Once in a Lifetime Denali National Park Drive Through
Shelby and Justin have been to the Denali National park before, multiple times in fact, but even from the visitor’s center, the experience cannot fully be appreciated without driving through the park. In fact, the mountain itself isn’t even visible from the visitor’s center.
The Denali National Park’s highway is only 92.5 miles long, and yet it took the Alaskans and their friends nearly 14 hours to explore. By the time they were leaving, the weather had turned from fall to winter and they drove out in a small flurry of snowflakes.
The first national park, Yellowstone, was signed into protection in 1872 as a “pleasuring ground” for all Americans. It wasn’t until 1916 that the National Park Service was established, and National parks were created in an attempt to preserve and protect wilderness and wildlife. Denali National Park, established in 1917, takes an extra amount of effort in achieving that end goal by limiting the travel in and out of the park. The only way to go past mile 14 of the road is to pay to take a guided bus tour and even those only take visitors about halfway into the park. The park had over 6 million acres, much of which is patrolled by dog team.
in 1972, the park implemented the a special park regulation restricting private vehicle travel into the park. The only way to drive a vehicle all the way through the park is to win the lottery, literally. Participants must enter a lottery and be randomly selected to drive through the park. In the year 2020, participants had a 1-in7 chance of winning. A friend of Shelby and Justin’s, Wendy, won the lottery this year and invited the two of them to join her, her dad, and mutual friend Beraiah for the drive. Together they all celebrated Beraiah's birthday with two types of cupcakes and a dinner at Glacier brewhouse. Justin and Shelby drove up and met the group for dinner and then crashed in their hotel room.
The next morning, the gang piled into the truck with loads of snacks (and Wendy’s gross celery, Shelby’s nemesis vegetable) to complete the drive.
Along the way, moose, bear, coyote, sheep, and caribou were all spotted. Shelby is proud to announce that she was the first to spot the coyote, and Justin swears he saw the biggest caribou and sheep of his life inside the park’s boundaries.
The truck was even granted the opportunity to watch some “national geographic stuff” as Justin calls it. A Grizzly bear charged down the mountain towards a herd of sheep to test for its weakest link. Lucky for the sheep but unlucky for him, the sheep held strong and true.
On the way out of the park, the truck came to a stop behind what appeared to be a traffic jam caused by two Park Ranger trucks pulled across the road. After hanging out the windows to figure out what was going on, a Grizzly bear walked across the road in front of the truck.
Even with all of the wildlife sightings, the mountain the park is named after, Mt Denali (Den-Al-ee) or Mt. McKinley for some, is known for not only being the tallest mountain in North America at 20,156 feet but also for creating its own weather. Unfortunately, the day the group was assigned, it decided to be shy and hide behind a wall of clouds. All the mountains around it were visible, it was only Mt. Denali that was not.
Fortunately for Shelby and Justin, they have both seen the mountain multiple times in their travels north. Wendy and Beraiah have as well and were graced with a view of it on their way home on Monday. It was truly a once in a lifetime opportunity that Justin and Shelby cannot stop thanking Wendy for allowing them to participate in.
The Denali National Park’s highway is only 92.5 miles long, and yet it took the Alaskans and their friends nearly 14 hours to explore. By the time they were leaving, the weather had turned from fall to winter and they drove out in a small flurry of snowflakes.
The first national park, Yellowstone, was signed into protection in 1872 as a “pleasuring ground” for all Americans. It wasn’t until 1916 that the National Park Service was established, and National parks were created in an attempt to preserve and protect wilderness and wildlife. Denali National Park, established in 1917, takes an extra amount of effort in achieving that end goal by limiting the travel in and out of the park. The only way to go past mile 14 of the road is to pay to take a guided bus tour and even those only take visitors about halfway into the park. The park had over 6 million acres, much of which is patrolled by dog team.
in 1972, the park implemented the a special park regulation restricting private vehicle travel into the park. The only way to drive a vehicle all the way through the park is to win the lottery, literally. Participants must enter a lottery and be randomly selected to drive through the park. In the year 2020, participants had a 1-in7 chance of winning. A friend of Shelby and Justin’s, Wendy, won the lottery this year and invited the two of them to join her, her dad, and mutual friend Beraiah for the drive. Together they all celebrated Beraiah's birthday with two types of cupcakes and a dinner at Glacier brewhouse. Justin and Shelby drove up and met the group for dinner and then crashed in their hotel room.
