchorage to Denali

After landing in Anchorage very early in the morning, and picking up our rental car, and stocking up on some essentials, we started driving towards Denali National Park which is around 239 miles away. As you head out of Anchorage, initially you will be on Alaska State highway 1 North (Glenn Highway) and then mostly on Alaska State highway 3 North. While it’s a good five-hour drive all the way up to Denali National Park, the numerous scenic highlights and activities along the way make it a much longer drive. Also, while driving on Alaska State Highway 3, you will catch the first glimpses on the majestic Denali (provided it’s a clear day), and it’s impossible to not stop and soak in the beauty!

Geographic features are often named on a whim. This grand mountain was called Mt. McKinley for many years, being named after a US President. However, in 2015 it was renamed Denali, the Athabaskan word meaning “the high one”. Denali is the highest mountain peak in North America, with a summit elevation of 20,310 feet (6,190 m) above sea level and has a topographic prominence (prominence of a peak is the minimum height of climb to the summit on any route from a higher peak, or from sea level if there is no higher peak) of 20,156 feet (6,144 m), making it the third most prominent peak on Earth, after Mount Everest and Aconcagua.

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A few of the other scenic stops along the way include:

  • Susitna River Bridge
  • Kesugi Ridge Trail
  • Byers Lake
  • Nenana River Overlook

We chose to make quick 15-20 minute stops along each of these. However, if time permits, one can spend a lot more time, especially along the trails. We finally arrived at McKinley Park (which sits just outside Denali National Park), at around 3 pm and checked into our hotel.

One of the advantages of being in Alaska during the summers, is that you get almost 18 hours of daylight! This allowed us to squeeze in a few more activities for the day. Later in the evening, we drove down to the Denali Visitor Center (just before close), watched the park film and spoke to the rangers there. We also ensured that we confirmed the spot we would need to be, to board our early morning shuttle the next morning to visit the park.

The Denali Park Road is 92 miles, running from east to west. Locations on the road are usually referred to by their mile number, meaning how many miles they are from the eastern end (the park entrance is Mile 0). During the summer months, private vehicles are allowed only up to mile 15 of the park road. So, that’s exactly what we did! After driving up to Savage river trailhead we did the 2-mile long Savage River Loop, which is a mellow walk along the river. The surface is uneven and rugged in areas, but there is no significant elevation change. We had the entire trail pretty much to ourselves!

Having got a brief introduction to Denali, we headed back to restaurant in McKinley Park for some Alaskan brew and a salmon dinner. Either we were starving, or the food was amazing, or maybe both 🙂 After a memorable dinner, we retired for the day and got some much-needed rest to help get ourselves ready for a really early start the next day.

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Alaska

Destinations, North America, United States

Alaska

While planning a trip to Alaska, probably the most common question that everyone has is, whether to do a cruise or whether to drive around and visit the inland National Parks. In my opinion, there is no right answer, and it really depends on personal preferences, priorities and budget. 

The cruises are generally 7-10 days long and start from Seattle or Vancouver. The ships usually go through the ‘Inside Passage’ offering spectacular views of the islands and marine life in the Gulf of Alaska, and allowing access to the remote towns of Ketchikan, Skagway and Juneau. (Though, Juneau is the capital of Alaska, it is not connected by road to most of the other major cities). The cruises allow you to avoid the hassles of detailed planning while enjoying the trip from the comforts from your stateroom.

On the other hand, a road trip allows you to get up and close to the majestic mountains, lakes, glaciers and wildlife. Driving through the Alaskan state highways, visiting the National parks, and hiking on glaciers will provide equally cherished memories. The big difference though, is a road trip through Alaska allows you the flexibility of deciding what you want to see and do, at your convenience and pace. And well, if you have more time there is also a cruise + land tour that offers the best of both worlds.

For our maiden trip to Alaska, we decided to do a road trip in early July, with a promise to save the cruise for another day. We had exactly 8 days to spare and spread it almost evenly across the three inland National Parks (Denali, Wrangell St. Elias and Kenai Fjords).

