Ptarmigan Tracks

1

The Newsletter of Camp Denali,North Face Lodge,& Parkside Guest House

Vol. XXXIIINovember 2008

Edited by Ellen HorbettIllustrations by William D. Berry and Amanda P. Devine

P.O. Box 67Denali National Park, AK 99755(907) 683-2290info@campdenali.comwww.campdenali.com

Providing active learning experi-ences and fostering stewardship of the natural world through a tradition of excellence, community, and place.

With practically all hands on deck, we completed our new kitchen and dining hall at Camp Denali this June without a moment to spare! As luck had it, the first arriving guests of the season were

displaced from their inbound picnic supper at the East Fork River by grizzly bears. Camp Denali and North Face Lodge drivers called ahead by satellite phone to warn that the buses were headed in with 60 hungry travelers aboard, and we had better figure out where to feed them! With carpet adhesive barely dry, and staff racing to sweep up sawdust piles, these unflappable arrivals helped to inaugurate Potlatch III, the third dining hall to offer up hospitality and hearty meals in Camp Denali’s 57-year history.

Readers of last year’s Ptarmigan Tracks will remember that the former Pot-latch met its demise just hours after 2007’s final guests ate breakfast inside its venerable walls. Immediately after the departing bus carried those guests down the drive, we loosed the staff at the old building. Nine hours later, the 50-year old structure had been neatly razed. In its place were heaping stacks of salvage, recyclables, firewood, and one brimming dumpster. There was no going back now- we were committed!

Raising Potlatch III from the dust was no small feat, but with terrific help and (mostly) cooperative weather, on-site work was accomplished during one month last fall, and two months this spring. The intensity of the work effort was equaled only by the great camaraderie of the crew, and the incredible opportunity of staying in the park long past freeze up, and returning in early

spring amid a snow-blanketed landscape. The new building features a timber-

frame dining area, energy efficient de-sign, passive-solar hot water technol-ogy, a dedicated staff room, an expanded kitchen and bakery, and even indoor plumbing! Through the summer, it was a delight to see it utilized for meals, natu-ralist programs, staff yoga, live music, and even a contra dance. To the legions of helpers that saw this immense project across the finish line, safely and on time, thank you for all your contributions. May the results bring warmth, cheer and wel-come to the next 50 years of Camp Denali visitors.

More details and photos of Potlatch III appear on pages 4 and 5.S. Hamm, 2008

Hydro-generated Power...Again! This summer we revitalized our hy-droelectric power system with a new turbine. The water-powered genera-tor feeds a low flow of electricity to our bank of batteries. Together with an array of photovoltaic panels, these renewable sources of energy provide a significant contribution to our daily electrical usage.

Eielson Visitor Center Opened at Long Last Park visitors delighted in all the new Eielson Visitor Center has to offer. Its modern, low-profile design hints at the ingenuity behind the building’s engineering and construction; the center earned a platinum certifica-tion in the LEED Green Building Rating System. The state of the art reconstruction decidedly brings the facility into the 21st century. Some visitor highlights include the grand, interactive relief map of the Alaska Range and Ree Nancarrow’s wall-mounted quilt, “Seasons of Denali.” With an emphasis on natural light, open spaces, and grand vistas, the new facility encourages visitors to venture outdoors, enjoying the views from outdoor seating areas or hiking the nearby trails.

Charles Sheldon’s Photographs Discovered Ruth Schlein (staff ’04) paid us a visit and shared some recently discov-ered photographic work of her great-grandfather, Charles Sheldon. A natu-ralist and hunter, Sheldon first visited the area that was to be Mt. McKinley National Park in 1906. His concern for the Dall sheep, whose population

suffered heavy hunting by local mining camps, eventually led him to propose the creation of Mt. McKinley National Park. His work is revered by Alaska historians, and this discovery by Ruth’s mother, Peggy Schlein, in her family’s attic, will be an exciting addition to the Sheldon collection at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Museum. In

addition to negatives that may never have been developed, Peggy found a personal letter to Sheldon from Theodore Roosevelt and an edito-rial about Sheldon, also by President Roosevelt.

