Anyone dealt with snow in Denali?

I'm currently in Fairbanks. We leave for Denali on Wednesday morning and have the Denali bus tour Thursday morning. The current forecast is calling for possible snow showers Wednesday night into Thursday morning with maybe 1-3 inches. Will they still run the bus tour or any of the other excursions if it's snowing or if there's a few inches on the ground?

We were on the Tundra Wilderness bus ride when it started snowing and they cut the tour short.

How is the Fairbanks weather?

How is the Fairbanks weather?

It was rainy and in the low 50s all day Monday.

We were on the Tundra Wilderness bus ride when it started snowing and they cut the tour short.

Thanks, this is what I'm afraid of. If it's already snowing or there's a few inches on the ground I'm guessing we'll either not leave at 630am like we're supposed to or it will be cancelled. :(

Interesting to me that a dusting of snow will cause a tour to be cancelled/shortened. I'd venture to say it is because the tour companies do not outfit their busses appropriately all weather. Busses can operate perfectly fine and safely in snowy conditions. I commute to work in the winter on my city bus system - it includes going up/down a very steep and windy mountain road. It runs even in snowstorms when it snows more than a foot.

I'll be sorry for you in advance if the snow showers cause your tour to be cancelled.

A good portion of the road driven for the Tundra Wilderness tour is through a mountain area with narrow two way road. The first part of tour which is the same as the short tour offered didn't have much elevation change so it might be done. You are on basically a large school bus nothing like city buses you may be more familiar with. There are also areas where caribou and elk tend to wander out onto the road so snow can make stopping for animals a little tougher. Hopefully it won't snow snow too much or temps drop to allow it to stick. It was a beautiful tour when we were there early Aug a few years ago, clear skies and no clouds except covering Denali Peak (Mt McKinley but Alaskan prefer the traditional name Denali Peak). Hopefully you'll be seeing the husky training facility that's near Denali. Loved that and got to hold tiny huskies.

Cherie

A good portion of the road driven for the Tundra Wilderness tour is through a mountain area with narrow two way road. The first part of tour which is the same as the short tour offered didn't have much elevation change so it might be done. You are on basically a large school bus nothing like city buses you may be more familiar with. There are also areas where caribou and elk tend to wander out onto the road so snow can make stopping for animals a little tougher. Hopefully it won't snow snow too much or temps drop to allow it to stick. It was a beautiful tour when we were there early Aug a few years ago, clear skies and no clouds except covering Denali Peak (Mt McKinley but Alaskan prefer the traditional name Denali Peak). Hopefully you'll be seeing the husky training facility that's near Denali. Loved that and got to hold tiny huskies.

 

Cherie

My route to work is, at the end, 3 miles of 2-lane road, with an elevation gain of 2000' ! And, you have to look out for deer, elk, and moose. The bus does that route multiple times a day all year. Some our winter drivers are seasonal and they do go to Alaska to drive busses for the summer tourists. They're used to that kind of weather and road. School busses in areas with winter seem to make it. I just bet they don't outfit the busses that run the excursions for anything but summer driving conditions. Too bad. Not fun to miss out because the transportation can't handle a little snow ;-(

I have to watch out for moose and deer when I'm just walking in my neighborhood! Nothing like doing a walk, round a corner, and find Mr. Moose staring at you :eek:

I'm going to answer my own question as I'm here now. They had a good amount of snow in Denali national park overnight. We were on the 9am tundra tour. We entered the park and got stopped at the first rest stop. They held all the buses there and didn't let us go any further due to road conditions. The tour managers got on the buses and gave everyone a form to fill out for partial refunds.

I'm going to answer my own question as I'm here now. They had a good amount of snow in Denali national park overnight. We were on the 9am tundra tour. We entered the park and got stopped at the first rest stop. They held all the buses there and didn't let us go any further due to road conditions. The tour managers got on the buses and gave everyone a form to fill out for partial refunds.

So sorry. I would think they could deal better with snow.

I'm sorry, davidpw. What a disappointment. I understand, but none the less sad to miss a tour you'd anticipated.

Do the folks there say this is unusual for late May? I knew some tours didn't get going until early June so maybe this isn't unusual.

Sure hoping it warms up over the next two weeks.

If you could take photos of the Chalet room I'd love to see what to expect.

I'm sorry, davidpw. What a disappointment. I understand, but none the less sad to miss a tour you'd anticipated.

 

Do the folks there say this is unusual for late May? I knew some tours didn't get going until early June so maybe this isn't unusual.

 

Sure hoping it warms up over the next two weeks.

 

If you could take photos of the Chalet room I'd love to see what to expect.

From what I understand it is unusual. But to be completely honest I wasn't exactly looking forward to a 7 hour bus ride. I'm back at the Chalet now drinking hot chocolate and keeping warm and I think that's much better than being stuck on a bus. I will take a picture of the room and I can email one to you if you send me an address.

I'll see if there is a way to send a private message on the board. Thanks

So sorry. I would think they could deal better with snow.

