Denali National Park and Preserve in Alaska is without a doubt one of the most magical places I have been. This is one of those places that you have to see while you are in Alaska. Do not skip it. We went near the end of May so the entire park wasn’t open yet, but we still managed to see some amazing wildlife and the views are absolutely stunning. This is one of those places where you realize just how small you are. Denali is one of the tallest mountains in the world and the tallest in North America standing at 20,310 feet. The park spans 6 million acres of untainted wilderness. There is one road, and only park rangers and park buses are allowed in past a certain point.
We explored Denali for two days, and thoroughly enjoyed our time here. Though, you can easily spend a few days in and around Denali and not run out of things to see.
Day 1: The Road to Denali
A Brief Stop in Talkeetna
The drive to Denali is about 3.5 hours from Palmer, so you should plan to make some stops along the way. It is important to pay attention during your drive to Denali. This is when you will likely get some of your best views of the mountain. You can’t miss it on a clear day.
Talkeetna is a charismatic town and an excellent place to stop for lunch. We stopped at the Wildflower Café and had a nice lunch on their patio. The food and service are excellent.
After lunch, our waitress recommended us walking down to the Big Susitna River, which is just down the road. You will pass some street vendors on the way, and perhaps even a musician playing for tips. Once you arrive at the river you will be greeted by an excellent view of Denali. It is definitely worth a stop.
Denali: Arrival
We stayed at Denali Chalet Resort, which has obviously been around for a while. Our room was nice, however, breakfast is not included. There are restaurants on site that serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The statue of Balto at the front desk almost made up for the lack of breakfast.
Once we checked in, we headed out to the park just to drive for a bit and to see where the visitor center is located. The visitor center was closed so we drove for a while, and saw a couple of critters. Pro tip: if you see a park ranger stopped on the road, there is probably a cool animal there. Creep up and check out whatever it is. This is how we got to see a porcupine just chilling in the brush by the road.
Additionally, we saw some snowshoe hares, and a willow ptarmigan, which my dad thought was a chicken. (It looks like a small chicken). Private vehicles can only drive 15 miles into the park. The remaining 77 miles can only be driven by rangers or park buses.
We didn’t stay in the park long before leaving to grab dinner at Baked Salmon. I can recommend this place as the food is excellent. As the name suggests, they have many salmon options, but you can find pretty much anything here, and it has a nice cozy atmosphere.
Day 2: Denali: Journey Into Wild Alaska
Into the Park
This was the day we had all been waiting for. The day we venture into Denali and see true wilderness at its finest. After a tasty breakfast at Karsten’s House (one of the restaurants at our resort), we head out to the park to get our bus tickets. We knew that the park wouldn’t be completely open this time of the year. It is the tundra after all and that snow doesn’t just melt overnight. Our bus went to the Toklat station which is at mile 53 of 92. It takes about 6 hours to get there from the bus station at the front of the park. Best 6 hours ever. There and back again: An Alaskan Tale.
All the Wildlife
Just to list the wildlife we saw: Grizzly bear, caribou, snowshoe hare, ground squirrels(everywhere), red fox, Dall sheep, hoary marmots, a peregrine falcon. Also, the views are so breathtaking you might cry. We took the bus tour that wasn’t narrated, but we had an awesome driver who narrated anyway. She had a great eye for catching animals and had us all working as a team to shout out whenever we saw something. Honestly, seeing a grizzly bear is so cool. It was so far away, but you could still see it digging around for roots. Apparently, they are much smaller in the mountains compared to the ones on Kodiak Island that are fat on salmon.
The End of the Road
After the park, we had dinner at Karsten’s House. I had a caribou burger, which was delicious. Though, it may have been a bad idea because I spent the next few days pretty sick with a stomach bug. I won’t go into details.
If you ever find yourself in Alaska, I urge you to go and see with eyes unclouded a beautiful and wild place. If you haven’t considered taking a trip to Alaska, it is so magical, and it will change you for the better. I promise. If you want to know more about Denali, feel free to contact me with any questions you may have. You can also check out the park’s website here if you are planning your own trip.
Our next stop after Denali was Seward. If you are hoping to spot some whales in Alaska, Seward is one of the best places to do so! If you haven’t already, check out the previous post about Palmer, Alaska here.
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Good job–
Denali looks so amazing. My partner has been to Alaska before but not Denali. We will have to make it our next overseas trip. It seems like you can see all of the great wildlife of the states in one spot with bonus snow capped mountains. thank you for sharing your experience.
Denali is magical! I hope you both are able to make it over there. So beautiful!
Hello! What was the weather like in Late May? Considering travel to alaska next may, but we are almost thinking on changing our plans to July. Any thoughts? Is the cold tolerable? We are both southerns, so you will give me a real opinion. hehe
I thought it was comfortable weather! It wasn’t cold enough for gloves or a scarf or hat. I even checked with my mom who lives in Tennessee (just in case living in Ohio has made me more cold resistant), and she said that May in Denali is kind of like March in the south. It never got below freezing while we were there! I wore a sweater and light jacket and jeans.
You’re totally going to love it either way. All of the mountains and wildlife are just incredible.