My Alaskan Adventure - Sherry Evans

#8 - Denali Part 2

LODGING

There are numerous hotels and cabins just outside the park entrance. I stayed in the Denali Hostel, which is about 14 miles away, near Healy. Four times each day the hostel provides free shuttle service to and from the hostel, the Park, the train station and the grocery store. The hostel is very nice (nicer than most) but very crowded and noisy. Nice people, though. I ran into the same people over and over at the various hostels throughout Alaska. This is Yasuko and her friend, two of my roomies in Anchorage, just outside the Denali Visitor's Center. Returning to the hostel one evening I snapped this shot of an unusual cloud formation. There were dozens of clouds like these in all shades from white to black and all disk shaped. I've never seen anything like it before or since. 

There are campgrounds both inside and outside the park. The campgrounds inside the park were all full when I was there, so I would recommend you make reservations if you want to ensure a campsite. There are no hook-ups for RV's inside the park and campsites run about $15 per day. 

There is a shuttle between the Visitor Center and the park campgrounds. In addition, Riley Creek, Savage Creek and Teklanika campgrounds can also be reached by private vehicle. The Morino Campground is reserved for visitors who do not have a vehicle. 

The private campgrounds outside the park run about $20-25 per day with full hook-ups. Some are no more than parking lots, with no trees, so be careful of misleading advertisements. It is only a 10-25 minute drive to the Park Entrance and there is plenty of parking for cars and RVs at the park. 

TOURS

Private vehicles are not allowed past Savage River, 15 miles into the park. If you want to go further into the park (and you definitely do!), you must go by shuttle. There are two shuttle services, one run by the National Park Service (NPS) and the other by private company. The NPS shuttles are the cheapest way to go. Fares are $14-35. There are three options--a 12-hour trip to Wonder Lake, which is the lake shown in the advertisements for Mt. McKinley; an eight-hour trip to Eielson Visitor's Center, or the camper bus which is for people who have camping gear. You can get on and off these buses as often as you like for a hike or a picnic or just to shoot pictures. The camper bus fare is good for reboarding west of the Savage River for the entire time you remain in the backcountry. Three day passes are also available for all trips. 

Private companies offer a variety of tours ranging from $34 for a three hour tour to $100 for an all day narrated trip in a small van to the end of the road at Kantishna, which includes a continental breakfast and picnic lunch, sled dog demonstration, goldpanning, and return transportation. 

Besides cost, the only real difference between the trips offered by the private companies and the park is that the park buses allow you to get on and off. The private tour buses do not, but they do provide food. I took a NPS bus so I don't know what kind of food is offered on the private tours. I suspect, sandwich, chips and cookie or fruit. There is no food available outside the Visitor's Center area, so for the NPS tours you must bring a lunch and something to drink. A warm jacket is a good idea, too. I had on a sweatshirt and a jacket and was still cold. The tour buses in both instances are revamped school buses. It is claimed that the park buses have no guides, which is technically true. However, the drivers are highly informative and entertaining and will stop anytime someone yells "Stop!" to view the wildlife that abounds along the way. The buses also stop every couple of hours for potty breaks. 

Both types of tours run all day, every half hour during the summer months. The first tour leaves around 4:30 a.m. (it's already light by then) and the last one returns about 11 pm (yep, it's still light). They say that the early morning and late afternoon buses offer the best chance of seeing wildlife and Mt. McKinley, but the mid-day ones are warmer! It is recommended that you call ahead for reservations on the park buses. In my experience, that is true. As usual, I did not have advance reservations and couldn't get a 12 hour trip for three days and the early morning 8-hour trips were booked for two days. So, I took the 10:30-4:30 bus to Eielson. 

We saw lots of wildlife, though not as much as others staying at the hostel saw. Someone spotted a grizzly far off in the distance and the bus driver dutifully stopped. I watched the bear through my binoculars for a long time. Tears rolled down my cheeks at the sight of that magnificent animal ambling along the creek bed, probably searching for food, most likely fish. Further down the road we saw a mother grizzly and her cub. We also saw lots of caribou, dall sheep, hoary marmots, ground squirrels, golden eagles, willow ptarmigans and many other birds. 

