My favorite part of Denali National Park? Visiting the sled dogs! (Sure, the bears and moose and mountain peak were cool too… but dogs.) Huskies were my first passion in the canine world, illuminated with childlike romanticism at first (I blame Gary Paulsen 😂) and then realized firsthand through my family’s Siberian Snort.
While I’m far from a working dog expert — we enjoy living that “just pet” life with Scout — I loved what I saw based on the tidbits I do know.
Why are there sled dogs in Denali National Park?
Most of Denali National Park wilderness — millions of acres of it. Sled dog teams are able to traverse the backcountry more easily than many machines, plus they’re lower impact on the surrounding environment and bring their own intelligence to the tasks, working in partnership with human rangers. The NPS website has more details!
How we visited Denali’s working dogs
Denali National Park was the very first trip we planned when we started dreaming about living in a van. We had it on the calendar for over a year before actually visiting!
We went during the summer
Alaska is obviously easier to drive through once the snow has melted. It also has much more daylight — nearly a full 24 hours on the solstice depending on exact latitude! While I’d love to see the arctic northern lights someday (they’re most active during winter) a June trip seemed perfect to maximize our safety driving north in our van and give us the ability to explore the park more fully since most campgrounds and shuttles are closed September through May.
We were able to park near the kennels (you can also take a shuttle)
We stayed at the Teklanika Campground, which enabled us to drive farther into the park (mile 29) than most visitors are allowed (mile 15). Because we were already taking Hermes on the park road to get to our site, we parked in the small lot near the sled dog kennels on the way out and again on our return trip.
This worked well for us — but the National Park Service generally recommends taking a free shuttle from the visitor’s center, since private vehicle parking is limited. That’s what we would have done if we weren’t already traveling the route!
We left Scout securely in the van
Pets are allowed on roads and in parking lots at Denali NPS. They are not welcome at the sled dog kennels — it would be stressful for everyone involved, especially the working teams with natural instincts to defend their territory from other animal intruders.
We left Scout crated in her Ruff Land underneath our van bed, with the windows cracked and the fan running to circulate air, each time we went to visit the sled dog kennels. You can read more about our process to safely leave her behind in the below Instagram reel!
We opted to go during down time rather than a demonstration
We thought about attending a sled dog demonstration — they’re offered a few times a day during the summer — but ended up visiting in the in between periods instead. This was for two main reasons:
- I’ve already seen working sled dogs perform. It’s always incredible! But it wasn’t our primary motivation for going to Denali’s kennels.
- The kennel area is a lot more chaotic during demonstrations. I enjoyed seeing the dogs rest and ask for affection without the commotion.
What stood out most during our trips to the kennels
💤 The dogs all had phenomenal “off switches”
Denali’s working dogs were incredibly relaxed when we visited.
Neutrality to visitors
Most of the Alaskan huskies barely even acknowledged us walking around. It was amazing to know they could be such intense working animals performing their job with laser focus when asked… but also see them contentedly lounge in the sun while a parade of strangers watched their every move. Some lazily greeted guests with soft tail flutters while most simply sprawled out for naps, seemingly oblivious to the kissy noises and coos coming their way.
I think this neutrality is thanks to both purposeful breeding and thoughtful socialization. Puppies are born at Denali and exposed to the kennel environment — including visitors and different types of handling — at a young age. They also have the older dogs to take cues from since the NPS aims for one new litter each year and dogs don’t retire until they’re nine, so the power of observational learning is at play.
Fulfillment of innate instincts
Biological fulfillment is one of my biggest passions in the dog training world, and I get the sense it’s the other big part of the sled dogs’ off-switch recipe alongside neutrality. These animals are bred for work — and they love their jobs! Even in the summer they get plenty of exercise through walks with volunteers and occasional dry mushing opportunities. Because Denali’s dogs get to satisfy their natural instincts, they’re better able to relax when off the clock.
🕰 They knew there was a time and place to “go wild”
Speaking of clocks: The sled dogs have an incredible understanding of context cues. They understand there’s a time and place to lean into their working energy!
After resting deeply for more than a half hour after we arrived for our first visit, the huskies went bonkers when volunteers started leashing them up for harnesses walks. The contrast was awesome to witness. (As a side note relevant to the pet world, this ability to move between states of arousal is the idea behind trainer Jay Jack’s windows of opportunity.)
🏠 The flexible kennel area was thoughtfully set up
Beyond the majesty of the dogs themselves, I was also so pleased with how the kennel area was set up.
Multiple housing options based on individual dog’s needs
There were a few different housing options: Some dogs had fully fenced kennels along the walking path, others were completely out of visitor reach several feet away, and most were tethered near their log houses (providing water & shade) with the ability to approach the path for pets or stay in the middle area away from grabbing hands.
Dogs could opt in or out of interactions with visitors
I loved that the tether and path placement gave each dog agency about whether or not they wanted to interact with strangers. Even though Denali’s sled dogs are incredibly well socialized, that doesn’t mean they always want to be touched.
(Topo, the dog featured in the blog photo up above, was one of the only dogs I actually pet. When I crouched nearby he came right over and kept soliciting more rubs each time I moved my hand away. Advocating for our dogs is one of my most important values — and it felt wonderful to know we were both enjoying the interaction.)
Thoughts on many dogs being “chained” up
When I shared some photos of the Denali sled dog kennels, a few people commented that they didn’t like how the dogs in the center area were tied up. I can totally get how chains have a largely negative connotation in the dog space!
I personally thought it was ideal organization, though. If visitor interactions are a priority, the alternative would be having a fenced area to house multiple dogs at once while strangers entered — which I think would make it harder for the huskies to move away from interactions they weren’t interested in (not to mention being able to get space from each other).
With the tether organization, each dog has their own defined space and can move about more than they’d be able to in a completely enclosed kennel. The chain poles also swivel to minimize the chances of any tangles. (We got to watch that functionality in action when Skipper in particular went a little crazy begging to be taken on a walk 😂)
I’m not an expert, and of course I don’t get to see fully behind the scenes, but the dogs all seemed incredibly content and well cared for.
