K’esugi Ken Campground

Growing up in the Midwest and camping at state parks I’m use to a lot of interpretive signage explaining the history and landscape. Out of all the AK state parks I’ve visited this is by far the best. I also prefer this over Denali NPS, I find I have better luck seeing Denali from this side but also tons less people.

Overall We loved this site. Family plus dogs had a great time here. Got to see Denali on a super clear day so that's even better

Pros -spacious sites -trails with amazing views of Denali -plenty of maneuvering space for travel trailers

Cons -no water hookups at site. Currently as of AUG21 only one functioning water spigot at the pay station -missed the entrance but definitely user error there.

i highly recommend this campground for tents and rv’s. this place was so clean and well taken care of. beautiful view of denali and hiking trails throughout the campground. bathrooms placed strategically throughout. and again CLEAN!

We stayed here twice in 2020. In August we parked in space 22 with our rented pickup camper, and in October we rented one of the cabins for a short "get out of town" break (we live in Anchorage).  The weather was in our favor in August and we had an awesome view of Denali right from our campsite.  While the RV campsites were closed in October, the cabins and, I believe, the tent sites were available.

I'd love to give this campground 5 stars, but when we were there in summer there was no water available.  There is power to all the RV campsites but only a couple of water stands.  The water supply stands were covered in plastic with no explanation.  I don't know if this is a permanent situation so if you plan on staying here make sure to call ahead if you need a water source.

The cabin we stayed in in October was the one closest to the Ranger Sation.  It was wonderfully quiet and we had hoped to do some star gazing but they keep the exterior lights on all night at the station.  Not sure about you, but I'm wanting to get away from city lights and this was just plain annoying.  The cabin is huge with two tables in the main room, a separate bedroom and a large loft up a circular metal staircase.  I thought the loft would be nice to stay in but it was way too hot and the windows don't open.  We brought our own wood for the stove and were comfortable all night.  These cabins are a notch above the standard Alaska Forest Service cabins, but still pretty rustic.  I think each has an outdoor space with table and fire ring.  

My complaints are specific to me and I would still highly recommend this campground

This beautiful campsite has wonderful short walk in tent sites and large RV electric hook up sites. All this with Wonder and beauty of Alaska. Really well maintained. You have to book these sites well in advance with means unless you are tent camping you have 1% chance of finding an open spot at random. Even autumn camping times are booked.

Looks brand new, self-pay kiosk, large sites, lots of bathrooms, nice overflow parking area. Not sure if Ranger talks are happening now with COVID, but they were wonderful at last visit. Highly recommend

Far enough off the main highway to feel away from it all. Two lakes to fish with hiking trails to explore. Ranger talks nightly. Nice large sites with a huge group area. Some sites are FCFS but most reservable on line and booked way in advance. Firewood available for purchase and pavillion is rentable for events. All sites have electric too. Beautiful campground with clean bathrooms.

We camped here in July 2019 and we had two families. We had tons of space for a 30ft trailer and two trucks and we liked that there was a small grass area for a tent. We had electric and water hookups and we even had cell service. Most of the sites seemed big and well spaced apart so you didn’t feel like you were on top of other people. The campground was very beautiful and clean and quiet. Even the pit toilets were clean and well maintained. We found the location to be excellent - both Talkeetna and Denali NP were day trips for us. We would highly recommend this campground.

Plan ahead

This campground in Denali State Park opened in 2017 contains both a tent and RV loop, as well as, cabins. Vault toilets, drinking water, firewood, fire pits, and picnic tables available. RV sites include electric hook-ups. Several hiking trails in close proximity to campground. Amplitheater for ranger led programs also available.