An Autumn Wedding for Ian and Tayler Ian McEwen and Tayler Knopf re-cently wed at a small family gathering in Vermont. The couple joined our staff in 2006—Tayler as naturalist

guide and cook, and Ian as our oper-ations supervisor. As this newsletter goes to print, the couple is settling into winter in Cuttingsville, Vermont and planning to return next spring.

A Snowy Midsummer We have always been proud of our “rain-or-shine” mentality when it comes to hiking or outdoor work. This summer guides and guests alike had to add snow to that list of accept-able hiking conditions. In late July and early August, areas of the park above 3000 feet saw several inches of accumulation. As the snow line crept downward, Denali appeared loftier than ever, towering over its whitened foothills.

“Great Lodges” a Great Success We knew we were fortunate to have Camp Denali be a part of PBS’s series, “Great Lodges of the National Parks,” which featured just two Alaska lodges. We were aston-ished, however, by the enormous response we received! Phone calls and emails in the hundreds inundated our small summer office, making for a busy July. The television series is accompanied by a book of the same title, which includes the first exten-sive written piece to feature Camp Denali’s unique history.

2008 Season Highlights

2

Frosted grasses surround an icy Nugget Pond on August 8. (M. Ambros, 2008)

Ian and Tayler pose for a photo on a New England fall day. (T. Knopf, 2008)

A small representation of Ree Nancarrow’s 7’ x 12’, four-paneled quilt (E. Nancarrow, 2008)

“When we look out on that high

and open tundra with its

scattered ponds and grassy

mounds, I think our attention to

it has little to do with an ideal,

but rather with a memory, so

embedded in our consciousness

that we respond to it without

quite understanding why. If,

as I think, that landscape cor-

responds to an original setting

for humanity, and if in some part

of ourselves we have remained

open to it, then our response to

the land has a sensible explana-

tion; and imagination, released

by those contours and details,

awakens, and the mind finds a

true home for a moment.”

John Haines

4/3 Thirty caribou across the road from North Face Lodge.

4/15 Snow Buntings at North Face Lodge springhouse, foraging seeds.

5/3 Three V’s of swans flying west.

5/4 Fifty Sandhill Cranes heading west over Camp Denali.

5/13 Wolf crossing Moose Creek.6/12 Male Gadwall in pond at mile

78.6/16 Cow moose with two spring

calves in Nugget Pond.6/17 Tennesee Warbler heard and

observed. First recorded sight-ing for DNP.

6/18 River otter near mile 80.6/19 Rock Ptarmigan nest and nine

vandalized eggs scattered over a 10-meter area near Grassy Pass.

6/20 Six spring wolf pups on river bar at Caribou Creek.

6/21 At Thorofare Pass, boar griz-zly fighting with adolescent cub on the park road. Wound-ed cub backed under a bus for shelter. Bloodied adult lost interest and cub remained under bus for 20 minutes.

From the 2008 Special Sightings Notebook

Like last summer, the 2008 season was one of our longest on record. The early crew flew into Kantishna on April 2, still winter at this latitude. Though the completion of Potlatch preoccupied those early crew members, there was ample time to observe the unraveling of winter and the exhilarating first signs of spring.

For the third year in a row the snowshoe hare population in Denali was at peak levels, and sightings of their predators were more common. This year 54 nesting pairs of Golden Eagles produced 53 fledglings; both figures are consid-erably above average. In 2002, when snowshoe hare were scarce, only 10 pairs of Golden Eagles nested, and they produced just 4 fledglings (data provided by NPS Central Alaska Network Vital Signs monitoring program). Owls also responded positively to the abundant hare population; a pair of Great-Horned Owls nested 50 feet from the Sanctuary River bridge, delighting park visitors with frequent sightings of their two fuzzy owlettes.

7/16 Alpha female wolf and five pups in Highway Pass.

