2019 Alaska Trip - Denali National Park Tips For RVers (And Other Visitors)

Denali National Park – What You Need To Know & Some Recommendations

Denali National Park & Preserve is 6 million acres and the third largest National Park in the U.S. However, there is only one access point and one road in the park, the Park Road.

Park Road, Parks Highway, & Denali Highway

The Park Road in Denali is 92 miles long and runs from the George Parks Highway (which connects Anchorage to Fairbanks) to Kantishna at the end of the road.

Let’s start by trying to clear up some road name confusion. The road in the National Park itself is Park Road.

The George Parks Highway is often referred to as just Parks Highway, so it’s easy to confuse the two. Just remember Park Road is THE road in Denali National Park and Parks Highway is the paved highway running north/south between Anchorage and Fairbanks.

Now, there is also the Denali Highway which isn’t in the National Park nor does it touch the park. The Denali Highway is a mostly gravel road that runs east/west across the interior from Cantwell in the west to Paxson in the east. It connects the George Parks Highway to the Richardson Highway which runs north/south from Fairbanks through Delta Junction (the Alaska Highway terminus) all the way south to Valdez.

Here's a map to help. You can click on it to make it larger. The blue road running north/south is the George Parks Highway. The yellow road is the start of the Denali Highway. The red and green road is the Park Road inside Denali National Park.

Okay, now that we have addressed those potential points of road confusing, let’s look closer at the Park Road that’s actually in Denali National Park.

As I said, it’s 92 miles long. However, the public can only drive the first 15 miles of the road from the park entrance to the Savage River Bridge (the green portion on the map above). That section is paved, and anyone can drive it; however, there is limited parking once you get past the Visitors Center near the entrance.

From mile 15 to the end of the road at mile 92 (the red portion in the map above), the road is gravel and extremely dusty due to all the bus traffic.

You see, to go farther into the park than the first 15 miles, you have to take one of the park’s concessionaire buses (or you can walk or ride a bike, neither of which I would recommend – more on that later).

Getting Around The Park – The Buses

The primary way to explore the park is through the bus system which is run by the park’s concessionaire Doyon/Aramark. This gets a little confusing as well, so let’s try to break this down.

The buses are all “modified school buses with coach seating”, and they are either tan or green. None of them have bathrooms, but bathroom stops are scheduled for every hour to hour and a half.

All the buses are on schedules, and all stop for wildlife viewing and photos unless they get way behind schedule.

Bus classifications are as follows:

Paid Tour Buses With Narration (tan buses)
Paid Transit Buses (green buses) – narration not guaranteed and how much narration depends on the individual driver
Free Shuttle Buses (green buses) – Point to point in the first 15 miles of the Park Road
Camper Buses (green buses) – Buses specifically designated to get tent campers to the four campgrounds that are located after mile 15 and those camping/hiking in the backcountry
Discovery (aka “Disco”) Hike Buses (green buses) – Buses that specifically transport those that have signed up for Discovery Hikes to the ranger-selected drop-off points for ranger-led, off-trail hikes

The tan buses are all “Tour Buses” that have specific stops with an interpretive guide.

They assure that you will get a narrated tour of the park, and there are a few options such as the focus of the tour, the length in time of the tour, and the length in distance of the tour. These are also the most expensive buses. They tend to be dominated by tourists from the cruise ships as a land excursion or part of a land/sea package. Here are the tours available and adult pricing as of this writing.

Natural History Tour - $100.50 – 30 miles into the park and back – 4.5 – 5 hours
Tundra Wilderness Tour - $160.25 – 63 miles into the park and back – 7 - 8 hours
Kantishna Experience Tour - $237.25 – 92 miles into the park (all the way to the end) and back – 11 – 12 hours

Note that these tour buses are driven/narrated by concessionaire employees, NOT National Park Rangers. Only the Kantishna Experience Tour picks up a Park Ranger at Wonder Lake at mile 85 for the last seven miles into Kantishna.

For more details about these tours go here: The Denali Tour Experience. These tours are more likely to sell out, so advance reservations may be wise.

