Cell phone coverage is so important to people today who live with a smart phone. You will have great coverage outside the park and in the park entrance area (Visitor Center, train depot, store, and restaurant). Once you head into the park a little past the Park Head Quarters you will lose all cell coverage. Many people use the camera, music and other apps in their phone but as far as a communication device you are out of luck. The GPS will still work. When returning on the bus, as you pass into the coverage area, you hear beeping and chirping as people’s phone reconnect with civilization. Be happy someone isn’t sitting on the bus the whole time yakking on their phone.

Cell coverage along the Parks Highway between Fairbanks and Anchorage has a number of dead zones. Every year the coverage has improved. You can stay connected on an iPad about 75% of the time between Fairbanks and Anchorage. Where you are connected varies depending on your provider. Remember you came to Alaska to enjoy the scenery and wildlife. Put the phone in your pocket and enjoy this great state.

Here are links to coverage maps.  There are many little holes in the coverage they show. As you see the are pretty matched for coverage. Not all outside companies have their data plan supported, voice and text only, but this may change.

AT&T – Search using McKinley Park, AK – supports T-mobile

GCI –  GCI supports - supports T-mobile

ACS Alaska – ACS supports – supports Verizon

The train is a great way to get to Denali National Park. The train was really the only way to visit Denali Park from 1922-1957. In the early years guests arrived by train and stayed in wall tents at Savage River Camp until the hotel opened in June 1, 1939. The Denali Highway opened in 1957 which allowed visitors to drive to the park from Fairbanks and Anchorage. Car camping at the park became popular for Alaskans as a way to visit the park. Driving to the park was a long trip on an unpaved rough road. The train remained the way most people arrived at the park. In 1971 the Parks Highway was complete from Fairbanks to Anchorage providing access to the park on a paved road. The train remains popular today and provides a scenic trip not to be missed.

The Alaska Railroad provides daily service. Trains leave Fairbanks and Anchorage at 8:15 am each morning. The Fairbanks train arrives at the park about 12:25 pm and continues on to arrive in Anchorage at 8 pm. The train from Anchorage arrives at the park 3:55 pm and gets into Fairbanks at 8 pm. The Denali River Cabins & Cedar’s Lodge provide complementary pick up and drop off at the train station in Denali Park.

If you are headed to the Kantishna Roadhouse you will meet the bus for your ride out at the train station. The Kantishna Roadhouse bus will meet those people arriving from Fairbanks and will return from Kantishna to drop you off in time to catch the train to Anchorage or Fairbanks. If you are traveling from Anchorage you may want to consider taking the bus up to the park and the train back down to Anchorage. If you take the train up from Anchorage you will have to arrange to spend the night at the park entrance and catch the Kantishna Roadhouse bus the next day.

There is bus service from Anchorage to the park and back provided by The Park Connection. Alaska/Yukon Trails provides bus service between Fairbanks and Anchorage, between Whitehorse YT to Dawson City YT, and between Dawson City and Fairbanks. Check out their websites for rates and schedules.

Links
http://www.alaskarailroad.com/ – The Alaska Railroad
http://www.alaskacoach.com/ – The Park Connection
http://www.alaskashuttle.com/ – Alaska/Yukon Trails

We came through Polychrome Pass in late June 2010 and saw a band of mature Dall sheep.They appeared to be agitated. Their attention was focused across the road. To our right a lone wolf had come from above and scared them across the road. They stared at the wolf as it tried to come down the mountain. The sheep then took refuge on a steep rocky slope, still keeping a close eye on the direction of the wolf, who then disappeared from sight.

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This post is part of a series on the Traveling the Denali Park Road – to read the series from the beginning, click here.

