2004-08-29 Eklutna Lake 2004-08-30 Matanuska Glacier 2004-08-31 Tangle Lakes 2004-09-01 Tangle Lakes to Denali 2004-09-02 Denali NP 2004-09-03 Jen's Denali Adventure 2004-09-03 Snow Hike 2004-09-04 Denali to Anchorage 2004-09-05 Kenai Fjords 2004-09-06 Sealife Center and Exit Glacier 2004-09-07 Glaciers and Game Refuge

Day 3 (Tuesday, 8/31/2004)

Like the old adage, directions to the Tangle Lakes include "turn off the paved road."  The Denali Highway is deep in permafrost territory, and it sports all-weather gravel for much of its 130-mile run from Paxson to Cantwell, at the border of Denali NP.  The Tangle Lakes lie about 20 miles west of Paxson and are about as far off the grid as you can get while still having a road within sight.

Originally built by two brothers from Anchorage, the Tangle Lakes Lodge features a series of rustic but well-appointed cabins.  Electricity is generated and available at the main house, which features a spacious dining room, bar, and bathroom facilities with hot water and showers.  The cabins themselves, however, are lit by propane and heated by wood-burning stoves.

The Tangle Lakes are entirely above the treeline and are surrounded by tundra as far as the eye can see, but despite the stark images this may conjure up in the mind of the reader, the crystal clear lakes were awash with the reflected primary colors of autumn, which covered the ground in all directions.  It was a very alien but beautiful place.

We had arrived at the Tangle Lakes Lodge in time for dinner on Monday evening, and after dinner, we slept the sleep of the dead, despite the ever-present summer twilight and the full moon keeping things bright most of the night.  On Tuesday morning, Jen awoke early and took a sunrise hike around some of the ridges near the lodge.  After breakfast, we all took to canoes and spent a few hours exploring the lakes and the labyrinthine passageways between them.

After lunch, we drove a few miles up the road to the Landmark Gap Trail, a double track that runs over 2.5 miles of mostly flat tundra to the Landmark Gap, a break in the Amphitheater Mountains that lie to the northwest of the Tangle Lakes.  We hung out for about an hour, took group pictures, oversaw a competitive rock skipping contest between Matt and Keith, and stared dumbfoundedly while Limor took a swim in the freezing water, then it was back to the lodge for dinner.  This would be our last night at the Tangle Lakes before heading to Denali NP the following day.