The green “Transit Buses” also require a fee, but the fee is much less than the tan “Tour Buses”.

Your fee depends on how far you go into the park and are listed as follows as of this writing.

Toklat River - $33.50 - 53 miles into the park and back - 6.5 hours round trip
Eielson Visitor Center - $42.75 - 66 miles into the park and back - 8 hours round trip (This is the most popular)
Wonder Lake - $58.75 - 85 miles into the park and back - 11 hours round trip
Kantishna - $64.00 - 92 miles into the park and back - 13 hours round trip

Up to 65% of “Transit Bus” seats can be reserved in advance, but 35% are available for walk-in purchase (up to two days before departure).

The “Transit Bus” experience often depends on your driver, but most of the drivers provide enough knowledge and narration that the “Transit Buses”, in my opinion, are a better value than the “Tour Buses”. Also, you have more flexibility.

On the tan “Tour Buses” you stay with your group and your bus the entire trip. On the “Transit Buses”, though the vast majority of people stay on the same bus for their whole trip, you have the option of getting off at any stop (or anywhere along the Park Road) and changing buses. You can get off and do a hike, and then catch a different bus back. If you don’t like your driver or the group on your bus, you can get off and catch a different bus. If you simply want to stay longer at a particular stop than is scheduled, you can do that. You can catch a different bus at a designated stop or you can just be anywhere along the Park Road and flag down a bus, any green bus, going in the direction you want to go. As long as there is room, a “Transit Bus” will pick you up.

The green “Free Shuttle Buses” are a great way to get around the first 15 miles of the park. In those first 15 miles are two campgrounds, the main Visitors Center, the Bus Depot, trailheads, and a store for supplies. These buses tend to stay more on time than the other buses, and they eliminate the need to worry about whether or not the parking lot at the Savage River Bridge is full.

The green “Camper Buses” are basically the same as the “Transit Buses” but have rear seats removed for camping and backpacking gear. They are reserved for tent campers at the four campgrounds located after the Savage River Bridge and for backcountry backpackers. The fee is $42.75 and the tickets are valid for the entire period of camping.

The green “Discovery Hike Buses” exclusively transport those that have signed up for Discovery Hikes.

Discovery Hikes are off-trail hikes led by a park ranger with a maximum of twelve people for each hike. They all leave from the park entrance area from 8:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. (actual meeting locations and times may vary). There may be one or two hikes each day but if there are two, both groups ride the same bus.

Discovery Hikes are selected by the rangers and they are not allowed to do the same hike more than twice in a season to help protect the environment. The hikes are generally between two and five miles and are either designated as “moderate” or “strenuous”. In all cases, you are not on a trail – you are bushwhacking, walking through streams or rivers, and somewhat making up the route as you go. You must be prepared, or they will turn you away. Be sure to read through the Gear Checklist on the park's Discovery Hikes webpage. That checklist is a great checklist for what to bring to Denali whether or not you do a Discovery Hike.

You can’t reserve Discovery Hikes in advance, you must sign up in person at the Visitor Center one or two days in advance. The Discovery Hike itself is free, but you still have to pay $42.75 for the bus ride. The good news is because the hikes are limited, your bus won't be full (at least on the way out - on the way back it turns into a regular "Transit Bus").

All the buses have big signs in their front windows indicating what type of bus they are and/or their destination. For “Transit Buses” and “Shuttle Buses” there are bus schedules posted at each designated stop, but I would recommend having a schedule with you at all times. The schedules change for different periods of the year, so you have to make sure you are looking at the right schedule for the time of your visit. Here's a link to the 2019 schedules - there are seven different schedules from Mid-May to Mid-September.

In peak season, there are eight to eleven different designated stops or drop-off/pick-up points for the "Transit Buses" depending on which bus trip (how far into the park) you sign up for.

Also, though there are schedules, don’t expect the buses to be right on time unless they are the first buses leaving the Bus Depot in the morning. Though they tell you to be at your bus stop fifteen minutes early, our experience has been that they are more likely to be late than on time or early. Sometimes they are as much as a half hour late depending on what wildlife they may have stopped to see on the way.