Have you done this tour, Slidergirl? I have, so I can understand why they do not do that trip in snow, icy conditions. At one point the road is perched on the edge of the mountain on a dirt, gravel, rock one lane road with a drop off of several hundred feet. Our bus driver had to back down to a point where we could leave another vehicle coming from the other direction go by. I think we all held our breath. She did good as I am here to tell about it. And by the way, it was on a curve, too. :eek:

Exactly Hobcat! I've been following this discussion about the busses, and I don't think Slidergirl realizes just how treacherous this one road into the park is. Going thru Polychrome Pass (which is the section you described so eloquently, Hobcat) is unbelievably challenging - on a good weather day! It is a gravel road with no side rails, less than two vehicle widths wide - so imagine huge busses attempting to pass each other on hairpin turns with sheer cliff drop off on one side. It is scarey, believe me, I've been on these shuttle busses many times thru DNP. One time, on our return from Eielson visitor's center, we came upon a rock slide on one of those hairpin turns on Polychrome Pass. The bus driver had to radio in to warn oncoming drivers, and he, along with my husband and several other passengers, had to get out to move some rather large boulders in order for our bus to pass. We had just been along that stretch of road maybe 1 1/2 hours prior with no issues so the rock slides can happen at any time. Throw snow and/or ice into the mix, and it can be very dangerous. Kudos to those bus drivers - they make it look easy, but you can bet it is far from easy!

As far as snow, in late Aug. of 2015, we left the WAC in the early morning to take the park shuttle out to Eielson. When we left the WAC, it was chilly, but sunny with no precipitation. The further we got into the park, we began noticing first a light rain and fog, then heavy snow. By the time we reached the Visitor's Center near 'the end of the road' we had well over 6 inches of snow and travel became difficult. On the other hand, seeing a grizzly 'playing' in the snow right outside the Visitor's Center was just amazing! This visit from the grizzly actually caused the Visitor's Center to go into lock down, we all had to go inside and those just arriving on busses had to remain on the bus until the bear wandered off. So you just never know...

Slidergirl - it isn't a matter of 'handling the snow' as much as it is a combination of the road conditions - gravel, no guiderails, limited road width and extreme elevation changes, not to mention the animals venturing onto the road at any given time, which makes travel on the DNP road so challenging. I hope that you are able to experience a bus trip into the park in the future so you can see for yourself just what we're talking about. You can check out the DNP website to see some photos of the road and particularly the road as it travels thru Polychrome Pass to better understand my somewhat underestimated description of this road. It can really be a knucklebiter for those of you who are afraid of heights (hint: going out, don't sit on the driver's side of the bus to avoid those straight down views. And coming back, you DO want to sit behind the driver so you don't have those terrifying straight down the canyon views!).

To the OP, so sorry you missed your trip into the park. It is an amazing, almost magical experience with excellent views and the opportunity for incredible wildlife viewing around every turn. Trust me, those 7 hours pass in the blink of an eye, and only leaves you wanting more. Really! Something you cannot even imagine until you've done it. Maybe next time? Enjoy the rest of your trip - thanx so much for the play-by-play review, I really appreciate it.

I have not done this excursion. I was stating that I was surprised that a company who does such a "wilderness" excursion was not prepared for operations in snow. There are ways to do it, just disappointed for the OP that their excursion was cancelled.

I have not done this excursion. I was stating that I was surprised that a company who does such a "wilderness" excursion was not prepared for operations in snow. There are ways to do it, just disappointed for the OP that their excursion was cancelled.

They do not operate in winter. I think really mid May to September, maybe. They are equipped for summer trips; that is it.

They do not operate in winter. I think really mid May to September, maybe. They are equipped for summer trips; that is it.

I am still surprised that a company who does excursions during time where it can/will snow does not have that capability to still operate. It is not unusual to have snow in May, even have seen it on the 4th of July. My friend who has a family-owned/run lodge up in AK, she says they still have to 'bile it into the lodge in May. Mother Nature can throw anything anywhere, anytime.

(from one who took off the snow tires in April and had snow last week...)

I think I will just leave this alone from now on. Let's all drop it.

I did this tour last July. My tour guide said that there was snow on that same day 1 year prior, and the tours were cancelled (of course, that was the same time I was sweltering in an Italian heat wave!)

It's a shame that you missed it. It was a great tour-- we had a traffic jam with a bear that just wouldn't move!

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We were on the Tundra Wilderness bus ride when it started snowing and they cut the tour short.

I wouldn't want to be on Polychrome Pass in the snow. Very narrow road and sheer (thousands feet) drop off.

Our guide finally finished Polychrome, then she stopped to remove her jacket with an expression of relief.

We totaled our car on Tioga Pass in Yosemite due to falling rocks.

From what I understand it is unusual. But to be completely honest I wasn't exactly looking forward to a 7 hour bus ride. I'm back at the Chalet now drinking hot chocolate and keeping warm and I think that's much better than being stuck on a bus. I will take a picture of the room and I can email one to you if you send me an address.

How is the Chalet? Reviews on Tripadvisor are not that good. Oh, can you tell me if there are facilities to do laundry?

How is the Chalet? Reviews on Tripadvisor are not that good. Oh, can you tell me if there are facilities to do laundry?

I enjoyed the Chalet. Yes there are laundry facilities.