Travel Adventures - Denali National Park Horseshoe Lake Trail

It's day 2 of our trip in Alaska. We drove from Anchorage to Healy, a town 10 miles north of the main entrance to Denali National Park. Our families rented an A frame house off Lignite road. If you plan to visit Denali, a vacation rental can be a great option. With our seven adults, we had plenty of space in the house, a full kitchen, spacious deck with grill and full laundry facilities. We reserved the house through VRBO about six months ahead of time.


On the drive to Denali - scenery abounds.

We arrived into the Denali area around 1:30. We ate at the Black Bear cafe, in the shopping area across from the Princess Lodge. There were several shops that we perused. After lunch, my sister's family drove to the park's visitor center while we went to check into the house on Lignite road. The skies were mostly clear with a constant breeze. The A frame house encompassed a lovely view of the valley. Dinner was salad and grilled tuna that we enjoyed outside on the deck. My family hardly ever eats al fresco but the breeze kept the mosquitoes away and it was a lovely way to start our visit. I stayed up past 11pm to catch the "sunset" because when you're in the land of the midnight sun, you try to take advantage of it.





The next day we dodged the rains and spent a few hours in the park, keeping close to the Denali Visitor Center. The Horseshoe Lake trail starts a half a mile from the visitor center parking lot and takes you around the scenic lake. At first, the 2 mile trail ascends to a lookout of the lake. From there, it descends down to lake level with pine trees flanking the banks. There is a beaver dam complete with lodge on the lake with lots of visible activity. The trail also intersects with the Nenana river for more beautiful views. Our hike lasted an hour or so and we avoided the rain. We felt lucky - once we finished, the rains started again.

Lake Lookout

Selfie Time at the Lookout


Beaver Dam and Horseshoe Lake:


Along the Nenana River




Today's short hike served as a mere teaser for tomorrow's adventure - hiking in the Savage River area.

Read more...

Travel To Inner Mongolia - Wuhai China

In May, I was given the opportunity to travel to China for work. I traveled there as a member of an audit team to verify the completeness of new manufacturing plant construction. My expertise lies in automation systems, so my audit focused on the installation of instrumentation devices, the electrical wiring, and validation of safety instrumented systems.

This new facility is located near the city of Wuhai, in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China. From the upper mountain ranges, one can see the desert, the valleys and the Yellow River. In 2013, as a part of The Haibowan Water Conservancy Project of the Yellow River, a water control dam was constructed resulting in the creation of the large, artificial Lake Wuhai. The hotel used by visiting employees sits along the lake and offers easy access to the walking path and other recreational areas around Lake Wuhai.


the tall buildings of Wuhai city in the distance at sunrise


The Wave Pavillion along the banks of Lake Wuhai. The East Mountains can be seen in the distance. Atop the East Mountain, a Genghis Khan monument is under construction.


on a particularly calm and peaceful morning on Lake Wuhai


Fishermen hanging out every morning along Lake Wuhai

After the audit, our team plus members of the start up team visited the Genghis Monument atop the Eastern mountains. We first stopped at the lower level - the gate to the road was closed, so we thought this was as far as we could go. At this scenic lookout, colorful Mongolian scarves or "khatags" adorned the perimeter.


To our surprise, we were granted access all the way up to the top of the monument. This entails taking a tram to the summit.

Our team at the foot of the Genghis Khan Monument.


While atop the mountain, a dust storm blew through, but we took shelter and it quickly passed. Afterwards, the blue skies and sun reappeared. In the distance, bits of the Yellow River / Lake Wuhai.

I also spent a little time in ShangHai - more photos from my 18 hours to come!

Read more...

Exploring Page, Arizona - Antelope Canyon and Horseshoe Bend

As follow up to yesterday's post on the Lake Powell Half Marathon, here are a couple tourist activities activities to consider while visiting Page, Arizona. We explored Page the day before the race, so we took the low-key approach to sightseeing, opting for easy walks over a strenuous hike.

Antelope Canyon:
Antelope Canyons are slot canyons on Navajo lands just east of Page. To access either Upper or Lower Canyons you must sign up with an official tour operator. This is required as flash rains have resulted in flash flooding of the canyons. The Upper Canyon tour includes a fun Safari style ride through the desert with an easy half mile walk in and out of the water carved formations. The mixture of ambient light, rock colors and the carved sandstone formations result in a beautiful scene.



I've read the Lower Canyon is just as breathtaking - the main difference is access to the Lower Canyon involves stair climbing and traversing uneven canyon boulders.

Horseshoe Bend:
Another popular destination is Horseshoe Bend, another geological formation carved out of the Colorado river. This 3/4 mile hike proved to be a little more strenuous but not too taxing. The view at the rim, with no rails or chains was literally breathtaking.


Lake Powell:
The Lake Powell Half Marathon's namesake is a man made reservoir that formed after the the Glen Canyon Dam caused the Glen Canyon to flood. The result is a flourishing water recreational area. We stayed at official race hotel, the Lake Powell Resort and found the accommodations nice and comfortable with fantastic views of the lake.

There are plenty of boat rental / tour opportunities around Lake Powell.

Getting to Page - While we flew in and out of the little town of Page, most people opt to fly via Vegas due to the plethora of flight options and lower cost. The driving time to Vegas is 4 hours. Another option is to fly into Flagstaff, 2 hours south. The Grand Canyon is not too far out of the way either, so many will visit Page while out in that area.

Read more...