7/28 Osprey at Wonder Lake.7/28 Black bear on the front patio at

North Face Lodge! 7/29 Boreal Owl on the Eagle’s Nest

trail to Camp Ridge.8/11 Freezing overnight tempera-

tures and ice-covered Nugget Pond. Park road closed at Sable and Thorofare Passes due to several inches of snow. Thigh-deep snow reported on Green Dome.

8/14 V’s of White-fronted Geese overhead. Rufous Humming-bird spotted at Camp Denali.

8/16 Black bear on hind legs between Nugget Pond and Discovery cabin.

8/17 Green aurora undulating above Quigley Ridge.

8/21 Moose with shedding velvet sparring near mile 73.

8/26 Northern Hawk Owl on Cran-berry Ridge.

8/31 Lynx hunting ducks over an 8-hour period between miles 80-82 of the park road. Moved stealthily through grasses and leapt over the water.

Special Sightings and Natural History Notes

3

Above: Potlatch II, brand new in 1958. This stick-frame structure replaced the original tent-frame Pot-latch, which is pictured on page 7. The second dining hall and kitchen received several additions and served Camp Denali through the summer of 2007. Nearly fifty years of use had taken its toll, however, and in its last decade, Potlatch required increasing amounts of repair and maintenance.

Above: Land Cole tests the acous-tics in the new timberframe dining room. Land designed and cut the timbers for this project, after having executed other timberframe projects at Camp Denali and in the Denali area. The dining room is outfitted with soundboard wall panels and cork ceiling tiles to help absorb sound during mealtimes.

Right: Many months of planning insured that all necessary building materials were on hand, imperative for completing this remote project in a timely fashion.

Below: Snow dusted the crew as they worked in late September. Right: Theo Ambros, Wally Cole, Luke Lohmuller, Matthew Mar-tz, and John Kahle break for hot coffee and cookies after toiling on foundation work. Autumn rain quickly turned the dirt foundation into cold, sloppy mud.

Above: Wally and Land Cole designed and built five beautiful American Chestnut dining tables. The wood is a collection of re-claimed lumber from the eastern U.S., a majority from a single barn at Gettysburg, PA that survived the Civil War.

G. Wood, 1958

M. Ambros, 2008

S. Hamm 2008

S. Hamm 2007

S. Hamm 2007

S. Hamm 2007

S. Hamm, 2007

Left: This Tulikivi soapstone stove heats the dining room with two hot fires each day. The 5,000 pounds of soapstone hold heat for several hours, making the dining room couches a great place to cozy up af-ter a day out in the elements.

Below: Potlatch III, complete with sid-ing and handrails. Many of our guests this summer didn’t see this more com-plete version; the work of painting and installing handrails continued well into the summer.

Below: Jerryne Cole, who kept the crew well-nourished with hearty meals, gets a tractor tow up the last stretch of driveway in early April. After work, many of the crew participated in heated sled-racing competitions. With waxed plastic sleds they sped down the steep and curvy driveway, towards dinner!

Above: Wally and Land Cole designed and built five beautiful American Chestnut dining tables. The wood is a collection of re-claimed lumber from the eastern U.S., a majority from a single barn at Gettysburg, PA that survived the Civil War.

M. Ambros, 2008

S. Hamm 2007

S. Hamm 2008

S. Hamm 2008

S. Hamm 2008

Glacial Calving in DenaliThe Muldrow Glacier consistently proves to be one

of the most interesting landmarks along the Denali Park Road. Not only is it the largest north-flowing glacier in Alaska, but it challenges us to rethink our ideas of “gla-cial pace”. The Muldrow’s most recent surge in 1956 and 1957 advanced ice and rock more than three miles down-valley in a spectacular example of its dynamic potential.

