Carl Henning

The mountain is visible 30% of the time. Sadly, we were in the majority. Just clouds for us. But we did see wildlife.

Healy, Alaska is a gateway to Denali National Park. Restaurants, hotels, and gift shops. We stayed in Healy at the Aurora Denali Lodge. No hot breakfast but they do provide a breakfast bowl in the minifridge. We opted instead for…

Driving south to Denali we stopped in Nenana, Alaska. Two reasons: railroad museum and Alaska’s best burgers. North of town is the Monderosa. Locally owned, cash only, no cell service, and quaint. You can tell from their Facebook page. And the burgers are good!

Pioneer Air Museum is located in Pioneer Park. The first exhibit is a Huey helicopter on loan from nearby Fort Wainwright. It saw service in Vietnam. 

Pioneer Park reminds me of Rawhide when it was located in north Scottsdale. There are independent businesses in the old buildings that have been relocated to Pioneer Park. The highlight of the park for our great granddaughter (and me too) was the train ride.

Down the road from the Museum of the North is Georgeson Botanical Park. Not huge, but it’s summer and flowers are in bloom.

We went to Fairbanks, Alaska to see our great granddaughter (and her parents). Also did some sightseeing. The University of Alaska houses the Museum of the North. Animals of the area, indigenous peoples’ history, dinosaurs, oil drilling, and Russian exploration…

We went to Phoenix to watch a grandson’s baseball tournament. On our way from the lobby to the elevator at the Hampton Inn Goodyear we encountered the Bible Museum. Right in the hotel, open 24 hours. I can’t pass up a museum.

You get to the Yellowstone County Museum by going to the Billings Logan International Airport. Really. The tiny airport grew and the museum stayed put and wound up on the airport grounds. This is the TARDIS of museums – it s bigger on the inside that the outside.

Near Billings, Montana is the disappointing Pictograph Cave State Park. Disappointing because unlike petroglyphs which are chipped in the varnish coating of rocks, pictographs are painted on. Paint fades and weathers.