Denali Interview with Ike Waits National Park Hiking and Photography Guide Author
Release Date: 11/17/2018
Alaska Interview with The Skoolie Owner Dean Chytraus
NatParkStories's podcast
While in on the Kenai Peninsula, I parked near a big built out bus on the side of the road. It seemed like the perfect place to camp for the night, with a gorgeous view of the water and the surrounding mountains. The brown bus nearby had black trees painted on it and “The Skoolie” written on the side and although signal was hard to come by, for about 5 minutes I had signal on my phone, so I googled the name of the bus. I found the instagram account and send a message to Dean Chytraus, the owner of the bus. I asked him if he was interested in chatting over margaritas,...
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Wrangell Interview With Arkansas Lawyer Road Tripping with 12 Strangers
NatParkStories's podcast
“If I could tell anyone to do anything, it would just be to do an experience like this. You know, meet 13 strangers and see the world.” -Lizzy McSpadden When I met Lizzy, she was on a road trip with more than a dozen strangers, on day 9 of an Alaskan tour. Lizzy decided that she wanted to see Alaska before she started what she calls her “big girl job”, working as a lawyer in Arkansas, so she booked a trip with Trek America. She is on a quest to visit all the National Parks and on a mission to get her travel companions to start saying “y’all”. I...
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Wrangell Interview with American Adventures Tour Guide
NatParkStories's podcast
“It’s wild up here. You’ve got to be ready for everything.” -Ashley Gamble I am so excited for you to hear this episode. Ashley Gamble is a tour guide for a company that takes adventure seekers on ROAD TRIPS to National Parks and cities. As you will hear in the interview, she drives a 15 passenger Ford Transit full of tourists to various places all across America. Trips last anywhere from 7 to SEVENTY FIVE days. Imagine it, you and 14 strangers road tripping, camping, hiking, fishing, eating, and adventuring together for weeks at a time all...
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Wrangell Interview with Adventure Blogger in Alaska
NatParkStories's podcast
People often ask how long my interviews are and I ask them how long a conversation is. It can be one minute or three hours. This is a really fun episode because it gives you a real peak into what actually happens on the road… a conversation that turns into an interview, and goes off in different directions, as new people are introduced, and new conversations start. It’s only an 8 minute episode simply because at the end of it, another person I knew pulled up and soon the conversation became hard to follow as we all bonded and connected and told our stories. ...
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One Man's Three Month Trek from Maryland to Alaska
NatParkStories's podcast
“This is my first time in interior Alaska and it’s just phenomenal. It won’t be my last time, that’s for sure.” - Andrew Aughenbaugh I met Augie, in a very hilarious way… By being stuck in a ditch in the largest National Park in the country. I cannot begin to capture the relief I felt when this big truck with a towing rig right on front and Maryland plates, pulled up to my rescue. Augie had been on the road for three months, driving all the way from Maryland to Alaska, tent camping every night. I was shocked when he told me that. ...
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Wrangell Interview with Alaskan Tour Guide and Adventure Traveler
NatParkStories's podcast
"Wrangell is often referred to as the Park without handrails." Brendon Seaholser was such an interesting interview because of his honest and blunt demeanor, as well as his love of the park and adventures of all kind. During this interview, we talk about what brought him to Wrangell St. Elias, one of the month desolate and isolated parks in the country, a story which starts in Vermont, and winds through many continents. We also talk about how unbelievably vast the Park is, and the possible consequences of going into this wilderness unprepared. You’ll hear him...
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Wrangell Interview with Owner of 80 Acre Campsite in National Park
NatParkStories's podcast
"I'm fairly well traveled and this is the best place I could find." -Jim D. As you can probably tell during the beginning of this episode, when I first met Jim, I thought uhhhh, okay this is going to be an interesting interview… And I was right. But I had no idea how much I would enjoy spending time with him. You can tell with his first sentence that he is a goofy guy, but what you probably don’t get is how he goes out of his way to help anyone and everyone that comes down that long winding 66 mile drive and finds themselves at the end of the road, at the...
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Kenai Fjords Interview with an Alaskan Travel Expert
NatParkStories's podcast
“It just makes you realize that you’re not the only person out here, you know? Think about everybody else. You’re the one person living your life but there’s so much more… there’s so many people and we’re all experiencing it.” -Heidi Goheen Heidi Goheen a really fun interview because we got along right away and were able to have a conversation about not only the Kenai Fjord National Park, where she’s visited more than a dozen times, and about the bummmppyyyy boat ride we were on, but also about the other Parks she’s been to, what drew her to the Park, why she takes...
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Kenai Fjords Interview with the Ship Deck Hand
NatParkStories's podcast
"I think everyone should explore their parks... I've gotten to go to quite a few and there isn't anything quite like Kenai Fjords National Park.” -Josh Grove During the ride to Kenai Fjord National Park, I talked with a deck hand on the ship, Josh Grove, who has been working out in Seward for a few years. During the course of his interview, we talk about what brought him to this National Park, and he gives some really interesting information about what a fjord is and how the glaciers have receded just in the few short years he’s been at the Park. You really feel...
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Interview with Safari Leader in Alaska's Kenai Fjords National Park
NatParkStories's podcast
“I’m from Tennessee where in the winter time, it can get to mid-80s... and I love the heat and I will sacrifice all that just to be here because it’s so impressively cool.” -Mikey Martin Mikey Martin is a Safari Guide that I met on the boat ride to the Kenai Fjords National Park. In his two summers in Alaska, he has done that boat ride about 80 times. And as hard as it is to believe, each time provides a new and unique experience. And it would have to… What else would bring a Nashville boy who loves the warmth all the way up to the icy glaciers of Alaska...
info_outlineIn this episode we’ll be talking about my first Park of the Podcast, Denali National Park in Alaska, where I went at the end of July 2018 — and we'll talk to a man who’s been coming to the park since the 60s.
The thing that stood out to most people I interviewed is the vastness and isolation of the park.
You can drive 15 miles into Denali National Park, the rest of the park is only accessible by bus or hiking.
While I took an 8 hour round trip bus ride, I interviewed almost everyone that rode along with me, including Ike Waits (WAITs) the man who quite literally wrote the book on Denali.
I honestly couldn’t believe my luck!
He’s been coming to the park since 1967 and has seen a lot of changes since then.
One of the big things that he’s noticed is an increase in the superficial enjoyment of the park.
In 2000, he wrote hiking and photography guide that he hopes will encourage people to get off the bus and explore the park.
I was so excited to chat with him about his experiences in the park, how it feels to hike the vast wilderness of Denali, why he thinks people should get out and explore, and so much more.
As he says at the end, we cover a lot of ground in this interview so buckle up and enjoy, but don’t forget to get off the bus at some point!