3 Best Things to Do In Denali National Park

Denali National Park is big. Like, huge. In fact, it’s the third-largest National Park in the United States — it sits only behind Wrangell-St. Elias NP and Gates of the Arctic NP, both of which are also in Alaska but are much less accessible than Denali.

So, when you have 7,408 square miles of National Park to work with, how in the world do you even decide where to start?

Fear not, my fellow traveler friend. I’ve got a list of the three best things to do in Denali National Park.

1. Visit the Sled Dogs

This was something I had absolutely no idea about until I showed up at Denali: they have their own sled dogs. (!!!!!!!) Located at Mile 3 in the park next to the Ranger Station, you’ll find the Sled Dog Kennels and an excitable group of bounding, fluffy, adorable Alaskan Huskies.

If you visit during the fall/winter season (until May 14, 2024), the kennels are only open to the public on Saturdays and Sundays from 1-4 p.m. From May 15 to mid-September, 2024, the kennels are open from 9:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. daily. And from early June to early September, visitors can enjoy demonstrations every day at 10 a.m., 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. During the demonstrations, one of the rangers will give a talk about how the dogs are used in Denali, and the dogs will do a short run around a track for the audience.

During the rest of the opening hours, you are free to get up close and personal with the dogs at their kennels. They are all very friendly and more than happy to oblige in your photo op, in exchange for a scratch behind the ears.

2. Hike in the first 15

Denali Park Road is only open to the public for the first 15 miles, but there’s more than enough to keep you entertained. Most of the only established trails in the park are within those first 15 miles. Many of them start at the Visitor Center, and there is something for everyone — from short, half-mile-half-an-hour trails, to 9-mile, strenuous, full-day hikes. And of course, hiking is one of the best things to do in Denali National Park.

The Savage River Loop trail is also very popular; it’s located right at Mile 15 and the very end of the public road. (There is a small parking lot here, but parking is limited so you may want to catch a shuttle.) This is an easy 2-mile loop along the river with stunning views of the surrounding mountains and hills. Beware: bears have recently been sighted in the area.

More information about hiking in the park.

3. Ride the Denali Park Transit Bus

Want to go further into the park than the first 15 miles? So did I, and I’m glad I decided to! The shuttles can be a little hard to understand at first, since it’s not something I’ve seen in any of the other national parks I’ve visited.

As of 2024, the park shuttle services are a bit different from when I visited in 2017. Instead of being called “Denali Park Shuttles,” they’re referred to as “Transit Buses.” These buses are essentially green-painted school buses (as pictured at the top of this article), and while they don’t offer narrated park tours, they do stop when there’s the opportunity to view wildlife!

Back in 2017, you could take the transit bus all the way to Kantishna at Mile 92 — a 13-hour round-trip journey. But you can only go to Mile 43 at present. That’s because of the Pretty Rocks Landslide, which is significantly impacting the Denali Park Road. Learn more about the Pretty Rocks Landslide.

Anyway, here’s how the Denali Transit Bus works: You purchase a transit bus ticket toward East Fork Bridge. While the ride from the Denali Bus Depot should take about 2.5 hours to reach East Fork Bridge, you are free to get off at any point along the way to hike or sightsee on your own. When you’re finished there, you can wave down another green bus going the direction you want to go, as long as they have an available seat! The Denali Transit Bus makes stops at the following locations:

• Riley Creek Campground (reduced services)
• Denali Bus Depot
• Savage Campground (Mile 13)
• Sanctuary Campground (Mile 23)
• Teklanika Campground (Mile 29)
• Teklanika Rest Stop (Mile 30)
• East Fork Bridge (Mile 42)

When I went, we went to Toklat River at Mile 53, and I was hoping that next time I visited, I would be able to go further into the park. Wonder Lake, which is at Mile 85, for example, is supposed to be super beautiful and have breathtaking views of Denali mountain. But it seems like it might be awhile until the situation with the landslide is figured out.

But no matter how far into Denali you’re able to go, make sure you’ve got your Alaska packing list squared away! And remember that you have to bring your own food into the park because there’s nothing available inside.

 

What more do you want to know about Denali? Do you have any recommendations of your own, or what do you think are the best things to do in Denali National Park? Let me know!

-Cathy

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Originally Published on July 19, 2017.