Alaskans with trucks, cars, and flags flying high are organizing a convoy to Denali National Park entrance

By
Suzanne Downing
-
104

Alaskans offended by the Denali National Park Superintendent who banned the American flag from a private road construction vehicle inside the national park have decided to take a road trip on Sunday — to the park entrance, with their flags flying.

A convoy with patriotic flags will meet at the Fairbanks Walmart parking lot on Sunday starting at noon, and will be rolling toward the Denali Park entrance at around 1 pm, said Keith Fons of North Pole, who is organizing the convoy. The drive to the entrance usually takes about two hours. The goal is to take a break in Healy at the Three Bears parking lot, where people can attach, reattach or adjust their flags, and arrive around 2:30 or 3 p.m. at the park entrance visitor center.

Others are organizing to come from the south, with people in Wasilla, Palmer, and Anchorage now getting in the patriotic spirit for a Memorial Day ride. Organizers said if the parking lot is full at the visitors center, they will line the road as safely as possible.

Barbara Haney, a member of the Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly , intends to take part in the patriotic convoy. She noted that Hudson Stuck, the first person to make it to the top of Denali, planted a flag and a cross when he reached the top of North America’s highest peak.

A Facebook events page has been created to publicize the event.

“Memorial Day weekend is a perfect time to do such a act! Start Meeting at Walmart at Noon and then we will ride to Denali or you can meet up at Denali Come join do a BBQ or just hang out,” Fons said in his Facebook post.

The convoy is in response to a complaint made by a worker who is on the crew that is building the bridge at Pretty Rocks, which is after Mile 43 on the Denali Park Road. Park Superintendent Brooke Merrell told the road crew that American flags are not allowed on their trucks because they ruin the experience for visitors.

Currently, visitors cannot get past Mile 43 due to a severe rock slide that not only made the road impassable, but unrepairable without a bridge, which is being constructed by Granite Construction.

Sen. Dan Sullivan has written a letter to the National Park Service director, objecting to the banning of the 3×5 flag that was on one of the worker’s trucks.

On blast: Sen. Sullivan takes Park Service to task for banning American flags on construction trucks in Denali National Park

Also on Sunday, motorcyclists will be on the Parks Highway heading to Byers Lake Veterans Memorial to have a Memorial Day ceremony.

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104 COMMENTS

    • Good question. Maybe at the entrance to the road to Mt. Denali? This could be a MAGA-style convoy, from North and South. Cause mass confusion for the NPS and make national news.
      F*ck Joe Biden.

  7. Bravo and God Bless these convoys. Wish I could be there to join in with my Alaska friends and family.

  9. Flags straight up all the way to the park. Then, turn them upside down once we get to the park. Stick it in their faces.

    • You are sticking it in your own face if you are really an American. It really doesn’t stick it to the libs, it sticks it to American values when you disrespect the flag by flying it upside down. You are free to do so, I wouldn’t stop you from doing it, but I question the motives of the organizers.

  10. Spread the word folks. This is not a news item anywhere else covered or reported by anyone else.

    • This is not a news item.

      Should have stopped there.
      The ranger is simply enforcing the law, look it up. Gotta keep the faux outrage machine well oiled….

      • Alaskan (if that is really what you are) let us for a moment pretend that your assertion of “enforcing the law” applies here.
        So then the question becomes, why did the NPS not simply declare that in their statement? Wouldn’t that settle the issue once an for all??
        Why instead come out with this mealy-mouthed kumbaya statement?
        What say you??

      • Oh yeah, Alaskan. The Joe Biden ranger of the Joe Biden NPS. The communist arm of the US government that is tearing down our historic statues in the name of of woke DEI.
        Well……….**** Joe Biden.

  11. Merrell should be fired. Obviously too stupid to have this much responsibility. It’s memorial day. Pretty ignorant.

    • She’s just enforcing the law. I dare just one reader to do this, and actually read what the law says and the powers that the ranger has to enforce it.

      The ranger is in the right, it’s the blogger once again who is getting her facts straight, and it’s you, unfortunately, who is falling for it.

      • I am glad that you agree Suzanne got her facts straight!
        Now can YOU get yours straight and actually name the “law” that prevents “certain” vehicles from displaying the American flag inside the park???

    • She’s an appointee of Pedo Joe and his cartel. If she had the brains of a butterfly she would have been rejected as being overqualified (Joe hates competition!).

  12. Wish I was there. I imagine the Superintendent will take the NY Gov approach and call them all clowns.

  14. Thank you to each and every one of you who are doing this. Let’s all support our country by having an American flag on our vehicles. 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

    • Mounting a flag on the back of your truck and then whipping said flag until it’s threadbare while going down the highway at 65mph, is not a display of patriotism. It’s jingoism and disturbing.

