How to Climb Denali

What’s Denali Like?

Denali is a mountain that is respected by both amateur and serious climbers around the world. Mostly known for its violent weather and extreme cold because of its location just outside the arctic, climbing Denali is a serious undertaking and sometimes even experienced climbers find themselves in trouble. While the mountain is not technically difficult, the lower half is packed with crevasses while above 14,000 feet are steep slopes of up to 50 degrees on ice and many dangerous and exposed sections. Knowledge of how to install pickets and webbing around rocks, roped glacier travel, crevasse rescue, and just general survival in sub zero conditions is essential to a safe trip.

Another major challenge on Denali that is responsible for many failures is the physical fitness required to move your gear up and down the mountain. With perfect weather, Denali can be completed in as little as two weeks, but since weather is impossible to predict groups have to bring as much as a month’s food supply. The total weight between the gear, food, and other supplies can be up to 300lbs between two climbers. At low altitudes of 7,000 feet where the climb first begins, some climbers find it too strenuous on their bodies to haul 150lbs between their backpack and sleds and drop out of the climb.

With careful planning, a strict training schedule and a strong basic knowledge of glacier rope travel and crevasse rescue a successful climb of Denali is possible. Below is what I personally did to reach the summit of the mountain.

Click here to see my climb of Denali

Getting in Shape

This information is easily found all over the internet, but I will also share my specific training that actually got me all the way up to the summit. First off, all of this information is different of course for every person, but in general you should train at least 6 months prior to arriving to Denali. Of course if you’re completely out of shape then you may want to start as early as 8 months prior. In my case I was already in relatively good shape but I still started a full year prior. Many websites suggest different types of training, but all agree that actually climbing mountains is the best way to get in shape for one. Depending on where you live, this might not be an option, so you’ll have to rely on the gym, stair climbing and other exercises. Below are some key workouts.

Mountain Climbing

Like I said before, climbing mountains is the best way to get in shape for them. I did go hiking in the mountains but only a handful of time, mostly because they were almost a 2 hour drive. I carried a 75lb backpack and dumped the weight at the top in order to save my knees. Normally I carried water or rocks in the pack.

Stair Climbing

Stair climbing was what I believed to be one of my most effective workouts and was what I did the most often. I took a 75lb backpack and stayed on the stair climber for an hour at the gym several times a week. I built myself up to this and didn’t start with the 75lbs the first time of course.

Tire Pulling

This was another effective workout and something I did almost as often as I did the stair climbing. For this exercise I took my 75lb pack again and roped a tire to the back of it and pulled it over a 4 mile trail. The trail was basically flat but did have some occasional steep hills. The tire I used was a standard car tire but with the rim included and inflated. Total this was probably about 100lbs of weight. The first time I did this exercise it took me almost two and a half hours to complete 4 miles, several months later I was able to do it in little more than an hour and 15 minutes. I found that this was a hard workout but pulling 150lbs on Denali’s second day was extremely difficult. I was able to do it with no problems but found it very hard, I worry what would have happened if I had not done this exercise I would highly recommend this workout, but be prepared for lots of questions and strange looks from other people using the trails.

Gym

The gym is a great place to get in shape of course. The biggest problem with the gym, at least for me, is that it gets very boring after an hour, where as if I go hiking I can easily do it for half the day. In the gym there are many exercises that can help you train for mountaineering. Of course you want to focus on your legs, doing things like squats, leg press, and calf exercises.

Running

Running is good for burning fat and training your heart and lungs. By running often you can lower your heart rate and also build your long term endurance. I have read on another site about preparing for mountains where someone posted something to the effect of running for training purposes was a waste of time since you won’t be running on the actual expedition. Although it’s true that the best work outs for climbing are ones that you will actually be doing on the mountain, (ie carrying a heavy pack, hiking while dragging a tire etc), I couldn’t disagree more with that statement. Running is one of the best work outs to train your lungs and it gets your body used to the lack of oxygen, increases your endurance and makes your breathing more efficient. This is something extremely important when you are at high altitude and your heart is beating out of your chest and you’re out of breathe despite your slow pace.

Mountain Biking

This is a fun sport that focuses on your legs and will build endurance. Like running, it will also help your heart and lungs. It’s best to find some hilly terrain to ride on rather than a flat neighborhood or street.

In Summary

I found that when I was running what was limiting me from going faster was my lungs, being out of breath. The stair climb actually limited me by my heart, I felt my breathing was find but my heart was beating out of control. And the last major exercise was the 100lb pack and tire drag which I found my breathing and heart rate to be fine but the overall weight and stress on my body was what slowed me down. All together I think these three key exercises trained my heart, lungs, and body very effectively.

Plenty of other exercises can be beneficial as well. A big part of getting in shape though is not just working out but also getting enough sleep and watching what you eat. I’m terrible at eating out, for me its just something I do socially with my friends on a daily basis. For the year of Denali overall I think I did a good job but could have always done better with my diet. Sometimes I would be extremely healthy for several months then I’d let up and let some nasty food get the best of me.

Gear List

Bringing the right gear is critical to being able to summit any major mountain. Below was my personal gear list and for major items the brand name is also included.

