ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – Denali National Park & Preserve is offering travelers a unique way to celebrate the holiday season at the base of North America’s tallest peak.

“It’s a great place to come if you’re into snow and being cold,” said Amber Smigiel, Public Affairs Officer for Denali National Park and Preserve.

“If you come at night, you probably have a chance to see the auroras, and it is really beautiful here during the winter.”

Despite the cold and storms associated with winter at Denali, Smigiel said adventure-seekers are still allowed to attempt a summit of Mount McKinley.

“We don’t have any staff up there, so you’re pretty much on your own,” she said.

“We definitely don’t recommend doing it by yourself. Only, I think, 17 people have ever summited during winter, so it’s not a very realistic goal, but you know what? We’re not going to stop you if you want to try.”

For those looking for a calmer experience, Smigiel said there are several events and accommodations planned at the base of the mountain.

“The road is closed at mile 3 for cars, but you can ski, hike, snowshoe on the road and some of the hiking trails in the front country or even farther in the backcountry,” she said.

“You can winter camp if you’d like. We have our permits for that so you can come and sleep in the snow if that’s your thing. Our visitor center has snowshoes and the spikes, snow spikes, so you can go and rent some of that while you’re here.”

While Denali’s iconic bears are mid-hibernation, Smigiel said animal lovers still have a chance to catch a glimpse of the local wildlife.

“The kennels are open from one to four on Saturday and Sunday, so you can come see the dogs and the puppies during the winter,” she said.

“There are still moose and caribou and wolves. The moose sometimes come closer to the front of the park because they like to use the road just as much as people do.”

While visitors are welcomed to book a stay at Denali, Smigiel told Alaska’s News Source that some amenities may not be available during the winter.

“The one thing that you need to remember when you come to Denali during the winter is that there’s one restaurant and one grocery store and two gas stations that are open and those are about 10 miles from the park,” she said.

“Make sure that you have all your provisions with you, water, snacks, all that kind of stuff. We do have an indoor picnic area where you can go and get warm and, you know, fill your water bottles up and that kind of thing, but nothing that you can purchase while you’re in the park.”

Although current weather conditions have caused the park to reschedule, Smigiel said that rangers are planning to host a “Ski and Stroll” for the winter solstice, where visitors are invited to walk trails near the park.

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Alaska’s Maxime Germain has been named to the U.S. Olympic biathlon team and will compete at the 2026 Milano-Cortina Olympic Winter Games.

Germain, 24, who was born in Juneau and graduated from West Anchorage High School in 2019, will be making his Olympic debut.

“I am stoked to have qualified,” Germain said in a U.S. Biathlon release. “The goal is now to perform there! It is going to be my first Olympics, but it shouldn’t be any different from other racing. Same venue, same racing, different name!”

The announcement was made Sunday at the conclusion of the World Cup stop in France. He is currently 34th in World Cup rankings, the second-best American behind Olympic teammate Campbell Wright.

Germain has raced for the APU Nordic Ski Center and trained with the Anchorage Biathlon Club.

“Maxime has worked really hard throughout the off season, improving his mental game and bringing an overall level up to the World Cup this year,” U.S. Biathlon High Performance Director Lowell Bailey said in the release. “This showed right away at the first World Cup in Ostersund, where he proved he can be among the world’s fastest and best biathletes. Maxime will be a great addition to the U.S. Olympic team!”

Before coming to Anchorage, Germain grew up in Chamonix, France, and started biathlon there at age 13.

Germain is a member of Vermont Army National Guard as an aviation operations specialist and is studying to become a commercial pilot. Germain has trained with the National Guard Biathlon Team and races as part of the US Army World Class Athlete Program.

Germain joins Wright, Deedra Irwin and Margie Freed as the first four qualifiers for the 2026 Olympic Biathlon Team. The remaining members of the team will be announced on Jan. 6 following completion of the U.S. Biathlon Timed Trials.

The 2026 Winter Olympics run from Feb. 6-22 in Italy.

The Bureau of Land Management on Monday said it approved an updated management plan that opens about 82% of the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska to oil and gas leasing.

The agency this winter will also hold the first lease sale in the reserve since 2019, potentially opening the door for expanded oil and gas activity in an area that has seen new interest from oil companies in recent years.

The sale will be the first of five oil and gas lease sales called for in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that passed this summer.

The approval of the plan follow the agency’s withdrawal of the 2024 activity plan for the reserve that was approved under the Biden administration and limited oil and gas drilling in more than half the reserve.

The 23-million-acre reserve is the largest tract of public land in the U.S. It’s home to ConocoPhillips’ giant Willow discovery on its eastern flank.

ConocoPhillips and other companies are increasingly eyeing the reserve for new discoveries. ConocoPhillips has proposed plans for a large exploration season with winter, though an Alaska Native group and conservation groups have filed a lawsuit challenging the effort.

The planned lease sale could open the door for more oil and gas activity deeper into the reserve.

The Voice of the Arctic Iñupiat, consisting of elected leaders from Alaska’s North Slope, where the reserve is located, said it supports the reversal of the Biden-era plan. Infrastructure from oil and gas activity provides tax revenues for education, health care and modern services like running water and sewer, the group said.

The decision “is a step in the right direction and lays the foundation for future economic, community, and cultural opportunities across our region — particularly for the communities within the (petroleum reserve),” said Rex Rock Sr., president of the Arctic Slope Regional Corp. representing Alaska Natives from the region, in the statement from the group.

The reserve was established more than a century ago as an energy warehouse for the U.S. Navy. It contains an estimated 8.7 billion barrels of recoverable oil.

But it’s also home to rich populations of waterfowl and caribou sought by Alaska Native subsistence hunters from the region, as well as threatened polar bears.

The Wilderness Society said the Biden-era plan established science-based management of oil and gas activity and protected “Special Areas” as required by law.

It was developed after years of public meetings and analysis, and its conservation provisions were critical to subsistence users and wildlife, the group said.

The Trump administration “is abandoning balanced management of America’s largest tract of public land and catering to big oil companies at the expense of future generations of Alaskans,” said Matt Jackson, Alaska senior manager for The Wilderness Society. The decision threatens clean air, safe water and wildlife in the region, he said.

The decision returns management of the reserve to the 2020 plan approved during the first Trump administration. It’s part of a broad effort by the administration to increase U.S. oil and gas production.

To update the 2020 plan, the Bureau of Land Management invited consultation with tribes and Alaska Native corporations and held a 14-day public comment period on the draft assessment, the agency said.

“The plan approved today gives us a clear framework and needed certainty to harness the incredible potential of the reserve,” said Kevin Pendergast, state director for the Bureau of Land Management. “We look forward to continuing to work with Alaskans, industry and local partners as we move decisively into the next phase of leasing and development.”

Congress voted to overturn the 2024 plan for the reserve, supporting bills from Alaska’s Republican congressional delegation to prevent a similar plan from being implemented in the future.