As we pull into the RV park the first night we feel a sense of shock and embarrassment. What have we turned into? Seven years ago we backpacked for 6 months along the spine of the western U.S. and now we drive a house on wheels. What has happened to us? Oh yes, kids….

We left Anchorage around 11 am and stopped after an hour for lunch and to stretch our legs. With our tight timeline between purchasing the RV and leaving Oakland we never had a chance to test the systems. Neither kid had ridden in the RV and Laurie had only sat in the passenger seat for 30 minutes. This Alaskan adventure would be our trial run.

We drove a total of 2.5 hours to Talkeetna Camper Park. We are now in a gravel lot with a bunch of other RVs and vans. We are 100 yds from the train depot which is loud but also a great distraction.

As we attempt to settle in we fell into our usual routine, Laurie makes home while Andy sets up the exterior of the vehicle. Joanna plays with both kids and we all enjoy listening to the rain.

So far, on night one of staying in the RV as a family, the reviews are mixed. It still feels small when both kids are whining and hovering at our legs when we are trying to cook, however it feels comfy when everyone is settled. The sound of the rain is lovely and MUCH quieter than our truck camper.

The shower is a lovely feature! But there are a few downsides. Rain will come through the netting if the windows are left open (which to be honest happened in our truck camper too), all the silverware and most of the drawers on the passenger side are caked in dust, the exterior water hose connection leaks and the kitchen sink leaks too. Perhaps this is our introduction to home ownership (:

But there are huge upside too. Both kids enjoyed their “bath” in the shower, Ani sat in her high chair and fed herself (for a few minutes), both kids ate frozen pancakes (thank you freezer!), we got to cook inside to avoid the mozzies, and we are now sleeping in almost darkness even though it is light out at 10pm. The pros outweigh the cons but traveling with kids is still exhausting, no matter the rig.

Despite sleeping next to the train tracks, we all slept reasonably well. Miles and Andy slept on the upper bed above the cab, Laurie slept on the couch/seating for the left dinette, next to Ani who was in her pack n play, and Joanna in the lower bunk in the back. Ani continued to wake up every 2-3 hours but her crying seemed tame and she quickly fell back asleep after a short nursing session.

This morning things felt lighter. Miles got engaged in helping Andy do RV chores and earned his “daddy helper award” which he proudly wore for a few hours. Joanna was our navigator, reading the Alaska Milepost for what attractions lay ahead. For the first time in over a week, things felt easy. It was a welcomed relief.

We spent the next 3 nights camping in Denali National Park at Savage River Campground. Our spot was nice, but as with all other campgrounds, the smell of campfire was pervasive. The first few days we could also smell smoke from the fires up north but with the daily dose of rain it was never too bad.

Wednesday we attempted to ride the shuttle bus to the visitor center only to learn that kids must ride in car seats. This infuriated Laurie as it made it so much harder to hike and travel anywhere in the park. After much grumbling we piled into the RV and drove 40 minutes down to the visitor center. It was annoying having to drive when there was a shuttle bus doing the exact same route but we didn’t want to lug our car seats around with us.

Once at the bus depot near the visitor center we purchased tickets for the “on again, off again” bus through the park for the following morning. We planned to borrow car seats from the visitor center since, if we hiked, we would stash them by the road and we didn’t want the elements to damage ours. Turns out the car seats they loan out expired in 2007. On the plus side they were much lighter and easier to carry.

After lunch in the bus depot parking lot staring at all the other adventure rigs, we drove past our campsite to where the road ends for private vehicles – Savage River Ranger Station (unless one has reservations at a campground further up the road). This was a whopping 2 miles past our campground but for us, only accessible by foot or with our RV (I guess the frustration at the park rules hasn’t worn off!)

As we crossed over a small river we noticed 2 cars stopped and there, getting a drink was a moose! We stopped and watched it for a few minutes, the kids were disinterested but Joanna was thrilled. She kept hoping to see a moose and we finally did!

At the Savage River Ranger Station it rained a bit and we all took naps in the RV. It is nice to have our beds wherever we go! Despite the noise, the cumbersome driving and the leaks, the RV is convenient.

Around 5 pm we went on a little evening walk alongside Savage River. The light was beautiful as the sun peered through the clouds. We ate dinner at a pullout gazing over a braided river before returning to our campsite. At this point we were adapting to an Alaskan summer schedule; sleep between 9-10pm and wake up between 8-9 am.

When we peeled off our Reflectix blackout shades the following morning we were greeted with blue skies and sunshine. It felt like a great omen for the day ahead. The driver on the bus that morning was entertaining but we saw very little wildlife for the first 2.5 hours of our ride. Near the turn around point we saw a grizzley bear eating berries ~200 yards away and a caribou standing in the shade. We were glad to have binoculars!

The 92.5 mile road through Denali National Park is only accessible by bus and bicycle. And this year, it is closed at Mile 43 because of a landslide. We had hoped to stash our car seats and walk around a bit at the end of the road, but at the time we got there the area was closed to hiking because of bear activity.

We rode another 10 min up the hill (and past the bear) to hike around Sable Pass. Our plan was to stash the car seats and hike off trail for a bit. Sable Pass had low grass and patches of fireweed. It looked perfect for a little off the beaten path adventure. We were nearly up to a nice patch of fireweed (about 200 yards from the road) when a ranger stopped her car and told us we were not allowed to be hiking off trail in that area.