This summer, the Muldrow was back in the spotlight, attracting visitors and staff alike to observe a new, albeit temporary feature in the ice-cored moraine. For years the Thorofare River plotted its course alongside the rock- and tundra-covered moraine, carving into it only slightly. This summer, the river plunged underneath a part of the stagnant moraine. The effect was breathtaking. Under-cut ice rapidly sunk below the surface, leaving giant, dark caverns and tunnels. Other hunks of ice crashed to the river below, exposing ice walls and fantastic columns and spires of ice.

Every hike to this active feature this summer was differ-ent, reminding us of the ever-changing nature of glaciers. By the end of the season, all the ice tunnels and spires had collapsed. It appears that the most dramatic images in this recent episode have passed, but it was just enough excitement to keep us intrigued and eagerly awaiting the next Muldrow event.

Current Issues Facing DenaliThanks to the work of far-sighted park managers nearly

40 years ago, Denali manages buses, rather than masses of private cars on the park road. The public transportation system was instituted in 1972. A cap on the total number of vehicles was set in 1986, and vehicle use has not been wholly evaluated since. To address the future of road transportation, the park is currently undertaking the Denali Park Road Vehicle Management Plan EIS.

The plan is wide-reaching, considering the types of buses used, the variety of transportation options available for users, bus schedules, and the total number of vehicles allowed on the road. We encourage you to participate in this important process. Please visit www.nps.gov/dena/parkmgmt/roadvehmgteis.htm for more information. The next opportunity to comment will be upon the release of alternatives for the draft EIS, scheduled for February 28, 2009. If you would like to comment and are interested in discussing talking points with us, please feel free to contact our office. This plan has the potential to greatly influence the visitor experience in Denali.

RemembrancesCarol McKinney passed away at home on February 21,

2008. She worked at Camp Denali during the summers of ’81 and ’82 before settling year-round in Bellingham, WA with her husband, Ron. Even to those of us who were fol-lowing Carol’s health from afar, she inspired us all during the several years she battled cancer with her unbelievable courage, patience, and determination. Carol is survived by Ron, and two children, Kathryn and Brian. Kathryn has worked with us since ’05.

Peggy Drinkwater died December 18, 2007 in Belling-ham, WA. On the staff as a volunteer in ’94, she spent the following three seasons working with us. Having cut her teeth hiking in Denali’s backcountry during those sum-mers, outdoor adventure continued to be her passion—hiking, biking, rock climbing, hang gliding, and paraglid-ing. Peggy’s life was short but very full. She is survived by her husband, Chad Loreen, her parents, two sisters, and a brother.

Les Viereck, a Fairbanks scientist and author, died on August 31, 2008. He took part in a 1954 climb on De-nali that stands as a major chapter in the mountaineering history of Alaska. In later years, Les was known for his opposition to the use of nuclear blasts to create a harbor in Northwest Alaska. The project was not completed, but he and two other University of Alaska scientists lost their jobs because of their opposition. Deeply knowledgeable of subarctic botany and ecology, Les was also known for his seminal book, Alaska Trees and Shrubs. He is sur-vived by his wife, Teri, and two children.

Interested in Working in Denali?The enthusiasm of our staff is often what makes the guest experience at Camp Denali and North Face Lodge so memorable. If you know of someone who would be a good fit for our organization, encourage him or her to view the employment pages of our web-site, www.campdenali.com/employment.

General staff positions are available for the 2009 season, as well as the following professional seasonal positions:

Dinner ChefsNaturalist GuidesGreenhouse Coordinator

**Registered Nurses are encouraged to apply for any of our seasonal positions.

6

1958 (50 years) 1958 saw the construc-tion of a new dining hall, a building now remembered as “Potlatch II.” (See pho-tograph on page 4.) This fa-miliar-sounding project was a bit less comprehensive than our recent construction of Potlatch III, but neverthe-less the building was quite an accomplishment, seating 30 guests and eventually serving over 1000 meals that summer. It was an exciting moment for Camp Denali’s cooks to move into the new kitchen after having prepared and served many meals in the log lodge, the building that our recent guests know as the library at Camp Denali. Celia wrote of the dining room project, “walls, roof, and windows flew into place.”

