North America / Alaska Range
Denali
United States · 6,190 m
Photo credits and licence
Denali National Park and Preserve · Public domain · Wonder Lake and Denali. Preview cropped from the top.Source credit: _MG_4070 Uploaded by AlbertHerring
Any adaptation of a ShareAlike image remains under its linked licence.
Source-linked route information · coverage incomplete
Continue with a planning or regional guide: North American ranges mountain guide
About Denali
North America’s highest summit, also known as Mount McKinley. An expedition mountain with large glaciers and a severe high-latitude environment.
Geographic source notes
Wikidata description: highest mountain in North America, located in Alaska. Imported context (CC0); retrieved 2026-10-05, not independently reviewed.
This profile includes selected editorial climbing references.
Mountain facts
- Elevation
- 6190 metres above sea level
- Country / territory
- United States
- Mountain range
- Alaska Range
- Range assignment
- Source-linked Wikidata statement · 2026-10-05
- Summit coordinates
- 63.0695, -151.0074 · View summit on OpenStreetMap
Routes and variants
4 source-linked entries · research checked 2026-10-05. The inventory remains incomplete.
Documented information and open research
Starting point: 3 of 4 · Difficulty with grading system: 0 of 4 · Elevation gain: 0 of 4 · Duration: 0 of 4 · Season: 0 of 4
0 historical entries. These counts describe published entries, not all possible routes. Current access is not established.
See route research coverage and priorities →Compare 4 routes
Grades retain their published rating system; different systems and historical grades are not equivalent. Elevation gain means climbing metres, not summit altitude. Missing figures are not estimated.
Scroll sideways to compare all columns. Select a route name for its details.
| Route | Activity / direction | Difficulty / system | Starting point | Elevation gain | Duration | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Buttress | AlpinismAscent | Not documented | Kahiltna Glacier base camp · southern approach | Not documented | Not documented | Source 1 ↗ |
| West Rib | AlpinismAscent | Not documented | Kahiltna Glacier base camp · southern approach | Not documented | Not documented | Source 1 ↗ |
| Cassin ridge | AlpinismAscent | Not documented | Kahiltna Glacier base camp · southern approach | Not documented | Not documented | Source 1 ↗ |
| Muldrow Glacier | AlpinismAscent | Not documented | Not documented | Not documented | Not documented | Source 1 ↗ |
Choose an activity to see its entries. Ascent, descent, approaches and historical climbing lines are labelled separately.
Alpinism (4)
West ButtressAlpinism · Ascent
NPS describes it as the least technical of its listed ascent choices; glacier and ridge hazards remain.
- Activity
- Alpinism
- Direction / role
- Ascent
- Starting point
- Kahiltna Glacier base camp · southern approach
- Difficulty
- Not established from the checked source
- Elevation gain
- Not established from the checked source
- Duration
- Not established from the checked source
- Season
- Not established from the checked source
- Current access
- Not checked for current use
NPS · Denali expedition route planning · source checked 2026-10-05
The source establishes a route listing. Detailed navigation, current protection and conditions require the original reference.
West RibAlpinism · Ascent
Named in the park's route-selection overview.
- Activity
- Alpinism
- Direction / role
- Ascent
- Starting point
- Kahiltna Glacier base camp · southern approach
- Difficulty
- Not established from the checked source
- Elevation gain
- Not established from the checked source
- Duration
- Not established from the checked source
- Season
- Not established from the checked source
- Current access
- Not checked for current use
NPS · Denali expedition route planning · source checked 2026-10-05
The source establishes a route listing. Detailed navigation, current protection and conditions require the original reference.
Cassin ridgeAlpinism · Ascent
Named in the park's route-selection overview.
- Activity
- Alpinism
- Direction / role
- Ascent
- Starting point
- Kahiltna Glacier base camp · southern approach
- Difficulty
- Not established from the checked source
- Elevation gain
- Not established from the checked source
- Duration
- Not established from the checked source
- Season
- Not established from the checked source
- Current access
- Not checked for current use
NPS · Denali expedition route planning · source checked 2026-10-05
The source establishes a route listing. Detailed navigation, current protection and conditions require the original reference.
Muldrow GlacierAlpinism · Ascent
NPS reports major disruption after the 2021 glacier surge. Current feasibility needs separate confirmation.
