Difficulty: Easy
Distance: 1.5 ish miles
Time: 1.5 hours
Toddlers: Yes! Stroller accessible.
In my humble opinion, you can't have a good day in Denali without a little hike.
We set out to hike to a suspension bridge and asked the rangers exactly which trails to go on. We've marked it on this map from the Denali National Park & Preserve website but basically, you need to take the McKinley Station Trail and then jump on the Triple Lakes Trail when they merge. Or if you're like us, you'll wander down the Spruce Forest Connector Trail and end up back at the visitors center and need to try again!
Now that we were set with our trusty map (and our toddlers which took turns being the "map reader") we were off!! The trails conveniently lead directly from the Visitors Center and are your last stop for bathrooms! Trails are maintained well and I consider this path stroller accessible. Just bring a jogger stroller and not a cheap, umbrella stroller. Those little tires don't hold up well here.
If you're traveling with a bunch of kids, I'm sure you'll need to stop and admire (???) some piles of scat as you pass by. At least, we had to on more than one occasion. PS: we think these are wolf and moose. Moose for sure, the other one is a little more questionable.
The McKinley Station Trail has a lot of great signage marking important areas in the National Park's history! These are worth a quick stop to read - especially if you are interested in the state's gold mining or railroad histories.
There is sooo much beauty on this path!! As you can see, it's stroller accessible, though there is one large hill that would be difficult - or at least more of a workout - with a stroller.
At last we arrived!!! Hello suspension bridge!! The suspension bridge flows over Riley Creek. If you continue down the path you'll be headed on a significantly longer hike - Triple Lakes Trail. We chose to cross the suspension bridge back and forth a few times (we had some kiddos with us that were very into trolls being under the bridge!) and stop for a snack.
This hike is a hike there and hike back (unlike the Horseshoe Lake Hike which is more of a roundabout than a turn and burn) but it was great for our crew. You cross two bridges to get to this hike, most of the trail is on pleasant, well maintained trail and there's one big hill for adults to feel like they're getting a little workout in. This is a hike that is well deserving of your time in Denali!
