Alaska, Talkeetna and Devil's Gorge

After our all too short visit to the immense Denali National Park and Preserve, we headed south to the little village of Talkeetna at the confluence of the Chulitna, Susitna and Talkeetna Rivers. Talkeetna is a unincorporated "Census-Designated Place" which, by the 2010 census, is home to 876 residents. Since 1997 the town's honary major has been Stubbs the Cat whose majoral office is close to his bowl at Nagley's General Store. Talkeetna was the inspiration for the rustic village portrayed in the 90's TV Series "Northern Exposure". The town's "Main" Street can be walked in about 5 minutes, but it is famous as the jump-off point for many of the expeditions headed to Mt Mckinley. We came to Talkeetna to spend a day traveling by Jet Boat up the Susitna River.
 



Our trip took us 65 miles up the wilderness river. The weather was overcast with occasional rain and we once again failed to get a glimpse of Mt McKinley, but at least we stayed dry under the cover of the boat's cabin. The passing shore provided glimpses of various birds including Bald eagles. We saw few signs of human presence with the exception of occasional groups of fishermen who gathered at the entrances of mountain streams that tended to be clearer than the silt madden, glacier fed Susitna. Our final goal was the nationally registered Wild River park of the "Devil's Gorge". The shallow draft and impressively powered Jet Boat allowed us to move through the increasingly violent cascades of the gorge, pausing at the

Approaching the Rapids

tumbling Class 6 Rapids. Our captain did an amazing job negotiating the rapids and was a excellent guide, describing the history and natural features of this wild river.  On the way back we stopped on a small river island for a short walk to reconstructions of a native fishing camp and a trapper's shack.   


 

Trapper Shack

After we returned from our 5 hour trip we headed south to Seward on the edge of the Kenai Fjords National Park. It was a long, but beautiful ride after a busy day on the river. We did get to drive through Wasilla, outside of Anchorage and, once again , confirmed that you CAN'T see Russia from the town.


Devil's Gorge Rapids Video






I will need to describe our trip to Alaska in small bits. There is too much to show and nearly 5,000 images take time to review and process, but stayed tunes. On our last of the trip we hit the creature jack-pot and it is worth the wait.

No Russia in Sight

Jeffrey Newcomer
Partridgebrookreflections.com