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On the cover: Denali (a.k.a. Mount McKinley) rises high above Denali National Park and Preserve.
Photograph © 2010 John Warden/AlaskaStock.com
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For passengers aboard the Alaska Railroad, the journey to Denali
is part of the pleasure. Photo Credit: Kerrick James
Denali National Park and Preserve embodies Alaska's untamed splendor
BY JOHN LEHRER
If you see an animal, shout something like, ‘Moose at 2 o’clock!’ and I’ll stop for as long as you want,” said Sheryl Paxton, the driver of a school bus about to head down a two-lane road into the middle of Alaska’s Denali National Park and Preserve. “But no body parts outside the windows—camera lenses only—and use your whisper voices.”
With about 40 other people from the Lower 48, I was bound for Eielson Visitor Center, 66 miles into Denali. It was a sunny day in the high 50s.
“We’re here for the scenery and wildlife,” said Paxton, a seasonal worker from Ohio in her ninth summer at the park. She had that right. Mainly, I wanted to see two things: Denali (as Alaskans call Mount McKinley) and a grizzly bear. But this majestic land had more in store for me than I could have imagined.I’d first traveled to Alaska 15 years before, visiting Juneau and Glacier Bay, and the state had permeated my consciousness ever since. But I’d never been to the interior, where wilderness stretches as far as the eye can see in any direction, and where the state’s signature wildlife—the gray wolf, moose, caribou, and grizzly bear—live. Denali struck me as the perfect place to experience all of that.
The High and the Mighty
Established in 1917 as Mount McKinley National Park, the original 2-million-acre space grew to 6 million acres in 1980, and the name was changed to Denali National Park and Preserve. (“Denali” means “the high one” in the native Athabaskan language.) The Alaska Range, with Denali as its centerpiece, stretches across the park’s entire southern section, establishing a barrier that creates a warmer, wetter climate to the south and a colder, drier climate to the north. The park’s weather is unpredictable. Visitors might experience sun, wind, rain, clouds, and snow—in the same day.
Which is why, as we boarded the bus to Eielson (eye-ul-son), someone said, “I wonder if we’ll see the mountain today.” That struck me as an odd statement. At more than 20,000 feet, Denali is North America’s tallest peak, so why shouldn’t we be able to see it? But as I learned, Denali is so massive it creates its own weather: Two days out of three, its peak is veiled in clouds.
On our way to Eielson, Paxton talked about the area’s animals, vegetation, and geography. As we drove deeper into the park, we spotted moose walking in high grass along the roadside, caribou in the river valleys, golden eagles soaring overhead, Dall sheep on the hillsides, and a lone wolf fast asleep in a meadow.
A grizzly roams Denali National Park
©2010 JupiterImages Corporation
Remote Access
Part of the park’s appeal is that you can take in as little or as much of it as you can handle. The 92-mile road into Denali provides the perfect metaphor: Most of it is gravel, with curves and steep inclines—and no guardrails. Tundra stretches for miles on either side. The farther into the park you go, the narrower and more rugged the road becomes—by design. Mile by mile, the developed world slips away. Gradually, you become immersed in the country’s wildness and begin to appreciate the tremendous natural forces that created—and continue to create—this amazing, primordial place.
After about four hours on the road, the bus rolled into Eielson Visitor Center, a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) platinum-certified structure made of stone, recycled wood, and rubber and built into the side of a hill.
As we all climbed out of the bus, someone said, “Look! The mountain is out.” And indeed it was, in all its grandeur, shining brilliantly in the sun, snow-covered, with only a few wisps of clouds drifting around its summit. Eielson is one of the best places in the park to see Denali. It dominates the landscape there to such a degree that it’s hard to believe the mountain is more than 30 miles away.
I spent an hour or so at Eielson, eating the box lunch of a turkey sandwich, chips, and fruit I’d bought at the hotel that morning. I talked with rangers about the park while other visitors checked out the displays and walked the trails around the building’s perimeter. For much of the time, though, we all just stood and stared across the immense valley at Denali.
