Denali National Park and Preserve · established the original Mount McKinley National Park to the...

Denali National Park and PreserveAnnual Report 2005

National Park ServiceU.S. Department of the Interior

Map of Denali National Park and Preserve

D E N A L I N A T I O N A L P A R K A N D P R E S E R V E 2 0 0 6

Denali National Park and Preserve encompasses areas north and south of the Alaska Range in the interior ofAlaska. Although much of the park is remote, it can be reached from the east year-round via the George ParksHighway, which connects the cities of Anchorage and Fairbanks. Most park visitors come by train, buses or

private vehicles during the months of June, July and August.

Visitors are encouraged to make advance reservations for buses and campgrounds during the summer. Wildernesspermits are required for overnight travel in the backcountry, and they can only be obtained in person up to the daybefore the trip.

Table of Contents

D E N A L I N A T I O N A L P A R K A N D P R E S E R V E 2 0 0 6 3

Message from the Superintendent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

Purpose and Significance of Denali National Park and Preserve . . . . . . . 5-6

Performance and Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Preserve Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-11

Public Enjoyment and Public Experience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-15

Organizational Effectiveness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16-17

FY2005 Financial Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Park Organization Chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Cover Photos: Mt. McKinley - Robert Valarcher, Denali Visitor Center and ranger/visitor - Chris Arend, Back Cover: Rick McIntyre

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Rick McIntyre

Message From the Superintendent


We are proud of our many accomplishments in 2005. With our partners,we celebrated the culmination of almost ten years of planning andhard work at the grand opening of the spectacular new Denali Visitor

Center and its associated facilities in August. Through the educationalopportunities offered at the Murie Science and Learning Center, which openedin 2004, and the expanded services and activities available at the new VisitorCenter Campus, visitors will gain a much deeper understanding of the park’snatural and cultural history.

Construction efforts moved to the heart of the park, where work began onreplacement of the inadequate and deteriorating Eielson Visitor Center. Whencompleted in 2008, the new Eielson Visitor Center will provide long-neededservices to the growing number of visitors traveling into the park. A temporaryVisitor Information Station was erected at the new Toklat Rest Stop to providevisitor services during the construction period.

Meeting the challenges of increasing demand for the Denali Park experiencewithout damaging fragile park resources and destroying the special qualities thatvisitors come here to experience is an ongoing process. Hundreds of hotelrooms were added just outside the park entrance during 2005. With theadditional rooms comes the demand for more buses on the park road. Portionsof the park’s bus system will likely reach capacity within the next few years. Weare concerned that increasing the number of buses traveling the park road couldadversely impact the quality of the visitor experience, and negatively impact theresources that the park is tasked with protecting. This year we initiated researchto help us better understand road capacity. We are working with other interestedparties to address the issue. We are also exploring alternatives to the park roadexperience, including finalizing a plan for new facilities on the south side of the park.

The following pages summarize some of the highlights of 2005. There will alwaysbe challenges. We are confident that our highly qualified staff of dedicatedprofessionals, working with our partners and stakeholders, will continue to meetthese challenges in creative and innovative ways, just as they have in 2005. I hopeyou find this annual report informative and useful. Thank you for your interestin Denali National Park and Preserve and its future.

Superintendent Paul Anderson (with skison the right) prepares to lead the “ski withthe Superintendent” activity at the 2005Winterfest, an annual community-widecelebration of the state's longest season.


Purpose and Significance of Denali National Park and Preserve

The purpose of Denali NationalPark and Preserve has evolvedfrom the time Congress

established the original Mount McKinleyNational Park to the present and hasincreased in complexity because of thedifferent mandates that apply to theOld Park (the original Mount McKinleyNational Park), the national parkadditions (added by ANILCA), thenational preserve (also added byANILCA), and the designated wilderness(covering most of the Old Park).

Mount McKinley NationalPark (Old Park)In 1917 Congress established MountMcKinley National Park as a “gamerefuge” to “set apart as a public parkfor the benefit and enjoyment of thepeople ... for recreation purposes bythe public and for the preservation ofanimals, birds, and fish and for thepreservation of the natural curiosities andscenic beauties thereof ...” (39 Stat. 938).

Denali National Park and PreserveIn 1980 Congress passed the AlaskaNational Interest Lands ConservationAct (ANILCA, 16 USC §§ 3101-3233,Pub. L. 96-487), which enlarged andrenamed the park Denali NationalPark and Preserve. Section 101 ofANILCA describes the broad purposesof the new conservation system unitsthroughout Alaska, including enlargednational parks and preserves such asDenali. These are the following:

• Preserve lands and waters for thebenefit, use, education, and inspirationof present and future generations.

• Preserve unrivaled scenic andgeological values associated withnatural landscapes.

• Maintain sound populations of, andhabitat for, wildlife species.

• Preserve extensive, unalteredecosystems in their natural state.

• Protect resources related tosubsistence needs.

• Protect historic and archeological sites.

• Preserve wilderness resource valuesand related recreational opportunitiessuch as hiking, canoeing, fishing,and sport hunting.

• Maintain opportunities for scientificresearch in undisturbed ecosystems.

• Provide the opportunity for ruralresidents engaged in a subsistenceway of life to continue to do so.

Section 202 stated that the DenaliNational Park and Preserve additionsare to be managed for the followingadditional specific purposes:

• To protect and interpret the entiremountain massif and the additionalscenic mountain peaks and formations.

