We are a family of 3 who love nature, long walks, hikes, wildlife. We are going to Alaska Aug 31 through Sep 10.
Here is our itinerary:
Aug 31: flight to ANC getting there at 10.30 PM shuttle to hotel
Sep 1: Rent car drive to Denali (stopping at Trapper Creek, Talkeetna to check if clear day for flight) Is it necessary to book flight ahead of time? Do not want to do that in case weather does not cooperate.
Sep 2: bus to wonder lake, hiking around
Sep 3: bus to wonder lake, hiking
Sep 4: Drive to Glenn Allen ( I know loong drive)
Sep 5 Drive to Chitina / McCarthy, onwards to Valdez, Worthington glacier on the way
Sep 6 Drive to Sheep mountain lodge, hiking along the way
Sep 7 Drive to Alyeska, tram
Sep 8 Drive to Exit glacier, hike, onwards to Seward
Sep 9 Kenai Fjords boat tour
Sep 10 drive to Anchorage, hikes around = flat top mtn? return car flight at midnight
We have a long drive on just one day. Appreciate input from experts about the not to be missed sights along the way on the 10 days
Thanks
10 day itinerary in Alaska - advice requested
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Visit the Musk Ox Farm in Palmer
When you go to Alyeska you could also visit Portage Glacier and take the boat ride.
you want to drive from Glennallen to McCarthy, then on to Valdez in a day? good luck. be aware that the road from Chitina to McCarthy is a one lane road for 60 miles. it may look like a 1 hour ride, but count on 3 hours. so driving to there, then back out and south to Valdez in a day is biting off quite a bit. gas prices in Alaska are above most places in the Lower 48. be sure to add that in to your budget. in Sept, you are well past the 'midnight sun' and days are not that long, so expect to be driving in the dark. from Cantwell (south of Denali) you could take the Denali Highway to Paxton (if your rental agency allows it - same for the McCarthy Road, by the way) and take the Richardson Hwy to Glennallen, saving hours of driving. if you want a flight out of Talkeetna, best to reserve- and hope the weather cooperates.
I think you need to evaluate your scheduling. For example the bus to Wonder Lake is 11+ hours round trip; hiking time needs to be added to that. By allocating 2 days for Wonder Lake, what you're really doing is allocating 3 or 4 hours for hikes and 22 hours of bus riding. Is that what you have in mind? Sunrise will be around 7 AM and sunset around 9 PM.
Starting in Glennallen and planning to get to Valdez via McCarthy, then back the next day to Sheep Mountain also seems like an awful lot of driving with minimal time outside the car. I'm assuming also that you're not planning to use the Denali Highway to get to Glennallen in the first place; your car rental company will not be happy.
Just a couple of items; there are other areas where you could probably do a better job of time management. Plus, what are your foul weather alternative plans?