Climbing Denali

Is climbing Denali safe?

Not by the standards of ordinary sport. In the five seasons from 2021 to 2025, 7 people died on Denali's routes among 5,160 registered attempts, about 1 in 740. That is roughly 1,400 micromortsMicromortA one-in-a-million chance of death. It lets you compare the risk of very different activities on one scale.More in the glossary per climb, the risk of some 350 skydives. It is also about a fifth of the risk of an Everest expedition, and the mountain has become much safer than it used to be.

Denali (6,190 m), which federal agencies again call Mount McKinley, is one of the few big mountains where every climber is counted. The park service has required registration since 1995 and publishes attempts, summits, rescues and deaths each season. That makes its numbers some of the most reliable in mountaineering.

How many climbers die on Denali?

McIntosh and colleagues counted 96 deaths among 31,201 climbers from the first attempt in 1903 to 2006, or 3.08 per 1,000. Deaths fell by 53% after the registration system began in 1995. The recent figures, which we use for the score, are lower still:

The calculation: 7 deaths ÷ 5,160 attempts = 0.00136, or about 1,400 micromortsMicromortA one-in-a-million chance of death. It lets you compare the risk of very different activities on one scale.More in the glossary per attempt. Seven deaths is a small number, so a single bad season can move the rate a lot. In 2012 one avalanche at Motorcycle Hill, at 11,200 feet on the West Buttress, killed four climbers. If you count the 1903–2006 rate instead, the risk is about 3,100 micromorts, and the score would be 5 points lower.

We count only deaths on Denali itself. The park's yearly reports also list climbers killed on nearby peaks such as Mount Johnson and the Moose's Tooth, skiers caught in avalanches near the park road and people in plane crashes.

How do climbers die on Denali?

Falls are the biggest killer. In 1903–2006, 45% of deaths came from falls, and 61% happened on the way down. Denali Pass, at about 18,200 feet, is a recurring site: solo climbers fell to their deaths there in 2022 and 2024.

The recent deaths show how often a decision sits behind them:

• Solo and unroped climbing. Two soloists fell near Denali Pass, and unroped crevasse falls killed climbers elsewhere in the range.
• Going up too fast. In 2023 a climber reached 14,200 feet about a day and a half after starting and later died of altitude illness in an Anchorage hospital.
• Summit pushes without rest. In 2024 a team pushed for the top without acclimatising. One climber died of exposure on the summit ridge while the team waited three days for a rescue that storms delayed.
• Skiing steep terrain. In 2025 one skier fell from Squirrel Hill and another died in an avalanche from the Rescue Gully near the 14,200-foot camp.

Sudden medical events kill fit-looking clients too. A guided client collapsed and died near 19,000 feet in 2022, most likely from cardiac arrest.

Frostbite and altitude illness

Most climbers who get hurt on Denali come home alive but damaged. Of 24,079 climbers in 1992–2011, 831 (3.5%) needed medical help from the park service, most at the 14,200-foot camp. Frostbite was the most common single diagnosis, and altitude illness the most common category of illness. About 1 patient in 9 was flown off the mountain.

Recent seasons look similar. Rangers assessed 34 patients in 2024 and 37 in 2025, with 14 frostbite cases in 2025, and both years' reports describe climbers who lost several fingers or toes. The park calls frostbite "entirely preventable" and links it to decisions about when and where to climb.

How to climb Denali more safely

1. Learn crevasse rescue and rope up on the glacier. Several recent deaths followed unroped travel or climbing alone.
2. Take the time to acclimatise. Guided teams averaged 16 days on the mountain in 2025. Plan for three weeks, and descend at the first signs of severe altitude illness.
3. Turn back from Denali Pass and the summit ridge in high wind. Most frostbite in the park's reports follows a long, cold summit day.
4. Keep hands and feet dry and covered, even for short jobs. One 2024 climber got frostbite on all 20 digits after repairing a stove without gloves.
5. Be honest about your experience. The park's 60-day registration lets rangers advise on routes; use it. A guided West Buttress trip is the obvious choice for climbers without big-mountain experience.
6. Plan for days without a helicopter. Carry enough fuel and food to wait out a storm high on the mountain.

How we scored it

Fatality risk (18) rests on about 1,400 micromortsMicromortA one-in-a-million chance of death. It lets you compare the risk of very different activities on one scale.More in the glossary per attempt from 2021–2025 park data, well inside our bottom band. Rescue and environment (20) reflects extreme cold and storms, offset in part by the ranger camp at 14,200 feet. Injury risk (30) reflects frequent frostbite and altitude illness. Controllability (45) gives credit for the many deaths linked to choices climbers make. Denali scores 25, well above K2 and Everest, and below a typical glaciated peak or Kilimanjaro.