• To protect habitat for, and populationsof fish and wildlife, including, but notlimited to, brown/grizzly bears, moose,caribou, Dall sheep, wolves, swans, andother waterfowl.

• To provide continued opportunities,including reasonable access, formountain climbing, mountaineering,and other wilderness recreationalactivities.

Denali WildernessSection 701 of ANILCA designated the“Denali Wilderness of approximatelyone million nine hundred thousandacres” under the Wilderness Act as

depicted on a map referenced in Section202 of ANILCA and including 99% ofthe former Mt. McKinley National Park.According to the Wilderness Act, theselands are to be “administered for the useand enjoyment of the American peoplein such manner as will leave themunimpaired for future use andenjoyment as wilderness, and so as toprovide for the protection of these areas,the preservation of their wildernesscharacter, and for the gathering anddissemination of information regardingtheir use and enjoyment as wilderness.”

Denali National PreserveSection 1313 of ANILCA addresses thepurpose of national preserves createdby the act.

A National Preserve in Alaska shall beadministered and managed as a unit ofthe National Park System in the samemanner as a national park except asotherwise provided in this Act andexcept that the taking of fish and wildlifefor sport purposes and subsistence uses,and trapping shall be allowed in anational preserve under applicable Stateand Federal law and regulation.

Ron Weagant of Haines, Alaska, one of the 2005Artists-in-Residence, paints on location along the East Fork River.


Large Protected Area. Denali NationalPark and Preserve encompasses a vastsix million acre area, about the size of thestate of New Hampshire. Most of thetwo million acres of the original park hasbeen in protected status since 1917. Thislarge size enables a spectacular array offlora and fauna to live together in ahealthy natural ecosystem and providesexcellent opportunities to studysubarctic ecosystems in settings largelyundisturbed by humans. Because ofthese values, the United Nations Manand the Biosphere Program designatedthe park and preserve to be anInternational Biosphere Reserve.

Mountains and Glaciers The parkcontains a major portion of the AlaskaRange, one of the great mountain upliftsin North America. The Alaska Range isdominated by North America's highestpeak, Mount McKinley, with its summitat 20,320 feet above sea level. Towering18,000 feet above the adjacent lowlands,the mountain's dramatic vertical reliefrivals any other mountain in the world,exceeding the vertical relief of MountEverest measured from base to summit.A number of large glaciers originate inthe park's high mountains, includingsome of the largest in North America.

Wildlife and Habitat The park wasoriginally established in 1917 as a refuge forlarge mammals. Backcountry visitors andvisitors traveling along the park road oftenobserve Dall sheep, caribou, wolf, grizzlybear, moose, and fox. While populationsfluctuate, nowhere else in America cansuch concentrations of these large speciesof wildlife be observed in as accessible anatural setting. The park is also significantfor its diverse avian habitat that attractsbirds from all over the world. The park'srich and varied vegetation includes alpine

tundra, shrub-scrub tundra, mixedspruce-birch and spruce-tamarackwoodlands, taiga, wetlands, and extensiveriparian and lowland forest areas. Denalihas more than 10,000 mapped lakes.More than 753 species of flowering plantsinhabit the slopes and valleys of the park.

Scenic Resources and Air QualityOutstanding views of natural features,including mountains, glaciers, faults,and rivers dominate the parklandscape. On a clear day, MountMcKinley can be seen fromAnchorage, more than 130 air miles tothe south. The exceptional air qualityin Alaska and the lack of city lightsnear the park provide the conditionsfor outstanding daytime views year-round and excellent night sky visibilityin fall, winter, and spring. DenaliNational Park and Preserve is adesignated Class I airshed under theClean Air Act Amendments.

Cultural Resources There are 257known cultural resource sites withinDenali's boundaries, including bothprehistoric and historic sites. Becausecultural resource inventories have beenlimited to date, this number likelyrepresents a small fraction of the park'stotal sites. Known resources includearcheological and historic sites associatedwith Athabascan Indian groups, earlyexplorers, mining history, and the earlydays of the park. Major prehistoric sitesin the park include the TeklanikaArcheological District, a property listedon the National Register of HistoricPlaces. Many historic structures are in thepark headquarters area, which is listed onthe National Register of Historic Placesas a district, and on the boundaries of theDenali Wilderness (along the originalpark boundary). These are mainly patrol

cabins and other structures dating backto early years of park management.Historic mining activity dates back to the early 1900s in the Kantishna Hills(which includes the national register-eligible Kantishna Historic District), theStampede area, and the Dunkle Hillsnear Cantwell.

Mountaineering Because it is thehighest peak in North America, has ahigh northern latitude location, and isrelatively accessible, Mount McKinleyis considered one of the world'spremier mountaineering destinations,drawing climbers from manycountries. It is touted as one of the“seven summits of the world.” Manyother peaks in the park, includingMount Foraker, also offer outstandingexpeditionary climbing opportunities.

Wilderness Recreation Denali offerssuperlative opportunities for primitivewilderness recreation. Outstanding cross country hiking, backcountrycamping, and winter touring possibilitiesare available for those willing toapproach the area in its naturalcondition. This huge park contains largeareas with almost no trails and whereevidence of human use is minimal tononexistent. These conditions are incontrast to most wilderness areas in thecontiguous 48 states where maintainedtrails, designated campsites, footbridges,and signs are standard. These conditionsalso contrast with much of Alaska, wheresimilar opportunities abound, but arevery difficult to reach. A large portion ofDenali's backcountry is readilyaccessible to visitors who can reach thepark by either highway or railroad fromeither Anchorage or Fairbanks - Alaska'stwo largest cities and major connectionpoints for out-of-state visitors.

