A Hat Trick Vacation- 3 National Parks in Alaska in July 2021- Kenai, Denali and Wrangell- St. Elias

2020 was an unprecedented year. And when we planned this trip late April, we were hoping and praying for unprecedented luck, starting with the obvious part of not needing to cancel our trip due to Covid related reasons. The weather was great and everything we planned for fell into place perfectly on this  "jam packed and outdoor focused" vacation- a perfect hat trick of awesomeness at the three of the National Parks in Alaska. 

Short description on highlights of our itinerary below followed by detailed day by day for your planning purposes:)

Highlights: 3 National Parks in 7 nights/8 days- Over 1500 miles of driving...and priceless memories!

1. Harding Icefield Glacier Hike and Hump Back Whales and we lucked out with experiencing a Bubble Net Feeding by 7-9 Humpback Whales at the Resurrection bay in Kenai fjords National Park. Yay!

2. Camping in Denali with the most exquisite views of Denali- tallest mountain in North America at 20, 310 ft/6,190 m above sea level. Yay!

3. Adventure with Glacier hike, Moulin Ice Climbing and Class 2-3 White water rafting in Wrangell- St. Elias National Park- the largest national park in USA. Yay!

Day by day detailed description

Day 1: June 27 2021 Travel Day Fly from Newark to Anchorage and drive to Seward. It is a 6 hour flight from the East Coast of USA. Approx drive of 2 hours south of Anchorage is a place called Seward- One night in Seward.

Just being on the airport felt great!

First air travel after Covid-19 hiatus

Yes, after covid vacation hiatus, this felt like an accomplishment in and of itself. A direct flight from Newark to Anchorage helped! 

Picnic #1- Dinner after landing in Alaska

This was the time of the year when the sun hardly set, so arriving in Anchorage at 8pm, felt a bit different  These pictures was taken a few hours after we reached Alaska and at 8pm. It was bright outside and the sun was making the time of the day seem more like 3pm!  A quick stop at local Walmart was critical to pick up Propane tank for our on-the-go-meals planning! See tips for Alaska success toward the end of the post.

Trail Lake Lodge- Alaska Railroad goes past this lake

Potter Marsh Boardwalk

We stopped at a picnic spot at Potter Marsh Wildlife Viewing and Board Walk. This was a nice spot for a quick dinner, testing out our stove and a quick walk on the boardwalk soaking up the Alaskan beauty!

In about 2 hours that followed, we were treated with wildlife- A family of Swans not too far from the Potter Marsh area, Mountain Sheep at the Turnagain Arm and finally, a pair of Moose at Tern Lake. "Welcome to Alaska!"...just like we remember the state from our visit 15 years ago.Our modest lodging at Moose Pass did not disappoint at all. Trail Lake Lodge had a room overseeing the beautiful blue glacial lake. Bush planes "parked" on this lake reminded us of the vastness of this land! 

Swan Family, Mountain Sheep and Moose- All spotted within 3 hours of landing in Anchorage! Success!

Trail Lake Lodge- Bush plane parked outside the lodge

Trail Lake Lodge- Alaskan Railroad hugs this lake as it travels from Anchorage to Seward

Day 2:  June 28, 2021 Kenai Fjords National Park 

We spent a day at Kenai Fjords NP- Activities included a strenuous 4 mile Harding Icefield Trail hike and a 3.5 hour wildlife watching cruise with Major Marine Tours.

 Our days started early and on this particular day, we had a hike to complete before heading over for a 1:30pm cruise.

Harding Icefield Trail

Harding Icefield Trail

Harding Icefield Trail and Exit Glacier in the backdrop

Harding Icefield Trail

Harding Icefield Trail

Harding Icefield Trail did not disappoint. We visited this glacier after 15 years and global warming effects with receding glacier were noticeable. 

Yet another picnic table lunch at Seward harbor

Harding Icefield was about 20 minutes from Seward. So, after a 4 mile hike, we checked in for our cruise at 12:30pm and ate a quick hot meal before our cruise. 

Since we had limited time, we had booked a 3.5 hour wildlife cruise. There were several other longer tours and several tours dedicated to whale watching. We had time for neither! However, lady luck was about to shine once again:) On this short tour, we got to see an incredible display of Bubble Net Feeding by approx. 7-9 Humpback Whales. The display was so rare that our tour guide who cruises on the water as her work described this as the best day of her work life so far. This was sheer luck factor! This is a video we captured of one of the feeds.

