July 7-11, 2025

Overnight

9th–12th Grade

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Program Overview

3/28/2025 UPDATE:

DEC is pleased to announce we will be offering a Backcountry Adventures program for teenagers between the ages of 14-18. This will take place the week of July 7th-11th in either Denali State Park or Denali National Park. We are working on providing transportation from our campuses to the backpacking site.

**It is with deep regret that we announce the cancellation of Denali Discovery Camp (DDC) and Denali Backcountry Adventures (DBA) for 2025. Since 2001, we have camped, made s’mores, and hiked countless miles with hundreds of children in Denali National Park and Preserve, creating lifelong memories in the process. 

Due to recent staffing changes within NPS, DEC can no longer ensure the safety of campers or uphold the program’s mission. The sudden termination of key probationary staff has left critical supervisory gaps, preventing the full staffing necessary to run these programs safely.**

Please read the OFFICIAL STATEMENT by the Denali Education Center HERE.

Instructors

Throughout this program, DEC and NPS staff work together to create a supportive team with a shared vision to provide students with a fun, informative adventure in Denali National Park and Preserve. We pride ourselves on creating an engaging learning atmosphere in an outdoor setting and strive for a student-to-instructor ratio of four to one.

Backpacking in Denali National Park and Preserve

Denali National Park and Preserve provide a stunning classroom for studying undisturbed taiga and tundra and experiencing firsthand an untrammeled wilderness. Denali has unique backcountry management procedures and few established routes or backcountry campsites. Traveling in this environment requires we design our own adventure by choosing the route.  Along with this opportunity comes the responsibility to protect the wilderness resource for future users by adhering to Leave No Trace principles.

DBA Students Celebrate Wilderness!

In celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Wilderness Act in 2014, we asked Denali Backcountry Adventures students what wilderness means to them. Watch the video to learn what future stewards had to say.