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Interior

For many, Kantishna provides the ultimate lodging location in Denali National Park and Preserve. Although not part of the national park, visitors here are surrounded by parkland and feel as close to nature as anywhere in Alaska. The wilderness resorts at the end of the road are luxurious and most include meals and round-trip transportation from the park entrance. The bonus of staying in Kantishna is a clear day when Mount McKinley looms just overhead.

The settlement of Kantishna was founded in 1905 as a mining camp near the juncture of Eureka and Moose Creeks. Gold in the region brought a flurry of prospectors in the early days, but as the gold began to run out so did interest in mining the Kantishna Hills. Kantishna and much of the surrounding area is now private property supporting a summer population of 135 and nobody in the winter.

Kantishna

Kantishna is located at mile 91.6 of the Denali Park Road. The Denali Park Road is accessed via George Parks Highway, 237 miles north of Anchorage and 124 miles south of Fairbanks. Vehicles can drive the first 14 miles of the road. Park shuttle and tour buses have access to Wonder Lake at Mile 84. Daily summer rail service is available with the Alaska Railroad from Anchorage or Fairbanks, and scheduled air service is available to the entrance of the park in the summer.

Denali Park Healy Kantishna/Denali Park Road Cantwell
Nowitna National Wildlife Refuge Kanuti National Wildlife Refuge Chena River State Recreation Area Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge Salcha River State Recreation Site Koyukuk National Wildlife Refuge Innoko National Wildlife Refuge Denali National Park and Preserve Tetlin National Wildlife Refuge Delta Junction Area State Parks Tok Area Parks Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve Creamer's Field Migratory Waterfowl Refuge Chatanika State Recreation Areas Harding Lake State Recreation Area Birch Lake State Recreation Site Big Delta State Historical Park

Attractions

  • Bus Tours +

    Several bus tours that follow the Park Road are available to visitors of Denali National Park and Preserve. The commercial tours are geared to viewing wildlife or to explore the length of the road to Kantishna, where interpretive programs, gold panning or lunch awaits passengers.

  • Denali Visitor Center +

    Opened in 2005, the Denali Visitor Center is 14,000-sq-foot facility to dedicated to a better understand of Denali National Park and Preserve. On the first floor are exhibits devoted to the area's natural and human history and a theater whose movies provide video glimpse of the park's wildlife and scenery. On the second floor is a giant table-top relief map that leaves no doubt in anybody's mind how rugged the national park is.

  • Eielson Visitor Center +

    Located at Mile 66 of the Park Road, Eielson Visitor Center is Denali National Park's newest and most impressive interpretive center. The 7400-square-foot facility was opened in 2008 and features exhibits on the natural history of the region, a massive model of Mount McKinley and huge viewing windows to see North America's highest peak.

  • Flightseeing +

    From airstrips in and around the park, charter air companies offer flightseeing tours that usually include flying around Mount McKinley and possibly landing on one of its glaciers. Flights are offered in either small bush planes or helicopters.

  • Murie Science and Learning Center +

    Murie Science & Learning Center in Denali National Park features fascinating hands-on exhibits as well as an exhibit on current research taking place in the park. The staff stages programs throughout the week during the summer.

  • Sled-dog demonstrations +

    Denali National Park is the only national park in the country where rangers conduct winter patrols via dog team. During the summer, the huskies are enjoyed during the park's free daily tours of the sled-dog kennels. Tours end with teams being spirited down a trail pulling a specially-designed wheeled cart.

  • Wildlife viewing +

    Denali National Park is home to 40 species of mammals and 167 varieties of birds. What most visitors want to view are moose, caribou, mountain sheep wolves and bears. It's possible to see them all on the park's shuttle buses that carry wildlife watchers, hikers and backpackers along the 92-mile-long Park Road that winds through the heart of this amazing wilderness.


Denali National Park Feb 2012 Feb 2012

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