      If you love America, then you should probably treat its flag with a bit more respect.

        • I am 100% in favor of the Alaskan patriots who organized this event. There is nothing wrong with flying the flag on a vehicle for a one-time event like a parade. However, to fly that same flag on a truck or car for days or even years on end until it is in tatters is profoundly disrepectful of our national banner. True patriots treat the flag with the respect it deserves.

      • Why? By that logic we should never ever fly a flag outdoors because it will get worn quickly by the wind & weather. Yes, it is true that 65mph winds will wear out a flag more quickly than typical weather. As long as you replace the flag when it gets worn, the only difference between flying a flag on your car and flying a flag anywhere outside is that it will wear quicker, but both are going to wear out.

  17. Riding a bike from Fairbanks. Caravan is meeting at Fairbanks Walmart at noon.

    Hope to see my Brothers and Sisters from both sides of the aisle join in and stand for America.

  18. I love the convoy with flags, but the park super didn’t ban flags on Granite construction vehicles – a blogger made this up and a bunch of trolls passed it along. A good reminder to get your facts straight before casting aspersions.

    • Great! Hire that blogger for the Joe Biden campaign. Biden needs all the help he can get.
      😆

    • She demanded that the US flag was not to be flown on the bridge . All bridges in America are built by US Steel and unionized workers . Maybe she knows that now ! That’s a tough bridge to cross . Unions ought to refuse to work on the job !

  21. If let’s go Brandon manages another “ victory “ this fall ;

    Expect the dei , communist, blue haired, my body my choice , hate all things American crowd to grow even stronger , especially in all federal government positions
    They’re frantically getting Federal judges appointed as fast as they can

    Say goodbye to the USA as we’ve known it

    • Considering that there won’t be an oil reserve to drive fuel prices down and keep inflation down to a dull roar (electioneering tactic) I’d start buying non-perishable food now.

      That reserve is now almost gone, nothing left to release into the market soon…so wait for the $5 and $6 gallon fuel for next year.

      FJB

  23. What a bunch of MAGA snowflakes. It was several members of the public who told the park that the flags were detracting from the natural values of the park while they were visiting. How fitting that the convoy is meeting up at a Walmart as well. And by the way, it wasn’t just one flag, it was many. I wouldn’t be bothered by it but I can see how someone who saved up their whole life to be able to come up to the park could find it distracting. This will accomplish nothing other than making these faux patriots feel better about themselves. A solipsistic convey riding down the road.

    • So?

      Really? So?

      It may surprise you to find out it’s not just “MAGA” who are outraged by this.

      Especially over Memorial Day Weekend.

      Probably be a good idea to learn to read a room.

    • “I can see how someone who saved up their whole life to be able to come up to the park could find it distracting.” The flag on the truck is more distracting than the vehicles themselves? And life savings to go see Denali? Such a contrived example it’s laughable!

    • Having driven the park road multiple times all the way to Wonder Lake and back, if an American flag keeps you from enjoying the natural beauty then that’s a YOU problem. You must belong to the perpetually offended class. Most likely you are sitting in a park bus anyway. Look somewhere else and you will forget that big noisy dust-producing truck in front of you, as you gaze out into the vast breathtaking and seemingly endless wilderness.

  24. We’re there in spirit! ♥️ 🤍 💙 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸God Bless The USA… Roll On

    • Yup. Both wrote great journals. Hudson said the being the youngest and strongest team member, he broke away from the rest, and made the rush to the summit with the next person a couple hundred feet behind.

  27. Come on Danny , the dumb dumb should be fired ! If this was an election year , you’d demand it .

    I demand that she’s fired from her job as tax a payer and an Alaskan !

  28. There sure seems to be a lot of people with no life. Waste your time protesting a paper tiger and be sure to bring those entrance fees.

  29. Nothing says patriotism like a threadbare, beat up, dirty flag flying from the back of your mud covered pickup. The way some people fetishise the flag and then disrespect established flag code in the very same act to show their “patriotism” befuddles me. There are flag rules and while they are not legally binding you would think loving your country and its flag would be a deciding factor in how you present and treat it.