1968 (40 years) One of the more enter-taining stories recorded in the annals of Camp De-nali history is the recount-ing of the “pond-plugging episode” in 1968. After discovering that melted permafrost below Nugget Pond had caused the water level to drop a foot, the staff set to work making a repair. “The work of opening camp came to a screeching halt while all hands and the cook fell to on the pond-plugging project. From the front porch of Potlatch the scene looked like a band of pirates burying treasure. Clad in hip boots or rolled up pant legs, one group labored in water above their knees...digging up muck to fill the burlap bags, which were then precariously trans-ported by the dinghy across the pond to where others

were busily building a dam around the hole, stuffing in the sawdust bags, heaping mud filled bags on top and finally coating the whole thing liberally with gooey muck.” Anyone who has cooled off in Nugget Pond’s bone-chilling water knows this job could not have been pleasant. Fortunately, the plug held and water level was back to normal about 48 hours later.

1978 (30 years) In 1978, guest Arthur Harold of Australia wrote this fine poem of his stay in Permafrost cabin in June:

“We have the Permafrost-And in the mist get lostAs we take the trail that leads us to the loo.And there we sit and freezeWith our pants around our kneesAs we dream about the million dollar view.”

Despite the cool start to the summer of ’78, the staff managed to complete two

big projects before guests arrived. 40 Below and Bergschrund, both tent-frame cabins from the early days, were dragged uphill for staff housing. Log cab-ins were built in the vacated sites.

1988 (20 years) The excitement in 1988 had much to do with the ’87 acquisition of North Face Lodge. Spring opening of the Lodge consisted of en-tirely revamping the interior and exterior design. Wally Cole and seven others flew into Kantishna on May 9 and almost immediately began peeling back layers of the existing structure. With bare bones exposed, the building was ready for a makeover. Thankfully, the “dogged determination” of the work crew succeeded. Roofs, porches, remodeled guest rooms, living room, kitchen, and septic system were “ready” by the guests’ arrival on June 19. Whew!

1998 (10 years) For bird enthusiasts, 1998 is remembered as the first year of the Denali Institute’s fall migratory bird research at Moose Creek. Many guests have fond memories of holding a small songbird in their hands. The banding station closed at the end of 2006. 1998 was also a very wet year. More than two times the average precipitation fell in July and August. The extreme weather pat-terns made for a hazard-ous climbing season. The percentage of climbers who reached the summit was 36% in 1998, down from the average 51%.

June 5-7 & 8-11Bird Migration andConservation with Stan Senner, Executive Director of Audubon Alaska

June 12-14 & 15-18Wildflower Week with CampDenali Staff Naturalists andGuest Lecturers

June 26-28 & 29-July 2Restoring and Protecting Alaska’s Islands with Wildlife Biologist, Arthur L. Sowls

July 6-9 & 10-12Impacts, Solutions, and Politics of Climate Change in Alaska with Suzanne Fleek-Green, Special Assisant of the Office of Economic and Community Development, Municipality of Anchorage.

July 20-23 & 24-26The “Conservation Bill of the Century.” The Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) with Jim Strat-ton, Alaska Regional Director, National Parks Conservation Association

July 27-30 & 31-August 2Life on a Changing Land: Per-spectives from the Arctic with Seth Kantner, Award-winning Author and Photographer

August 10-13 & 14-16In the Footsteps of Wildlife with Wildlife Biologist, Explorer, and Award-winning Author, Karsten Heuer

August 28-30 & 31-Sept. 3Autumn Nature PhotographyWorkshop with Robert Glenn Ketchum, ProfessionalNature Photographer

September 4-6 & 7-10Aurora Borealis: Curtainsof Light with Dr. NealBrown, Acting Director,Alaska Space Grant Program

Join in Our 2009 SPECIAL

EMPHASISSERIES

at Camp Denalioffered to guests at Camp Denali only

Looking Back…Notable Excerpts from the Tundra Telegram and Ptarmigan Tracks

7

The original Potlatch, at right, in the early 1950’s. (Collins, 1953)

