Denali Photographs


Landing on the Kahiltna Glacier

Here are the bush planes landing on the Kahiltna Glacier. Almost every Denali climber to the glacer and leaves form there. It is common to see hundreds of clibmers backed up due to weather with a wild look in their eyes waiting for their plane ride home.
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Denali, also known as Mt. McKinley, is in central Alaska - 300 miles South of the Arctic Circle and 200 miles East of the Bearing Sea.

Denali offers some the the largest vertical gain of any mountain on Earth. With base camp at 7,200' and the summit at 20,320', this 13,120' of gain over twelve miles is larger than Cho Oyu (8,407) or even Everest (10,535).

After taking a bush plane to land on the Kahiltna Glacier, we began the climb using the West Buttress route. I made this climb in 2001 and 2007 without summiting both times.

Climbing Motorcycle Hill

Motorcycle Hill is a steep section just above Camp 2 on the West Buttress route. This picture shows the usual roped up tream slowly making their way higher.
__________________________________________

Denali, also known as Mt. McKinley, is in central Alaska - 300 miles South of the Arctic Circle and 200 miles East of the Bearing Sea.

Denali offers some the the largest vertical gain of any mountain on Earth. With base camp at 7,200' and the summit at 20,320', this 13,120' of gain over twelve miles is larger than Cho Oyu (8,407) or even Everest (10,535).

After taking a bush plane to land on the Kahiltna Glacier, we began the climb using the West Buttress route. I made this climb in 2001 and 2007 without summiting both times.

Clibmers with their Skis

The headwall above the Ranger Camp is popular with extreme skiers. These are heading higher with their skis.
__________________________________________

Denali, also known as Mt. McKinley, is in central Alaska - 300 miles South of the Arctic Circle and 200 miles East of the Bearing Sea.

Denali offers some the the largest vertical gain of any mountain on Earth. With base camp at 7,200' and the summit at 20,320', this 13,120' of gain over twelve miles is larger than Cho Oyu (8,407) or even Everest (10,535).

After taking a bush plane to land on the Kahiltna Glacier, we began the climb using the West Buttress route. I made this climb in 2001 and 2007 without summiting both times.

Snow Walls at Ranger Camp

High snow walls are required to protect clibmers and gear from the typical strong winds on Denali. This picture was from Ranger camp at 14,200'
__________________________________________

Denali, also known as Mt. McKinley, is in central Alaska - 300 miles South of the Arctic Circle and 200 miles East of the Bearing Sea.

Denali offers some the the largest vertical gain of any mountain on Earth. With base camp at 7,200' and the summit at 20,320', this 13,120' of gain over twelve miles is larger than Cho Oyu (8,407) or even Everest (10,535).

After taking a bush plane to land on the Kahiltna Glacier, we began the climb using the West Buttress route. I made this climb in 2001 and 2007 without summiting both times.

Lenticular over Denali

High winds are the bane of Denali. The high altiude winds form cloud formations over summits and are called lenticulars. I took this picture early on our 2001 climb.
__________________________________________

Denali, also known as Mt. McKinley, is in central Alaska - 300 miles South of the Arctic Circle and 200 miles East of the Bearing Sea.

Denali offers some the the largest vertical gain of any mountain on Earth. With base camp at 7,200' and the summit at 20,320', this 13,120' of gain over twelve miles is larger than Cho Oyu (8,407) or even Everest (10,535).

After taking a bush plane to land on the Kahiltna Glacier, we began the climb using the West Buttress route. I made this climb in 2001 and 2007 without summiting both times.

Climbing the West Buttress

Part of the Denali experience is to pull sleds with 50 to 80lbs of gear up the snow slopes.
__________________________________________

Denali, also known as Mt. McKinley, is in central Alaska - 300 miles South of the Arctic Circle and 200 miles East of the Bearing Sea.

Denali offers some the the largest vertical gain of any mountain on Earth. With base camp at 7,200' and the summit at 20,320', this 13,120' of gain over twelve miles is larger than Cho Oyu (8,407) or even Everest (10,535).

After taking a bush plane to land on the Kahiltna Glacier, we began the climb using the West Buttress route. I made this climb in 2001 and 2007 without summiting both times.

Watching the Weather

High winds often stop every team in their tracks. Here our guide Bill Allen is just about to stop our 2001 climb due to high winds over the summit.
__________________________________________

Denali, also known as Mt. McKinley, is in central Alaska - 300 miles South of the Arctic Circle and 200 miles East of the Bearing Sea.

Denali offers some the the largest vertical gain of any mountain on Earth. With base camp at 7,200' and the summit at 20,320', this 13,120' of gain over twelve miles is larger than Cho Oyu (8,407) or even Everest (10,535).

After taking a bush plane to land on the Kahiltna Glacier, we began the climb using the West Buttress route. I made this climb in 2001 and 2007 without summiting both times.

Climbing the High Ridge to High Camp

One of my favortie areas of a West Buttress climb on the High Ridge at 17,000 leading to the High Camp at 17,200.
__________________________________________

Denali, also known as Mt. McKinley, is in central Alaska - 300 miles South of the Arctic Circle and 200 miles East of the Bearing Sea.

Denali offers some the the largest vertical gain of any mountain on Earth. With base camp at 7,200' and the summit at 20,320', this 13,120' of gain over twelve miles is larger than Cho Oyu (8,407) or even Everest (10,535).

After taking a bush plane to land on the Kahiltna Glacier, we began the climb using the West Buttress route. I made this climb in 2001 and 2007 without summiting both times.

Flying to the Glacier

The trusty bush plane carrys climbers and sightseers to, over and around Denali - weather permitting. I took this from our plane in 2007.
__________________________________________

Denali, also known as Mt. McKinley, is in central Alaska - 300 miles South of the Arctic Circle and 200 miles East of the Bearing Sea.

Denali offers some the the largest vertical gain of any mountain on Earth. With base camp at 7,200' and the summit at 20,320', this 13,120' of gain over twelve miles is larger than Cho Oyu (8,407) or even Everest (10,535).

After taking a bush plane to land on the Kahiltna Glacier, we began the climb using the West Buttress route. I made this climb in 2001 and 2007 without summiting both times.