Finally, none of the fees for any of the buses mentioned above include the $15/person park entrance fee. So, unless you have a park pass, you will have to pay that in addition to the bus fees. The entrance fee is good for seven days.

Getting Around The Park – Walking, Hiking, Biking

Denali National Park is an unusual park. You can pretty much walk or hike anywhere except for areas closed due to certain wildlife activity.

There are some designated hiking trails, but you can hike off-trail or on the Park Road as well. There are no “Stay On Trail” signs like you see at pretty much every National Park in the Lower 48.

If you go into the backcountry, you need a permit, but everywhere else is pretty much fair game unless there is significant bear activity or it’s rutting season for moose or some other reason an area is closed for safety in which case there are signs posted.

Again, you can drive yourself and walk, hike, or bike in the first 15 miles of the Park Road to the Savage River Bridge. To go farther into the park, you can 1) walk, 2) ride your bike, or 3) take a bus and get dropped off anywhere to walk, hike, or bike (many of the “Transit Buses” have bike racks).

BUT, if you intend to walk, hike, or bike the Park Road, be forewarned. You will get dusted by buses. In peak season, there are over 30 “Transit Buses” and the number of “Tour Buses” is at least that if not more, although their numbers fluctuate with cruise schedules. Even on rainy days, it only takes about half a day for the buses to dry out the road and create more dust.

Though bike riding the Park Road sounds like a good idea, there is so much bus traffic and dust that all the cyclists we saw just looked miserable.

Camping

Backcountry camping and backpacking isn’t something most people will do on their visit to Denali, so I’ll just talk about the campground options.

There are six campgrounds in Denali National Park.

Riley Creek – Mile 0.25 (park entrance) – RVs & tents
Savage River – Mile 13 (last campground on paved road) – RVs & tents
Sanctuary River – Mile 22 – Tents only
Teklanika River – Mile 29 – RVs & tents
Igloo Creek – Mile 35 – Tents only
Wonder Lake – Mile 85 – Tents only

As noted above, only three of the campgrounds allow RVs – Riley Creek, Savage River, and Teklanika River. None of the campgrounds have hook-ups. RV length in all three campgrounds is limited to 40 feet.

Generator hours are limited – 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Quiet hours are 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.

The camping fees at Riley Creek and Savage River are $30/night for RVs from 30 – 40 feet, $24 for RVs/vehicles under 30 feet (combined length), and $15 for walk-in tent campers.

The camping fee at Teklanika is $25 for all sites.

The tent camping fee for Sanctuary and Igloo is $15/night and it’s $16/night plus a $6 one-time reservation fee for Wonder Lake.

Let’s take a closer look at the three campgrounds that allow RVs.

Riley Creek – Mile 0.25 – 147 sites

This campground is the easiest to access and the most convenient to park amenities plus it has more amenities than the other campgrounds.

Pros:

Easy access from Parks Highway
Walking trails to Visitor Center, Morino Grill (the only restaurant in the park), Bus Depot, Riley Creek Mercantile (store), and hiking trails
Opportunity to get better seats on park buses due to proximity to Bus Depot where most bus trips begin
Showers
Flush toilets as well as vault toilets
Coin laundry
Dump station and potable water nearby (next to Riley Creek Mercantile)
Water spigots scattered throughout the campground
Picnic Tables
Firepits
Firewood for sale at Riley Creek Mercantile
Cell Reception (voice and data) – This is a BIG pro over the other campgrounds for researching and staying in touch
Free Wi-Fi at Riley Creek Mercantile
Can drive own vehicle on paved 15 miles of Park Road
Easy access to free “Shuttle Buses” to explore the first 15 miles of the Park Road

Cons:

Road noise from Parks Highway
More people

Savage River – Mile 13 – 32 sites

This campground is the smallest of the three that allow RVs, but it is still on the paved section of Park Road and has a convenient bus stop.

