Even as the most northern states in the Lower 48 shake off winter's chill in exchange for spring greenery, Denali National Park and the Alaska Range remain very wintry. I think of March and April as another stage of winter, one where long days and bright sun make for an altogether new atmosphere than that of January. Don't let that sun fool you, though; old man winter still has a firm grip on the weather and on that box of sandals and shorts under the bed.

Although Alaska has now surpassed the lower states in terms of hours of sunlight each day, the sun can only warm this frozen north to a small extent. We year-rounders look forward to March for its relatively warm temperatures and long days.  The mercury may drop to the single digits overnight, but sunny afternoons can reach temperatures just below freezing, allowing for fast skiing and great hockey through the 9 pm twilight.

On a recent trip to northern California, I marveled at the early arrival of spring and all its colorful wildflowers. There, lupine grows into sprawling, shoulder-high bushes and blooms in mid March. In Denali National Park, our lupine plants are small, shin-high at the tallest, and bloom in mid to late June! How can it be that this same earth under the snow stretches as far as the balmy coasts of California? The two places seem worlds apart.

As I write this in Denali, waiting for spring and enjoying the pleasures of late winter, I am sure that when spring does arrive to this northern neck of the woods, it will be so much sweeter for all the waiting we have done.