Denali National Park & Preserve

Wonder Lake

At mile 85 of the park road, this lake is about as close as visitors can get to Mount McKinley, which sits nearly 26 miles away. On clear days, the Alaska Range stretches wide across the sky, and the peak can be photographed in Reflection Pond when the air is calm. The campground here has tent-only sites, and fires are not permitted. The McKinley River Bar Trail runs 2.5 miles one way through spruce forest to the river, passing small ponds. This is a much wetter corner of the park, so waterfowl are often seen on the lake and nearby ponds. Visitors can paddle the lake with a packable raft or kayak, and anglers sometimes catch trout and grayling. Mosquitoes are a major nuisance for much of the summer, so pack a head net.

Eielson Visitor Center

From Mile 66 of the park road, the visitor center looks out on Denali, also called Mount McKinley, which fills the southwestern sky on clear days. Hiking is the main draw here, with three trails, including the Thorofare Ridge Trail and the Tundra Loop, and you can also walk off-trail. Wildlife is common on the surrounding hillsides. Rangers offer several programs through the day, along with daily ranger-led hikes. Visitors usually arrive by bus, and any shuttle except the Toklat shuttle serves the site. The center is currently closed because of the Pretty Rocks landslide, which has shut the road at Mile 42. A small gallery displays art inspired by the wilderness and wildlife, and you can refill water bottles here, though no food is sold.

Polychrome Pass

Multicolored ridges and colorful rock give this stretch of the park road its character. Denali Park Road is the only road into the park, and beyond its first 15 miles, travel is by park bus or bicycle. From Polychrome Overlook, visitors look south toward the Polychrome Glaciers, five glaciers tucked into steep-sided valleys that feed streams across a broad plain of gravel bars and tundra. Dall sheep can be spotted on the steep, green hillsides. The road was built over a rock glacier that is melting, causing the road to slump. Backcountry hiking and camping are also possible nearby, but the summit of Polychrome Mountain is not a safe destination because of its loose rock.

Savage River

The Savage Alpine Trail is the best hike here for a view of Denali (Mount McKinley) without a bus ride or flightseeing tour. On clear days the trail climbs a high route into the Outer Range, covering about 4 miles with roughly 1,500 feet of climbing, and you can walk it point-to-point or out and back. The easy Savage River Loop Trail circles 2 miles through the canyon beside the river, though the mountain is out of sight from it. The Mountain Vista loop offers views of the surrounding peaks. Private vehicles can drive to this section, or you can ride the free Savage River Shuttle, though parking is limited. Savage River Campground lies nearby among spruce trees. Wildlife is possible here, from squirrels and gulls to Dall sheep, moose and bears.

Kantishna

This remote corner is a historic mining district dating to the early 1900s, and it sits at the very end of the park road. Miners cut travel routes along ridges and creek beds to reach their claims, and cabins, equipment and old roads still lie scattered across public and private land. Privately owned wilderness lodges now serve visitors here, and Kantishna Airport, a dirt and gravel strip, provides air access. Hikers can explore the backcountry of the Kantishna Hills, where wide ridgelines covered in alpine tundra run north to Chitsia Mountain. Heavily used trails climb Wickersham Dome and Camp Ridge and can be linked into shorter loops. Cycling is an option too, with rides out past Wonder Lake, and the McKinley Bar Trail offers another route. Respect private property and leave historic relics untouched.

Teklanika River

Private vehicles usually turn around at Savage River, but campers heading to Teklanika River Campground are an exception. Drivers must stay at least three nights and keep their vehicle at the campsite, using park transit buses to sightsee instead. Tent campers who arrive by bus are exempt from that minimum. The area has no formal trails, so hikers strike out on their own, and backcountry backpacking is possible in the surrounding country. Cathedral Mountain rises on the west side of the river, and glaciers at its headwaters, which cannot be seen from the Park Road, sit among miles of open tundra hillsides. Farther north the land turns to rolling hills and dwarf birch shrubland. The river itself is swift, and its downstream canyons are impassable on foot.

Toklat River

The Toklat River fills a mile-wide valley of braided gravel bars between steep mountains. Hillsides at the bar's edge hold spruce and tall willow, and higher up lies open alpine tundra. The Toklat River Contact Station sits at mile 53 of the park road. Backcountry hikers and campers can spend a night or several along the banks. Grizzly bears often travel or hunt along the water, so give them room. Crossings on foot can be dangerous at high water, and the channel shifts yearly, so plan carefully. High winds often blow from the south, so pitch tents in sheltered spots. Charles Sheldon, an early park advocate, explored this valley in the early 1900s, and nearby Mount Sheldon bears his name.