NPS describes disrupted access following the 2021 glacier surge; the page includes dated 2022–2023 logistics. It is not evidence of present-day passability.
- Activity
- Alpinism
- Direction / role
- Ascent
- Starting point
- Not established from the checked source
- Difficulty
- Not established from the checked source
- Elevation gain
- Not established from the checked source
- Duration
- Not established from the checked source
- Season
- Not established from the checked source
- Current access
- Not checked for current use
NPS · Denali expedition route planning · source checked 2026-10-05
The source establishes a route listing. Detailed navigation, current protection and conditions require the original reference.
Route questions, answered
Specific planning questions, with the scope of each source kept visible.
Is Denali’s West Buttress a walking route?
No. NPS calls it the least technically difficult established route, but describes crevassed glacier travel, steep ice and an exposed summit ridge. “Least technical” is relative to Denali’s other routes and does not make it an ordinary trek.
Does the Muldrow listing confirm that the route is usable now?
No. The NPS planning page discusses the 2021 glacier surge and subsequent expedition reports. Those dated observations do not establish present passage. Current Muldrow access and glacier feasibility remain unconfirmed here; consult the climbing rangers for an expedition-specific assessment.
Climbing Chronicle Redaktion · Sources checked · Source research; current route conditions are not confirmed.
Planning at a glance
Access and starting point
NPS requires registration normally at least 60 days before departure and an in-person team orientation at the Walter Harper Talkeetna Ranger Station. It publishes limited exceptions. Confirm the complete application process for your season.
Difficulty and required experience
Not yet established from checked sources for this mountain.
Season and restrictions
NPS states that the mountain-specific NWS climbing forecast is available May–July. Ranger reports are seasonal; a forecast schedule is not an authorization to climb or a guaranteed weather window.
Sources for current information
- NPS · Denali Dispatches
Seasonal ranger field reports; read the report date
- NWS · Mount McKinley climbing forecast
Mountain forecast; NPS states availability May–July
This page stores reference sources, not live conditions. Check the provider’s publication date and route coverage before use.
First documented ascent
7 June 1913
Walter Harper, Harry Karstens, Hudson Stuck and Robert Tatum.
The four-person party reached the main south summit via the Muldrow Glacier. Walter Harper was the first of the party to reach the summit.
Earlier local or Indigenous ascents may not be represented in the cited record.
Planning and access
NPS requires advance climbing registration; its published guidance specifies at least 60 days. Confirm current rules, fees and orientation with the Talkeetna ranger station.
Terrain and hazards
Crevasses, severe cold, altitude and exposed snow or ice terrain. Current ranger guidance takes precedence.
Research still needed
For Denali, this atlas does not yet document checked difficulty. Missing first-ascent evidence does not mean a mountain is unclimbed.
Use the linked sources as starting points; summit coordinates do not describe a climbing route or public access.
Sources and coverage
Editorial summaries with linked references. Data snapshot: 30 September 2026. Elevations and boundaries can differ between sources. Mountain-range membership follows explicit Wikidata relationships or a coordinate match against published GMBA v2 standard polygons. GMBA: Global Mountain Biodiversity Assessment (2021), CC BY 4.0; methodology: Snethlage et al. (2022). Missing evidence remains open.
Explore the surrounding regions
Alaska Range · North American Cordillera · American Cordillera · North American ranges · Alaska Range · Mountains in United States
Editorial responsibility
Responsible publisher and editorial author: Climbing Chronicle Redaktion. AI-assisted source research; no on-site inspection or professional route approval is claimed.
- Route listing source check
- 2026-10-05 · partial inventory; current access remains open
- Planning source check
- 2026-10-05 · only the individually cited planning additions
- Earlier profile review
- Open · no complete editorial review recorded
- Imported context retrieved
- 2026-10-05 · automated retrieval, not an editorial review
How sources, authorship and review dates work
Further reading about Denali
Links discovered through the Wikidata record. These articles have not been checked as evidence for route, difficulty or access claims.
Mountains nearby
Recorded mountains, ordered by straight-line distance. This does not describe a route or accessible connection.
1–4 of 4 recorded mountains within 25 km
- Peak 17400 · 3.3 km
- Mount Hunter · 13.9 km
- Mount Silverthrone · 17.5 km
- Mount Foraker · 23.2 km