Tips for Visiting Denali National Park and Preserve

Well, it looks like Sara is allowing me to grace you with my presence again, thanks, Sara! =) As promised, my next stop to share with y’all is Denali National Park.

Wow, this park was not like any other park we’ve experienced! There is just ONE road in Denali and you’re only allowed to drive so far – the first fifteen miles to be exact! Because of this, most people (like us) choose to do the tour bus to get the most out of it. We spent a couple of days here and I suggest you do the same. Honestly, I don’t know if there is ever enough time to explore this amazing place.

The first day we did the transit bus tour. Tour bus tickets can be bought at the Visitor’s Center. There are multiple options depending on how far you want to go or how much time you have. We chose the non-narrated transit bus to Wonder Lake (85 miles).

This was an 11-hour trip. We wanted to do the Kantishna (92 miles) transit bus which was 12 hours, but there were not any available seats left, so my suggestion is to buy tickets in advance! Check out the website to browse your options and book your tour!  None the less, our tour was still amazing! Again, you’ll want to prepare for all seasons and pack a lunch and snacks. When you see wildlife, you just yell “STOP” and the driver stops and lets everyone get a view. We saw grizzly bears, endless moose, caribou, Dall sheep, marmots, a fox, rabbits – oh my! Lol.

Did I mention the tour buses went green and are now hybrid? So awesome! These transit/tour buses are hop-on-hop-off. You just let the bus driver know anywhere you want to stop. You can hike AND camp anywhere in Denali. You do have to get a permit for camping, but they’re free. This is one of the many things that make this park so great! You can backpack anywhere and get picked up by a bus whenever you’re done. Where most parks have marked trails, Denali only has a handful and most are in the first 15 miles you’re allowed to drive on. So what does this mean? You can create your own hike! This would be a great chance for you to experience walking on the Tundra. It’s very bouncy, kind of like walking on a trampoline – give it a try!

They say the people who actually see Denali (the tallest mountain in North America) can be broken up into two groups: the 30% club and everyone else. While we were at the Eielson Visitor Center, we were the “everyone else”.  Even on the nicest days, Denali has clouds cover the summit.  Even so, the views were still spectacular. We were able to get a glimpse from a distance driving out of the park.

Now, let’s talk hiking! We didn’t partake in any of the “non-marked trails.” Although I wish I had…maybe next time. We did do a couple of hikes, though, the second day. We drove our RV down to Savage River and parked. From there we checked out the Savage River Loop Trail. This is an easy 1.9-mile hike. Although I wasn’t able to snap any good animal pics, we did see quite a few Dall sheep.

After we finished this hike and ate our lunch, we headed to the next one, which was my favorite hike by far! According to the AllTrails app, the Savage Alpine Trail is considered to be a hard and strenuous 7.7-mile trail with an elevation gain of 2,916 ft. Totally worth it! We hit a few seasons on this one lol. We saw a few critters and the views were breathtaking.

As for places to stay, I suggest you plan ahead if you want to stay in the park. Denali has 6 different campsites, and although reservations are not necessary, they are probably the smarter option. We stayed outside of the park at one of the many other sites along Alaskan roads. This was not a problem for us, but it would have been cool to stay in the park for sure. The more parks we visit, the more I plan ahead…but it’s also nice to go with the flow sometimes.

Most people fly in and out of Anchorage when visiting Denali. On your travels between Anchorage and Denali, I suggest you make some time to travel on the Seward Highway. We took this road going to Homer and Kenai Fjords. I can’t find the words to justify this road! There are plenty of stops along the side of this road for you to pull over and take a picture or simply just bask in the beauty.

Views from the Seward Highway

Well guys, its June so you know what that means… ANOTHER BIRTHDAY ROAD TRIP! Looks like we will be spending the big 35 in the Golden State aka California. Maybe my good old friend Sara will let me share our next trip to Joshua Tree, Sequoia, King’s Canyon, and Yosemite. Here’s to my birthday wish of sharing this experience with y’all! #findyourpark