Denali Wilderness Hike

[2cruiserz]

Has anybody done the 6 hour Denali Wilderness Hike through Princess while at the Mt. McKinley Lodge? If so, can you provide feedback such as how difficult it was, what you thought of the experience, etc.? Also though it says it is 6 hours when you go to actually book it, it shows as 4 1/2. Does anyone know which is accurate. TIA!

[frugaltravel]

If it is from McKinley Princess it has to be in Denali STATE Park, not Denali NATIONAL Park. Not sure where it goes though or how long it is. There are some nice hikes in that area near Byers Lake, Kesugi Ridge, etc.

[AKStafford]

So it looks like you are talking about this: https://www.princesslodges.com/excursions/mckinley-denali-hike/

I'm guessing it includes a 45 minute each way (1.5 hours total) drive to the start of the hiking. So 1.5 hours of driving and 4.5 hours of hiking. 6 hours total. And based on the incredibly brief description, I agree with frugaltravel that it's probably in the Byers Lake, Kesugi Ridge area of the Denali State Park.

[frugaltravel]

The link that AKStafford gave says specifically that the hike is in Denali State Park. It also mentions an elevation gain of 1,200 feet. I think the top of Kesugi Ridge is 2,000 feet elevation gain. Most likely you go up the Kesugi Ridge trail to the tree line then come back down the same way you went up (otherwise the Kesugi Ridge Trail is a multi-day backpacker hike).

[Glaciers]

Maps shows the Mt McKinley lodge is about 15 minutes from Byers Lake. May be longer to the Kesugi trail head?