1st time in AK - 4 days on our own then Princess southbound

[bioengr]

Late June '14. Finalizing the itinerary. A few questions.

 

1 LA to ANC. Pickup rental car, drive to Talkeetna

2 Denali flightseeing. Thinking Talkeetna Air Taxi but which one... Summit, South face or Grand Denali?

3 Tour Denali? Hesitant about a 9-hour bus ride. Options?

4 Drive back to Anchorage

5 Transfer to Whittier. Thinking AK Railroad. Board Coral Princess

6 Hubbard

7 Glacier Bay

8 Skagway - White Pass Railroad. Ship excursion or Chilkoot?

9 Juneau - Taku Lodge floatplane

10 Ketchikan - Salmon fishing with Northern Lights

11 At sea

12 Port in Vancouver, fly home (been there before)

 

Any input or thoughts?

[AKStafford]

Late June '14. Finalizing the itinerary. A few questions.

 

1 LA to ANC. Pickup rental car, drive to Talkeetna

2 Denali flightseeing. Thinking Talkeetna Air Taxi but which one... Summit, South face or Grand Denali?

I've done a flight with K2 Aviation before and loved it. Of the three you listed, Grand Denali looks the best to me. Have you considered doing a glacier landging? Just be aware sometimes McKinley flights are delayed or canceled due to weather...

3 Tour Denali? Hesitant about a 9-hour bus ride. Options?

Do it. But don't do a "tour." Buy tickets for the shuttle bus to Wonder Lake. You can get off and hike if you want and then get on another bus.

4 Drive back to Anchorage

5 Transfer to Whittier. Thinking AK Railroad. Board Coral Princess

I would recommend the train down. And then you'll also have time for a Prince William Sound glacier cruise out of Whittier before you board your ship. I would highly recommend that.

 

My thoughts are above in red...

 

You don't mention where you plan on staying at night... Keep in mind that Talkeetna to Denali is a 3 hour drive, or more with construction. So the day you are doing your Denali, you'll want to have spent the night in the area.

[bioengr]

Thanks. The Grand Denali does look good. We're aware of the weather risk but TATs policy seems fair.

Re: Denali... we weren't planning a tour but the bus rides seem awfully long and my wife is concerned about bathroom breaks. How often do they stop?

Will check out the Prince William Sound tour.

Nights 2 & 3 are reserved at McKinley Creekside Cabins.

[AKStafford]

http://www.nps.gov/dena/planyourvisit/visiting-denali.htm

The link above gives the details on the shuttle buses. There's regular bathroom stops, about every 90 minutes.

[mapleleaves]

If a 9 hr bus ride worries you, take the shuttle to Eielson Visitor Center. The time flies by. It takes about 4 hrs to reach EVC, the bus stays there for 30-40 minutes, then it's about 3 1/2 hr back.

On the way up, passengers are tasked with being spotters for wildlife. You're so busy looking in gullys, behind shrubs and rocks for wildlife and gazing at the scenery that the time flies by. At EVC, there are exhibits, a fantastic view of the mtn if it's out, running water, rangers, a bus dispatcher, and ranger led hikes. It's a great spot to eat your sack lunch.

As the previous post said, the bus takes a 10 minute break at a rest area every 90 minutes. Long enough to use the restrooms, walk around, take photos.

If you want to stay with the same bus there and back, you can. If you want to hike for a few hours at EVC, the dispatcher will help you find available seats on anther bus. OR, you can hop off the bus anywhere along the road and flag down another bus when you're ready to move again.

[Budget Queen]

Thanks. The Grand Denali does look good. We're aware of the weather risk but TATs policy seems fair.

Re: Denali... we weren't planning a tour but the bus rides seem awfully long and my wife is concerned about bathroom breaks. How often do they stop?

Will check out the Prince William Sound tour.

Nights 2 & 3 are reserved at McKinley Creekside Cabins.

 

For, many, (my only priority) it isn't even worth going to Denali park, if you don't get INTO the park. What do you plan on doing there otherwise? Frankly, if only considering the Parks Highway drive, this trip is missing out significantly. The shuttle bus to Eielson is my min. recommendation. Bathroom stops are about every 90 minutes. The bonus is Eielson is "full service", running water, flush toilets. :).

 

I have been on all your listed Talkeetna flights. Talkeetna Air Taxi doesn't do any summit flights that I know of, they partner and cobook with Talkeetna Aero. (at least did so in the past) My preference is always the summit flights. But I fly frequently and it could be a different option depending on the person. What is of interest to you?

[winste]

We are planning on taking the train from Anchorage to Whittier and doing the Prince William Sound boat tour. I've read very good reviews. It starts right at the port and from what I've read, you check your luggage at the train station in Anchorage and then it get's transferred directly to the cruise ship.

