Denali

“Just trying to find a place to go hiking next summer. I am kind of looking at Alaska's Denali NP. Who has been there and what recommendations do you have? I see were there are no trails. How does a backpacker keep from getting lost and how hard is it to hike if there are no trails? Who has been there?”

“WE did an overnight hike there a couple of years ago. It was terrific. LOTS of wildlife. As you may know, they limit access to the backcountry. The park is divided into many small sections. Each section is allowed 12 people a day (sounds like a lot but really isn't). You can't reserve until you get there. There are guidebooks and a website that describes what each section is like. Before you go, read the descriptions, pick out some sections that sound feasible, and then hope you can get the one(s) you want. If you are going to be there several days, you may not get the area you want the first day, but it may open up a couple of days later, so you take another section and then walk or take the camper bus to the one you want when you can. Things to watch out for - river crossings, glaciers, willows. You buy a map at the visitors center when you get your permit. IT won't show vegetation, but it will show where the rivers are and the ridges. If you are high on the ridge, then getting around is easier than if you are wallowing through willows. In some cases, following the river is easiest. The land is very open, for the most part. Plan on low mileages and spend time with binoculars looking for wildlife. You'll likely find it.

The Denali part of our trip is at http://spiriteaglehome.com/ak04%20denali.html

We went in near Polychrome, hiked back around the ridge, camped and then hiked out the next day, emerging a few miles down the road from where we started. There are a lot of game trails through the brush, but no formal trails. Navigation wasn't a problem though; we just kept in mind where the road was and kept track of where we were via the maps.”

“use a MAP, COMPASS, GPS........Take a Shelter, Backpack, Food, All the backpacking gear you always use on a TRAIL. Note I said always USE.
How much experience do you have?”

“E mail me at refrigeratorfridge@gmail.com if you are seriious. I have some important information you may want to explore.”

“Yes, the Wendigo sightings are on the rise again...”

“Be VERRY CARFULL a bout marmrats bwt!”

“I actually live right outside Denali and try to get everybody to come up and hike. My job security is directly tied to how many people visit th epark.

My first recommendation fo r a hike in the area is to do Kesugi Ridge in Denali state park (about an hour and a half closer to anchorage than the national park). The second thing I would to is to take the shuttle bus into the national park and camp at Wonder lake for a couple of days. Wonder Lake is one of the most beautiful places int he world when it isn't cloudy. For backpacking in the park, I'd do eilson or polychrome areas. Both have great braided rivers where you can travel on gravel bars instead of bushwacking through alder and willow. Oh, and the views are almost as great as wonder lake.

I'm an infrequent poster and lurker, but when I see something that I can help with I do like to keep an eye on this site. You guys have helped me out a few times and I like to return the favor.”

“hard to think you could possibly have a bad trip up there.

Go.

Have fun.

and Beware the Angry Marmot”

“Thanks for the infomation. I have hiked the Canadian Rockies and Glacier in Montana. How does Denali compare to these places in as far as getting around, number of tourest, overall beauty and seeing wildlife? I know that is a broad question but any suggestions might help.”

“Thinkbubelz & I did the Polychrome Pass area-- Very beautiful! One thing to note-- you have to camp where you cannot be seen from the road or you will get fined. Some parts of the park, the road is really high up, so that means hiking way out.

The Arctic Tundra is different to hike on if you haven't done it before, kind of like walking on a sponge.... Where we hiked, the brush was very short and scrubby, they discourage people from hiking in a line because they do not want the park to have any visible human trails.

Watch out for the blueberry & cranberry patches as the grizzlies like to snack there....

Water is silty, so some kind of pre-filter may be helpful... (If you search TT, you'll find a thread I posted when I first got on TT--Thinkbubelz was too cautious and we carried several gallons of water to the back country, but now that we have a water filter, we would probably just do a pre-filter if we were to hike there again.)

BTW-- you will want to check the availability of water before picking your region for hiking.

Also, depending on the weather and the time of year, Mosquitos can be pesky... or there could be a lot of rain... We got lucky the year we went, we went during the "rainy season", (end of August - Beginning of September) but it was unseasonably dry that year as well, so we only had bugs for about a day until the temperature dropped.

However, the weather can be unpredictable as well-- the day after we left Denali, it snowed 4 inches....

I'm jealous-- Denali is a beautiful park and next time Thinkbubelz & I hope to go to Wonder Lake-- that's something like 13 hours into the park via bus. We only went into the front part of the park, but It's all beautiful, regardless!”