Pros:

Fairly easy access off the paved section of Park Road
Very quiet
Savage River behind campground; much less crowded than the Savage River Bridge area
Flush toilets as well as vault toilets
Water spigots scattered throughout the campground for filling jugs – NOT to be used for filling RV fresh water tanks or washing dishes
Picnic Tables
Firepits
Walk to bus stop and a couple hiking trails
Can drive own vehicle on paved 15 miles of Park Road
Easy access to free “Shuttle Buses” to explore the first 15 miles of the Park Road

Cons:

No cell service, data service, or Wi-Fi (A “Pro” for some)
Have to drive to amenities at park entrance or catch a shuttle bus
Best seats on “Transit Buses” are taken by the time the bus gets to the campground bus stop
No dump station or RV water filling station (but nice dump station and water filling station at Riley Creek Mercantile at the park entrance where you register)
No firewood for sale
No showers
No laundry

Teklanika River – Mile 29 – 53 sites

This campground is the exception to the rule that you can’t drive your personal vehicle past the Savage River Bridge at mile 15. RVers can drive their RVs to Teklanika.

BUT, there are a couple caveats. You can only drive to the campground on arrival day and back to the park entrance on departure day. You can pull off and sightsee or hike on your way in or your way out, but you can’t drive anywhere else once you get to the campground. That goes for those that are “car camping” as well.

If you have a truck/trailer combination, the truck is “essential” to your set-up, so you can obviously take both. However, if you have a motorhome, you can only take the motorhome to the campground – your towed vehicle, if you have one, must remain in a free parking lot at the park entrance as it is not considered “essential”. If you carry a lot of stuff in your "toad" like we do, that can be an issue.

Also, there is a three-day minimum for RVers and others with vehicles to camp at Teklanika. That limit does not apply to tent campers that arrive on one of the buses.

Pros:

Very quiet
Trips deeper into the park by bus are shorter
The “Tek Pass” – For $40 per person the “Tek Pass” gets you unlimited “Transit Bus” rides farther into the park. Your first trip, you get a designated day and time, but then on subsequent days you can hop on any “Transit Bus” going farther into the park (that has space) and return to Teklanika; Basically, you get multiple days of bus riding for the cost of one bus ride; However, the pass is NOT good to go anywhere toward the park entrance from Teklanika – if you take the bus to Savage River or the park entrance (or anywhere east of Teklanika), you would have to purchase a full ticket to get back
Vault toilets
Water spigots scattered throughout the campground for filling jugs – NOT to be used for filling RV fresh water tanks or washing dishes
Picnic Tables
Firepits
Walk to bus stop

Cons:

No cell service, data service, or Wi-Fi (A “Pro” for some)
Cannot drive yourself anywhere once you arrive at the campground
Cannot access amenities at park entrance without taking a bus and paying full fare to get back
No access to free “Shuttle Buses” to explore the first 15 miles of the Park Road
Your RV or vehicle will be a dusty mess after driving to and from the campground
Can’t take a towed vehicle attached to your motorhome
No dump station or RV water filling station (but nice dump station and water filling station at Riley Creek Mercantile at the park entrance where you register)
No firewood for sale
No showers
No laundry

I can’t really speak to the tent-only campgrounds except to say that Wonder Lake is very popular, and that’s where the iconic photos of Denali (the mountain) with a reflection in a pond are taken. It’s by far the closest campground to the mountain, but it’s hit or miss as whether the mountain will be visible during your visit. And, from what I've read, the mosquitoes can be really bad there.

Speaking of views of Denali, the only other campground where you may see the top of the mountain on a clear day is Savage River.

Our Recommendations

RV Camping

As I’ve said many times, we usually don’t make reservations at campgrounds, but it’s a little more necessary at Denali. The problem with that is actually choosing dates weeks or months in advance.

Typically, May and June are drier months and if your primary goal is to see Denali (the mountain), your odds are better earlier in the year. But July and August are warmer (and wetter) and that’s when most people usually come.

Due to our whole Alaska Schedule, we chose dates near the end of our journey in the last half of August. We had no other rationale than that. We planned to end our Alaska trip in the Fairbanks area around the first of September hoping to have a better chance to view the Northern Lights, and Denali would be a final stop on the way.