Significance of Denali National Park and Preserve

PRESERVE PARK RESOURCES

Natural and cultural resources

and associated values at

Denali National Park and

Preserve are protected,

restored, and maintained in

good condition and managed

within their broader ecosystem

and cultural context.


Preserve Park Resources

Restoration of Obsolete Trails, Campsites and Construction Sites

Long-Term Goal: By September 30, 2008, 100% of thethree acres of lands disturbed bythe entrance area development will be restored

Annual Goal: By September 30, 2005, 2.0 acres willbe restoredSTATUS: GOAL EXCEEDED

A total of more than 2.5 acres werecleaned up and restored. The parkreceived five Public Lands Corpsgrants, for a total of $100,000, to hireStudent Conservation Corps (SCA)trail crew workers to obliterate andrevegetate obsolete social trails in theentrance area of the park.Construction of the new DenaliVisitor Center, Morino Grill, DenaliBookstore, comfort station, andbaggage storage building created alarge amount of disturbed ground inthe area, which has been revegetated.Earthwork swales were built to givethe area some contour and to makethe new facilities less visible from thePark Road.

Obsolete trails are restored by first removingasphalt, and breaking up the hard-packedsurface. The vegetation mats and individualplants are then used to rehabilitate theunneeded footpath.

Trail crew members removed mats of vegetation andindividual plants from areas slated for constructionand utilized these materials to revegetate thedisturbed areas.

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Long-Term Goal: By September 30, 2008 eight (14%) of58 native Species of ManagementConcern (wolves, moose, goldeneagles, caribou, trumpeter swans,grizzly bears, Dall sheep, peregrinefalcons) will have improved informationregarding their occurrence, distribution,and abundance in the park, subject tothe availability of funding. Monitoringplans will be written, and two (3%) of58 of the species (wolves and grizzlybears) will be managed according toapproved management guidelines.

Annual Goal: By September 30, 2005, improvedinformation on four of the Species ofManagement Concern will be available.STATUS: GOAL EXCEEDED

Through ongoing monitoring, surveysand other mechanisms, the parkobtained improved information aboutthe distribution and abundance offive species: wolves, caribou, moose,golden eagles, and trumpeter swans.Twelve wolves from nine packs werecaptured and radio-collared in March

2005 to maintain the monitoring levelsof the packs. During the year a total of528 locations of radio-collared wolveswere obtained from aircraft, andanother 2000 daily locations wereobtained via satellite upload from eightwolves with GPS units in the collars. InApril 2005, parkwide wolf density wasestimated at 4.51 wolves per 1000square kilometers.

Through monitoring of the Denalicaribou herd, it was estimated thatthere were 2000 animals in lateSeptember 2004, with the highest fallcalf/cow ratio (28 calves per 100 cows)in 15 years. This suggests a potential foran increase in herd size.

A survey of moose populations on thenorth side of the Alaska Range,scheduled every three years underCentral Alaska Monitoring Networkplans, was done in November 2004.

Four female grizzly bears were capturedto change radio collars and a new femalewas captured and collared in May 2005as part of an ongoing study on bear

populations on the north side of theAlaska Range. Bears were tracked viathe collars approximately twice permonth between May and September todetermine cub productivity and survival.

Three sows (female bears) had a totalof six spring cubs. By the end ofSeptember only one was alive,resulting in an 83% mortality rate. Thisrate is above the average of 70% forthis project for first-year cubs. Sixyearling cubs were counted in May,and three were know to be alive by theend of the season. The fate of onecouldn’t be determined. Two othersows had a total of four two-year-oldcubs, all of which survived to theseason’s end. Three sows had sixthree-year-olds between them, none of which could be accounted for.These animals may have died ordispersed out of the study area.

Seventy-seven golden eagle nestingterritories were monitored in 2005. Ofthese, 87% were occupied by territorialpairs and 61% of the pairs producedclutches. Reproductive success in 2005

Wildlife Monitoring

Two of the species being monitored in the park arethe caribou (left) and trumpeter swan (above). Notonly have the number of trumpeter swans in thepark increased, but they have also expanded theirnesting range to include higher elevations.


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Long-Term Goal: By September 30, 2008, one new sitewill be discovered, documented andofficially added to the park's baselineinventory of paleontological sites.

Annual Goal: By September 30, 2005, one site willbe discovered and documented.STATUS: GOAL ACHIEVED

A roughly 70 million year-olddinosaur footprint, the first evidenceof dinosaurs in the park, wasdiscovered in late June 2005 bymembers of a University of AlaskaFairbanks geology mapping classworking in the Igloo Canyon areas,approximately 35 miles from the parkentrance. The footprint is a cast ofsandy material that is approximatelyten inches long and seven incheswide. It is a well-preserved trace of atheropod, a three-toed, roughly 200pound, carnivorous biped.Researchers had been looking for evidence of dinosaurs in the park in

that Cantwell rock formation forseveral years.

The specimen and its containingblock of sandstone were removedfrom the field site in August 2005 toavoid loss from high water, and/orvandalism. The park plans to displaythe specimen in the Murie Scienceand Learning Center.

