This is the Life, part 1

I have mentioned a bit about staying in Denali but I believe it definitely deserves a post of it's own. Life here is a cross between being on vacation and the behind the scenes world depicted in Dirty Dancing. I know that seems weird but let me explain. Everyone that works here at the hotel or for HAL is housed in on site housing, pretty much hidden from the guests. The hotel employees live dorm style with their own cafeteria (EDR,) laundry and recreation room. The HAL employees live in 45 cabins in a slightly different area but still out of site. When the TD's come into town we are assigned one of the cabins. The cabins are about 15 ft. by 15 ft. with 2 double beds and a bathroom. You only have to share with one other person and are guaranteed a bed, which is a step up from being home in Anchorage. We also eat in the EDR for free so do not receive a per diem. The food isn't bad but it is still a cafeteria. During non work time, the employees have a softball season going, bon fires almost nightly, parties perpetually and beautiful Denali for their playground. Many of the employees have come from other countries to work for the summer, so there is quite the international flare. So, I know you are dying to know what a day in my life is like here. Thanks for asking.
We arrived by train from Anchorage at 4:00 pm. We made the 6-10 minute transfer to the hotel via bus and dropped my guests off at their area of the hotel so they could get settle into their rooms. I was then driven back up the hill to the main lobby for my office hours. These usually run an hour before an departure or an hour after an arrival. I had told a couple of guests that needed something straightened out with their optionals to come back to the lobby and I would get it fixed. They did and everything was settled correctly. After the hourish was done I hit the HAL office, got my room key, faxed my time sheet and asked my supervisor if the horse back riding excursion was available for VV and I to go on. He said check with him tomorrow. I then returned down the hill to the HAL cabins, known as the sourdoughs. Side note her is the Wikipedia definition of an Alaskan Sourdough - The term originated during the Klondike Gold Rush when settlers began to flood into Alaska.^[1] Due to the limited availability of leavening in the remote bush of Alaska, settlers made their bread using a sourdough starter which uses flour, water, and sugar to naturally collect yeast from the air.^[1] The use and consumption of this bread was so widespread that these settlers began to be known as "sourdoughs."^[1] In modern usage, the term "sourdough" can be applied to any old-timer in the state. Our living area is referred to this way since we are here longer then the tourists and "live" here. As I walked through, I saw one of my friends that I hadn't seen in about 2 weeks. That is a great thing about Denali, everybody passes through here for at least 1 night and because we are separate from the guests, it becomes very social with people out on the deck reading, talking on the phone or hanging out with a "long-lost" friend. So you always know who is around. I headed to #36, the same one I had two days ago and got settled. I tried to get my computer hooked to the WiFi (still unsuccessful,) spend some time on the phone then went back up to the lobby to spend time with AS as she waited for some guests to returned from an excursion. After a bit, 2 TD's stopped to talk to us and I decided to go across the street to the Denali style strip mall and get something small for dinner. Afterword we decided to go for a walk. About 3/4 mile out, one of the TD's got a call about lost luggage and we decided to head back. I then grabbed my computer and went to the Canyon Lodge, one of the buildings on the grounds, to use the WiFi for the rest of the evening.

Day 2 at Denali is a bit strange. TD's have to get up early in the morning and see off all the guests that are going on the Tundra Wilderness Tour (TWT.) This is included with the trip and is the guests only guaranteed chance to get into the park. This is a 6-8 hour trip that begins anywhere between 5 am & 7 am. Today my guests were scheduled for 6:40 & 7:00. We need to be there about 15 minutes early and only have to stay until our last bus leaves. Then VV and I went to eat in the EDR and then went back to the cabin for a short nap. After about a 30 minutes I got up and walked over to the visitor center. It is about a 2 mile walk and was beautiful. The visitor center has movies about the park, displays, a cafe and guided hikes. We often suggest a stop there for our guests before they leave on the train. I caught the shuttle back, met up with AS for lunch, then changed back into uniform to meet my group as they return. There were out for more then 8 hours but it was worth it. They saw the grand slam plus two: grizzly, moose, caribou, Dall sheep plus wolves and Mt. McKinley. Great day. After answering everyone's questions, VV & I headed across the street for ice cream. Then I headed back to the lodge for some computer time. (From here on out it is my guess at what will happen) The great part is that my friend Jamie showed up with her guests and so I have someone to play with tonight. We will hopefully miss the EDR hours and I can convince her to go to the Salmon Bake for dinner and beer, though she doesn't drink beer, though she said she might try a Guinness. It will be an early night, I hope. Denali is where you catch up on your sleep.

I will continue with part 2 soon.

Thanks for reading.

Pic 1. - downtown Sourdough, Pic 2. - the cabins, Pic 3 - view of park through Black Spruce trees and fireweed.