The Denali Park Road is the only road that winds into the six-million-acre wilderness landscape of Denali National Park and Preserve. It is a portal, though which thousands of people travel each year to discover the wonders of this wild place.
With visitation steadily growing, the park is approaching the core season vehicle limit of 10,512 set by park managers in the 1986 General Management Plan. Whereas the vehicle limit is clearly measureable, it is less clear that a numerical limit alone is enough to adequately protect park resources and provide for a high quality visitor experience. Other factors come into play, such as visitor perceptions of crowding at wildlife stops and rest stops; interactions between busses and wildlife; and wildlife movements in the Park Road corridor.
The National Park Service is seeking public comment to the draft Environmental Impact Statement for a Vehicle Management Plan. This is a critical time for the public to review and offer comments to help shape the final plan.
Of particular note: Park managers usually indicate a preferred alternative. In this case, both action alternatives propose to manage for desired resource and visitor use conditions using the same indicators and standards. In a sense, the two alternatives will reach the same end. However, between the two alternatives there are differences in the way that will be accomplished. Park managers would like to understand the public preference for management of the transportation system and other vehicle use on the Park Road.
Ultimately, the carrying capacity of the Park Road will be expressed in a measureable way. It will, however, take into account a range of variables related to visitors and the resource. With your help, the Vehicle Management Plan will guide management of the Park Road experience, so it continues to offer visitors of diverse needs, wants and desires opportunities to come to know our wilderness heritage.
TO COMMENT: visit us at the NPS Park Planning webpage
or submit written comments via mail or fax to:
Superintendent
Denali National Park & Preserve
Vehicle Management Plan
PO Box 588
Talkeetna, AK 99676
FAX: 907-733-1465
Comments will be accepted through October 31, 2011. (Note this is an extension beyond the original deadline of September 30, 2011.)