Dinosaur Track Discovered in Igloo Canyon

was slightly higher than the long-termmean. Nesting success was 70%and the overall populationproductivity was 0.60, with a meanbrood size of 1.38 birds.

All known peregrine falcon nestingterritories were monitored. Reproductivesuccess was documented at twoterritories and six fledglings wereproduced. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Servicepersonnel worked with park staff toconduct standardized aerial surveys

from a fixed-wing aircraft to count thenumber of adult swans and cygnets in thesouthwestern and northwestern regions ofDenali as part of a five-year statewidetrumpeter swan survey. Seven hundredswans were detected on the survey inDenali including 40 lone swans, 195 pairs(390 individuals including 62 pairs withcygnets), and 197 cygets.

Parkwide patterns of plantcommunities, bird communities andfactors of the physical environment are

being measured using a randomsampling method to establish baselinedata and long-term trends. In summer2005, 31 permanent vegetation plotswere installed and surveyed.Standardized counts for passerinebirds were conducted at 261 samplingpoints in June 2005 during thebreeding bird survey. Preliminaryanalyses of survey data suggest that the abundance of most species ofpasserines was slightly higher than inthe last four years.

(Above) Track cast of a theropod discovered in IglooCanyon. (Below) Left to right: Park geologist PhilBrease; NPS Director Fran Mainella; NPS Regionalgeologist Linda Stromquist; Dr. Anthony Fiorillo,Dallas Museum of Natural History; Brent Breithaup,University of Wyoming; Elwood Lynn, AssistantSuperintendent for Operations and Jessica Haddon-Scherzinger, physical science technican.

Long-Term Goal:By September 30, 2008, 100% of theidentified natural resource datasetsidentified in the Resource ManagementPlan will be completed.

Annual Goal: By September 30, 2005, 25 of the 28databases on the base inventories forDenali will be completed.STATUS: GOAL ACHIEVED

Work continued through the CentralAlaska Network's Inventory andMonitoring Program in developing thebase inventories for Denali. Some majorprojects included research into predator-prey dynamics through cooperativework with the Biological ResourcesDivision of the U.S. Geological Survey.Numerous monitoring projectscontinued, strengthening the baselinedatasets for the park. These includedmonitoring the impacts of the dustpalliative applications on the park road,documenting resource conditions in theToklat basin and monitoring the flowrates on the upper Kahiltna, Muldrowand Polychrome Glaciers. This was the13th year of Central Alaska Networkglacier monitoring program. Staff alsoprepared a public display of comparativeglacier photos showing 50 years ofchange on Denali's glaciers that wasdisplayed in the Talkeetna Ranger Stationand at Park Headquarters. Thesephotographs will be integrated into adisplay in the new Eielson Visitor Center.

An extensive effort was undertaken inthe summer of 2005 to documentresource impacts from all terrainvehicle (ATV) use by subsistence usersin the Cantwell Creek/Dunkle Hillsarea of the park.


Photographs taken of the East Teklanika Glacier,located on the north side of the Alaska Range,document dramatic changes in the glacier.

PRESERVE PARK RESOURCES

The National Park Service

contributes to knowledge

about natural and cultural

resources and associated

values; management

decisions about visitors and

resources are based on

adequate scholarly and

scientific information.

Resource Monitoring

The hazardous fuels removal projectbegun in 2004 was expanded to theToklat Road Camp area this summer toincrease defensible space around parkstructures. Approximately 46,445 poundsof biomass such as trees, bushes,branches and other plant materials wereremoved from the 8.9 acres treated frommid-August until early September.Hazardous fuels were also removed from the vicinity of historical cabins inthe park's backcountry. A portion ofthat project was devoted to collectingpre- and post-treatment vegetationdocumentation of the treated areas. The fire management staff also wasengaged in a research project to developmore precise fuel models for the park.

Backcountry Management Plan

Long-Term Goal: By September 30, 2006, DenaliNational Park and Preserve willcomplete an approved Backcountry/Wilderness Management Plan.

Short-term Goal: By September 30, 2005, most of thework will have been completed so thata plan will be completed by 2006.STATUS: GOAL ACHIEVED

A revised Draft BackcountryManagement Plan was completed inearly 2005 and released for publicreview. Over 15,000 comments werereceived before the comment periodclosed in mid-July.The comments wereanalyzed and incorporated into thefinal plan, completed in early 2006.

PROVIDE FOR THE PUBLIC ENJOYMENT AND VISITOR EXPERIENCE

Visitors safely enjoy and are

satisfied with the availability,

accessibility, diversity, and the

quality of park facilities,

services, and appropriate

recreational opportunities.

Provide for the Public Enjoyment and Visitor Experience


Long-Term Goal: By September 30, 2008, 88% of visitors to Denali are satisfied withappropriate park facilities, services,and recreational opportunities.

