Difficulty: Easy
Distance: 1.75 miles
Time: 1.5 hours
Toddlers: Yes! Single jogger stroller accessible, but not recommended.
If you're looking for an easy, breezy walk through the park, this is the hike for you!
This hike has a few narrow spots, and a little bit of incline/decline but I don't consider it strenuous! It starts from the Denali Visitors Center Parking Lot and heads down the Taiga Trail, the Rock Creek Trail, Meadow View Trail and Roadside Trail. We've marked it in red on the map above to make it easy for your adventure!
The Meadow View Trail wanders back and forth through the trees, a beautiful, quiet hike on a gorgeous late summer day. Because this trail is a connector trail between two trails, we did see a few other hikers but hiking groups were few and far between!
About halfway along the trail, you'll reach this GREAT rest area! There's a nice bench there for checking out this incredible view. We were hiking with a toddler and told them that there were fruit snacks hidden at this rest bench. We hid them when we arrived and they weren't looking. The search for more fruit snacks on the trail was great motivation for the rest of the hike!
We took this hike in the beginning of August, 2020. The blueberries were ripe and delicious! The cranberries are not ready to be picked until after the first frost, which thankfully had not occurred yet. YES - you CAN pick berries in Denali National Park. More information on that here from the Denali National Park website.
There are a few small hills, but nothing too hard that an active toddler can't do it themselves! We had a few babies with us as well and decided that while a single jogger stroller WOULD be possible to have with on the trail, this is a much easier trail if you have a hiking backpack to pack your baby with! We left our strollers in the car and were glad we did.
Near the end of the hike we saw a few National Park Rangers fixing up a new rest area alongside the trail. It looks like it will be another bench area overlooking another meadow. This hike is a beautiful, round hike bringing you new views of Denali around every corner! And, as it starts from the Denali Visitors Center parking lot and loops back, it's easily accessible to anyone who wants a walk in the park. I'm already looking forward to next year when I can report back on the view from the new rest stop on this trail!
