Polychrome Pass is a very narrow and steep road in Denali National Park that is only accessible by the park shuttle system, or at the end of the park tourist season through the Denali Park Lottery.

This is an incredible place with vast tundra and mountain landscapes.  It is also a rest stop while you are on the park shuttle buses even though there are no restrooms here.  The road leading to Polychrome is very steep (it’s a 500 ft drop over the edge!), so if you have a hard time with heights you may want to close your eyes!  While the park shuttle drivers are highly trained, this still could be a nerve-wracking portion! But, it’s short lived and you will have soon arrived at the Polychrome Overlook where your driver may let you off to get some pictures and stretch.

There isn’t much to do here besides take in the incredible views!  The rest stops are usually around 10 minutes so take all the pictures you can.  There is a very short trail on the north side of the road that winds around on top of the hill that I recommend you do, you may even see some arctic ground squirrels.  If you are on the park shuttle bus and not one of the park tour buses, you could get off here and explore all you want!  Read our guide for the shuttle buses because they can be kind of tricky.

In the above picture, you can see a house sized glacier erratic!  Trek Planner Insiders have access to the GPS coordinate to where it’s located.   There are lots more glacier erratics in the park.  I already have a Trek about some closer to the park entrance that are fun to hike to.

You can see examples of braided rivers and other unique geological features to this area.  I have seen moose and Dall sheep here and while the chances to see wildlife are high in the park, is is never guaranteed.  There are tons of kettle ponds in the valley so keep an eye out for moose if you have binoculars or a telephoto camera lans with you. 

I have spent many hours exploring Polychrome and every visit I find myself just hiking to a nice spot and enjoying the view.