As I stepped aboard the school bus for the ride back, I glanced at the steep slope behind Eielson. About a half-mile away, a grizzly bear ambled up a trail. I was startled at first—it’s impossible to be blasé when you’re in the presence of a creature that large and powerful, even at a safe distance. But that feeling gave way to awe because of how he carried himself. Indifferent to our presence, the grizzly clearly projected through his gait and bearing the sense that—as the writer John McPhee once said—Alaska is his country, that he is the dominant animal in it, and that “if you want to visit, you had better knock.”
Essential Alaska
I spent three days at Denali. Besides my trip to Eielson, I hiked the trails and explored the sights around Denali Visitor Center and took the Denali Natural History Tour. But the sensations of seeing Denali and the grizzly are what have stayed with me. They get to the core of what Alaska means to me—and, apparently, to many other park visitors.
How else to explain a busload of people going absolutely gaga watching a moose nibbling leaves in a grove of trees? Or being perfectly content to take a bumpy, four-hour bus ride on a one-in-three chance they’ll see Denali? Or craning their necks at impossible angles for 10 minutes or more to catch the flight of eagles a half-mile overhead? To me, these acts signify a hunger for nature that’s not satisfied by the lives most of us live. That’s the void Denali fills.
“Denali is probably as wild and remote as any park in the country,” says park superintendent Paul Anderson. “It represents something fundamental about us as a human species, about where we came from and who we are.”
For me, Denali embodies the essence of Alaska, seducing those who, as the locals say, “come into the country.” It’s one of the few remaining places to connect with what America was like before we developed it—a vast expanse of raw, untamed land and vibrant wildlife, the perfect antidote to the human-created world.
John Lehrer is editor in chief of Westways magazine.
For travel information, visit your local AAA office, call (866) 563-5396, or go to AAA.com/travel.
Cruising Alaska
A popular way to see Denali National Park is to take an Alaska cruisetour that includes a one- to four-night stay at the park before, during, or after the cruise. Itineraries also typically include stays in Fairbanks or Anchorage and land transportation via motorcoach, domed railway car, or both. Among the cruise lines offering Alaska cruisetours are Carnival Cruise Lines, Celebrity Cruises, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, and Royal Caribbean International. —J.L.
Denali is home to Dall sheep
Photo Credit: ATIA
Denali Details
When to Go
The main tourist season is from late May to mid-September. The park is open year-round, but in the off-season, most hotels, concessions, other guest services, and certain parts of the park are not accessible.
How to Get There
Fly into Anchorage and drive north for four hours (about 240 miles) on the George Parks Highway to the park entrance. There are lots of opportunities to pull off the road to view mountains and rivers and visit small towns, like Talkeetna. A relaxing alternative with a historic connection: The Alaska Railroad (800-544-0552) leaves downtown Anchorage every morning and arrives at Denali some eight hours later.
Where to Stay/Dine
The Grande Denali Lodge (800-276-7234) offers spacious rooms, deluxe cabins, and great views of the mountains and the valley below. At the McKinley Chalet Resort, the Nenana View Bar & Grille and Courtyard Café (907-683-8200 for both) have delicious, reasonably priced food served in inviting surroundings.
Navigating the Park
At Denali, most lodging, restaurants, and amenities are located outside the park; only backpackers, campers, and visitors staying in lodges at Kantishna can stay overnight inside the park. Also, there’s only one road into Denali, a 92-mile road starting at the park’s north terminus. Private vehicles can travel only to mile 15; from there to the end, the road is restricted to tour and shuttle buses (which charge fees, depending on the distance and nature of the trip). Visitors are encouraged to explore the park on their own.
Backcountry camping is permitted, too. Be forewarned: The conditions become more primitive as you progress deeper into the park. This “controlled access” system helps reduce the impact of the 400,000 annual visitors on the park’s fragile ecosystem.
Things to Do
Hiking trails and bike paths run through portions of the park. Near the park entrance, the first-rate Denali Visitor Center has interpretive programs, a movie about the park, and exhibits on the park’s history and wildlife; the Alaska Geographic bookstore and the Morino Grill are located next door. Rangers give sled-dog demonstrations three times daily at the park kennels. The Murie Science & Learning Center offers field seminars and educational programs.