The next morning, the gang piled into the truck with loads of snacks (and Wendy’s gross celery, Shelby’s nemesis vegetable) to complete the drive.
Along the way, moose, bear, coyote, sheep, and caribou were all spotted. Shelby is proud to announce that she was the first to spot the coyote, and Justin swears he saw the biggest caribou and sheep of his life inside the park’s boundaries.
The truck was even granted the opportunity to watch some “national geographic stuff” as Justin calls it. A Grizzly bear charged down the mountain towards a herd of sheep to test for its weakest link. Lucky for the sheep but unlucky for him, the sheep held strong and true.
On the way out of the park, the truck came to a stop behind what appeared to be a traffic jam caused by two Park Ranger trucks pulled across the road. After hanging out the windows to figure out what was going on, a Grizzly bear walked across the road in front of the truck.
Even with all of the wildlife sightings, the mountain the park is named after, Mt Denali (Den-Al-ee) or Mt. McKinley for some, is known for not only being the tallest mountain in North America at 20,156 feet but also for creating its own weather. Unfortunately, the day the group was assigned, it decided to be shy and hide behind a wall of clouds. All the mountains around it were visible, it was only Mt. Denali that was not.
Fortunately for Shelby and Justin, they have both seen the mountain multiple times in their travels north. Wendy and Beraiah have as well and were graced with a view of it on their way home on Monday. It was truly a once in a lifetime opportunity that Justin and Shelby cannot stop thanking Wendy for allowing them to participate in.
Weekend Drives with Diane Correspond with State Shutdowns
Truthfully, Diane deserves her own feature in the newsletter, but this is the closest she's going to get (I'm sure she's already embarrassed she gets this much)
Shelby met Diane when they started working together at the Credit Union; they have since become very good friends. During the pandemic, Shelby and Diane took multiple drives together out of Anchorage, and coincidentally, they're drives coincided with most of the state-wide shutdowns.
Their first drive was to Homer, AK where they took their time to see the beautiful views, take plenty of pictures, and eat lunch at the Lands End restaurant.
Their second drive was to Talkeetna, AK when the Fireweed flowers were in full bloom. They made sure to get Shelby's favorite spinach bread from the local food truck, have a cup of coffee, and stop for a drink at the Denali Brewing company on the way home. They did pull off to take some photos of the Fireweed fields that seemed to line the highway on the way home.
Their third drive was one of their longest to Valdez, AK. This is a favorite drive for the both of them; they packed their own picnic and set out for a "who knows how long" day trip. On the way down, they attempted a timelapse video, one of Shelby's first.
Their final drive to date was to Soldotna, AK to pick up Shelby's new rabbit Maple. The two left Anchorage in the early hours to drive the three hours south in bad weather. Once there, they took a stroll along the Kenai river while waiting for the "drop."
Diane is a saint for putting up with Shelby all the time, but even more so for always being the one to drive. Justin and Shelby consider her family at this point, and she is always invited over for evenings on the couch watching the Great British Bake-off or weekend morning coffee.
Shelby met Diane when they started working together at the Credit Union; they have since become very good friends. During the pandemic, Shelby and Diane took multiple drives together out of Anchorage, and coincidentally, they're drives coincided with most of the state-wide shutdowns.
Their first drive was to Homer, AK where they took their time to see the beautiful views, take plenty of pictures, and eat lunch at the Lands End restaurant.
Their second drive was to Talkeetna, AK when the Fireweed flowers were in full bloom. They made sure to get Shelby's favorite spinach bread from the local food truck, have a cup of coffee, and stop for a drink at the Denali Brewing company on the way home. They did pull off to take some photos of the Fireweed fields that seemed to line the highway on the way home.
Their third drive was one of their longest to Valdez, AK. This is a favorite drive for the both of them; they packed their own picnic and set out for a "who knows how long" day trip. On the way down, they attempted a timelapse video, one of Shelby's first.
