Eielson Alpine Trail
(2 miles, +1,000/-1,000 feet).

We got so, so lucky today! To get near Denali you have to take a 4 hour bus ride (and 4 more hours back out!), and I scheduled that ride months ago, not knowing what the weather might be. About 70% of the people who take the bus never see any part of the mountain. But miraculously it was a gorgeous day with lots of sun, and it made today’s short hike one of the highlights of the trip so far.

There’s not much to this trail — it’s a 1,000 foot climb to the shoulder of Thoro Peak where there is a large flat area with views south to the Alaska Range and north to Mount Galen and the plains beyond. But the views on a good weather day like today are indescribable. Many of the photos below are redundant because we just couldn’t take our eyes off the majestic work of nature towering above.