Additional Tips
Alaskan weather is unpredictable—in the summer, temperatures could range from the low 40s to the low 80s on the same day—so dress in layers. Bring a windbreaker, lightweight long underwear, and a warm cap. Be patient; the main means of getting around between hotels, restaurants, and the park headquarters area is by shuttle bus, and sometimes they run a little behind schedule.
More information about visiting Denali is at (907) 683-2294; nps.gov/dena. —J.L.
Photo Credit: Julie Short
Sled Dog Days
If you visit Denali, take a short side trip to Jeff King’s Husky Homestead Tour. King, 53, a transplanted Californian, has made a career of racing in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, an arduous 1,100-mile ordeal from Willow (near Anchorage) to Nome. He’s won it four times, most recently in 2006, which makes his 90-minute kennel tour all the more impressive.
The tour begins as crew members hand visitors two- to three-week-old husky puppies (for a souvenir photo op). King welcomes the visitors, then turns the program over to guide Jamie Kohn, who introduces some of the 75 or so sled dogs and describes how the King family and crew exercise and care for them.
For the main event, King gathers everyone inside the barn, where, with the aid of a few props and slides, he describes the intricacies of training and racing sled dogs. He explains, for example, that for sled dogs the term “husky” refers to a physical type, not a breed, like the Siberian husky. Alaskan huskies are smaller, with longer legs, and are bred to race.
“These dogs live to run,” King says. “I have to hang on to the sled for dear life, because if I fall off, they don’t care.” Race days, he explains, are broken into four six-hour segments in which the dogs run, eat, and sleep. In the off-season, the dogs train by pulling an ATV or, on hot days, a boat in a nearby lake. Naturally, King is registered for this year’s Iditarod, his 21st. The race’s ceremonial start will be in Anchorage on March 6. (907) 683-2904. —J.L..
Visiting Anchorage
Anchorage makes a convenient place to begin or end your Alaska trip. The Best Western Golden Lion Hotel (100 E. 36th Street; 877-935-5466), located about halfway between the airport and downtown, is a modest, reasonably priced venue with friendly service. Nearby, Moose’s Tooth Pub & Pizzeria (330 Old Seward Highway; 907-258-2537) has great pizza and a good selection of local microbrews. Downtown, don’t miss the recently renovated Anchorage Museum (625 C Street; 907-929-9200) with its collections of native and contemporary art and fabulous museum shop. Even if you’re not into knitting, you’ll probably like Oomingmak (604 H Street; 907-272-9225), a store that specializes in hand-knit clothing made from Arctic musk ox wool. Simon & Seafort’s (420 L Street; 907-274-3502) specializes in seafood and has a great view of the scenic inlet. The Alaska Native Heritage Center (Heritage Center Drive, northeast of downtown; 907-330-8000) presents information about the five regional native groups that live in Alaska and includes storytelling, native games, multimedia displays, and dance performances. —J.L.
Climbing Denali
Every year, 1,200–1,300 people attempt to reach Denali’s summit; a little more than half make it. The climbing fee is $200; climbers must register 60 days in advance and inform park officials about their climbing experience, skills, and the route they’re taking.
Most climbs occur in May and June and take, on average, about three weeks. Climbing Denali is no walk in the park: It’s one of the most formidable ascents on Earth because, among other things, the weather is so severe and unpredictable. Storms can generate 150-mph winds, and summertime lows can dip to -40 F.
“Even the least technical route, the West Buttress, requires being in exposed areas, traveling across glaciers, and climbing a fixed rope line,” says Kris Fister, Denali’s public affairs officer. Park staff are on hand from about the third week of April until about July 4 to help in case of emergencies. —J.L.
You are reading articles from the January/Febuary 2010 issue of Westways. Some information contained in this publication is time-sensitive, and the terms of some offers (cruise or vacation packages, for example) or services (provisions for roadside assistance, for example) might have been superseded by subsequent information and might no longer apply.