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Carlo Creek, Alaska to Gracious House Lodge, Mile 82, Denali Highway, Alaska

Stopped for the Day:

Ben was sitting in the Model T, trying to keep warm against a cold blustery wind. Around 3:00am, a large tandem truck pulled to a stop on the Parks Highway in front of the cafe where Ben was waiting. The driver jumped out, off-loaded two tires and rims, wished us a good trip, and drove off into the night. Bruce Campbell had arranged the shipment with his friend, Harry McDonald who owns the Alaska-based Carlile Transportation Systems, for a north-bound driver to bring them to us. The driver would be passing through Carlo Creek sometime between 2:00 and 4:00am and Ben was out by the road waiting for him. When he came back to bed, he had two additional spares sitting by the car. Thanks again to Bruce and Mr. McDonald for setting that up for us.

Montana Majestic Mountain T Tour

On The Road Again

Yellowstone then Home

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Runs great...

....Drive it home.

Runs great...

....Drive it home.

Day 16 - Friday, July 9, 2010

Getting to Anchorage

Tucker Stoepler of Carlo Creek Lodge and Ben quickly mounted the tires on the rims this morning. After packing the car, we headed out for the Denali Highway, 135 miles of gravel road heading east across Alaska. We only planned to go 55 miles on the Highway today so we would have plenty of time to sightsee. Bruce says that it is one of the most beautiful roads in Alaska and it has been named one of the prettiest drives in America. We were only a few miles down the road when the Milepost Directory hinted at a "view of Mt.Mckinley". I turned around and the entire mountain was visible through our back window! We spent about 30 minutes taking photos, many of which you will see on this page. The rest of the drive ran parallel to the Alaska Range with mountains ranging from rugged peaks to snow-covered peaks. We stopped over and over to take pictures and so it was after 5pm when we pulled up at Gracious House Lodge, about the only lodging along the highway. The lodge is owned by Butch and Carol Gratias. He came here with his family when they built the original property in 1958, the year after the highway was completed. Offering gas, camping, cabins, and flying services, they serve a wide variety of customers - hikers, hunters, snowmobilers, and people like us who come this way because we'd rather see mountains than interstate. They no longer run a cafe but Carol had prepared a lasagna dinner for us and we listened to their stories of their years as inn keepers in this isolated place. It was a lovely evening and we are falling into bed exhausted.