Wildlife cruise at Kenai Fjords NP on the Resurrection Bay

Wildlife cruise at Kenai Fjords NP on the Resurrection Bay

Wildlife cruise at Kenai Fjords NP on the Resurrection Bay- Bubble Net Feeding Whales

Junior Rangers of Kenai Fjords NP 

Iditarod starts here

Yet another dinner enroute to Anchorage on the Iditarod trail and close to Turnagain arm 

Day 3: June 29, 2021 Travel to Denali National Park Drive to Denali NP and take the 2pm Campground Shuttle Bus that took us 90 miles into Denali at Wonder Lake Campground. Pitch tent and socialize with other campers to start enjoying the tundra up close! The mosquito situation in Summer is bad. In other words, these mosquitos are mini birds. And this is not a joke! What you see in pictures are mosquito nets covering our faces.

Day 4: June 30, 2021 Denali National Park Take the 8am Shuttle to Kantishna End of the Road in Denali and get off at Blueberry hill on the way back. Hike back to Wonder Lake (approx. 5-6 miles) and pack picnic or cook lunch along the way in the backcountry. Return to campsite to freshen up and take another hike McKinley Bar Trail (approx. 4-5 miles) late afternoon. Ranger led program and another Junior Ranger induction ceremony for kids, (Expect 40000+ steps on this day)

Alaska is one of the three top coffee destinations in USA- Love this coffee loving state!

Drive from Anchorage to Denali

Denali Bus Depot- Ready for our 90 mile ride into Denali 

Savage River stop enroute to Wonder Lake

Antlers

Antlers

Spotted a Moose

Moose

Tent pitched for 2 nights at Wonder Lake Campground

Catching zzzs is not easy when there is light outside all through the night!

Moods of Denali - Orange at Dawn, Yellow at Dusk and Bright White through the day!

Wonder Lake is hands-down one of the best campsites in USA

This porcupine too was waiting at the bus stop!

Blueberry Hill at Wonderlake

We hiked 8-9 miles from Kantishna general area to Wonderlake Campgound- Cross country hike!

Beautiful scenery at Denali and majestic mountain view 24x7 

Our handy stove was our trusted partner for hot meals in the middle of nowhere:)

McKinley Bar Trail

Trailhead and bear was spotted there in the morning

Wonderlake campground- Just as beautiful as we remember it 15 years ago

Camping with kids at a remote location was an excellent family bonding activity!

Reflection Pond at Denali NP

Morning coffee at the campsite

Family photo:)

Reflection Pond

Completing Junior Ranger packs during afternoon downtime

Mosquito nets were a necessity

Denali Range reflection

Day 5: July 1, 2021 Travel out of Denali National Park to Wrangell-St. Elias National Park

6:30 am Shuttle Bus out of Denali NP to the main entrance and a long drive to Glenallen for an overnight stay in a Tiny Home.

~90 miles from Wonderlake Campground to Denali National Park Visitor Center - Takes 5 hours

White Wildflowers

Saying goodbye to a fantastic camping experience

Camper bus 

Day 6: July 2, 2021 Bush plane from Chitina to McCarthy and shuttle to Kennecott and Ice Climbing adventure at Wrangell- St. Elias National Park

 Drive to Chitina Airport and park the car overnight at the airport. Take a bush plane flight by Wrangell Mountain Air to McCarthy, Alaska and shuttle to Kennecott and the Wrangell-St Elias NP and Kennecott, Alaska. Take  a guided Ice Climbing tour by St. Elias Alpine Guides. Ice Climbing adventure included getting set for the hike on the glacier (climbing boots and crampon fitting), ice climbing practice on a wall of ice on the glacier followed by Moulin Ice Climbing. Ranger talk to learn more about Kennecott transformation over the years followed by another Junior Ranger induction for kids. This was their 25th National Park trip.

Ready for our Glacier Hike with Climbing boots and Crampons strapped to our backpacks

Kennecott- Copper mining town

St Elias Alpine Guides office was right across from Kennecott Lodge 

View from the bush plane

View from the bush plane

Root Glacier from the bush plane

On the root glacier and ready for our hike

Taking turns ice climbing on a wall of ice

Moulin- This is a waterfall on the face of the glacier. You descend down and then climb your way back up.

Yet another place where kids were working on their junior ranger packs

One of us was ready to climb down into the moulin

Moulin view- Each inch of ice is 30 ft of snow compressed over the years! 

