June 9, 2026 Denali National Park Day #2

June 09, 2026

At 7 a.m. on this chilly +3°C morning, the sun was shining between scattered cloud and the wind was just 6 km/hr. With the cool temperature, we wore our lined pants and shirts, sweatshirts, windproof/waterproof jackets and gloves.

We were pleasantly surprised yesterday to find that we do have Wi-Fi connectivity in our room and don’t have to go to the main lodge for Wi-Fi, although the signal Is stronger at the lodge, especially for uploading photographs.

The walk from our room to the main lodge via the road with the steep incline was just over 6 minutes.

We had a light breakfast at the Grizzly Grind Café while the photos from yesterday loaded onto the blog. Carol and John briefly chatted with us. They have a hike planned for today. Our walk back to our room, using the outside staircase to descend the approximate 65 meter high cliff, was closer to eight minutes. More clouds were gathering in the west, but no rain was predicted for today.

Just before 10 a.m. we began our hike to the Denali Visitor Center. We crossed the bridge over the Nenana River and saw a sign for the Jonesville Trail, but remained on the main walking and cycling path. We encountered a couple from North Carolina half way through a three month road trip in their mini recreational van and chatted for 10 minutes. The man had lived in the United Sates since1968 having arrived from Sydney, Australia. They were coming to the park from Fairbanks and plan to stay until Sunday. Along the pathway were a few wildflowers beginning to bloom.

The distance from our room to the Denali Visitor Center, was 5.43 kilometres. At the Visitor Center, we roamed through the natural history display in the three storey high main gallery. There was a scale model of the complete Denali National Park. There was an explanation of the first inhabitants of the land known as Athabaskans. In the Delhi National Park territory and surrounding region there were five main tribes made up of the Tanana, Koyukon, Upper Kuskokwim, Dena’ina and Ahtna people. Especially intriguing was the brass globe with the continents engraved on it, showing the boreal forests of the world circling south of the Arctic circle almost to the 48th parallel in North America. The boreal forest thrives in Russia, Finland, Sweden and Norway too.

We were never in a place that we could see Mount Denali. By the afternoon just a few clouds floated in the sky. It might have been a day to view the 6,190 metre peak.

At noon, we found the restaurant near the visitor center. The coffee shop part was a Starbucks where we ordered our usual Americano and Cappuccino with a Turkey and Swiss cheese sandwich to share. Then we browsed in the gift shop, before hitting the trail back to the lodge. After checking one of the maps at the Visitor Center, we discovered that the Jonesville Trail was a shortcut. The hike was pleasant with the sun to our backs and a temperature of 14°C. The distance from the Visitor Center campus entrance to our room was 4.92 kilometres, just about 600 meters shorter than our hike in the morning. On the maps the distance looked like it would have been a larger difference.

Wi-Fi was weak in the room so we walked over to the main lodge using the staircase which took 7.5 minutes. The sled dog puppies were visiting again on the large lawn behind the main lodge. With a Caramel Latte and a Cappuccino, we finished our computer work. Zelzen stopped over to say hello and ask about timing for tomorrow evening’s Salmon Bake and Palace Theatre Revue in Fairbanks. There was just a 25 minute window between arriving at our hotel and being picked up for the dinner.

In the late afternoon, we walked the 500 meters to the Golden Nugget Saloon at Denali Square for the Music of Denali dinner and musical theatre. The cast of six were also the servers of the family style meal. The first serving was fresh baking powder biscuits and a tossed salad. People served themselves. Next Kitty, our server for table of ten, brought two huge bowls of mashed potatoes to share, as well as a bowl of hot mixed vegetables, two platters of tender beef brisket and a platter of sockeye salmon fillets. Dessert was served in two large bowls of apple crisp topped with whipped cream but, without the crust. Coffee and tea were served and there was a cash bar. Some of the servers took turns singing familiar old songs that the audience was encouraged to sing along. Once the tables had been cleared, the servers became actors and presented the 45 minute musical story of mountain climbing on Mount Denali. There was lots of audience participation, laughter and cheering from the 100 person audience.

It was just after 7 p.m. when the theatre emptied. A crowd had gathered in sunny Denali Square to listen to the folk singers and enjoy sitting around fire pits or having dinner and/or dinners on the patios. The area was protected from the wind so just a sweater was fine, rather than windproof jacket, to enjoy the folk songs. The sun was still high in the sky and providing warmth.

Total steps for today were 21,245. With the inclines and declines of our hike plus the staircase or hill we climbed getting to the main lodge several times today, my phone registered 21 flights of stairs.