Originally, I wanted to book at Teklanika to get farther into the park and have a more wilderness experience. I thought the “Tek Pass” was a great idea (and I still do if you decide to stay there). I didn’t have a problem with the three-day minimum.

I thought perhaps we’d book three nights at Teklanika and two or three nights at Savage River. Neither Linda nor I were interested in Riley Creek as it was too close to the hustle and bustle of the park for our tastes and it has way more sites (i.e. more people and more noise). Ultimately, due to the restrictions of movement at Teklanika, Linda nixed that idea, so I booked four nights at Savage River. We both agreed we probably didn't need more than four nights in total.

Once we got to Denali and took the bus rides, I remembered how dusty the road is, and I was glad we didn’t book Teklanika. The rig would have been covered in dust on the outside and full of dust on the inside. And we would have had to leave our Jeep at the park entrance with no means to get around other than “Transit Buses”. It wasn’t our intent to take multiple bus trips deep into the park, so Teklanika would have been a bad decision for us.

As it was, Savage River was perfect – not too crowded, quiet, easy to get away from other people, and we still had our Jeep with us and could drive ourselves back to the park entrance for phone and internet service and anything else we might need. We could take night drives on our own and drive to trailheads in the first 15 miles of the Park Road. Plus, during our stay, it was moose rutting season, and the moose were all hanging out in about an eight-mile stretch – we drove it every night and had multiple moose sightings.

So, though Teklanika sounded great, I would recommend Savage River or Riley Creek for RVers. If your plan is to stay no more than two nights, Teklanika is eliminated anyway.

If you are staying six nights or more, I would probably split that up between campgrounds.

If you absolutely have to have cell voice and data in your RV, then Riley Creek is your only choice. If you like easy and convenient, and want to be close to everything near the park entrance (walking distance or a short drive), Riley Creek is again the best choice.

Again, we chose Savage River, and here’s what we did. After dinner each night we drove the two miles out to the Savage River Bridge as far as we could go looking for wildlife. Then we slowly drove back toward the entrance through the moose rutting section before picking up the pace and driving to the Visitor Center (about 11 miles from Savage River Campground). There, we got good Verizon 4G, and we checked our emails and voicemails for about a half an hour. Then we drove back to the campground slowly again searching for wildlife in the twilight. So, not only did we take care of a little business, but we also had some great wildlife viewing on our own pace.

Okay, for those of you with RVs over 40 feet, the park recommends that you camp outside the park at one of the three or four nearby private RV parks (all of which get lower ratings than the campgrounds inside the park even though they have hook-ups). However, IF you want to chance getting a spot inside the park, here is the good news. You are not assigned specific sites. If you book a “large” RV site (30 to 40 feet), when you arrive you can choose any “large” RV site that is available that matches your camping permit you get when you check in. There are certainly sites that can fit rigs over 40 feet, but it’s a little risky that any will actually be available.

We booked a “large” RV site even though we are only 29 feet because we needed room to accommodate our Jeep. The “small” RV sites (under 30 feet) are for small RVs where a single vehicle or combination of vehicles is no more than 30 feet.

Buses

Your likelihood of seeing wildlife on the bus tours is very high. It doesn’t really matter what time of year or what time of day you go. The longer your bus ride, the higher your odds. You have the chance of having the most amazing experience of your life, or you might be disappointed, but chances are you will see something.

With that said, many of the sighting are long distance, so be sure to take a good pair of binoculars, and you’ll be well-served for your photos to have the ability to zoom in quite a ways.

Most of the wildlife is seen consistently between mile 10 and mile 66 (Eielson Visitor Center), but certainly there are more opportunities if you go all the way to Wonder Lake at mile 85 or Kantishna at the end of the road at mile 92. If it’s a clear day and the mountain is out or more likely to be out, I’d be more inclined to go farther, but the longer trips tend to have more miles without wildlife.

Now, though most people come back from a bus trip through Denali happy, I will tell you that even "modified" school buses are a terrible way to view wildlife and take photos. Here’s why.

