Capturing Alaska

with Wayde Carroll

Photo Safari Part 3: Talkeetna and Denali National Park

  On the next section of our safari (see previous two blogs) we made our way up to Denali National Park. Enroute we stop at Exit Glacier to grab some pics and then on to a great picnic lunch along Eagle River where a volunteer from the Anchorage Bird Treatment and Learning Center was waiting with a mature Golden Eagle. The center takes in wounded animals and rehabilitates them until they are healthy enough to be released back into the wild. Some are injured too severly and are never released, but are still well taken care of.

  The Golden Eagle pictured here has a broken wing and will never fly again. Thanks to the great work of the BTLC we were allowed a wonderful opportunity to photograph this bird at close range. Though injured the eagle still retained its' regal stature and was athrill to spend time with. The main trick for this photo was to use a wide aperture of F4 to blur the background so it wouldn't compete with the subject. It was also important to keep an eye on the background. I didn't want cars or picnic tables making their presence known!

  Our next stop was the Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge where we spent the night before heading into the park. If you're lucky you end up with clear skies and full views of Denali and the Alaska Range. As you can see we were indeed lucky! The sunrise image with the pink striations was taken right on the back deck of the lodge.

  The town of I've talked about Talkeetna in previous blogs. I always enjoy andering this unique little town. It gets plenty of tourists in summer but still manages to maintain it's old Alaskan feel. The door image is from one of the buildings in downtown. I've been drawn to photograph it several yimes but I finally got the lighting that made it really work.

  After Talkeetna we spent two evenings at the Kantishna Roadhouse at the end of the park road, ninety five miles in. Our incredible weather held out and we had wonderful Denali views on both evenings and one morning. We didn't sleep a lot but were rewarded with a variety of Denali images. We shot from Wonder Lake and from Reflection Pond. This was my fourth trip out to Wonder Lake and the first time the mountain was out! It was so great just to be out there and witness the view. photography was just a bonus.