Day 24...Back to Anchorage...On to Denali

We had a nice leisurely drive back to Anchorage from the Kenai Princess Lodge. We were reluctant to leave the Lodge...a hot shower, comfortable beds, a great restaurant...all the comforts of home after many days on the road. We had hoped to do some hiking/gold panning/fishing while at the Lodge, but travel was pretty restricted due to a recent bear attack (see photo). Still...the views from the Lodge were beautiful.
Back in Anchorage, we completely unloaded the Escape, reorganized all of our "stuff" and repacked. Add to that a side trip to Costco for bacon, eggs and other supplies, and the whole process took a couple of hours. As a result, we didn't get to our destination (Talkeetna...a return visit for me) until after midnight. Just enough time for a few cocktails and a dose of CNN before bed. We stayed at another "cabin"...nicely appointed with a full kitchen, satellite TV and comfortable beds.
We'll be heading out after breakfast for the 140 or so mile drive to Denali National Park. The plan is to camp there for a day or two before driving the length of the "Denali Highway", adjacent to the Park proper, stopping where we like to camp, hike, etc.
I'm excited about hiking in Denali...it's kind of the ultimate hiking experience. We'll see whether all of those "practice hikes" have prepared me for the real thing.
A few more "observations" after three weeks plus "on the road"...it's much colder up here than I anticipated. The days are pleasant enough but, at night, the temperature dips into the high 40's/low 50's. As a result, I'm wearing heavier clothing earlier in the trip than expected. After months of detailed research into clothing for the trip, I now find that my most versatile piece of clothing is the quilted shirt/hoodie/jacket that I bought at the Costco in Anchorage for $18.00...it's warm and it's got lots of pockets.
It's really expensive up here...it's almost impossible to find lodging for less than $150.00/night, an "average" breakfast is $15.00 or more. Yesterday, I bought a medium size bag of chips for $5.00...a regular size candy bar is $2.00. Gas is anywhere from $4.35 a gallon to close to close to $5.00 in the more isolated areas. It's always smart to keep a full tank because gasoline stations are few and far between and often closed.
More later...