Their final drive to date was to Soldotna, AK to pick up Shelby's new rabbit Maple. The two left Anchorage in the early hours to drive the three hours south in bad weather. Once there, they took a stroll along the Kenai river while waiting for the "drop."
Diane is a saint for putting up with Shelby all the time, but even more so for always being the one to drive. Justin and Shelby consider her family at this point, and she is always invited over for evenings on the couch watching the Great British Bake-off or weekend morning coffee.
Justin’s Annual Iowa Visit Extended Due to Hunker Down
As he does every year, Justin made his first trip back to Iowa in March. While he was down there, the nation started having serious concerns about this thing called “Corona Virus.” Justin returned home, as planned, to a shutdown state and job. He spent about one day on the couch with Shelby working from home before he booked a second flight back to Iowa for another two weeks.
In the first 2.5 hours that Justin was home, they found the legendary “Heavy” buck they have been following for 5 years straight. Sadly, Heavy did not make it to another season. They now have 4 years of his sheds and his final set of antlers.
After that, he spent 5 days attending his taxidermy class with Joe Meder in Solon, IA where he received a certificate of completion and mounted his dad, Dwight’s, trophy Whitetail buck from 1988, the year before Justin was born. Justin went on to mount two more deer and a bobcat after the class. He would also like everyone to know that he saw a leucistic Robin (it was white).
He also took the time to celebrate Kenzie’s birthday and attend the Thompson family Christmas. The family specifically waited for him to be home to celebrate.
Justin and his friends were not overly successful in their shed hunting trip to start with; only 9 antlers were located. On his second trip home, their loot totaled 51 antlers. In the picture above, Kenzie is holding her first shed.
When he wasn’t shed hunting, Justin was spending time with family and trout fishing. He took the time to drive 4 hours west and visit some of Shelby’s family He saw her dad’s new house and new shop and had dinner at Grandma Rose and Grandpa Jim’s house in Silver City, IA.
In the first 2.5 hours that Justin was home, they found the legendary “Heavy” buck they have been following for 5 years straight. Sadly, Heavy did not make it to another season. They now have 4 years of his sheds and his final set of antlers.
After that, he spent 5 days attending his taxidermy class with Joe Meder in Solon, IA where he received a certificate of completion and mounted his dad, Dwight’s, trophy Whitetail buck from 1988, the year before Justin was born. Justin went on to mount two more deer and a bobcat after the class. He would also like everyone to know that he saw a leucistic Robin (it was white).
He also took the time to celebrate Kenzie’s birthday and attend the Thompson family Christmas. The family specifically waited for him to be home to celebrate.
Justin and his friends were not overly successful in their shed hunting trip to start with; only 9 antlers were located. On his second trip home, their loot totaled 51 antlers. In the picture above, Kenzie is holding her first shed.
When he wasn’t shed hunting, Justin was spending time with family and trout fishing. He took the time to drive 4 hours west and visit some of Shelby’s family He saw her dad’s new house and new shop and had dinner at Grandma Rose and Grandpa Jim’s house in Silver City, IA.
Shelby Drives Across Country
Back in March, Shelby made her first trip in over a year back to the lower 48. She spent 10 days and was able to travel to see most all of her family. She flew into Omaha, NE and out of Cincinnati, OH.
In Omaha, her dad picked her up and they made a quick stop at Bass Pro before driving out to meet up with her younger brother Ryan, his girlfriend Emily, and their friend Max. The crew spent a few hours doing target practice where Shelby showed off her minimal skills with a pistol and then everyone, with the exception of Max, went to eat at the Pink Poodle for dinner. Shelby was able to finally see her dad's shop, eat plenty of good food, make a fort with Grayson, and see the family.
As always, she spent Sunday afternoon at her grandparents for Sunday Dinner with the family. She spent the remainder of her day with her older brother David and his family at the zoo. Shelby has learned that this is one of their favorite places and activities. Her niece's favorite animals are the bats; she can stand and squeak at them for a long time. Shelby did take her on the rope bridge in the Jungle for the first time and she isn't entirely sure how she felt about it.
