Attaining the summit of Mount Denali (fka McKinley) is not so much an adventure of technical prowess, but more one of surviving the elements. With its extreme weather and its isolation, less than 33% of summit attempts were successful in 2007.

The altitude change from base camp to summit is actually greater than at Mount Everest.

This year on their Second attempt Oury and Sebastien will begin 3 weeks earlier at the very beginning of the climbing season at Denali. With last year’s poor weather and success rate, they want to increase their chances this year by widening the window of opportunity and reducing the risks of falling into crevasses that form during the “warm” season. This warm season is the only 2 months where temperatures crawl above minus 40 and it is humanly possible to overcome mother-nature at Denali.

See pictures from the 2007 expedition

Journal log from 2007 expedition (French)

MONT DENALI
Specifications

Altitude : 6 194 m
Latitude : 63° 5' 51.34" N
Longitude : 151° 0' 19.86" W

First ascension : Hudson Stuck lead a team to the summit on June 7th, 1913.

In 1903, Dr. Frederick Cook claimed to have attained the summit but was later found to have lied!

Origin of its name: The word Denali means King in first nation language. After the first summits, the mountain was re-Christened McKinley in honour of the 25th president of the United States.