One of the unique aspects of Denali is that much of the park is trail-less. Turns out the area we chose to hike was closed for off road exploration due to wildlife conservation and we had missed the signage. Unfortunately the area that we could hike had sheer drop offs or tall grass and bushes. So we walked the road, carrying 2 cumbersome car seats.

It was nice at first since it was just us, the road, the occasional bus and beautiful green mountains. It drizzled on and off but the scenery remained magnificent, Birds chirped and Arctic ground squirrels scurried past us as we walked. Then the road walking became monotonous. Eventually both kids fell asleep and we decided to walk until they woke up, at which point we would flag down a bus and hope they had enough room for the five of us.

Unsurprisingly, Ani woke up first. Around that time Andy thought he spotted some white dots on the rocks high above the road. White dots in the rocks were frequently doll sheep. Laurie looked through the binoculars and noted that those white dots were rocks but there, next to them, was a Grizzly bear and 3 cubs! We watched them forage and scamper for about 20 minutes, slowly making their way down the drainage and toward the road.

A bus pulled up going the opposite direction. They watched the bears with us for a few minutes until they disappeared. At first it was amazing and exciting, then it began to get a little scary. Uncertain when the next bus would come and where the Mama bear was headed, we got on that bus and rode it back up the road.

About 10 minutes up the road we switched buses to one that would take us back to the visitor center. The ride back felt like it went on forever. Both kids were restless and this driver was strict and wanted both kids to stay in their carseats. Luckily we had lots of snacks. Toward the end of the trip we saw a caribou on the road. Their 70 lb racks are amazing!

Friday morning was another slow start. Checkout at most campgrounds is 11 am and despite being awake by 9 am, this always feels like a rush. Laurie and Joanna walked laps around the campground as Ani slept on Laurie and Miles helped Andy. Miles continues to be a great “dada helper” earning stars setting up or leaving camp. His favorite jobs are deploying and retracting the awning (involving pushing a button inside the RV), setting up the leveling blocks and vacuuming,

We went to the visitor center to get service, check the weather and figure out where to go next. The air quality in Fairbanks was improving but with a leaking generator we did not want to count on our air conditioning to purify air. So we decided to return to Anchorage to stay in good clear air. Joanna canceled her Fairbanks to Anchorage flight and we headed south.

The first few campgrounds we tried were full but we got a RV site in Cantwell (about 30 min south of the entrance to Denali National Park). As we were busy on our phones figuring out logistics, we heard 2 trains come and go from the train depot. Traveling with a 4 year old who loves things on wheels more than chocolate, we had to check it out.

There wouldn’t be another train for 3 hours but on our way to the train station Laurie spotted blueberries. This was heaven! We spent at least 30 minutes bent over stuffing our bellies and collecting berries in our shirts. Miles wanted us to pick them for him and Ani kept reaching for the red berries hiding underneath the blueberries.

Around 3:30 pm we watched a train come into the rail depot. Miles was fascinated by the forklifts that carry luggage in pallets on and off the cars.

Finally, after the train left and we collected ourselves in the RV once again, we headed south out of the park. A family friend (Joan) joined us for dinner. She lives in Fairbanks and was gracious enough to make the drive to meet us and bring us delicious veggies from her garden. We had a feast of polenta, veggies and shrimp using our air fryer thanks to the electrical hookup at the RV park. For dessert we had s’mores around the campfire Andy and Miles had going.

The following morning we skipped rocks by a river and attempted to go hiking but were thwarted by a flooded jeep trail. We drove another 90 minutes (which took 3 hours) south and camped by the Susitna River in a fish and wildlife campground.

With our hectic weeks prior to departure, we didn’t have a chance to do the trip planning we had hoped. Other than our Airbnb and camping reservations in Denali, every day was a blank slate. Laurie had anticipated we would have some quiet nap times or nights to plan things out, but that wasn’t shaping up. Instead it was rushed Google searching while driving or looking up trails in the Milepost (a mile by mile description of the roads in Alaska).

Sometimes we found gems, other times we found duds. Today- it was a dud. We stopped for a 1.5 mile looped hike through a forest. We found a nice lookout but other than that it was a chance to stretch our legs and get bitten by mosquitoes!

Sunday morning as Andy cleaned up after breakfast, Joanna, Laurie and the kiddos explored the river and chatted with groups of fisherman waiting for the silver salmon to bite.

Around 11:30, our inevitable departure time, we drove to Anchorage. This would be our last evening together before Joanna flies home in the morning.

As we pull into the Golden Nugget RV park in Anchorage, Laurie feels oddly comfortable. Within the span of 6 nights we have grown accustomed to sleeping in gravel pits with other RVs and trailers. Everyone is super friendly, the laundry facilities are convenient and often there is space to run or playgrounds nearby. We are learning as we go, but for now, a RV park every 3-4 days works great.

Joanna takes Ani out for an hour as we have a virtual meeting with a preschool in Boise. As the rain gently falls we have our last Alaskan RV supper together as a family of 5. Tonight Miles serenaded us all to sleep with a “light show” by his singing, star projecting octopus.