Friday, May 17, 2013

It's Snowing Right Now In Denali National Park






Here's our campsite this morning. 

There was snow when we arrived Wednesday evening and yesterday there were lazy snowflakes all day yesterday, but nothing serious and the sun was making itself seen and felt through the clouds all day too.  Enough to see shadows most of the time. 


Here's the visitors center - about 20 minutes ago, snow falling seriously.


The biggest mammals we saw yesterday as we drove out to Teklanika and back were two ground squirrels.  This bear sculpture is on the visitors' center deck this morning. 

Looking out from the visitors' center. 


This was just before Cantwell on Wednesday.  It had been cloudy in Anchorage but there was lots of blue sky on the drive up, but clearly much more snow than normal - the viewpoint at Mile 135 was open, but full of snow. 





We did a lot of walking yesterday along the road.  I'd drop J off and then drive on and stop and then she'd drop me off.  Here's a moose print I saw, but basically it was a few birds - gulls, ravens, gray jays.   The trail along Savage River was completely snowed in.  Usually it's clear by now with a few patches of snow here and there.  Yesterday my leg kept going through the snow to my knee.  I needed snow shoes. 




Here's the Teklanika River.  The road is closed at the Teklanika bus stop/viewpoint and we walked on down the road to the bridge and a little ways beyond.  We didn't hear any birds in that area that has been teaming with bird sounds in the past around this time. 

But it's beautiful and nice to see things in this different perspective.  Not sure how far the road is open today.  The ranger here thought it might be closed at Savage River because of the snow.  We'll see.  So far, the snow isn't sticking on the roads. 






2 comments:

  1. Do you think that the snow thaws sooner or the river is larger/stronger in recent years due to climate change?

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  2. Dorothy, I have to adjust my head a bit, since this was posted last May. And we have to distinguish between weather and climate. Overall, it's clear that in Anchorage it's gotten warmer sooner since the late 70s. But last year was an exception and as you can see, it snowed in Denali May 17. In recent prior years there was no snow and there was much more emerging of new green growth about that time. And it was much warmer.

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