Denali (Mt McKinley)


NORTH AMERICA'S HIGHEST PEAK IS HOME TO SOME FORMIDABLE CLIMBING ROUTES

The highest peak in North America, Denali is an awe-inspiring hulk of a mountain set in the stunningly beautiful Alaskan wilderness. The most northerly of the seven summits, it often experiences harsh weather with storm force winds and heavy snowfall, making an already challenging ascent even more arduous. The mountain’s western flank sees lots of guided ascents each season, but unlike other continental highpoints Denali is a real mountaineer’s mountain, with a history of cutting-edge alpinism carved into its walls. The season runs from mid-April to July, with success rates peaking in June.

First ascent
Denali, or Mount McKinley as it was known at the time, was first climbed via the Muldrow glacier in 1913 by a team of four Americans. Without the benefit of small glacier planes to fly in to base camp Walter Harper, Harry Karstens, Hudson Stuck and Robert Tatum spent weeks carrying rudimentary mountaineering equipment through Alaska’s wilderness to reach the summit, a feat rarely repeated today.

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