Annual Goal: By September 30, 2005, 85% of the visitors will be satisfiedwith the services of the park. This willbe determined by public comments andvisitor surveys. STATUS: GOAL EXCEEDED

95% of the visitors who responded tovisitor surveys or sent in commentcards stated that they were satisfiedwith the park's facilities and services.This was no doubt due in part to anumber of significant enhancementsthat took place this year, theculmination of years of publicplanning and hard work. The MurieScience and Learning Center, whichopened in August 2004, is open year-round and functions as the park's firstwinter visitor center. The new 14,000square foot Denali Visitor Center,located on the old park hotel site, wascompleted and opened to the publicin late May 2005. The openingincluded the premier showing of thenew 18-minute, high definition featurefilm, “Heartbeats of Denali”. Othernew facilities in the immediatevicinity of the new visitor center alsoopened in May, including the DenaliBookstore, operated by the AlaskaNatural History Association; theMorino Grill, a food service facilityoperated by park concessionerDoyon/ARAMARK Joint Venture; acomfort station and a baggage claim

station. The grand opening anddedication of the new entrance areafacilities took place on August 18.

The former Visitor Access Center wasrenamed the Wilderness AccessCenter, and is now operated by parkconcessioner Doyon/ARAMARK JointVenture. The building continues toserve as the park's transportation hub,where visitors can obtain campsitereservations and tickets for bus toursand shuttle bus trips into the park.

The new Backcountry InformationCenter, located adjacent to theWilderness Access Center, also openedin May, significantly improved thepark's ability to provide backcountryhiking information, hiking safetyinformation and overnight hikingpermits. The staff assisted over 20,000 people, issuing in excess of2,000 permits.

Replacement of the deterioratingEielson Visitor Center, located at Mile66 on the Park Road, began with thedemolition of the aging facility inSeptember. The new visitor center isscheduled to open in 2008. Temporaryvisitor facilities were installed at theToklat River Rest Stop at Mile 53 toprovide visitor services during theconstruction period. These included alarge weatherport with interpretivedisplays and a book sales area, whichwas staffed by NPS and ANHAemployees. Seven two-hole restroomswere constructed as part of plannedimprovements to the rest stop.

Improving Visitor FacilitiesImproving Visitor FacilitiesImproving Visitor Facilities

Lobby area of Murie Science and LearningCenter. The wolf skeleton was prepared by aclass from Cantwell School, with the assistanceof park staff and an articulation specialist.

(Above) The Eielson Visitor Center islocated about 30 air miles from MountMcKinley, and on clear days the site offersan unsurpassed view of North America'shighest peak. Due to limited space forexhibits, the old visitor center providedminimal opportunities for visitors to learnmore about the park. (Right) Deconstructionof the Eielson Visitor Center in progress.Most of the 1976 addition has beenremoved in this photo.


Construction on the EielsonVisitor Center began in 1958,and it opened in late July of

1960, although the official ceremonywasn't held until the following year. Itwas named after Carl Ben Eielson, aAlaskan pioneer aviator who hadlanded a plane on the Thorofare Riverplain down below the visitor centersite. Its annual visitation in 1961 was25,000 people.

Additions were made to accommodatethe increasing visitation to the area. A1976 expansion, which included arestroom addition, wraparoundgalleria, walkway and the coveredoutdoor viewing platform, doubledthe size of the building. The busdispatcher's office on the corner ofthe galleria was added in the 1980'sand the interior was rehabilitated withnew displays and exhibits in 1995. Butthe building continued to deterioratedue to the harsh elements andsettling, and was getting increasingly

crowded as visits soared to over100,000 during its last years.

The new visitor center is scheduled toopen in 2008. Although it will belarger, it has been designed to be lessintrusive on the landscape and moreeffectively meet the needs of visitors.Improvements will include additionalindoor and outdoor viewing areas,new exhibits, an interior eating space,informal seating for interpretiveprograms, and administrative supportareas for staff. As part of a NationalPark Service sustainability initiative,the building design meets the GoldLEED (Leadership in Energy andEnvironmental Design) accreditation,which includes the use of recycledmaterials and renewable resources,low water usage and the utilization ofrenewable energy sources. The newbuilding was identified as a highpriority need in the 1997 Entrance Areaand Road Corridor DevelopmentConcept Plan.

End of an Era - Eielson Visitor Center to be Replaced


The Denali Visitor Center, itsexhibits, and the entire VisitorCenter Campus were

completed for the summer visitorseason, and a Grand OpeningCelebration was held on August 18.

Superintendent Paul Anderson wasMaster of Ceremonies for the mainevent, which was held in the KarstensTheater in the new visitor center. Thekeynote speakers were National ParkService Director Fran Mainella, andrepresenting the park's partnerorganizations were Alaska RailroadCorporation Chairman John E.Binkley, Alaska Natural History

Association Executive DirectorCharles Money, and Doyon ChiefOperations Officer Dean Rampy.Other ceremony participants wereBruce Fears, Executive Vice Presidentof ARAMARK Parks and Resorts andAlaska Regional Director MarciaBlaszak. The Reverend David Salmon,First Traditional Chief of all InteriorAthabaskan Tribes offered theblessing, and local Denali Boroughstudents Jeremy Straughn and BekahZiegman joined the ribbon cutters.Bekah and Jeremy are activeparticipants in the park's educationaloutreach programs, and representedthe next generation of stewards.

A park Incident Management Teamplanned and implemented a wonderfulday of activities that included thededication ceremony, several differenttours for invited guests, a variety ofprograms for the park visitors, music,refreshments, book signings,transportation, and a private luncheonfor invited dignitaries. The musicofferings included Athabaskan fiddlingby Bill Stevens, and Native Alaskandance performances provided byAlutiiq Anguyiit Dancers and theNenana Inter-Tribal Dance Group.