MJ AFT ’06 -’08Denali National Park, AKLAURA ALEXANDER ’08Corvallis, ORMARSHALL AMBROS ’01, ’02, ’05 -’08 Hartland, VTANNE BARKER ’06 -’08Healy, AKANNE BEAULAURIER ’02 -’08Denali National Park, AKRYAN BROSSETTE ’08Tallahassee, FLALEXA BUSH ’08Bow, WALINDSAY CHRONISTER ’08Seattle, WAWALLACE & JERRYNE COLE Denali National Park, AKFIONA GALBRAITH ’07, ’08Nelson, BCSHARYN GERHARDT ’95 -’08Everett, WA RUSSELL GRIGGS ’07, ’08Logan, UTDAVID GUTMAN ’08Washington, DCDANIEL HAGAMAN & ESTHER ALSUM ’07, ’08 Hotchkiss, COSIMON, JENNA, & DANIKA HAMM Denali National Park, AKAUSTIN HICKS ’08Seattle, WAKENNY HOCKERT ’04, ’05, ’07, ’08 San Francisco, CA

ELLEN HORBETT ’04 -’08Denali National Park, AKJOHN KAHLE ’05 -’08Denali National Park, AKJEFFREY KALINAS ’07, ’08Johnson, VTSIMON KERTYS ’07, ’08Stropkov, SlovakiaMELISSA KILBANE ’06 -’08Grants Pass, ORLUKE LOHMULLER ’98 -’01, ’03 -’08 Lewistown, MTPETE & CLAUDIA MARTIN ’91-’06, ’08 Bend, ORTIERNAN MARTIN ’08Cuttingsville, VTMATTHEW & MEGAN MARTZ ’05 -’08 Healy, AKDREW McCARTHY ’07, ’08Anchorage, AKBRIAN McCORMICK ’95 -’08Seattle, WAIAN & TAYLER McEWEN ’07, ’08 Cuttingsville, VTKATHRYN McKINNEY ’05, ’07, ’08 San Francisco, CAMARTHA McPHEETERS ’06 -’08Denali National Park, AKMARGARET MILIKIN ’05 -’08 Covington, GAAARON NASH ’07, ’08 Rockford, IAJAKE PEDERSON ’05 -’08Tacoma, WA

SCOTT PETERS ’08Denali National Park, AKASHLEY PHILLIPS ’08Tallahassee, FLANDREW RECUPERO ’07, ’08Ferrisburg, VTLAUREN REESE ’08Yorktown, VADEBRA RICH ’06 -’08Brooktondale, NYKATHY SCHAKE ’05 -’08Tacoma, WAANYA SCHWARTZ ’08Burlington, VTLAUREN SIMAS ’08Berkeley, CAAMANDA SMITH ’07, ’08Anchorage, AKVIKI VANCUROVA ’07, ’08Liptovsky Hradok, Slovakia

Parkside Guest House StaffCARLEY DUNN Anchorage, AKCIERRA KRAEMER ’08Anchorage, AK

Short Term Staff & VolunteersMIKE ALSUMGrand Rapids, MIALEXANDRA AMBROSHartland, VT THEO & ANDREA AMBROSHartland, VTMARIA BERGERFairbanks, AKRUNE CHRISTOPHERSONHope, AKLLOYD DORSEYJackson, WYWILL DUNCANWalpole, NHSUSANNE GEIKELombard, ILKEIICHIRO KAMATSUKAChiryu, JapanJIM HORBETTEast Aurora, NYDILLON METCALFE Proctor, VTTIM REAPAlpine, NYJULIA SMITHBradenton, FLMICHELLE SMITHBig Sky, MTJAN TOMSENEagle River, AKFRITZ WITTWERDenali National Park, AK

2008 Camp Denali and North Face Lodge Staff

30% post-consumer waste8

D. Hagaman 2008