After a quick visit, Shelby was picked up by Grandma Rose and chauffered out to Iowa City where saw her uncle and cousins for a few minutes before meeting up with Justin and going to dinner with Dwight and Agnes. After an attempt to make the drive to Deb's house for the evening, Shelby and Justin turned around and spent the night at Dwight's because it was closer, and Shelby had to leave town the next morning. Justin dropped Shelby at Perkins on his way to his class where she breakfasted with Grandma before being transferred to her Mom for the drive to Cincinnati.
In Cincinnati, Shelby spent some time reading Harry Potter outside of the little's room, attending a birthday party, making dill pickle soup, and going to a Fundraise. Aunt Jennifer made a quick debut and was able to join for some of the time. The three women went and had facials done and did a wine tasting.
It was a whirlwind of a trip; a huge thanks to everyone for making time to see and transport Shelby across four different states.
In Omaha, her dad picked her up and they made a quick stop at Bass Pro before driving out to meet up with her younger brother Ryan, his girlfriend Emily, and their friend Max. The crew spent a few hours doing target practice where Shelby showed off her minimal skills with a pistol and then everyone, with the exception of Max, went to eat at the Pink Poodle for dinner. Shelby was able to finally see her dad's shop, eat plenty of good food, make a fort with Grayson, and see the family.
As always, she spent Sunday afternoon at her grandparents for Sunday Dinner with the family. She spent the remainder of her day with her older brother David and his family at the zoo. Shelby has learned that this is one of their favorite places and activities. Her niece's favorite animals are the bats; she can stand and squeak at them for a long time. Shelby did take her on the rope bridge in the Jungle for the first time and she isn't entirely sure how she felt about it.
After a quick visit, Shelby was picked up by Grandma Rose and chauffered out to Iowa City where saw her uncle and cousins for a few minutes before meeting up with Justin and going to dinner with Dwight and Agnes. After an attempt to make the drive to Deb's house for the evening, Shelby and Justin turned around and spent the night at Dwight's because it was closer, and Shelby had to leave town the next morning. Justin dropped Shelby at Perkins on his way to his class where she breakfasted with Grandma before being transferred to her Mom for the drive to Cincinnati.
In Cincinnati, Shelby spent some time reading Harry Potter outside of the little's room, attending a birthday party, making dill pickle soup, and going to a Fundraise. Aunt Jennifer made a quick debut and was able to join for some of the time. The three women went and had facials done and did a wine tasting.
It was a whirlwind of a trip; a huge thanks to everyone for making time to see and transport Shelby across four different states.
Iowa Wedding for Deb, Second Trip Back for Justin and Shelby
In October, for the second time in a year, Shelby and Justin flew back to Iowa for Deb’s, Justin’s mom, wedding.
The two travelers were in town for an extended weekend. They flew in just in time to help set up, for Shelby to spend an evening in Cedar Rapids with her best friend Taylor, and for Justin to marry Deb and Ryan.
For anyone who wasn’t in attendance at the wedding, this was Justin’s first time officiating and he did one heck of a job. The ceremony was intimate despite the 6-foot social distancing, and his speech was both heartfelt and funny. He is now taking reservations for 2021 weddings.
After the wedding, it was great to be able to sit around the dining room table and chat with the family and eat all of Aunt Becky’s salads.
Justin and Shelby are still dreaming of her Broccoli Salad, and Deb and Family are still eating leftover Oreo Fluff.
Visits were also made to Skyler and Jackie’s house, Ryan Beeson’s home with the Yeti, and Dwight’s house to deliver a special gift.
The two travelers were in town for an extended weekend. They flew in just in time to help set up, for Shelby to spend an evening in Cedar Rapids with her best friend Taylor, and for Justin to marry Deb and Ryan.
For anyone who wasn’t in attendance at the wedding, this was Justin’s first time officiating and he did one heck of a job. The ceremony was intimate despite the 6-foot social distancing, and his speech was both heartfelt and funny. He is now taking reservations for 2021 weddings.
After the wedding, it was great to be able to sit around the dining room table and chat with the family and eat all of Aunt Becky’s salads.
Justin and Shelby are still dreaming of her Broccoli Salad, and Deb and Family are still eating leftover Oreo Fluff.
Visits were also made to Skyler and Jackie’s house, Ryan Beeson’s home with the Yeti, and Dwight’s house to deliver a special gift.