Friday, August 12 was a travel day to get from Seward up north to Denali, >350 miles. We had breakfast in the RV as usual, then decided to make one stop before heading out - a hike to see Exit Glacier in Kenai Fjords National Park. This was the best glacier opportunity on our itinerary so we couldn't pass it up, even though it was rainy and cold. We started on the Glacier View Loop Trail then decided to continue onto the Glacier Overlook Trail. Might as well, we were already soaked! The loop was a short, easy hike, but we were scrambling over rocks and jumping streams on the overlook trail.
Signs are posted along the entire trail showing where the glacier had been in different years, making it inescapably obvious how far it's receded over time.
At one point, we came across a viewing platform that used to overlook the glacier itself and now just looked into the forest, no glacier in sight.
After the hike, everyone changed into dry clothes and we started our drive north, making a quick pitstop in Anchorage for lunch and more groceries. We attempted to see Mount Denali from the viewing areas along the way, but never were able to see the peak through the clouds. We finally arrived at Denali National Park around 7 p.m. and headed to our campsite at the park's Riley Creek Campground for a late dinner and some campfire s'mores. Odd to sit around a campfire after 10 p.m. and it still be light out! Doesn't really have the same campfire vibe. :) This campsite was the first place we noticed any mosquitos on our trip - not too bad, Alaska!
I can't forget to mention the other big news from this travel day: Zadie lost her first tooth! She'd had several wiggly teeth since Guatemala, and was so excited that it finally fell out. She forgot to put it under a pillow with all the campfire excitement, but fortunately the tooth fairy still came.
