I camp out all summer with my grandkids for years. When it comes to anything to do with Denali good luck with having the tourists beat the locals out. I like the old Denali HWY for my own "guided" tour of the tundra and the "mountain". I like the middle of August if the weather is good and I can camp out along side the road or in one of the few but great campgrounds that are located on the road. I can hike for miles, find golden eagles and birds of prey close-up, caribou and bears. I can fly fish on the Tangle Lakes, spot swans, water birds, bald eagles and beavers. I kayak the lakes. I pick berries. The few lodges along the way cater to locals and serve old time Alaskan food.  I stopped at one last summer and my grandkids and I were invited to a wedding and a pot luck. It was great fun with a bluegrass band.  And the best scenery of snowcapped mountains, valleys, glaciers, tundra and lakes on the planet.   I need only the kids, my gear and no reservations and off we go.