It had been cloudy and rainy all morning so by the time we got to Eielson, Mt. McKinley was shrouded in clouds, as is usually the case. Only about the bottom half of it was visible. However, the 11,300 foot high Mt. Brooks was completely visible for just a few minutes before the clouds covered it again. Contrast this to a clear-sky picture of Mt. McKinley taken from the same spot at Eielson (photo courtesy of a travel brochure).

There is a free shuttle that runs around the park entrance area several times a day. For just $2 you can ride another shuttle to Savage River and back. I took that shuttle one day and got this photo of a caribou as it passed right by the bus, It was so close that I could have reached out the window and touched it. 

There are also river rafting tours down the Nenana River. The one I took lasted three hours. The water is about 32 degrees, so we bundled up in suits and boots similar to those snowmobilers wear, with the addition of a life jacket. It was fun but the rapids were only rated a three (on a 1-5 scale) so the thrills were short-lived. We did get wet a few times even though the rain and wind had finally stopped. My original trip was cancelled because of high winds. 

Flightseeing tours over Mt. McKinley are offered for around $200. My new friend Sue took one the afternoon we arrived and she said it was magnificent. 

HIKES

All the trails in the Park are located in the Visitor Center area. Rock Creek Trail is just over two miles one way. It's a pretty easy hike through the tundra, with a gain of 400 feet. It runs between the Park Hotel parking lot and the dog kennels at the Park Headquarters. You can ride the free shuttle one way if you don't want to to hike both ways. I took the shuttle to the Dog Sled Demonstration with two of my roomies from the hostel, Rachel and Lisa and we hiked back. The dog demo was really interesting. The park is open year round, but in winter is only accessible by foot (snowshoes or skis) or by dog sled. Motorized vehicles, including snowmobiles, are not allowed inside the park. The Rangers patrol the park seven months out of the year by dog sled. The dogs are all mixed breeds and most are part wolf. The dogs are bred with long legs for running through the snow. Here I am with one of the friendly and beautiful sled dogs. 

The Taiga Loop Trail and the Morino Loop Trails are easy 1.3 mile walks. Both start and end at the Park Hotel parking lot. 

The Roadside Trial is a moderate 1.8 mile walk along the Park Road from the Park Headquarters to the Park Hotel. 

Another easy walk is the Horseshoe Lake Trail to a lake in the oxbow of the Nenana River. It begins and ends on the park road near the railroad track crossing just before the station. This is Sue at Horseshoe Lake. 

The hike to Mount Healy is much tougher. It is five miles round trip with 1700 foot elevation climb through boreal forest, across timberline to alpine tundra. The last stretch is in scree and scrambling. This hike gets you above treeline for great views. There are rest stops along the way with carved stone or log benches. The trail begins past the bus garage behind the Park Hotel. Take the Taiga Loop Trail for .3 mile and look for the Mt. Healy Overlook trailhead after crossing the second service road. There is a Ranger-led hike several times a week. Meet at the Park Hotel back porch. 

The Triple Lakes hike is four miles along a trail to three lakes, of course! It's a good one if you want to hike all day and can camp overnight if you like. Follow the railroad tracks south across Riley Creek trestle 100 yards to the trail marker. 

There is a ranger-led hike several times a week. This hike starts at the Park Hotel back porch. There are also daily ranger-led hikes throughout the Park. 

Denali National Park is a very special place and I was relunctant to leave. It is said that everyone who visits Alaska leaves a piece of their heart behind. A big chunk of mine is in Denali. 

Note: Some of the above information was provided by the friendly folks at Talkeetna Visitor Center. 
 
 

< Prev | Home | Next >
All pictures and text © 2000 Sherry Evans except where noted.
Email: sherryinthemtns@juno.com