Ptarmigan Tracks

Whatever operational plans we had for 2014, Mother Nature had plans of her own in store. The washouts from record-breaking rainfall in late June dictated that a lot of time and energy got diverted to driveway and trail repair. That anything else also got accomplished is really a testament to the wonderful operations crew we had this summer.

A few notable achievements included the renovation of the Riffles building and bathrooms, the installation of a new 20K generator, and the completion of a south-facing deck on the lodge, all at Camp Denali.

Elsewhere, the winter office exterior was painted, and the Pika Hut received a good scraping and application of fresh wood finish.

Another project, mostly for fun and to commemorate founding Camp Denali staff, Liz and Bill Berry, was the installation of a "Berry" bear bronze on Cranberry Ridge,  near the Founder's Cairn. Sculpted and cast by Parks Bronze Foundry in Enterprise, Oregon, the bear is slightly larger than life-size, an enlargement of Bill Berry's 1974, eight-inch original bronze.

With a sensitive touch and keen eye, Mark Berry (Bill's son), carved out of the tundra a final resting spot for the reclining bruin. Each evening after his day job installing Riffles' new plumbing, Mark would shoulder his homemade yoke and trek up and down Cranberry Ridge, exchanging chunks of tundra for 5-gallon buckets of gravel. Truly, a labor of love and remembrance.

Finally, we bid a fond farewell to our humble Toyota box truck, seen here in Haines, Alaska, on its southward journey to its new home. Bought new in 1991, a conservative estimate would be that it moved more than a million pounds of produce, goods, trash and recycling over the park road during its 24-year hitch. Blue skies and tailwinds!