There's bear in dem dere hills.

"Stay behind the barrier!"

Good idea I'm thinking.

There we have it, live and large. A six foot plus moose, chewing on a tree in the parking lot of the Wilderness Access Centre at Denali.

Not good. Sure as anything, if there's a moose about, that means bears are also in there and might come out to say hello.

Skirting the beast, I managed to edge to the seperate visitor centre in the interior of the park, keeping a watchful eye on the forest to either side for sight of both friend or foe.

I'd already turned down the invitation from the other inmates of "Train Wreck" in the Hostel for a night of camping down by Savage River. Alaska was surprisingly warm but the night ahead promised to be cold and in the final event, there was snow in the park.

So I was off to the visitor centre to get the lay of the land as it were.

What I found out, Ranger or not, most people this early in the season don't have a clue what's going on.

So, I hiked the front country trails for the Saturday and then returned to Carlo Creek for the Creekside Cafe's 10th Anniversary Celebration chili cook-off. This took place across the road from the Hostel, literally.

Interesting people, these interior Alaskans. And who knew there were so many.

More kept appearing from the forest.

That went on until three am and there were a number of casualties for the early morning shuttle, in fact, I was the only one onboard.

But I had my ticket for mile 53 and couldn't miss out.

So we got yet another bus into the heart of the park, along the roadside, more Moose, Caribou and Snow Hare than you could shake a stick at. I could add this, to the coyote of the day beforehand, the grouse and ptarmigan and a particularly vociferous squirrel whom I did shake a stick at.

But what of the fabled bears?

No trip would be complete.

And lo and behold, there was a grizzly mother and her three cubs off in the distance.

Good. Stay there and we'll stay here.

Back to the Creek, the guys dragged me out and we polished off the remainder of the whiskey supply they had brought to stave off the cold the night before camping out.

Standing by the frozen creek, a lit fire and bottles of Wild Turkey bourbon being passed amongst the group, the topic of conversation turned predictably to politics.

Shane, a Denver native, generally berating the world's attitude to America.

I kept out of it for once.

Downed the whiskey and went to bed.

A small cabin in the woods, with snow capped mountains towering over each side and snow hares bounding past the door.