Day 4

TUE 8/31: I wake up before everyone else and walk down to the Teklanika to take pictures. I see what appears to be a bear in the distance but later am not so sure. Tom & Todd join me, and we hike north along the river bed to a rocky hill that rises above the river. We climb to the top and are treated to a commanding view of the river valley just as the sun comes over the eastern mountains, bathing everything in a golden glow. My bear appears to have been a stump from this view. We go back to the RV, have some french toast and spend 20 minutes rehashing the previous night's events. This is the beginning of what will become a running joke throughout the trip. I seem to have freaked P.I. out with my flailing, and rightly so. I can't ever remember doing anything like that before.

We pack up and head back towards the park entrance. Along the way, we see some cars pulled over taking pictures of a large bull moose off to the right of the road. We get out as well. The moose gets closer and closer to the road, and eventually when everyone gives him enough room, crosses the road right in front of us, probably 15-20 feet away. He is HUGE, and surprisingly majestic for a creature that is so often portrayed as goofy and awkward. My adrenaline is pumping. Back in the RV, we continue the ride. Much of the smoke has blown out during the night, so we get better views in this direction, and the colors are fantastic.

Back in Anchorage, we clean out the RV and take our first showers in three days. Glorious. After returning the RV and doing some laundry, we eat dinner at a place called The Bear's Tooth Grill, which is owned by the same people who own The Moose's Tooth Pub, where Tom and Nikki took me on my first visit to Anchorage. I have Yucatan Lime soup, a pizza, and get my first taste of my new favorite beer, Northern Light Amber, a house beer from the Moose's Tooth Brewing Company. I'm not holding out much hope for finding it in Indianapolis. After dinner, we quickly crash before another early morning.