I teach English in New Hampshire.  That’s almost as far away from Denali as you can get, and I am a city person.  I don’t enjoy trips with bugs, and loud people.  I’m a fan of calm, collected, organized trips.  Needless to say, coming to Alaska may not have been the best trip for my 50^th Anniversary.  Never the less the trip was spectacular, buggy or not I would not have changed one thing.  My husband loved it, we got to briefly see Denali and the park’s animals were spectacular.  It was similar to my home, but the people were so different!  They even used weird words such as “Relax, slow-down, just go with it.”  It was refreshing!  Getting away from the city lights, and even just other personal vehicles was great.  It re-connected my husband, and me and let us enjoy the slow-going days of our youth.

Once I got over the stillness of the cabins, I finally relaxed.  At first the slightest noise made me uneasy without the once comforting sounds of human beings, but I quickly learned the sounds of nature were better than sirens and headlights.  We spent 4 days in the Denali Backcountry Lodge.  We took trips to Wonder Lake, and took hikes across the tundra.  I loved it!  I took lots of pictures, and now my classes back home want to come visit too!