(Left) The Denali Visitor Center was open to thepublic in its entirety when exhibit installationwas completed in July. (Above) Representativesfrom all the partners involved in theconstruction of the new facilities cut a ribbonstrung with origami cranes to culminate thededication event. Pictured from left to right:Paul Anderson, Charles Money, JeremyStraughn, Dean Rampy, Fran Mainella, John E.Binkley, Bruce Fears, Marcia Blaszak and BekahZiegman. Photo by Tim Thompson, AlaskaRailroad Corporation

Grand Opening and Dedication of New Entrance Area Facilities

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A record breaking 1,340 mountaineersfrom 37 countries came this spring toattempt climbs of Mt. McKinley,North America's highest peak.Favorable weather and climbingconditions allowed a record 774climbers to reach the 20,320' summitduring the mid-April to mid-Julyclimbing season, for a higher thanaverage summit success rate of 58%.The previous record had been set in2001, when 1,305 climbers attemptedthe peak, 772 of whom reached thesummit. The average summit successrate is 52%, which is calculated since1903, the year of the first attempt onthe mountain.

This year also saw another mountainrecord fall. On June 15, 2005, 74-yearold Sadao Hoshiko of Oita-shi, Japan,became the oldest person tosuccessfully summit Mt. McKinley.The previous record holder was MarioLocatelli, of Montana, who summitedin 2004 at 71 years, 6 months, closelyedging out long-time record holderDonald Henry, who was 71 years, 5months at the time of his climb in 1988.

The winter of 2004-2005 had some ofthe best snow conditions the park staffhad seen in many years, which allowedseveral winter projects to take place.This included a week-long trip to theLower East Fork Cabin on the northboundary to fell, limb and prep logs forcabin restoration work slated for 2006.On another patrol, 300 pounds of gearwas hauled from Kantishna to UpperCache Creek for a ranger patrol duringthe mountaineering season. The new“Spring Trail”, which begins at parkheadquarters near the kennels and runsalongside the Hines Creek drainagesouth of the Park Road, opened towinter visitors for skiing, mushing andsnowshoeing. The trail provides accessto the park west of headquarters duringspring road opening.

Mountaineering and Winter Activities

The higher of the two ranger camps on Mt. McKinleyis located at Windy Corner at 14,200 feet inelevation. The mountaineering rangers andvolunteers that patrol the mountain provideassistance to climbers and insure resource protectionthrough the reinforcement of food storage andwaste disposal regulations.

Sadao Hoshiko, 74, of Japan on his 2005 summit day

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Visitors safely enjoy and are

satisfied with the availability,

accessibility, diversity, and the

quality of park facilities,

services, and appropriate

recreational opportunities.

Long-Term Goal: By September 30, 2008, 71% of parkvisitors are satisfied with commercialservices in the park.

Annual Goal: By September 30, 2005, 79% of parkvisitors are satisfied with commercialservices in the park.STATUS: GOAL EXCEEDED

82% of the visitors who responded topark surveys stated that they weresatisfied with services in the park. Thebus systems operated by parkconcessioner Doyon/ARAMARK JointVenture provided bus services into the

park for approximately 280,000visitors. Multiple new services wereintroduced for the 2005 visitor season.These include food service at theDenali Visitor Center Campus and theWilderness Access Center and abaggage claim facility near the AlaskaRailroad Train Depot.

The park's maintenance division andits contractors performed substantialrepairs on the Denali Park Roadduring the 2005 season. Theseincluded safety repairs of the falseroad edges, rehabilitation of the gravelroad surface, roadside brushing,correcting a major slump at Mile 68 andthe replacement of damaged or non-functioning culverts. The application ofcalcium chloride as a dust palliative onsections of the park road significantlyreduces the dust from the bus traffic. Anew well and solar powered pumpsystem was installed at the Savage RiverCampground. This replaced a well thatwas powered by a noisy gasolinegenerator, and moved the well out ofdesignated Wilderness.


Park Facilities

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(Above) Mt. McKinley loams over the crewsand equipment installing new culverts atMile 84.5. (Below) Denali Bookstore andMorino Grill are two of the new entrancearea facilities that opened in 2005.

Long-Term Goal: By September 30, 2008, the number ofvisitor accidents/incidents at Denali isat or below the FY 2000-FY 2003annual average of 18.

Annual Goal: By September 30, 2005, Denali willhave no more than 18 accidents/incidents involving visitors in the park.STATUS: GOAL ACHIEVED

The park experienced 18 accidentsinvolving visitors this year. Rangersexecuted 17 major search and rescueoperations during the year. At leastfour lives were saved during theseoperations. One mission wasconducted at 18,000' on Mt. Logan inCanada's Kluane National Park.Another timely intervention andcarryout of a young drug overdosevictim at Horseshoe Lake saved theindividual's life.

In September 2005 park rangersparticipated in a borough-wide mockdisaster exercise, along with local firedepartments, Alaska State Troopers, thelocal clinic, and representatives of thestate emergency management office.

The park's mountaineering andaviation staff faced a new challengeinserting and removing theinfrastructure and equipment neededto operate the two primary rangercamps on Mt. McKinley this year. Themilitary personnel from the U.S. ArmyHigh Altitude Rescue Team who hadtraditionally done these operationsusing Chinook helicopters as part ofmilitary training exercises were

deployed to Iraq. Camp gear wasflown into the 7,200' Kahiltna Glacierbase camp by local commercial air taxioperators, and the NPS-contractedhigh altitude Lama helicopter thenexternally hauled, or slingloaded, nets

full of gear to the site of the 14,200'camp on the West Buttress. Withoutthe military air support, it cost thepark approximately $75,000 to insertand remove the camps.

