Alaska Travel Forum

Hi
Heading to DNP as a part of our post-cruise land tour, we are family of 4 including 2 teens: 17 & 18 years; this will be our first visit to Alaska and probably the last, we have only 2 days in Denali and one day in Talkeetna, also, we will rent a car, we decided to have the shuttle bus for our one day tour to DNP, we are so confused about which shuttle bus we should have: Eielson visitor center Vs Wonder Lake.
We are really appreciate any suggestions regarding our DNP trip; where to stop, must see and do and, any other tips for the second day.
Thanks

Is that there is NO "must see and do." You ride the shuttle bus (earlier in the day is better) and hope to see wildlife. You probably will, but there's NO guarantees -- this is wilderness, not a zoo. That's pretty much it. You might get a great view of the mountain itself, or it may rain for a week. There's no way to predict what you'll see or where you'll see it, even AFTER you get there.

> which shuttle bus we should have

The NPS has this MS-Word document to help you:

www.nps.gov/dena/planyourvisit/upload/A%20Tool%20To%20help%20Me%20Decide.doc

If the weather is absolutely certain to be 100% clear AND your main goal is to see The Mountain with Wonder Lake in the foreground -- the view you see in photos, and which is almost never possible -- then you'll have to ride all the way to Wonder Lake. Just be prepared for a LONG day (remember ther is *NO* food or water available after you board the bus!) and a lot of mosquitoes. If the weather is rainy or foggy, then going all the way to Wonder Lake may be more trouble than it's worth. On the other hand, stopping at Eielson MIGHT mean you miss a spectacular view of wildlife further down the road. Or maybe not -- there's no way of knowing.

It is this close-to-true wilderness quality of this national park that makes it so fascinating to visit. The lack of guarantees makes it frustrating to plan your visit but marvelous when you do see something.

An additional note to the one posted: If you want to make stops and do some hiking along the way you should take the hikers shuttle. Get the first one to Eilson in the morning. Stops are unlimited, you just hop the next bus going your direction. There are great hikes anywhere you have ridge access (Eilson has a great ridge hike) or a riverbed to walk. If you do things right you can get in two or three (depending on length) hikes/stops in before returning to the gate. With good weather you will get views of the mountain from Eilson (and before), with luck you will see wildlife and you get some hiking and exploring in. What you miss is the sore backside from an ultra-long bus ride. Incidentally the hiker bus will still stop for photos of wildlife and the view of McKinley should you see either. Just something else to consider –

Scott

My suggestion is to book Wonder Lake shuttle. You don't have to go all the way if the weather is not good or if you get tired of the bus. You do not need a camper bus shuttle to get on & off shuttles whenever you want to hike. You can get off any of the shuttles anytime & then catch another shuttle. There is running water at Eielson to fill your own water bottle.