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rayestrella 
Group: Members
Posts: 6411
Joined: Nov. 2004
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Posted on: Jun. 06 2012, 5:10 pm |
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Anybody have any experience at Denali NP? Dave wants me to meet him in Fairbanks at the end of September and go do 3-4 days of hiking in Denali. (Or another good area, if you suggest something else).
Could just do multiple day hikes or go for a loop or out-and-back trip.
Thanks,
Ray
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I measure happiness with an altimeter
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| Post Number: 2
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Walkinman
A rainbow
Group: Members
Posts: 6618
Joined: Nov. 2002
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Posted on: Jun. 06 2012, 8:47 pm |
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Rayestrella
The end of september isn't a great option. The shuttle service on the road is closed, so they don't maintain the road. It's open to drive, but only as far as snowfall makes it drivable. By oct it could easily be closed to Teklanika, or even closer to the entrance.
You should be able to, I expect, drive to at least Savage River, and hike from there. I'd head south, and wander that area.
Even if they haven't had snow, and the road is open further in, you still run into the problem of a snowfall while you're on the trip, and dealing with the road closure once you get back to the vehicle.
If the road's open and clear, that time of year, my advice would be tattle creek (I forget the mile marker, maybe 40 or so?). You could drive to Igloo Ck campground, or Tek, park, and hike from there.
If it were me, I'd go to Wrangell - St. Elias where you'll have more options. The north side of the park, on the Nabesna Road, and hike Lost Creek Trail, or out to Soda Lake or somewhere like that.
Denali State Park and the Kesugi ridge is a good, easy, accessible option, off the Parks highway.
Cheers
Carl
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Guided Alaska backpacking and hiking trips
"What good is a used up world and how can it be worth having?" -- Sting, All This Time.
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| Post Number: 3
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rayestrella
Group: Members
Posts: 6411
Joined: Nov. 2004
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Posted on: Jun. 07 2012, 7:09 am |
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Thanks WM,
You know I thought the snow season started in September. I am going to pass that on to Dave.
Thanks,
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I measure happiness with an altimeter
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Walkinman
A rainbow
Group: Members
Posts: 6618
Joined: Nov. 2002
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Posted on: Jun. 07 2012, 4:33 pm |
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You're welcome, Ray. If you guys have a car it's certainly worth keeping the Denali option open; some years snow might not close the road til much farther out, and much later. You could easily do that and keep something like the Kesugi Ridge as a backup plan.
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Guided Alaska backpacking and hiking trips
"What good is a used up world and how can it be worth having?" -- Sting, All This Time.
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| Post Number: 5
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rayestrella
Group: Members
Posts: 6411
Joined: Nov. 2004
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Posted on: Jun. 08 2012, 7:25 am |
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Yeah we will have a car, and Healy looks like a decent sized town, which is near the main entrance of Denali NP. We will plan on going from there.
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I measure happiness with an altimeter
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Walkinman
A rainbow
Group: Members
Posts: 6618
Joined: Nov. 2002
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Posted on: Jun. 08 2012, 3:53 pm |
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"decent-sized"? hhhmmmm ..... it's pretty small.
If you want to camp, you could camp at Riley Creek, at the park entrance. Savage Campground will possibly be open then, too, which is quieter, at mile 13 inside the park.
There are a number of places available for accommodation right outside the park entrance, if you don't want to camp, but I'm not sure how many of them will still be open late Sept. Things close down around AK almost overnight, mid-sept.
Cheers
Carl
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Guided Alaska backpacking and hiking trips
"What good is a used up world and how can it be worth having?" -- Sting, All This Time.
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AwesomelyHumble
Group: Members
Posts: 8
Joined: Jun. 2012
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Posted on: Jun. 14 2012, 11:50 pm |
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Glad I read this, I was going to be in AK Sep-Oct, and was hoping to get a hike or two in somewhere. So mid-Sep is the tail end of hiking/backpacking? I might have to start then...
How's the weather in Oct? Is it already cold and snowing?
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| Post Number: 8
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Walkinman
A rainbow
Group: Members
Posts: 6618
Joined: Nov. 2002
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Posted on: Jun. 15 2012, 2:28 pm |
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Humble
Up in the subalpine, almost certainly. Not impassable snowing for backpacking, but the issue with Denali is the road closure, limiting access.
Weather could be anything from 0-40 degrees at night in Oct. Last Oct I was on the coast, Yakutat got over 12" of snow one night toward the end of the month.
There's definitely still good backpacking to be had, it's just a narrower selection of locales to choose from.
Cheers
Carl
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Guided Alaska backpacking and hiking trips
"What good is a used up world and how can it be worth having?" -- Sting, All This Time.
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| Post Number: 9
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