The next section we move through is to some people the most peaceful in the park. Most of the busses don’t go out to the Kantishna district. We also pass the west end caribou calving grounds called Turtle Hill. Caribou are a great migrating animal, always on the move. In a 3 to 5 day period in early June as many as 80% of the calves are dropped. This strategy once very effective is now showing signs  of being counter productive as predators have made strong advances and take large numbers of calves. The surviving  calves, once they grow strong enough to follow their mothers, begin dispersing sometimes moving toward the east end of the park. The mixed groups, some mature males, females and calves are still harassed, by predators mostly wolves, increasing valley temperatures and parasites such as mosquitoes . This causes them to take evasive action. From the valley floors they move to higher elevations. Between 5’000 and 7’000 feet is not uncommon. They pay a price though. The forage is not as nutritious. There is also the possibility of over grazing an area and severe weather will drive them to lower elevations. All of these and other factors play a part in our ability to locate larger groups of caribou. 

The lone caribou walking along the road is also a delight though. Most surprising is their keen awareness and intelligence. It is not uncommon for a caribou to walk straight down the center of the road to the bus, stop turn it’s head to the left for a photo op, turn it’s head to the right for a photo op, then walk right passed the bus, looking everyone over in the process. If I’ve seen that  happen once I’ve seen it happen or something similar to it 50 times!

The rolling hills of the next section also give us opportunity for moose. In many ways moose are the most temperamental creatures we encounter. Almost always solitary except mothers with calves and during the fall mating season. Of course in the natural world there is always the exception. In the spring of 2009 we were rolling along quietly toward Kantishna. Adolph Murie once said, The wilderness is sometimes best observed and absorbed in silence.” (So I do leave stretches where we have that opportunity.)      “MOOSE!!!” is shouted from the back of the bus. “Left or right side?” “Left side.” All eyes searching intently and indeed a moose is finally found, a young bull moose with tiny nubs of antler budding out. But wait a minute something else is going on. Just alittle ahead are a small heard of caribou. A large old bull with some females and calves. As we watch it becomes apparent that the young moose wants to join the herd! He keeps moving in closer and closer. By now the bull caribou has had enough. He comes over to run the young moose off. The young moose circles around and tries to come from another side. What could this moose be thinking about? Do moose get lonely? I suspect they do. But this guy wasn’t going to get his wish. In the way caribou do, they turned in unison, lifted their tails and in a surprisingly swift gate were gone through the heavy brush. After a few minutes of contemplation the young moose headed for a pond and a meal of pond grass. Maybe some greens to lift his spirits?. Moose are a mainstay for us and it’s a rare day that we don’t see at least one.

It’s at this juncture of the trip that I tell a story about the naming and climbing of Mnt. McKinley. I’m going to save that story so it will be fresh to your ears. Anyway it’s about time for lunch. Yes lunch is included in the excursion along with a couple of activities(2 hours at the road house).

We at the Kantishna Roadhouse believe we offer one of the finest excursion values in Alaska. A 13 hour bus tour through one of the most beautiful national parks in the world, a hot lunch in the dinning room of a world class road house. Commentary provided, all questions attempted to be answered. Off the bus about every hour or so, photo stops, animal sightings, amazing scenery, and of course the Kantishna Roadhouse. Everyone loves the Kantishna Roadhouse. Come join us.

This post is part of a series on the Traveling the Denali Park Road – to read the series from the beginning, click here. 

The broad valley we now enter through Thoroughfare Pass was, like the others we have come through created by glaciation. The classic example of a glacially carved valley is U or bowl shaped. On the grand scale of things here in the park it becomes easy to discern. Gently sloping hillsides with broad valley floors. The valley floor of Thoroughfare is particularly good grizzly habitat because of the fresh green grass shoots in the spring. There are some older mother bears who know this and dominate the valley. Surprising to many people Denali’s bears eat mostly vegetation. For most bears about 85 percent, roots, grass, and berries make up the majority of the diet. Another big surprise is the color of their coats. Blonde. I call the lightest Marilyn Monroe bears. Actually it’s probably an adaptation most likely developed to allow extended feeding in warm weather. The light color reflecting more sun, the bear feeds more rather than sleeps during the heat of the day, grows fatter and has a better chance of surviving the long winter.