The windows are split with the lower portion being static and the upper portion coming down if you stand up and use both hands to push in the annoying buttons to lower it. For an adult on a school bus the middle metal bar separating the lower and upper window panes is right in your viewing area. This forces you to scrunch down or stand up to see out and, of course, you are not allowed to stand while the bus is moving. Note: A few of the tan "Tour Buses" have better sliding windows which would help a lot, but we didn't see many of those.

If people see wildlife the bus driver doesn’t see, they yell “STOP!!” Assuming the driver hears them and stops, everyone is now looking for something. If it happens to be on your side of the bus, great, but be prepared for others to invade your personal space to get a look or photos. If it’s on the other side of the bus, your opportunity to see it and photograph it is 50% less. Also, though the drivers try to make sure both the front and the back of the bus can see, that’s not always possible. Somebody will often be parked so that a tree or bush is blocking their view.

At any rate, you are often looking through dirty windows, or at the heads and backs of fellow passengers, or through a tiny little viewing area that takes a contortionist to find. If you are lucky enough to have the best view on the bus, you’ll want to put your window down, so you stand up, you fiddle with the window until it finally comes down, and then you hope it’s not too late to get that once-in-a-lifetime photo.

You can’t ride with the windows down, because the dust will choke everybody.

So, you ride on the bumpy, dusty road, you occasionally stop, there is scrambling to put windows down, and forty-something people are all trying to see and take pictures of an animal, and twenty of those people are on the "wrong" side of the bus for each sighting.

If you have a good group on your bus, everyone is quiet and respectful and they let you get a look and your photo. But some groups are noisy and inconsiderate, and it’s not a pleasant experience. We had one of those situations where the bus was crowded, we weren't able to sit together when we boarded, the driver "over-narrated" and was a bit condescending, and a large group on the bus just wouldn't shut up. So, we switched buses and had a better return trip.

Just be prepared for the reality. Very few people ever say their bus ride was bad, and that’s because most have never seen anything like Denali or perhaps it’s their first Grizzly bear or moose, so the moments of brilliance make up for the long periods of boredom and/or unpleasantness.

Here’s my advice, as to bus tours. This is strictly my opinion.

First, I don’t think there is any need at all to spend the extra money on any of the narrated tan bus tours. I have no personal experience with them ‘cause I’m simply not convinced they are worth three to four times the cost of a “Transit Bus”, especially since the narrators are not Interpretive Park Rangers.

All I want my bus driver to do is spot wildlife, stop when I see wildlife, position the bus so that as many people as possible get a chance to see the wildlife, and …. this is important …. not drive us off a cliff. If he/she can and is willing to answer a few questions, that’s nice too. Maybe that’s just me.

Also, the tan “Tour Buses” are more likely to be full, and many are full of groups of cruise passengers. The green “Transit Buses” are often full too, but there is a greater chance that you’ll have a better choice of seats or a half empty bus that lets you move around when something is spotted.

In the end, if you want full narration and details, don't mind full buses, and don't mind spending the extra money, you'd probably prefer one of the tan bus tours. Otherwise, the green buses will be just fine.

Second, if at all possible, grab the first or second row of seats on the door side of the bus. That way you have the added benefit of being able to see out the windshield giving you way more viewing and picture taking area. Even with all the bus traffic, there is still wildlife on the road right in front of you from time to time (like these bears).

Or there is wildlife that is near the edge of the road that you can see upon approach, but it may disappear into the brush by the time you get there, and no one farther back in the bus sees it at all.

Plus, if you are up front, you will be able to exit the bus more quickly and have more time at the designated stops. AND, the front of the bus is far less dusty than the back. Those pesky windows don’t always go up all the way, so if there are ten windows with an inch gap, the dust accumulates in the back. It's not a bad idea to carry a buff or scarf or mask or something to protect your breathing (and your eyes) from the dust if your only choice is to sit toward the back.

Getting better seats may require being at the Bus Depot to be the first to board. But people are getting on and off the bus all the time. Keep your eyes and ears open, and if the folks in the good seats aren’t getting back on your bus, be ready to move quickly. By snagging that front row seat one day on this trip, I got great photos of bears walking down the road toward us (the above is just one photo) and photos of a lynx that I’m sure no one else got.

