Denali Park announces openings, closures

DENALI PARK — Lengthening days, milder overnight temperatures, sightings of migrant bird species, and the arrival of summer employees are all signs that the seasonal facilities and services that enhance the park experience for Denali National Park and Preserve visitors will open soon.

The Denali Bookstore, operated by park partner Alaska Geographic, opens May 13. Many other facilities will open on Friday, May 15, including the Wilderness Access Center, Morino Grill, Backcountry Information Center, and the Denali Visitor Center, the park’s main visitor center. This environmentally sustainable facility features stunning exhibits on Denali’s natural history and cultural heritage, screenings of the award-winning, high-definition feature film, “Heartbeats of Denali”, and friendly rangers who answer questions and help visitors plan how to spend their time in the park. It is open daily from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The season’s first interpretive offerings, including the daily 2 p.m. sled dog demonstration, commence May 15.

Free buses to the park kennels depart from the Denali Visitor Center shuttle stop at 1:20 p.m.

The 10 a.m. sled dog demonstrations begin May 20.

Weekend campground programs also begin May 15 at the Riley Creek Campground.

Daily campground programs begin at the Teklanika River Campground on May 20.

The full range of interpretive programs will be available in June.

Denali Natural History Tours start May 13, and the shoulder season Tundra Wilderness Tour to the Teklanika Rest Area is available May 13 to 19. The regular Tundra Wilderness Tour begins May 20.

The park road is open for travel by private vehicles to the Teklanika River Rest Area at Mile 30 through May 19.

Weather and road conditions permitting, the park’s shuttle bus system starts providing visitor access beyond the Savage River at Mile 15 as far west as the Toklat River at Mile 53 on May 20.

Buses begin running to the Eielson Visitor Center at Mile 66 on June 1. The entire 92-mile length of the park road will open for buses, including those to Wonder Lake and Kantishna, on June 8.

The first 15 miles of the park road will remain open for travel by private vehicles throughout the summer season.

Camping is free at the Riley Creek Campground until fee collection begins May 15. Water and sewer services may be available by that date, depending on weather conditions.

The Savage River Campground opens May 19.

The Sanctuary River, Teklanika River, and Igloo Creek Campgrounds all open May 20.

The Wonder Lake Campground opens June 8.

Denali National Park and Preserve entrance fee of $10 per person (for visitors age 16 and older) is good for seven days. Visitors can pay the entrance fee at the Murie Science and Learning Center through May 14, and at the Denali Visitor Center beginning May 15.

For more information, visit nps.gov/dena, or call 907-683-9532.

Closed to snowmachines

Denali National Park and Preserve Superintendent Don Striker has determined that due to the deterioration of the snowpack, there is no longer adequate snow cover for the use of snowmobiles for traditional activities in the 1980 additions to Denali National Park and Preserve on both sides of the Alaska Range. All park lands that were open for snowmobile use are now closed for the season. Even in areas such as Broad Pass and near Cantwell, the warmer temperatures and long days have reduced snow depths to a level that is no longer adequate to protect vegetation and soils from damage by snowmachine use.

All lands within the former Mount McKinley National Park on both the north and the south sides of the crest of the Alaska Range are closed to all snowmobile use throughout the winter by federal regulation.

Effective immediately, the Windy Creek Trail, Cantwell Airstrip Trail, Pyramid Trail, Cantwell Creek Floodplain Trail/Corridor, and the Bull River Floodplain Trail/Route are temporarily closed by regulation (36CFR 13.903 and 13.460) to the use of off-road vehicles by authorized subsistence users in order to protect vegetation and soils from damage. The temporary closure will allow the trails to dry in order to sustain ORV traffic. These trails could re-open for use on June 15, conditions permitting.