At certain times during our trips we sometimes have to ask, “Are we all beared out yet?” Time to stretch our legs.

At just the right time we pull into the new Eielson Visitor Center. The National Park Service has spared no expense in creating this state of the art building. Several years in construction, the building is set into the side of the mountain. Using all of the latest solar, and hydro technologies suitable to the sub-artic environment, the building demonstrates how careful planning and detailed execution can create a model structure, functional  on the mass level, yet artistic and appealing. Everybody likes it.

It’s time to get out and look around. Inside, a small art galley, artwork created through the Artist in Residence  program. Many interacting displays, knowledgeable park naturalists to answer those stumping questions, a large topographical map of  the region, an incredible hand sown quilt, make sure you find the mosquitoes. Outside, 2 trails to hike and if that’s not enough, hoist those caribou antlers on your head to see if you would like to carry 25 pounds of  solid bone around on top of your neck all summer!  The Alaska Range is our backdrop here with a broad glacial valley and Denali out, on a clear sunny day, there is not a more glories place on earth.

Time flies by at the visitor center, we don’t want to overstay, anyway, we still have a lot on our plate.

This post is part of a series on the Traveling the Denali Park Road – to read the series from the beginning, click here.

By 11:15am we are ready to be out of the bus again. The National Park Service has graciously given us the opportunity to step out on the lower road edge below Stony Hill lookout.  When the big mountain is out you can practically feel the power and energy coming off of it even though it’s still 33 miles away! Back in 1906 on an clear early spring day Charles Sheldon probably saw very nearly the exact same view. He was so inspired that he spent 9 years of his life and part of his personal fortune to have the region protected.

Denali was formed beginning 60 million years ago as a volcano. Unlike the Polychrome mountains it erupted and hardened underground. It is technically a granite pluton. Over the 60 million year period, because of pressure from the tectonic activity of the pacific plate sub ducting under the continental shelf, it has been forced skyward. One theory put forward is that the pacific plate, called the Kula plate, abruptly turned 90 degrees and butted up against the continental shelf, accelerating the rise of the McKinley massif. That’s how some geologists explain the fact that the mountain rises 17’000 feet higher than the surrounding foothills. That’s one of the highest rises of any mountain in the world, not the highest though. On a clear day it can be seen from Fairbanks, almost like it’s floating above the surrounding plane.

By now everybody knows how to play the game. “So what are those green buses looking at?” someone shouts. Could it be? More bears. Indeed, momma and cubs holding court, and off we go.

This post is part of a series on the Traveling the Denali Park Road – to read the series from the beginning, click here.

The next section of the park road takes us down to the Toklat River rest stop for a brief restroom stop. Then it’s up into sub-alpine tundra again through a narrow mountain pass (Caribou Creek) past an active gray wolf den. Will we see wolves? For many years through the 1980′s and 1990′s groups heading into Denali saw very little wolf activity. In the late 1990′s that all began to change. In a lifecycle change first articulated by Adolph Murie, wolf populations began to show greater strength in controlling and dominating caribou populations. Certain wolf packs regularly used the park road much like a hunting trail, just as Murie described, one pack denning  at the base of a hill in Caribou Creek next to the road. In the last 2 years we have had the amazing good fortune to see mother wolf, called the alpha female, bring her pups out for alittle play time along the banks of the creek! Keep in mind that some people spend there whole lives in Alaska and never see 1 wolf in the wild.

It was a memorable day in the spring of 2008 when mother wolf took her pups for a training operation. 7 wolf pups were taken ¼ mile up Caribou Creek and then mother left and quickly went back to the den. After a couple quick howls, the pups began the “long” march home. Of course it wasn’t so much a march as a meander. This type of training is done to begin the establishment of hierarchy, a pecking order within the pack. The leader soon became evident to us watching from above on the road, steadily making way back to the den, stopping periodically to look back for siblings. After about 15 minutes all arrived safely. In a complex social structure the pups make up the central core of the pack.  They need to be trained by summers end to hunt with the adults and the beginning of the training, the games they play as pups, includes follow the leader.  This section of the road quickly became very popular. In fact too popular. We now tread lightly on this section. Wolves are very sensitive to human actions. We have to respect that.

