Day 8 Part 2 - Alaska Rail VIP car Talkeetna to Denali

CJ asks the shuttle driver to drop us at the train station. As he's dropping us off, we receive a call from Francesca, our tour guide. It was her suggestion also.

Here is our attempt to get into the Rockford Winery newsletter.

Francesca announces we've been assigned to the caboose. There are regular rail cars and observation cars on this long train. There are three types of observation cars. The two at the rear of the train are the best. The caboose is the best of the best. 

This is a beautiful ride. The second floor is for observation. The bar is also up here.

Our group is seated together although we share the carriage with others. We have the rear half of the carriage.

The dining area, rest rooms, and the outdoor observation deck are on the first floor.

We are called to lunch.

Bowl of bison chilli.

That last color decorated in a different color scheme was our 'caboose'.

We are staying at the Grand Denali Lodge. It is perched high on a hill overlooking the National Park.

A light dinner at the bar includes padron peppers.

Day 8 - Talkeetna Denali Flight and Glacier Walk

Today's agenda features a plane, a glacier, a train, and Denali! Hopefully. Denali is not the most reliable piece of scenery on the planet.

We depart the lodge for the airstrip.

But first we pass through Talkeetna to pick up additional passengers.

Oh, what a flight! We awake to a rare clear Denali day. K2 aviation hasn't flown in a week! They have no idea if they can land on the glacier. There are 10 passengers on the aircraft. We are seated in the rear two seats.

Denali puts itself on display during the flight to Rose Glacier.

From the air, it DOES NOT look like there is any safe place to land down there.

As we descend for landing, it doesn't look any better.

The plane makes a beautiful landing. They have a small strip that is even minimally marked. We can't help wondering how they created this ice landing strip in this remote place.

We spend quality time walking on the glacier. Carol's borrowed boots work well. CJ is in street shoes. He quickly learns to walk safely, if not a bit wobbly, on the soft glacier snow.

Another plane lands and parks beyond us.

This private lodge is perched on a mountain top between us and Denali. Note the helo. It's the only way to get there.

As we begin our takeoff roll, another K2 aircraft lands. All too soon we're airborne.

After takeoff we turn and fly down the canyon created by the Ross Glacier.

We pass closer to the peaks on the return.

And back at the K2 base.

It appears we spent a little too much time on the glacier. We are going to be late for the lodge departure.

Day 6 - Icy Strait Point

We have defied Alaska weather odds. Today is our first day of rain! We had a whale watching excursion booked for today. Mechanical problems with the boat forced cancellation.

We're informed that it will rain all day, so we decide to spend a quiet day on board. It doesn't rain all day but we're content with a day off. 

The ship is docked. The folks on the Viking ship aren't as lucky. At lunch we watch the tenders unloading below us.

Lunch is at the Italian restaurant. The dishes are grilled pulpo (octopus) and seared sashimi grade tuna.

Perhaps you can spot the gondola in this forest picture through the reflections of the orange lights in the restaurant.

The Viking ship anchored offshore. Even on a dreary day, the scenery is beautiful.

There is an afternoon cocktail party and show for returning Regent guests. A glass of ok bubbly and lounge singers but something to do on an overcast day onboard.

The ice sculptures are nifty.

Things we don't need on a cruise ship and things we love about our smaller expedition ships: big theater, casino, and multiple lounges.

A very good Italian dessert wine is served with dinner.

This was a very good sake.

We promised A.C. that we would return. A.C. promised Carol a smoked Old Fashioned. He serves it at the table directly from the smoke box.