Again, school buses are terrible for viewing for the reasons I mentioned earlier, but do whatever you can to improve your opportunities.

As for which hours are best for wildlife viewing, most drivers will tell you it doesn’t really matter that much in Denali. In a perfect world, I would take the earliest buses or the latest buses simply because there is a better chance they would have less people on them. I like the early buses because if there is any wildlife near the road, it hasn’t been scared off by the parade of other buses yet.

With that said, we’ve had amazing sightings in the middle of the day. But the best photos have been on buses that had fewer people.

Other Things To Do

Certainly, most people come to Denali National Park to see wildlife and view the highest mountain in North America. Truth be told, often the best views of the mountain are outside the park on the George Parks Road inside Denali State Park south of the National Park entrance.

So, if we take that out of the equation, everyone wants to see wildlife. The bus trips provide the best opportunity for that, but we had very good luck on the paved 15 miles of the Park Road that we explored our own. Still for variety, including bears, your odds go up the farther you go into the park. On our recent visit, all our bear sightings were between mile 45 and mile 66.

Certainly, the Denali wilderness is amazing, and backcountry hiking and camping would be an unforgettable experience. But relatively few people will do that and there are so many possibilities, I just can’t get into that here.

So, if you are not inclined to take a bus trip every day, there are other things you can do. Check out the park's "Things To Do" page. There are dog sled demonstrations and there are hiking trails that offer some great views and challenges. And I highly recommend doing a Discovery Hike.

Remember the Discovery Hikes are ranger-led, off-trail hikes. Between the hike itself and the bus ride to and from the hike, they are pretty much all-day affairs. The rangers choose the hikes, and they are two to five miles and are rated as “moderate” or “strenuous”. They are not for everyone, but if you like to hike and are capable and have the required gear, it’s a great way to get out and safely hike in the park where you may be the only people that have ever stepped on that piece of land.

We did one, and I’m a big fan. It wasn’t overly structured, we made up our route as we went, we got away from the road and the buses, and it felt like we connected more with a small piece of Denali. We had a small group and we could stick with the ranger or wander off a bit as long as we informed our guide.

Since you can only sign up in person one or two days in advance, if they are filled up, I would consider staying an extra day to take a Discovery Hike. Speaking of that, how long should you stay?

How Long To Stay

As far as how long to stay in Denali, I would recommend a minimum of three nights. The more nights you book, the more chance you’ll have of seeing the mountain, but there is still no guarantee. Three nights will give you time to get in at least one long bus trip through the park, and you can still do a little hiking or other exploring on your own.

We booked four nights, but ended up leaving after three. Part of that was because we’ve been here before, and because we were able to see the mountain for three straight days from Denali State Park before we arrived.

We had two half days and two full days in the park. We did three night drives and had 28 moose sightings, two huge bull caribou, and a coyote (and Arctic Ground Squirrels and Snoeshoe Hares). We took a bus ride into the park 66 miles and back out and had eleven bear sightings, saw countless caribou, and viewed various other animals. We did a Discovery Hike one day and on that bus ride we saw moose, bears, caribou, Dall sheep, and a lynx. And on our last morning I did two hikes, the easy, popular Savage River Loop and the 4-mile strenuous Savage Alpine Trail.

With that said, if you have time, take as many bus rides as you can to see as much as possible. Everybody will have their limit of how many bus rides on that bumpy, dusty road you can take. Stay until you’ve had enough ‘cause every day will be different.

Well, that pretty much wraps up our Denali “primer”. I hope you found it informative. Thanks for reading and feel free to ask us about anything we left out. We may not know the answers, but we'll do our best.

If you care to read more details about our 2019 visit to Denali National Park, here are the links to the individual posts.

2019 Alaska Trip - Day 115 - First Day In Denali National Park

2019 Alaska Trip - Day 116 - Bus Tour In Denali National Park

2019 Alaska Trip - Day 117 - Discovery Hike & Another Great Wildlife Day In Denali National Park

2019 Alaska Trip - Day 118 - Last Morning In Denali National Park - Savage River Loop & Savage Alpine Trail