This post is part of a series on the Traveling the Denali Park Road – to read the series from the beginning, click here.

9:45 am we pull into the rest stop at Poly-Chrome Pass. Most people don’t come to Denali because they have heard of it’s amazing geology. Except for the big mountain of course, Denali. “Are we going to see it  today?” If I could only predict that! Only 30% see it, but springtime is   definitely a good time for beating the odds. We do better in the springtime because of prevailing weather patterns. Nonetheless Polychrome is special. Formed about 65 million years ago as pressure from the pacific tectonic plate sliding under the continental shelf (subduction)  forced magma to the surface. Volcanism. Poly, meaning many, chrome meaning color. This is also a good place to see emerging wildflowers. 8 petal avens, their creamy colored flower blanket the mountain sides in June. How many times have I heard ” look over there SHEEP!!!” And here comes the artic ground squirrel brigade. Over there a hoary marmot holds court and a soaring Golden Eagle keeping a keen eye on the whole scene. Will we ever get out of Polychrome?

This post is part of a series on the Traveling the Denali Park Road – to read the series from the beginning, click here.

A typical spring day for us takes us into the Sable Pass at about 9am. Sable Pass is unique even by Denali standards. 5 square miles have been closed off to human activity since the mid 1950′s. Biologists noticed that the Sable was something of a crossroads for grizzly bears. There’s a rough estimate of between 200-300 grizz in the park. They each have a range of between 15 and 23 square miles per bear. 15 for females, 23 for males. Some bears would come out of their normal range areas to the Sable, in the spring to feed on wintered over berries and new green grass shoots. We take our time in the Sable and sometimes mother grizzly will bring their spring cubs right to the roadside! They do  this to train the cubs. By bringing them to the road the cubs learn that they don’t have to be afraid of the busses and all our adoring faces. She teaches them to forage and dig for roots along the roadside. The cubs stay with the mothers 3 complete seasons and are taken through what amounts to grizzly bear marine camp. The mother is of course the drill sergeant. A very proud mother she certainly is, occasionally nursing the cubs right next to the bus. As they mature a noticeable change of personality occurs. When we first see them they are very timid, but by summers end they literally own the road and know it too!

The Sable area also gives us the opportunity to find caribou. At a cabin nearby on the East Fork River another of the Denali greats Adolph Murie spent 3 summers and parts of 2 winters studying caribou and their relationship to the gray wolf. By the early 1940′s he had enough evidence gathered and used it to produce a landmark study later published in a popular form as” The Wolves of Mnt. McKinley National Park”. In the late 1920′s a series of severe winters had stressed and decimated the caribou, sheep, and moose populations. Political pressure was brought to bear on the Park Service to institute a wolf kill program. A modified program was put in place in 1929, but before a full fledged program was to begin the Park Service wanted to have a documented study so they could accurately gauge the numbers to be removed. Murie with a doctorate in wildlife biology from the University of Minnesota was the man for the job. His study and particularly his philosophy of wildlife management put in place, form the basis of many Park Service decisions to this day. He also concluded that the wolves had a “salutary effect” on the other animal populations. They did take many caribou calves, they also took older and sick animals which meant only the strongest and heartiest were alive to propagate the species. He also recommended an early version of complete ecosystem management. He called the park road an artificial intrusion into wilderness and said it benefited predators over prey. He also recommended against a wolf kill program. Adolph Murie is the guiding philosophical intellect of Denali.

The Sable Pass area also gives us opportunities to find caribou, sometimes feeding within 50 yards of grizzlies! The caribou have a strategy though, they will almost always be above the bear looking down on it, if the bear shows interest they force it to chase them uphill and easily out distance the bear. Bears don’t eat much mature caribou, though they would certainly like to. When they do get a grown caribou it is usually from taking over a wolf killed animal. For us that’s a National Geographic moment and we do get those too! Bear laying on top of caribou, wolves circling around 6 feet away growling… all’s lost after all.