Our high-level itinerary was as follows:

Day 1: Drive from Anchorage to Denali NP (including sightseeing along the way, and a small hike inside Denali NP) – 240 miles
Day 2: Spend all day inside Denali NP (including an 8-hour return trip on the shuttle bus to and from Wonder Lake)
Day 3: Spend morning in Denali NP and do a couple of small hikes. Drive from Denali NP to Fairbanks (120 miles – 2 hours)
Day 4: Drive from Fairbanks to Copper Center along the very scenic Richardson Highway (260 miles – 4.5 hours)
Day 5: Spend all day in Wrangell St. Elias NP (included a 6-hour guided hike on the Root Glacier)
Day 6: Drive from Copper Center to Seaward along the very scenic Glenn Highway (370 miles – 6.5 hours)
Day 7: Spend all day in Kenai Fjords NP (included a 6-hour cruise to view the Alaskan marine life)
Day 8: Morning in Seaward. Drive back to Anchorage (127 miles – 2.5 hours)

We began planning this trip about 6-8 months prior and had booked all our hotels, the Denali shuttle, Wrangell St. Elias glacier hike and the Kenai Fjords cruise  well in advance, as we were planning to be in Alaska over the first week of July (one of their busiest weeks of the year). For the most past we were able to follow through on our plans, however in some instances we had to make minor adjustments that I have called out in the detailed itineraries for each day.

Anchorage to Denali
Day 1
Denali NP
Day 2 – 3
Fairbanks to Copper Center
Day 4
Wrangell St. Elias NP
Day 5
Copper Center to Seward
Day 6
Kenai Fjords NP
Day 7
Seward to Anchorage
Day 8

Great Ocean Road

Australia, Destinations

Great Ocean Road
Day 1

The Great Ocean Road (B100) is Australia’s answer to US’s PCH or Canada’s Icefields Parkway. While I have not driven along the Icefields Parkway yet (June can’t come fast enough!!), I have driven along the PCH several times, and in my opinion the Great Ocean Road more than matches up to it.

If you have all the time in the world, then you can spend all the time you need along the roughly 350-km stretch, admiring the sheer limestone cliffs and world-class surfing breaks, driving through pockets of rainforest with kangaroos and koala-filled tree canopies, and relaxing in calm seaside towns. However, if you are like me, and pressed for time, then I have a couple of suggestions that might help you make the most of you time.

 We arrived at Melbourne’s Victoria airport around mid-morning and picked a rental to do this drive. (If you can plan to arrive at the Avalon airport and start your trip from there, it will save you about 60 minutes). Our plan was to complete the drive and get back to Melbourne by evening, the next day. Considering we only had about 1.5 days, we could not drive the entire length, however we did drive along almost 90% of this road and covered all the highlights that this great road has to offer.

By the time we started from Melbourne, it was almost mid-day. For the first day, our plan was to cover all the sights and get to our hotel in Port Campbell – our final stop by dusk. (We did this trip in mid-April, so sunset was around 6:15 pm). For the second day, we planned to spend most of the morning in Port Campbell National Park, before returning to Melbourne. We stuck to the plan perfectly and reached Melbourne CBD around 5 pm the next day, having completed a 550 km roundtrip.

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Our stops for the first day included the following:

Bells Beach – Bells Beach is one of Australia’s most famous and best surfing beaches. Bells Beach holds the annual Rip Curl Pro Surfing Competition and is the powerful point break of folklore. There’s an impressive cliff-face and views from the cliff-top car park are spectacular and great spot to watch any local surfers.

Lorne – Lorne is a picturesque town situated Great Ocean Road coast. It has a certain charm with great cafes, unique shops boutiques, galleries and Otway National Park is on your doorstep. Enjoy a walk on the beach, a bike ride along the foreshore out to the pier, have a coffee at Lorne Beach Pavilion and try a burger from The Bottle of Milk! (option to have lunch here)

Teddys Lookout – A short drive up the hill behind Lorne is Teddys Lookout. Drive up to the picnic area at the end of George Street and walk a short distance to enjoy the spectacular views of the Great Ocean Road from the lookout.

