My bus, at the Savage River check stationCopyright 2007 Lydia Hinshaw
DENALI NATIONAL PARK, AK -- I haven't had a corner named after me yet.
That's the worst thing that can happen to a Denali Visitor Transportation System (VTS) driver. OK, maybe it's not the worst. But during training we were made aware of several spots unofficially named for drivers who infamously ran afoul of the roadway, or gravity, or physics.
This week I finished the formal part of training and began transporting passengers out-and-back to Toklat, 53 miles into the park. It's challenging, and requires much more concentration than ordinary driving, but it's fun too. On Thursday's trip, we saw a sow grizzly and her trio of yearling cubs, dozens of caribou, several Dall sheep and at least one moose. Even Mount McKinley appeared bareheaded for a change.
My passengers were delighted.
On one of my first trips, Prince Charming had the day off, so he drove 15 miles out to Savage River (as far as private cars are allowed to go), hiked up on a mountainside and took a picture of my bus as we stopped at the ranger check station there. You can see the road rising off into the wilderness ahead. The picture gives a good idea of how a 52-passenger bus seems tiny amid the vastness of Denali.
The trickiest part of the route is Polychrome Pass, a name that always makes me think that Kodak somehow bought naming rights to this particular hill. Actually, "polychrome" is a Greek word meaning "many colors," according to various tourist information sources.
Below is a picture shot from the top of Polychrome, looking down to the east. It looks scarier than it is.
Driving the Park Road requires a level of common sense and common courtesy rarely found on I-4 in Florida, or any clogged freeway near you.
We all want to get ourselves and our passengers back safely. And we don't want our names attached to one of Polychrome's many corners.
That's the worst thing that can happen to a Denali Visitor Transportation System (VTS) driver. OK, maybe it's not the worst. But during training we were made aware of several spots unofficially named for drivers who infamously ran afoul of the roadway, or gravity, or physics.
This week I finished the formal part of training and began transporting passengers out-and-back to Toklat, 53 miles into the park. It's challenging, and requires much more concentration than ordinary driving, but it's fun too. On Thursday's trip, we saw a sow grizzly and her trio of yearling cubs, dozens of caribou, several Dall sheep and at least one moose. Even Mount McKinley appeared bareheaded for a change.
My passengers were delighted.
On one of my first trips, Prince Charming had the day off, so he drove 15 miles out to Savage River (as far as private cars are allowed to go), hiked up on a mountainside and took a picture of my bus as we stopped at the ranger check station there. You can see the road rising off into the wilderness ahead. The picture gives a good idea of how a 52-passenger bus seems tiny amid the vastness of Denali.
The trickiest part of the route is Polychrome Pass, a name that always makes me think that Kodak somehow bought naming rights to this particular hill. Actually, "polychrome" is a Greek word meaning "many colors," according to various tourist information sources.
Below is a picture shot from the top of Polychrome, looking down to the east. It looks scarier than it is.
Driving the Park Road requires a level of common sense and common courtesy rarely found on I-4 in Florida, or any clogged freeway near you.
We all want to get ourselves and our passengers back safely. And we don't want our names attached to one of Polychrome's many corners.
Some of the blind corners on Polychrome Pass
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