This is the third of four posts on my quick trip to Alaska and back, with this entry focusing on time in Denali National Park.
Recap
Two of my buddies and I wanted to travel the Alcan Highway and, once that was accomplished, we decided to push on to Denali National Park. My prior posts detailed the Alcan Highway portion and the days of preparation leading to it; the next post will discuss the ferry ride home. While the entire trip lasted almost two weeks, each section of the trip felt like we were just rushing through. As with all things, however, we made the most of our time where we could.
Let’s see a bit of Denali, shall we?
Getting to Denali National Park
The road from our last stop (Delta Junction), the end of the Alcan Highway to Denali Nation Park (DNP … just outside Healy, AK) was just over a 3-hours drive. Given the number of hours we had spent in the car so far, this was an easy bit of travel. I will note that the roads were considerably less well-maintained than we’d found on the Alcan Highway. Not sure if weather deeper in Alaska contributed to that, but it was certainly felt as “cruising speed” left us bouncing around the interior of the cabin.
Once at DNP, we stopped into the Visitor Center, got our camping permits, and drove to Savage Campground, where we had two-night’s stay reserved. A quick bit of work got the tents erected and then … well, then it was time to get on some boots and take a hike!
Just outside the camp area is an established loop, taking you up the “Outer Range” where you get great views of the Inner Range (where Denali, the mountain, stands) with sweeping vistas to the south. It’s a gorgeous area and the 4-mile one way hike (along with almost 2000’ of elevation gain), was a welcome balm to sitting in the car and watching the world go by. On the ridge we caught a bit of wind and that, along with the sweat and a 50°F day, had us moving along to the more sheltered side of the trail. On the far side of the ridge we dropped back to street level and we opted to take a bus ride back to the camp area rather than walk the road.
By now it was time for dinner (freeze dried tonight!) and sorting out any final details about our campsite for the stay. As DNP is within 200 miles of the Arctic Circle and it was approaching June, we had nearly 20-hours of daylight. Even if the clock said, “time to wrap it up for the day”, our bodies didn’t believe it. And so we wandered the outer camp area, sat through a Ranger talk on remote hiking (pretty appropriate for this area), and stared at that gorgeous Inner Range.
Then it was time for sleep.
A day in Denali National Park
Today’s main focus was a bus tour that would take us deeper into the Park to show us some of the diverse wildlife and beautiful terrain of DNP. Overall the trip was a success with spotting moose, caribou, ptarmigan, golden eagles and goats (Dall Sheep) … but sadly, no bear or wolves. We’d seen many bear on the roadsides coming to the Park (mostly in the Yukon) but seeing a grizzly in DNP would have certainly been a highlight. And yet even without a bear-sighting, what a beautiful place!! Every vista is a photo opportunity, animals are fairly tolerant of people and will pose for hours, and you really never know what you’ll find around the next corner. It was a very fine tour.
After five-and-a-half hours, we got off the bus, occupied ourselves for an hour in the Visitor Center, and then took advantage of a dogsledding exhibition that our bus tour guide suggested.
Upon entering the Park the day prior, we noticed people walking husky (breed) dogs along the roadside. Always a simple pair and very few at that, but we’d always spot a couple as we drove around. We later found these were dogs getting exercised as part of the permanently established Denali National Park dogsled team. Yup, they have a committed program for breeding, training, and running dogsleds in the Park, and now we were about to learn more!
While at the Visitor Center we had caught a short movie on the program, so much of the novelty was gone even before seeing the exhibition, but a tour definitely filled in the gaps.
To avoid congestion at the dogsled facility, they bus you from the Visitor Center … it’s a short three-mile trip. At the dogsled facility, we walked a loop through a kennel area and had a chance to pet the dogs that were looking for pets, or just observe the animals who were feeling a bit less confident … or, in some cases, just a touch aloof.
Then we had a chance to see the dogs in action! Although “action” is kinda generous. The trainers harnessed up a 5-dog team and had the dogs pull a wheeled dog cart around a loop and stopped them in front of the stands we were occupying. No questions, no additional demonstrations … just a quick run up in front of us, treats for the dogs, and then we stayed put while the dogs ran back, unharnessed, to the kennel area. While fairly basic and quite simple, the exhibition was still a treat. And to fill you in on some of the story …
In the early years of Denali National Park being an actual National Park, the first administrator ran dogsled teams to help facilitate management of the Park. Since then it was both a tradition, as well as a practical way of getting into and servicing the backcountry without the use of motorized vehicles (which are prohibited in the National Parks). They have an established adult team of experienced dogs, another set of in-training pooches, and then a team of young pups who will work their way up to being on a team. A dog will run on the team for about 9 years and then go into retirement … meaning they’re adopted out via a stringent vetting process.
After the exhibition was opted to walk back to our car via some local trails, yet again enjoying a chance to stretch our legs. But, by the time we got to the car and returned to our campsite, it was dinner time!
Another freeze dried meal, another stroll around the camp area (different trails this time), and another Ranger talk before bedtime. This talk focused on the “food chain” or “web of life” and while targeted at youths, it was well-done and had our interest. A nice addition to staying at this camp area.
A farewell too soon
While I’m usually an early riser, put me in a spot that’s only dark between roughly midnight and 4AM (and honestly, even the “dark hours” it was still light enough that you could move around the campsite without the aid of a headlamp), and I’ll be up around that 4AM hour. It was closer to 4:30AM, I’d guess, but as I stuffed clothing in bags and sorted my tent gear into packable form, I got out and saw my fellow travelers doing the same.
So, even with breakfast and all the packing up of the vehicle, we were on the road by 6AM and making time back to Haines Junction … the same place we stayed a few days prior.
Denali National Park thoughts
My sole and strongest takeaway from my all-too-brief time in Denali is just that: the stay was too short. I wanted cross country hiking, I wanted to pitch my tent where no one else in all the world had ever pitched a tent and spent a night, I wanted to get deep into the backcountry and disconnect completely with the noise and fluster of modern life. And yet, with a day and a half, we did OK.
The question I suppose everyone will ask is, “did you see Denali?”, and the answer isn’t as straightforward as I’d like. I think we did, and that’s the best I can say. Denali is a massive mountain and it’s completely on display when “it’s out”, so there’s no missing it. Unfortunately, we had some beautiful days in the Outer Range, but the interior of the Inner Range remained cloaked in clouds nearly the entire time. As we drove in, there was a thinning of the haze and a mountain that was different stood out. I pulled over and we all snapped pics, but without seeing the unobstructed silhouette, it’s impossible for me to say whether we actually saw Denali.
Either way, I guess this gives me the motivation to get back sometime and try again. There had been a landslide that took out the Park Road at something like mile 24 … it’s a 42-mile long road … and traffic beyond (or even to) that point isn’t possible. They plan on having it fixed in 2027, so maybe I can plan a little something for 2028 to get back and see how things are looking.
What’s next
Next up was one of the best experiences I’ve enjoyed while traveling: the ferry ride home. I’d share more now but I don’t want to steal any thunder from that post, so I’ll just close by saying: thanks for dropping in.
Joe Abbott's Weblog 