The Lorne to Apollo Bay Drive – Probably the best stretch of road on the Great Ocean Road tour is from Lorne to Apollo Bay. Be prepared to stop for photos a lot. This stretch of road has some of the most picturesque scenery in the region. The Great Ocean Road hugs the cliff-face as it winds through the Great Otway National Park and rolling farmland.

Mariners Lookout (Apollo Bay) – Panoramic views of Apollo Bay’s town center, the harbor and beaches up and down the coast can be enjoyed from the Mariners Lookout, located at the northern end of town off Mariners Lookout Road.

We really wanted to get to Gibson Steps to watch the sunset, however kangaroos and koalas delayed us, and it was dark before we knew it. So, we headed to our hotel in Port Campbell, with eager anticipation of what the next day would bring!

Day 2

 We started Day 2 by driving to the 12 Apostles to watch the sunrise. The 12 Apostles are the star of the show. These massive limestone structures tower 45 meters above the ocean and were formed some 20 million years ago as the sea gradually eroded the soft craggy limestone cliffs. There are only eight of the twelve apostles remaining (the rest have fallen) and forming the backdrop are these magnificent cliffs up to 70 meters high. Walk the boardwalks around the cliff tops which provide various viewing platforms. Watching the sun rise over the apostles was magical.

The plan for the day was to spend time at Port Campbell National Park – The Park has so much to offer with cliff top tracks, gorges, beach walks and stories of shipwrecks to discover. It’s truly a fascinating and beautiful park. We took time to appreciate all the other sites within the Port Campbell National Park: Loch Ard Gorge, London Arch, The Grotto, The Arch, several lookouts (Razorback, Tom & Eva lookout, Mutton Bird lookout).

Originally, we had planned to head a little further north to Peterborough and discover the mystical Bay of Islands and Bay of Martyrs. However, we had already spent quite a bit of time in Port Campbell NP, so we decided to hit the road and get to Melbourne CBD by evening. We took CA 164/CA 163, before joining A1 and then M1 which took us all the way to Melbourne. It was tightly packed itinerary; however we made the most of the trip and were rewarded with some stunning shots.

1. Gibson Steps

Just down the road from the Twelve Apostles Visitors Centre are the Gibson Steps. Walk down these steps to the beach for a close-up view of the Apostles. Here you can experience a new perspective on the power of the waves and the height of the rocks. You can even touch the rocks and feel how easy they crumble away. Take time to watch the water crashing around the base of the limestone stacks. Keep the tide in mind. It can come in quite fast, so don’t walk too far around the corner as you may have a wet walk back.

 View from Gibson Steps

2. Loch Ard Gorge

This is amazing and only a few minutes’ drive west of The Twelve Apostles. It was one of the most stunning beaches on the Great Ocean Road. Loch Ard Gorge is named after the ship Loch Ard, which ran aground on nearby Muttonbird Island at the end of a three-month journey from England to Melbourne. Take the stairs down to the beach and sit in wonder. And there are three easy walks you can take to discover the area and getting viewpoints.

 Loch Ard Gorge

3. London Arch (London Bridge)

London Arch was formed by a gradual process of erosion, and originally was a complete double-span and was attached to the mainland. The arch closer to the shoreline collapsed unexpectedly in 1990 leaving two tourists stranded on the outer part until they were rescued by a helicopter. Prior to the collapse, the arch was known as London Bridge because of its similarity to its namesake. There are three separate viewing areas and the main path branches off to these at different intervals.

 London Arch

4. The Grotto

The Grotto is basically a sinkhole. Take the steps down the cliff face to the bottom and look through and you’ll get visibility of the ocean beyond a pool at low tide.

 The Grotto

5. The Arch

This naturally sculptured arch stands 8 meters high and is located 6km west of Port Campbell. You’ll appreciate the swells and power of the ocean crashing in against the arch, it makes the drama of the place even better..