The high-altitude contract Lama helicopter is used for moving supplies and personnel to thehighest points on Mt. McKinley. Its use is integral for the numerous rescues that take place onthe mountain annually.


Visitor Safety


Park visitors and the general

public understand and

appreciate the preservation of

parks and their resources for

this and future generations.


(Above) Park rangers provide a variety of interpretiveprograms and services to Denali's visitors. Threeyounger visitors become Junior Rangers. (Left) Thepark's sled dog demonstrations are given three timeseach day, helping visitors make a connection withDenali's history and the park's current managementof its wilderness areas.

Long-Term Goal: By September 30, 2008, 80% of Denalivisitors understand and appreciate thesignificance of the park.

Annual Goal: By September 30, 2005, 80% of visitors understand thesignificance of the park and preserve.STATUS: GOAL EXCEEDED

In spite of having 50% fewerinterpretive staff than in 2004, acompliment of nine interpretiveprograms was available for parkvisitors during the summer season,including all day Discovery Hikeswhich take place in trailless areas ofthe park. Three visitor informationcenters (Denali Visitor Center,Backcountry Information Center andthe Toklat River Visitor ContactStation) and the Talkeetnamountaineering center were staffedto provide personal interaction with

visitors. With the assistance of parkpartners and local communities,many special programs and activitieswere available for a wide range ofvisitors, including those provided inthe park, in local communities andon the internet. These programsincluded the Denali Discovery Campfor local school children, acommunity-wide WinterfestCelebration that takes place inFebruary, school visits from studentsfrom Alaska and out-of-state, andvirtual field trips. The results ofsurveys indicated at 87.8% of thevisitors understood the significanceof the park.

Park Staff Services

ENSURE ORGANIZATIONALEFFECTIVENESS


uses current management

practices, systems, and

technologies to accomplish

its mission.

Ensure Organizational Effectiveness


Building Preservation

Long-Term Goal: By September 30, 2008, 68% of the 114non-historic buildings in the park arein fair or good condition as measuredby the FCI of .14 or lower.

Annual Goal: By September 30, 2005, 67 of the 114non-historic buildings are in fair orgood condition.STATUS: GOAL EXCEEDED

A total of 76 of the park's non-historicbuildings are currently in fair or goodcondition. For one of the projects, theroof structure of the AdministrationBuilding was completely replaced.Funding was also available toretexture and repaint all of the interiorwalls and replace the carpets.

Vault toilets referred to as SSTs (SweetSmelling Toilets) were constructed toreplace portable chemical toilets at theKennels and on both sides of the SavageRiver. The chemical toilets at Toklat RestStop were removed and replaced by seventwo-seater SSTs.

Workplace Safety

Long-Term Goal: September 30, 2008, the number ofDenali lost-time injuries is maintainedat or below the previous five-yearannual average of three.

Annual Goal: By September 30, 2005, the number ofDenali lost-time injuries is no morethan three.STATUS: GOAL ACHIEVED

Denali employees worked 319,234hours and incurred three lost timeinjuries, resulting in a lost time injuryrate of 1.89 for the year. Dave Kreutzer,the park's Helicopter Manager basedat the South District office inTalkeetna, was presented with theAlaska Regional Safety Award duringthe all-employee meeting in May. Theaward is given annually to anindividual who has shown the higheststandards in making a workplace safefor himself and his co-workers. Dave'swork place is a bit different from mostof the park staff, as he is responsiblefor the helicopter operations thatsupport the park's mountaineeringoperations on the 20,320' MountMcKinley. This includes not only moreroutine operations such as movingequipment and staff (although weathercan make any trip non-routine), butalso the specialized needs for searchand rescue operations on NorthAmerica's highest mountain. Dave washonored for twelve years of outstandingand specialized service, for hisinnovation and attention to detail, andfor his leadership and guidance inmaking certain that the helicopteroperations are accomplished safely.

The Special Projects crew works on therehabilitation of the park's AdministrationBuilding.

ENSURE ORGANIZATIONALEFFECTIVENESS


increases its managerial

resources through initiatives

and support from other

agencies, organizations

and individuals.


Long-Term Goal: By September 2008, Denali will initiateone additional community partnershipdesigned to enhance its ability tomanage recreation and/or educationactivities seamlessly.

Annual Goal: By September 30, 2005, Denali willinitiate one additional communitypartnership designed to enhance itsability to manage recreation and/oreducation activities seamlessly.STATUS: GOAL EXCEEDED

Denali National Park and Preservedeveloped two new communityeducational programs as part of itspartnership efforts. Denali BackcountryAdventures, a wilderness camp targetedat local high school students, waspiloted during summer 2005. Local

high school students learnedbackcountry skills while doingmonitoring activities for the park. Thecamp was conducted in partnershipwith the Denali Foundation, an existingpark partner.

Denali also joined forces with a neworganization, Kigluait Adventures, todevelop a sustainable youth camp forthe communities of the Upper SusitnaValley. The Southern Denali ExplorationCamp was partially funded through aParks As Classrooms grant. The 2005camp was targeted at youthsparticipating in the Youth CorpsProgram sponsored by the UpperSusitna Soil and Water ConservationDistrict. The ultimate goal for thiscamp is the development of a coregroup of youths who can serve asinstructors for future camps.