Starting the descend is nerve wreaking

Observing the blueness of the surrounding

Glacier surface

Glacier valley

Another Junior Ranger Ceremony

Kennecott Mine in the backdrop - An evening stroll after the ranger talk

Kennecott Lodge

Day 7: July 3 2021 River Rafting at McCarthy and travel to Matanuska Glacier

Take a shuttle back to McCarthy and join the McCarthy River Tours and Outfitters for a 4 hour Kennecott Glacier Lake and River Rafting adventure. 

$300 per night room in this lodge had a shared bath! Lol

Arya and Atharva at Kennecott lodge

McCarthy River Rafting office

Float trip on a glacier lake

Bush planes parked- even the weeds in Alaska look pretty

White Water Rafting video

Everybody deserves an ice cream after hard work rafting

McCarthy Footbridge 

McCarthy museum

The Potato food was delish!

Just like that! Water is very clear in this state!

Our lunch spot this day

We took a shuttle back to Chitina this day to pick up our car and at Chitina airport, walked up to a fish wheel...Alaska has a large population on subsistence living.

Fish Wheels

The history of these fish wheels in Alaska is very interesting. Our shuttle driver said that he gets to "fish" 500 fishes each year at his fish wheel

After  picking up the car we drove to Glacier View, Alaska and our last night was spent in one of the best AirBnB in Alaska. 

Just a normal roadside view 

Saying goodbye to tall mountains in USA was not easy

The fact that it was still so bright outside at 1am was as surprising as it was at the start of our trip.

Day 8: July 4 2021 Happy Independence Day USA and goodbye Alaska

 Head back to Anchorage for a red eye back home. The last day was at an amazing AirBnB. This very relaxing accommodation was exactly what we needed for our last day in this beautiful state. We wanted to visit the Glacier View July 4 celebration where cars fly off the cliff as fireworks but it was cutting it too close, so chose to relax in our amazing accommodation and soak in those views on the last day!

Matanuska glacier view from our bedroom

Journaling with a cup of tea and this beautiful view warmed my belly and soul

Tree pose by Arva Yoga

Happy birthday USA

Palmer Alaska

Local recommendation- This pizza did not disappoint

4 of us and our 4 duffels

After saying "we will surely come back to this place again" in 2005, we actually did go back in 2021. Yes, this was also our second time visiting both Denali and Kenai Fjords, although the experience was very different from 16 years ago when we visited as a newly wed couple. However, the beauty of this state is unchanged. With no billboard policy, this vast land and the last frontier will remains one of our top 3 favorite destinations. 

3 tips for successful Alaska trip, especially if you are looking for an active vacation-

1) On the road

Distances, Car rental contract language for gravel roads, Cafe Culture and Phone Signal

Alaska is a HUGE state. Look at the East Coast of USA Map - Alaska is all of those 20 Eastern Corridor states put together in size! Our 7 day trip was over 1500+ miles. And we fit in 3 National Parks. Mapping out the details of all spots and carrying an actual paper map helps in Alaska even today. These maps are available on the airport at car rentals. A related tip is to read the car rental contract carefully. Many roads in Alaska are gravel and the contract does not cover you on these roads- Denali highway is one such example. So, there will be times where you will need to take a longer road. 

2) Food 

Camping stove even when you are not camping and packed lunches will often save the day

Only tip for Alaska if you want to optimize your vacation- carry food and be prepared to stop in the middle of nowhere and heat and eat something quickly! Ramen anybody?

Alaska is huge and based on our last experience visiting the state,  there are miles of stretches on roads without restaurants or gas stations. So, it is best to be prepared. If there was one tip that I could leave you with, it is this- keep some ready to eat foods on hand or quick prep supplies on hand. Our loyal mini-stove came in handy on multiple occasions including when we found ourselves without a restaurant for miles on end, unexpectedly! 

3)  Mosquitos and Zzzzs

Land of midnight sun to optimize the itinerary and aisles of mosquito products in Walmart are  for a reason

Yes, we hardly saw the sun set...it was twilight even during the early hours of morning! This was perfect for our family loves to make the most of each minute we get. If your travel philosophy is to optimize, taking advantage of long days is fantastic. The only downside of this is that you may need light blocking curtains or eye masks for sleeping. 

Hope you enjoyed reading this blog and the pictures! And hope you visit this beautiful state soon.