Region
Most climbed route
Highlights
- Highest mountain in North America and the northernmost 6,000 m peak in the world.
- A monumentally prolific mountain: 3rd most prominent mountain in the world and one of the greatest vertical rises in the world (18,000 ft / 5,486 m vertical rise).
- Its extreme latitude presents challenges to climbers. Infamous for its extremely cold weather, reaching -100°F / -73°C in one measurement. Also the air has less oxygen than peaks of similar height near the equator, adding to the risk of altitude sickness for climbers.
- Denali has two significant summits: the South Summit is the highest one, while the rarely visited North Summit has an elevation of 19,470 feet. Extreme glaciation: 5 large glaciers flow off the slopes of the mountain: Peters Glacier, Muldrow Glacier, Traleika Glacier, Ruth Glacier, and the Kahiltna Glacier.
- By far the most popular climbing route on the mountain (90%) is the West Buttress Route pioneered by Bradford Washburn in 1951. Typically done in 17-21 days. Most start by flying in via air taxi to the Kahiltna Glacier at 7,200 ft. Then slow progress is made up the mountain at a series of camps at 7,800 ft, 9,500 ft, 11,000 ft, 14,200 ft and 17,200 ft. Only 50% of climbers succeed in summiting, mostly due to bad weather and running out of time.
- Centerpiece of 6 million acre Denali National Park, designated a UNESCO biosphere reserve.
- Denali is the highest point in Denali National Park.
Latest summits
"Denali was a great experience! I was with my friend Ilina Arsova (the first Macedonian woman who climbed Everest) and the expedition lasted 22 days via West Buttress route.
On the way back I got stacked in a storm in high camp for 3 days with a slight frostbite on my hand fingers. In the end everything was OK and I safely got down. Cold mountain!!" — FilipVasileski • May 24, 2016
"Made our way to 14 camp a day ahead of schedule. Cache at 16. Members of our team spent two days at 17 but were forced down due to deteriorating weather. Extended forecast was poor so decision was made to descend and we flew out after 16 days." — StoneMan • May 30, 2010
"Finally, after many years building my skill and knowledge of mountaineering, I bagged my highest summit and my 49th state highpoint. It took 15 days to ascend and only 2 days down. I lost 17 pounds during the ordeal and experienced temperatures as low as -30 degrees F with 40 mi/hr winds. That put the wind chill in the -90's degree F. This was the day before we summited. Needless to say, most of the time that day was spent inside the tent! On summit day the temperature was 10 degrees F with only 10 mi/hr winds. It felt like summertime compared to the day before. Nothing especially technically difficult about this mountain. It's mostly your personal luck with the weather and, of course, your level of conditioning and ability to deal with the altitude." — Stewy • Jun 23, 2000