Extra Day after Denali

[cycruise2day]

Hello, first time cruiser here, needing advice. Background: Myself, 2 sisters (58, 61 and 64 yo) and Dad (92 yo) on a cruise from Whittier to Vancouver mid-July Coral Princess. We fly into Anchorage Saturday 7/13, stay that night and renting car to Denali on Sunday. Doing the transit bus in Denali on Monday. We only want to stay 2 nights at Denali and leave Tuesday morning. Cruise is Wednesday evening from Whittier. Trying to decide where to go on Tuesday/Tuesday night. The rental car has to be returned to Anchorage on Wednesday in time to get transportation (probably bus, but haven't decided) to Whittier. My dad is more like a typical 70 or 75 yo - pretty active, but he can't hike. He can walk 1 or maybe 2 miles if it doesn't have a lot of elevation changes. He likes driving trips (still drives himself, but I'll be driving on this trip).

 

So I'm looking for suggestions on what to do. We could drive to Seward and stay there Tuesday night, maybe stop along the way, and/or see Exit glacier? Or Talkeetna? Or Denali State Park?

 

Thanks for any advice!

[masterdrago]

The Transit bus Tour can be an all day affair if taken to Wonder Lake or Eielson Visitor Center. https://www.nps.gov/dena/planyourvisit/upload/transit-schedule.pdf  Keep in mind that it is 300 miles from Denali to Whittier. An overnight in Talkeetna would break that up being 150 miles from Denali. Reason I'm mentioning this is that all the advice I've seen here on CC says that it takes much longer to make the drives than Mapquest says because folks like to stop and smell the scenery. You could make a full day just driving to Talkeetna or Wasilla.

[mapleleaves]

Seward as an overnight trip would be a heckuva drive!  On a good day it takes 5 hrs to drive Denali -Anchorage then another 3 hrs for Anc - Seward.    So you would spend the day driving there, then get up the next morning and drive 3 hrs back to Anchorage to return the car and hop on the bus to Whittier.

 

You haven't indicated any interests so its hard to make suggestions on what to do with your extra day.....

There are many options; it just depends on what you want to see and do, and how much time you want to spend driving.  The buses to Whittier don't leave until 2/3pm so you will have plenty of time Wed morning to complete the drive or to sightsee around Anc.

- The easiest option would be to spend Tues morning in Denali; do the 10am sled dog demo,  drive to  Talkeetna for a late lunch and wander around,  stop by the  Ekultna Spirit Houses and Orthodox Church just north of Anc,  and overnight in Wasilla or Anchorage.  Or swing by Palmer to see the Agricultural Showcase (enormous flowers/veg ) , and visit the Musk Ox or Reindeer Farm   https://www.eklutnahistoricalpark.org/

 

- or drive to Matanuska Glacier on Tues where dad could sit at the Lodge while the sisters do an ice trek on the glacier.  Overnight near the glacier and in the morning, swing by Independence Mine for a walk around the ruins.

http://dnr.alaska.gov/parks/units/indmine.htm

 

Look thru the scenic drives in this link to see if anything appeals.  Each drive is very detailed with suggested stopping points for each.

http://www.alaska.org/things-to-do/scenic-drives

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 13, 2019 by mapleleaves
drives

[cycruise2day]

Thanks for the input! I think we'll scrap the Seward option; what you both say makes sense on that point. I'm looking into the other suggestions. We might do a flightseeing in Talkeetna, or one of the other options.

 

I love hiking, but my dad is less able there, and sisters slightly less than me. But as you say, Dad could relax while we do a short hike somewhere of a few miles. Dad likes history a lot. I'm a geology major, so I like science and the outdoors. We're all flexible. 

[Eileen G]

12 minutes ago, cycruise2day said:

Thanks for the input! I think we'll scrap the Seward option; what you both say makes sense on that point. I'm looking into the other suggestions. We might do a flightseeing in Talkeetna, or one of the other options.

 

I love hiking, but my dad is less able there, and sisters slightly less than me. But as you say, Dad could relax while we do a short hike somewhere of a few miles. Dad likes history a lot. I'm a geology major, so I like science and the outdoors. We're all flexible. 

 

 

If your dad is a history buff you should go to the Independence Mine. The views from up there are stunning and the mining town is really neat.

 

[cycruise2day]

The Independence Mine is a great idea, either by itself or Wednesday morning after flightseeing on Tuesday or perhaps the Matanuska Glacier.

 

Thank you all for your help, I really appreciate it!

[donaldsc]

1 hour ago, Eileen G said:

 

 

If your dad is a history buff you should go to the Independence Mine. The views from up there are stunning and the mining town is really neat.

 

 

+1 on this suggestion.  

 

DON

[Northern Aurora]

As soon as I read that your father is a history buff I immediately thought of Independence Mine State Historical Park.  Very nice visitor's center and nice trails around the mine.  And you could have a meal at the quirky Hatcher Pass Lodge.

[cycruise2day]

Thank you all so much! These are all great options and much better than what I was thinking of.