Andrew went down to the cabin for a few days last week. He ended up spending a lot of time close by or driving around with Boss because the daytime highs were between 30 and 40 below. At those temperatures you can't leave the cabin or the truck alone for more than a few hours. The woodstove in the cabin is not very efficient at holding the heat in. The metal is so thin that when the wood burns up, which doesn't take very long because its a small stove and you can't put a ton of wood in it, the heat stops coming out and it gets cold quickly. Stoves that are lined or insulated hold the heat much longer and continue to radiate it outward prolonging the heat. And, the truck, well, without plugging it in to keep it warm, you can't leave it too long a trailhead. Otherwise, it won't start when you return.
On one outing over to Denali NP for a short walk he was stopped just a mile from the cabin enjoying the morning sundogs.
In the photo above you can see the sun piercing through the spruce branches, and in the photo below you can see both sundogs and the sun shining over the ridge.
Mt. Healy behind the park sign.
The road is plowed up to the park headquarters. From then, the only way in is by snowshoe, ski, or dog team.
Looking down at the railroad tracks.
Another afternoon Andrew decided to drive down a little ways past Cantwell, 30 miles south of the park, to a beautiful open spot in the Alaska Range of rolling tundra up to the mountains.
Another sundog
Beautiful blue skies and low angle sunlight.
Near that area he saw the big mountain rising above the range, so he decided to drive a little further south to the southern viewpoint at the state park.
That's the range as seen from the southern viewpoint with a nice broad river bed stretched out below it.
As he was waiting for the evening alpenglow on Denali a lone wolf appeared trotting down the riverbed.
Denali's evening alpenglow
These pictures were taken while out on a hike on the Stampede Trail. He said this was probably the frostiest he has ever been.
The trail is nicely packed by snow machines and dog teams.
And everywhere else is nicely windswept.
Throughout his time at the cabin he completed a project that he wanted to do over the summer...build a ladder for our loft. We had one made of 2x4s, but this log ladder has so much more character! I love it and can't wait to see it in person!