 The Arch

Negril, Jamaica

Destinations, Jamaica, North America

Negril, Jamaica
Duration: 3 days, 4 nights

Boarding a flight at 6:00 AM is usually not a pleasant task..even when you are off for a vacation. The silver lining though was that our 18 month old slept through most of the  flight and we were able to catch a few winks ourselves. After a very uneventful flight we were finally there in Jamaica and right after walking out of the airport, the place reminded me of  India! The roads, mango trees, shops, houses…even the smell seemed a little familiar! The drive from the airport to our resort in Bloody Bay, Negril was about 40 miles, and initially I was a little concerned about how long and/or tiring the shuttle ride would get. Fortunately, that turned out to be really pleasant thanks to a very entertaining driver who doubled up as a tourist guide and provided an ongoing commentary on the Jamaican country side and way of life all through the ride.

We arrived at the Riu Palace late in the afternoon and after a very speedy check in, we were off to the beach. Bloody Bay is one of Negril’s most picturesque beaches and prior to the trip I had read a few reviews which  debated about how the beach had got  its name. Some argued that pirates landed on this beach and fought viciously while others believed that hunters used to massacre whales here thus turning the sea blood-red! Whatever be the history, the present day beach is probably a stark contrast to its supposed violent past. The combination of really soft white sand, azure crystal clear waters, gentle waves and beautiful sunsets rightly puts this place amongst the top Caribbean beaches.

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Like most of our past beach vacations, we did not have any agenda. Half the time was spent in  chasing a toddler on the beach and the other half was spent in lounging on the beach chairs sipping on our cool drinks. I am still trying to decide what I cherished doing more! The highlight of the trip though was seeing Daivik go absolutely crazy with the unlimited supply of sand and water. Due to the gentle waves and shallow waters, he was easily able to walk 25-30 feet into the water without any major issues.

When we were not in the water, we enjoyed the Riu hospitality. The grounds were gorgeous, food was awesome, drinks were exotic and the staff genuinely friendly.

Finally our much awaited vacation got over and left us with a slight tan and countless memories.  Four days is not nearly enough time to get tired of the sun, sand and the sea…even when you have a toddler that adamantly refuses to come out of the water at the end of each day.  However, I think its just about the right amount of time to not get spoiled by all the luxuries of the Jamaican hospitality! After a very emotional adieu, we boarded the flight to get back to the US. Though getting in through the immigration, customs, security and making it to our connecting flight in Miami was a crazy adventure and took us almost 2 hours! (maybe it was due to the Easter weekend).  Anyways, thankfully we did make it just in time for the flight back home.

Highlights of the Trip

1. The Jerk Hut

Jerk is a style of cooking native to Jamaica in which meat is dry-rubbed or wet marinated with a very hot spice mixture called Jamaican jerk spice. Almost all restaurants in Jamaica have some form of ‘jerk’ on their menu. Fortunately for us, the resort dedicated a whole hut right on the beach towards this cause. The Jerk Hut served pretty awesome Jerk chicken, Ribs and Sausages every day from 11:30 till 3:00 PM and made our time on the beach even more satisfying!

2. The friendly beach vendors

They were some of the most friendliest people and contrary to some reviews I had read before the trip, no one really bothered us in any way. Everything from pot to cigars, jet skis to boat rides, purses to t-shirts, beads to necklaces, painters to musicians, everything can be found right on the beach! The colorful vendors definitely added to enlivening the Jamaican experience and makes this place stand out from a lot of other destinations.

3. The Lobster Trail

On our last day, we took a short walk down to the ‘Office of Nature’ to devour on one of their  famed grilled lobsters! It was really fun seeing the fishing nets and live lobsters. We got to select our choice and then had to patiently wait for the next 30 minutes or so while they grilled it in front of us! During the wait we were also unwilling spectators to how pot is processed!

4. Cricket!!

Having lived in the US for the last 3 years, I had almost forgotten what it was like to see a group of people huddled in a public place watching a cricket match!  Obviously, the first time I saw a bunch of Jamaicans huddled over a radio on the beach listening to the commentary of the West Indies and Australia test match…i couldn’t help myself from asking what the score was ? Even more exciting was watching an IPL match between our favorite Deccan Chargers and Mumbai Indians while we waited for our return flight at the airport!

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