  30. They’re also publishing the superintendents home address and phone number online. What a bunch of cowards.

    • That, my liberal unpatriotic, holier than thou creep, is a leftist, democrat tactic and I for one am thrilled to FINALLY see some patriots fight dirty like the democrats and stop trying to be gentlemen. Playing nice and taking the high road is what our pussy Republican Party has done for too long while the democrat party is willing to do whatever it takes to stay in power. Doxing is a favorite of the left who only think it’s wrong when it happens to one of them. If it were the construction worker that got doxed, you’d be fine with it, right? Because he asked for it by flying an American flag in America ahead of the Memorial Day weekend. The hypocrisy runs deep with you people. It’s only ok when you do it because you know so much better than we do what’s appropriate and what isn’t. You people are all about “feelings” not facts. You got participation trophies growing up I’m guessing. Unfortunately, our country has been infested with parasites like yourself. In my humble opinion.

      • The fact that all you have is ad hominem says everything about you and nothing about me. How any American can be this angry about something that DIDN’T HAPPEN shows how soft and easily offended we’ve become.

        • We only need her physical address so we can drop off the truck load of American flags left over from Sunday. It’s a present to the granola queen.
          ps. If she can’t use them, or refuses, we’ll leave them with her neighbor.

  31. Asking them to take the flag down was bad enough.

    If those men complied..THAT’S EVEN WORSE.

    Men should not back down to uppity Communistas from Portland.

    For any reason.

  33. There is little doubt in my mind that the folks most offended by the presence of the American flag will be the Park Service employees. Being a Leftist is almost part of the job description.

  41. How many cities were burned because a career criminal over dosed? And the commies are here crying about real Americans protesting for the First Amendment. Crybullies. If burning the American Flag is protected by the First Amendment, then displaying it is too.

  42. This is a kick in the teeth for all those who have served this country, let alone all those gold star families.
    I’m disgusted with this ruling. I am extremely proud of these true Americans that are going on this convey, making their voices heard.
    And….thank God they have a Senator that voices his dis-approval.
    Go Alaska! Go U.S.A.

  43. I salute the convoy participants, Fly your flags high and remind everyone that Americans will not back down or tolerate such actions from a public official. The Denali park superintendent should be fired. Also, flood the parks e mail service with strong support for the flag and demands for Merrill’s resignation.

    • They won’t back down from something that didn’t occur? Yeah, they’re right up there with the Founding Fathers.

  45. Oh, yes, we tackle the big issues: the “deep state” handles the rest. Don’t forget your spitin’ tobacco for that added touch of authenticity!

  47. Memorial Day is day for remembering and honoring those who made the ultimate sacrifice.
    Fly those USA flags, fly them high. For those that have a plane – ( and have the set up) fly a USA flag across the sky at Denali. 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

  48. That’s great I wish I was there and tell them to get rid of this what ever she is not a American that for sure time for her to go back to the woke place she came from china

  49. Let the flags fly. Stand up for our country not just Memorial Day. My husband put his life on the line in WWII, Korea and Vietnam every day. And it took its toll. So did thousands of other men and woman. Fire her and get an American that loves her country and has common sense.

  51. First, leave your politics at home, NOT ON THE JOB! NEXT, she is taking money, her paycheck from Citizens she is INSULTING! SHE NEEDS TO BE FIRED ASAP! If she is OFFENDED BY THIS COUNTRY’S FLAG, SHE NEEDS TO FIND ANOTHER COUNTRY!

  52. wish I could be there a little too far coming from CT. Get the unpatriotic woke superintendent fired. It’s a national Park no questions asked.

  53. Merrell should get fired and go back to Penn.
    People have died in honor of our flag. Shame on you Merrell and that worker. I applaud all of those in the convoy.

  54. Probably could have flown the Hamas flag or that of ICE–IS and never had an issue. Our politicians are almost all anti American.

  55. Be carefu!l Watch out for federal agents provocateurs. They’ll be the ones saying to”do something “

  58. So glad for this big reaction. When I read about those bridge workers being told they couldn’t fly their American flags by politicians that support the LGBT etc. whatever you call it I was furious. I’m a 66yr old widow and can’t exactly get up there to support these guys so I’m thrilled they are gonna get a huge crowd of proud Americans to support their values. Thank you all

  59. These lunatics like this Park official and any and all whom share his sick power driven ideology need to be totally dredged out of any public sector or State jobs, these people are clearly anti American and they all need to be totally exposed and shipped out of our Country by the bus loads, they are hypocritical fools and total parasites, yes I say Any and All who support what this official did are a clear and present threat to our Country, they should all be sent directly to the Country of their choice whom they actually do affiliate with, they all clearly do not belong in our Country!

  60. Merrell works for the Joe Biden regime, as everyone knows, the counterfeit president of the National Park Service. Merrill just follows the command. Her Nurenburg Defense.

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