Friday night we had a wedding shower at our place for Lindsays future sister-in-law, Vanessa. It was loads of fun and though I was falling asleep sitting up in my chair by the end around 9:45 after a super long work week and lots of party prep, I was still coaxed into going to the 10:30 pm showing of "The Proposal". It was a cute movie and a fun time with the girls. Sunday was the 50th anniversary of University Baptist Church here in town where Lindsay's dad was the pastor when she was young, so he got invited to preach. The whole Hearn family, including grandkids, were there and the sermon was awesome. THEN, there was a covered dish/ pot luck luncheon, boy did I get excited over that, just got me missing home is all!! It was good of course, but we all know that the Methodists cook better than the Baptists, especially if they're Southern (HAHA, totally j/k! -But not about the Southern part!). Love those people!
This last weekend was my last one in Alaska, this trip around. Saturday, I decided to make the 4.5 hour drive to see Denali- the tallest mountain in North America. The plan was for me to camp out in the Bronco that night, but after making it to the park and driving around seeing the sites, I had plenty of energy and too much sunlight to sleep that night, so I drove 4.5 hours back to Anchorage so I could make it to church the next morning to hear Lindsay's dad preach.
Several people told me that I'd probably not be able to even see the mountain because of all the recent fires, hence low visibility, but I decided I couldn't come this far and not see it! Along the drive, I kept 
seeing huge mountains in the distance and saying to myself, "I wonder if that's Denali", "Oh I wonder if that's it"....well that all stopped when after about 2.5 hours of driving, I came over the top of a hill and BAM, there she was and I said to myself, "Oh, ok, there it is!" There was no doubt about that sight! This and one other spot about 30 minutes up the road were the only places I could see it and even then, there were clouds rolling in front of it, so you could see the very top every once in a while when they blew over. It was definitely worth the drive, but unfortunately the pictures don't come close to capturing it since the sky was so white and bright and the mountain was so far away. The weather was gorgeous and it's funny because as soon as I got back to Anchorage, it was raining and it looks like the rain isn't going to stop until winter now! So I came to AK at just the right time and I got my Denali trip in on the last pretty day!
seeing huge mountains in the distance and saying to myself, "I wonder if that's Denali", "Oh I wonder if that's it"....well that all stopped when after about 2.5 hours of driving, I came over the top of a hill and BAM, there she was and I said to myself, "Oh, ok, there it is!" There was no doubt about that sight! This and one other spot about 30 minutes up the road were the only places I could see it and even then, there were clouds rolling in front of it, so you could see the very top every once in a while when they blew over. It was definitely worth the drive, but unfortunately the pictures don't come close to capturing it since the sky was so white and bright and the mountain was so far away. The weather was gorgeous and it's funny because as soon as I got back to Anchorage, it was raining and it looks like the rain isn't going to stop until winter now! So I came to AK at just the right time and I got my Denali trip in on the last pretty day!
The drive to Denali National Park was still 2 more hours, and boy was it gorgeous...literally 360 degrees around me were mountains as far as I could see, I've never seen anything like it! I told Tim that I kept thinking, "You know, the things I've seen so far were so beautiful that nothing can come close", and I expected the drive to be pretty, but AK continually exceeds my expectations. Just when you think it can't be prettier, it keeps on coming!
I also saw 3 moose along the way! The other awesome wildlife were the fireweed. It was unreal and everywhere, gorgeous, thick blankets of deep pink flowers, really setting the scene...unbelievable. It was one of those drives where you can't stop smiling (with the music up and the windows down), but on the down side, no one else is there to see it with you. But, the alone time was great for me and I had some very good moments with God.
The history behind the official name of the mountain is quite interesting. There are actually over 12 names for the mountain, most of which mean "The Great One". Its native Athabascan name, Denali, means "The Great One" and some climbers refuse to use the name "McKinley". The Americans named it after President McKinley (what did he do again? :)). Ever since the mountain's name was changed to McKinley, an effort has been under way to change it back to Denali. The State of Alaska now recognizes it as Denali and the federal government has changed the name of the national park in which Denali is the main attraction to Denali National Park. Congress, however, has shown little interest in changing the mountain's name back to Denali, which is offensive to many people, especially the natives.
Hope you enjoyed your mini-tour and history lesson. :)Love, Rachel
I took this last photo at the site of the Veteran's Memorial just outside of the park. Great way to remember our freedom and to be thankful.
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