Denali Partnerships

Participants in the Denali BackcountryAdventures Program experience the park'swilderness areas and gather data that will beutilized by park managers. Photos courtesy ofDenali Foundation.

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$2,683,300 - Resource Protectionand ManagementAfter a study was undertaken toexamine the historical use of off roadvehicles (ORVs) in the new parkadditions near Cantwell, it wasdetermined that ORVs are a traditionalmeans of access in the area. Anenvironmental assessment willexamine a range of alternatives forallowing traditional ORV use will bereleased for public comment andreview in 2006. Work continued onthe cleanup and rehabilitation ofabandoned mining sites in Kantishna.Data collected from five soundmonitoring stations in the park wasanalyzed and forwarded to the park'splanning team for revisions to the draftBackcountry Management Plan. Staffplanned a large, multidisciplinarystudy of the impacts of traffic volumeand patterns on the Denali Park Roadto vegetation, wildlife, physicalresources and park visitors. The studywill be initiated in 2006 and run forthree years.

$5,711,200 - Visitor ServicesThe opening of the Denali VisitorCenter and other new entrance areafacilities in May significantly improvedthe level of visitor services in the park'sentrance area. Work continued onexhibit design for the new EielsonVisitor Center and other exhibitupgrades. The park negotiated anagreement with Doyon/ARAMARKJoint Venture to invest an additional $1.8million in bus fleet upgrades over theremainder of the contract, which willprovide an upgraded Tundra WildernessTour experience for park visitors. The

insertion and removal of the infrastructureand equipment to operate the tworanger camps on Mt. McKinley wasdone by local commercial air taxioperators and the NPS-contracted highaltitude Lama, as the military personnelwho usually assist in this operation aspart of military training exercises weredeployed to Iraq.

$11,014,400 - Facility Operationsand MaintenanceThe maintenance staff secured fundingfor, planned, and implemented thelargest maintenance budget in parkhistory, which included $8,000,000 inprojects. Along with the construction oftemporary visitor facilities at Toklat,new SSTs at several locations, andrenovation of park office spaces, theseprojects included the remediation ofcontaminated soil from the vicinity ofbuildings, the replacement of over fiftyculverts along the park road, and over13,000 person hours of labor on themaintenance, construction andimprovement of trails. This year thepark tested and used 4,000 gallons of

syntroleum and began testing 9,000gallons of fish oil biodiesel fuel in somepark vehicles and in one of the twogenerators that provides the energy forthe facilities at the Toklat Road Camp.

$2,625,000 - Management and AdministrationThe 2005 Business Plan, whichprovides information on the park'sfinancial resources, was completed.Work also began on the coreoperations analysis process for thepark, which will review jobs andactivities taking place to assist inmaking decisions on how the park willmeet required goals and mandateswithin tightening budget constraints.The park developed and implementeda Position Management Review Boardto review each new or vacant positionand determine if it will be filled. TheInformation Technology branchcompleted the design and installationof wiring for computer access in thenew park facilities and in those thatwere being rehabilitated.

FY 2005 Financial Summary


Expenditure Highlights from All Funding Sources

In June park staff erected a largeweatherport to serve as an interim visitorcontact station at the Toklat Rest Stop whilethe new Eielson Visitor Center is beingconstructed. The temporary facility includesexhibits and a sales area for the park'scooperating association.


All ONPSFunding Sources Funding Only

Resource Protection ManagementResource management 2,206,300 920,300Cultural resources and subsistence 477,000 301,800

$2,683,300 $1,222,100

Visitor ServicesPlanning 528,700 343,000Interpretation 2,254,500 765,400Rangers 2,562,500 2,160,000Concessions 365,500 216,100

$5,711,200 $3,484,500

Facility OperationsMaintenance 11,014,400 3,233,500

$11,014,400 $3,233,500

Management and AdministrationSuperintendent’s Office 1,031,100 846,200Administration 1,593,900 1,299,900

$2,625,000 $2,146,100

TOTAL $22,033,900 $10,086,200

FY 2005 Financial Summary

All Funding Sources

50 %26 %

12 %12 %

Management and Administration Resource Protection

Management

Facility Operations

Visitor Services


Park employees help to protect and preservethe resource in many ways. From top left,clockwise the employees pictured are: a wildlifetechnician doing the breeding bird survey, Dave Kreutzer overseeing a medicalevacuation training exercise, Denali VisitorCenter front desk staff fielding questions frompark visitors, and the trail crew membersmaking improvements to the Blueberry Hill trailin Kantishna.


Denali National Park and Preserve Organization Chart

Superintendent

Assistant SuperintendentOperations

Assistant SuperintendentResources, Science, &

LearningPublic Affairs Specialist Executive Assistant Planning Division

MaintenanceDivision

Ranger Division

AdministrationDivision

Concessions Division

Safety Officer

Interpretation andEducation Branch

Cultural/SubsistenceResources Branch

Murie Science &Learning Center

Biological ResourcesBranch

Secretary

Administrative Clerk

Physical ResourcesBranch

Ranger-led Discovery Hikes provide anopportunity for visitors to experience the parkand learn more about its natural and cultural resources.

National Park ServiceU.S. Department of the Interior

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