There are roads and there are Roads, there are roads much traveled and  roads less traveled, there are roads to great cities and even, if you can imagine it, roads to lost and invisible cities, and then there’s the Denali Park road. The park has been described as one of the last of our Edens. It’s been written about, photographed, and documented, but until you’ve seen it with your own eyes it’s sometimes difficult to understand. It was labeled a “Living Eden” by the public broadcasting service PBS, and a famous film documentary was created as part of that series.

The spring season harbors an amazing and glorious time. The beginning of the wildflower communities, animals new to the world, a plethora of cubs, pups, kits and bird chicks. Each community in it’s own way breaking free from the strong hold of  the iron fist of winter, renewing itself in a burst of vitality and life force. Combined with the majestic scenery it creates a feast for the senses.

The Denali region was first explored in the 1880′s by a handful of prospectors and adventurers. Because of the remoteness of the region and the difficulty entering, it was among the last regions in Alaska to come under European influence. By the turn of the century the pressure of European culture came to bear in greater numbers of prospectors, many coming from failed attempts in the Yukon Klondike gold rush of 1896. Usually basing themselves out of Fairbanks and gradually exploring other nearby regions.

1904/5 saw an explosion of prospecting in the Kantishna district, now in the west section of the National Park. Gold nuggets the size of potatoes fuelled what many hoped to be the next great Klondike. In the course of  a little less then 24 months, thousands of veteran prospectors streamed in, creating several small ” cities ” in the process. Sadly for them it was all short lived. The big claims never panned out, and by the beginning of the winter of 1905 most people had left, headed back to Fairbanks. Some claims did provided a living though, and a few very hardy prospectors settled in for the long haul. It was among these conditions that we find some of the greats in Denali Park history showing up on the scene.

The spring of 1906 brings a remarkable individual to the region, Charles Sheldon. A retired businessman and self trained naturalist. Sheldon comes to the region primarily to study northern sheep (Dall). Well traveled, Yale educated he immediately recognizes the uniqueness of the place. Spectacular mountain scenery, Mount McKinley (Denali) the tallest mountain in North America, and the opportunity to see wildlife in such a majestic setting. After a summer exploration with Harry Karstens, another of the Denali greats, he decides to return the following spring. By August of 1907 Sheldon had established his camp along the Toklat river, building a cabin and spending the winter collecting specimens for the Biologic Survey. Noticing the hunting practices of market hunters coming into the area, he realizes that if the animal populations were not protected they would be extripated, hunted out. So begins a colossal fight to protect the animal populations and in turn results in the creation ( February 1917) of what eventually becomes Denali National Park and Preserve. A crown jewel in the national park system. Charles Sheldon is considered the founding father and guiding spirit of Denali, he laid out the original park boundary and in his diary on January 12, 1908, presumably in his cabin on the Toklat river, coined the name Denali National Park. Harry Karstens, at the suggestion of Sheldon, became the first park superintendent , and is considered to have set the standard for administration along with being a grand adventurer in his own right, having led a party, the first, to the top of  Denali (June 7,1913).

The park however was not immediately available to the general public, in fact it was something of a back water. Even with the completion of the Alaska Railroad in 1923 access to the interior of the park was limited because of the rugged terrain and lack of funding coming from the Department of the Interior to develop an access road. It wasn’t until 1938 after 15 seasons of toil that a road snakes through to the Kantishna district.

Our journey into Denali Park follows the Denali Park Road a little more then 90 miles to the Kantishna Roadhouse. Along the way we try to locate moose, dall sheep, grizzly bear, gray wolf and caribou. For the birders on board we try for  northern harrier, golden and bald eagles, gyre falcon, merlin and water fowl in the west end of the park. Other animals occasionally cross our path, 38 species in all, about 160 bird species are possible (17 birds of prey).