The most common way to really see Denali National Park during the summer, is by taking a guided tour bus or the park shuttle (as private vehicles are not allowed beyond mile 15 of the park road). Most tours and shuttles will take you to Wonder Lake (mile 85) or to Kantishna (mile 89) which sits at the end of the Park. The return trip is almost 180 miles and with stoppage time, it takes an entire day. For those that are short on time, there are flight seeing tours. However, in my opinion having come this far, one should definitely take a ride inside the park to enjoy the amazing flora and fauna this park has to offer, up close.  We chose to take the National Park shuttle to Wonder Lake primarily for the following reasons:

• The park road taken by all the buses/shuttles is exactly the same. The National Park owned shuttle is at a fraction of the cost of the private shuttles.
• The last 4 miles between Wonder Lake and Kantishna is not very scenic, as it does not offer any views of Denali, and adds a couple of hours to an already long bus ride. So, we chose to go only up to Wonder Lake.

We had booked the National Park shuttle a couple of months in advance (strongly recommended if you are travelling during the busy months). Our shuttle was to start from the WAC (Wilderness Access Center) at 6:45 AM. We packed a picnic lunch from McKinley Park as no food or drink is available once you depart the WAC.

The ride through the park offers extraordinary views of the Alaska Range and Denali on clear days. The road crosses mountain passes and wetland tundra and we saw several grizzlies and cubs, moose and Dall sheep all through the ride, till we reached the wonderful Wonder Lake. This place captures what is perhaps the quintessential Alaskan landscape: the Alaska Range Mountains reflected in the still waters of Wonder Lake. There’s nothing like standing out on the tundra and enjoying the solitude of the wilderness. Also close by is the Reflection Pond which offers one of the most iconic and often-photographed images of the mountain. (Unfortunately, we had a cloudy day, so we skipped this). However, If you are on a Wonder Lake-specific shuttle, be prepared to walk over two miles from the Wonder Lake bus stop to reach Reflection Pond. Alternatively, ask your driver to be let off the bus before it leaves the main park road for a campground spur road, and your walk will be about a third of a mile each way. If you get off the bus early to walk to Reflection Pond, carefully track how long it takes you to get to the pond, so you can make sure you walk back with enough time to meet your bus as it drives up the campground spur road and hits the main park road.

We spent around 30 to 45 minutes at Wonder Lake and on the return trip, we were lucky enough to catch a few glimpses of Denali towering over the clouds. It is an unforgettable experience witnessing this snowcapped majestic peak. It’s been a couple of years now, however every single time I close my eyes and think about this moment, I can see Denali. I know I will need to return if/when this picture starts fading away. Veteran bus drivers in Denali say that only one in three days offers glimpses of the mountain. If you are lucky enough to catch good weather, however, you can view the mountain from many places along the park road.

We also stopped over at the Eilson visitor center (mile 66). The area is famous for its amazing views of Denali and Alaska range on clear days, and it is not uncommon to see wildlife on the surrounding hillsides. While we did not get glimpses of Denali from here, we were lucky to see a mother grizzly closely accompanied by her 3 cubs. Park rangers at Eielson are ready to answer your questions, provide information, or just spend a few minutes chatting as you take a break from the bus. Several ranger programs are offered throughout the day from Eielson. We spend a couple of hours here and did a portion of the Tundra Loop trail.

Finally, after a very tiring day, we bid adieu to Denali and boarded a shuttle to take us back to the WAC.