“Tourists = 2nd least frequented National Park, I think, after Isle Royale, MI....

Lots of tourists on the outside by the visitor center and the car-camping area.... but once you go backpacking, you won't see hardly anyone. The bus basically takes you to a point on the road and the driver says "see you in a few days". It is definitely a good idea to let someone know you're going out there because it is definitely very remote!

Eielson Visitor Center gets a lot of daytime visitors, but again, it's not excessively crowded either.

We saw Grizzlies, Dall Sheep (well, actually, we heard them in Denali, but saw them near the Harding Ice Field (A great day hike) & Anchorage), Moose, Eagles, Ptarmigan, etc.

Bring a camera because you'll love the views!”

“Lots and lots of wildlife. We took the bus out to Eilson and back one day, then the hiker bus to Polychrome where we got off to go backpacking then picked it up the next day to go back to the car - saw 12 grizzlies (including two on our backpacking overnight trip), wolves, caribou, dall sheep, mountain goats, and a moose. We didn't see the Mountain while we were there, but still it was beautiful country.”

“Thank you to all who responded. I have print out a copy to keep for the planning. What about the weather. When is the best time to go?”

“ANY TIME.......What do you like.....you have 4 seasons......3 of which are short ones....”

“July/August would probably be best for hiking/camping I assume??? I would like to see snow but I dont want it to be so cold that its not enjoyable. What do you think?”

“As an Alaskan, I go into Denali every summer. My favorite time is June. There are not as many tourists, The Mountain is much more frequently out, and it's not rainy season, like in August. In August we have been caught in unbelievable rain storms & snow. It is chilly in June.

The park road makes it pretty easy to stay oriented and not get lost. But we always take a topo map of the section with us as well as the necessary pages out of Denali Guidebook.

The number of backpackers allowed into sections varies depending on the section, ranging from 4 to 12. The smaller number in your group, the easier it is to get into your desired section.

My favorite sections are Primrose Ridge, Cathedral Mountain, Sable Pass area, Tatler Creek & Sable Mt, Stony Dome area, Thorofare Pass area, & Polychrome Mt.

A great intro backpack into Denali is the East Branch of the Toklat River, permit area 9, which if I remember correctly, allows 6 backpackers. It's beautiful! The river bars make travel easy. About 5 miles in (check on topo) there are fresh water streams flowing into the river- a great place to set up a base camp between 2 streams. There's a huge marmot village. From there you can dayhike back a few miles to the glaciers.

We have seen a lot of brown bears, herds of caribou, fox, dall sheep, wolves, pika, eagles and millions of marmots & ground squirrels.

I highly recommend Ike Wait's Denali Guidebook, which is our bible to hiking Denali.

My favorite way to see Denali is to go in for at least a week, get a campsite at Tek 30 miles in, & then ride the buses on a cheap Tek bus pass all week to all the best hikes. That way we hike the cream of the crop, without standing in lines never knowing what section is going to be open. Also, that way we come back each night to our cabover camper & our tent city of hiking friends, dry out our equipment, & get ready for another adventure. No hauling bear canisters! We like to climb all the peaks & ridges to get different views of the mountain.

Kesug'i Ridge, which someone else mentioned, in Denali State Park, is also a nice multi-day backpack. When the mountain is out (it's all about the mountain!) it's RIGHT THERE! We had black bears circling our campsite near Troublesome (that's why it gets its name) Creek. The State Park ranger office below the ridge loans Garcia bear canisters, which, although not required, is a must.

Have fun! I love Denali!”

“That sounds like an awesome way to do that area.I'm going to Wrangell St Elias in July. We will take Bush Plane in and out after 11 days so we've got alot to carry.”

“hey spam...I am going to Wrangell St Elias too. I am going to hike some 60 miles in 10 days and will be picked up by a Bush pilot too.
Maybe I will run into you there. DuhU

I will help you carry all that stuff. My pack weight will be 60 lbs with all the fixins.
Where are you starting and finishing up?

I hope you have a safe trip... I just hear say that that route from Jaeger Mesa to Jacksina Glacier is a Ball Buster and the BEARS are evrywhere. I hope you not fishin in those lakes! The Grizzlies will take your catch and not even say thank ya.. heck they might leave you some left overs, duhuu..
Okay..... Margaritta Ville time.”