 

The PWS cruise lasts until just before 6PM more than enough time to get on board. The next two days on that itinerary are non port days so I'm not in a huge hurry to get on board.

 

This is the cruise we are taking:

 

http://www.phillipscruises.com/experience.htm

 

They will let you book train with cruise ticket but be aware it is for R/T train travel. I checked and if you give them a call, they will book one way for you but the price is the same as booking directly with the railroad.

Edited February 13, 2014 by winste

[Streator1972]

We did your same itinerary in reverse last August also on the Coral Princess. We rented a car in Anchorage & drove to Denali for 2 nights. We too were uncertain about the 9 hour bus ride, especially with 11 year old kids! It was one of the highlights of our trip. We saw so many animals & started the bus ride with all intentions of getting off at Elison. Vote was unanimous to continue. Wonder lake was lovely (even without a view of Mt McKinley). There were frequent bathroom breaks.

[Gardyloo]

Wonder Lake in June and Wonder Lake in August are different, especially regarding mosquitoes. If you go on to Wonder Lake in June, take the strongest bug dope you can find, and consider a head net too.

 

I tend to be a broken record on this, but trying to squeeze Denali into a short period, combining it with flightseeing, has its downside. If the weather's punk (e.g. rain and/or the mountain's not visible) then you've driven quite a distance and allocated a lot of money for a less-than-optimal experience.

 

It's not that you won't enjoy it - you may well indeed, but like all things it's a case of choices. What else could you have done in the same time frame, and would it have delivered more "value" (define it how you will) than the schlep up to Denali?

 

For example, a Kenai Fjords cruise (out of Seward) will almost certainly deliver major wildlife (granted, much of it marine) and spectacular scenery - not obstructed - and there's a low risk of being weathered out.

 

Flightseeing out of Anchorage offers McKinley if it's visible, but if it's not there are alternatives - over Prince William Sound or some of the nearby icefields or glaciers; or bear viewing on the far side of Cook Inlet... so there are options that reduce the chance of being completely snookered. Out of Talkeetna, not so much.

 

Or from Anchorage you could go on a fly-in fishing trip, or even (my fave, and surprisingly affordable compared to flightseeing) take the three days you'd spend on Denali and spend them instead in an Eskimo village in the arctic. A round trip on Alaska Airlines from Anchorage to Kotzebue, above the arctic circle, is cheaper than most Denali flightseeing trips, and a comfortable hotel in Kotzebue is cheaper than most downtown Anchorage (or Denali-area) hotels. You could stick a toe in the Arctic Ocean, see the (actual) midnight sun, learn about a fascinating culture, and - maybe - see Denali from the plane both directions. This would set you apart from 90% or more of the visitors to Alaska, who never experience this remarkable part of their own country.

 

Anyway, just mentioning some options.

Edited February 14, 2014 by Gardyloo

[Budget Queen]

Wonder Lake in June and Wonder Lake in August are different, especially regarding mosquitoes. If you go on to Wonder Lake in June, take the strongest bug dope you can find, and consider a head net too.

 

I tend to be a broken record on this, but trying to squeeze Denali into a short period, combining it with flightseeing, has its downside. If the weather's punk (e.g. rain and/or the mountain's not visible) then you've driven quite a distance and allocated a lot of money for a less-than-optimal experience.

 

It's not that you won't enjoy it - you may well indeed, but like all things it's a case of choices. What else could you have done in the same time frame, and would it have delivered more "value" (define it how you will) than the schlep up to Denali?

 

For example, a Kenai Fjords cruise (out of Seward) will almost certainly deliver major wildlife (granted, much of it marine) and spectacular scenery - not obstructed - and there's a low risk of being weathered out.

 

Flightseeing out of Anchorage offers McKinley if it's visible, but if it's not there are alternatives - over Prince William Sound or some of the nearby icefields or glaciers; or bear viewing on the far side of Cook Inlet... so there are options that reduce the chance of being completely snookered. Out of Talkeetna, not so much.

 

Or from Anchorage you could go on a fly-in fishing trip, or even (my fave, and surprisingly affordable compared to flightseeing) take the three days you'd spend on Denali and spend them instead in an Eskimo village in the arctic. A round trip on Alaska Airlines from Anchorage to Kotzebue, above the arctic circle, is cheaper than most Denali flightseeing trips, and a comfortable hotel in Kotzebue is cheaper than most downtown Anchorage (or Denali-area) hotels. You could stick a toe in the Arctic Ocean, see the (actual) midnight sun, learn about a fascinating culture, and - maybe - see Denali from the plane both directions. This would set you apart from 90% or more of the visitors to Alaska, who never experience this remarkable part of their own country.

 

Anyway, just mentioning some options.

 

What excellent suggestions. :)