Personal Equipment

Expedition Back Pack – Denali Pro build by Gregory. I bought this pack a few years ago and it has proved to be very durable and reliable. It has plenty of space and I’m confident I wouldn’t find any broken straps or buckles unless I purposely tried to break it. The top part of the pack can be separated into a day pack which is perfect for short hikes. I bought this pack in 2000, the “Denali Pro’, and almost 10 years later it finally reached its destiny.

Sleeping Bag – I used a Marmont CWM EQ 0sleeping bag which is rated to -40F/-40C. For this climb a sleeping bag rated to at least -30F is recommended but you may as well go the extra 10 degrees and get the top of the line sleeping bags in the world. Being warm and comfortable at night is extremely important while climbing. At high altitude its very hard to fall asleep because of the lack of oxygen. The last thing you’ll need is to get even less sleep because you were rolling around all night or too cold.

Cell Foam Pad – Cell foam pads are just light mattresses that you put on the floor of your tent. They provide a cushion between you and the cold bumpy floor. If you put a self-inflating pad directly on the ground you can risk it popping on a sharp surface.

Self-Inflating Pad – This is basically just an air mattress that goes over your cell foam pad and makes sleeping much more comfortable. It’s not absolutely necessary but the better you sleep the better you can climb the following day so I highly recommend one. On Denali they are even more important since air does not conduct heat well and it prevents heat loss from the sleeping bag to the frozen floor. Some people actually put their pad on the floor first and then their foam pad over it on Denali.

Compression Sacks – Compression sacks are just bags that have straps on them and are perfect for making extra room in your pack. Without a compression sack my sleeping bag and down jacket alone probably would have taken up most of my pack.

Silverware – In previous climbs I have always used some very light titanium silverware from a camping store. Do not bring metal on Denali since it loses heat very rapidly; you do not want to put a subzero fork into your mouth. Bowl – The heat loss is even more important for the bowl so again avoid metal unless you want your hot dinner to turn to ice. I used a regular tupperware bowl that I got from Walmart. They are light weight and you can stack two into each other so they don’t take up much space. Make sure you get a good quality one if you’re going this route, cheap ones will freeze and shatter at high altitude.

Sunscreen – I would bring the strongest sunscreen you can find, at least rated at a 50. Also you’ll spend several weeks on Denali so make sure you bring enough. The lower altitudes is where you’ll be at risk of extreme burns. Once you go up higher and get to the subzero regions you’ll pretty much no longer have any skin exposed.

Lip Balm – A small stick of lip balm is all you will need. It’s good for the sun and essential to prevent wind burned lips.

Water Bottles – I brought two one liter bottles along with insulated containers for them and a half liter bottle that I kept in my pocket. The insulation is essential because of the cold weather. On Mt. Elbrus I learned this when I brought a regular 7-11 plastic bottle to carry water. On Elbrus summit day I pulled it out for a drink and instead I only had a block of ice in my pack. On Denali you’ll need at least 2 liters capacity.

1 Liter Thermo – These can be pretty heavy but for some they are well worth it. Hot water keeps your warm and is also good for tea and coffee. Sometimes my other bottles would freeze even in their insulated containers, so adding a little hot water was enough to thaw out the ice. I have used this before on Aconcagua but decided not bring it to Denali – too heavy.

Piss Bottle – This is by far the best mountaineering invention. Bring an extra bottle with you so that you can use it to pee in the middle of the night. On Elbrus I was sick and every 20 minutes I felt like I was getting dressed and going outside at 3 in the morning. I brought a 1 liter bottle to Aconcagua and found that it wasn’t enough for the night. I ended up upgrading to a 2.5 liter. For Denali I bought a two liter bladder which is great since it doesn’t take much room in your pack and has a large capacity.

Knife – A small pocket knife is a useful tool for a variety of situations.

Hygiene Bag – I brought with me only a tooth brush, floss, and toothpaste. I wouldn’t worry about deodorant or razor blades.

Hand Sanitizer – This is good to wash your hands before you eat. Everything around you is usually frozen so you’re not likely to get sick, but a little bottle of hand sanitizer is worth it to be on the safe side.

First Aid Kit – If you do a guided climb your guide will have a large first aid kit. In this case you can just bring small items like some band-aids or mole skin for blisters.

Hand & Toe Warmers – My past experience with hand and toe warmers seemed to make me conclude that they can be unreliable. I have taken some out before and found that they didn’t work and never heated up. On Denali I brought extra pairs and purchased them all immediately before my trip, instead of using some old ones in the house from over a year ago. The night before summit day my liner boots where wet and I placed them in my sleeping bag and then put warmers in the liners to dry them. I also used warmers in my gloves and boot liners on summit day and brought additional ones in case of emergency.

Trash Compactor Bags – These are so light you might as well bring them. They are good for lining your back pack and separating dirty clothes from clean clothes. Also of course its good for trash.

Head Lamp – If you’re on Denali in late May or through June and early July a headlamp will just be extra weight. You’ll have almost 24 hours of daylight on Denali and it will only be slightly dark around 3am or so when you should be sleeping anyway.

Head Gear

Ski Hat – A normal wool ski hat found in an outdoor or ski shop is all you will need.

Balaclava – I found a balaclava extremely useful after base camp. It completely blocks the wind from your face and stops your nose from running all the time, makes climbing that much more comfortable.

Sun Hat – On the lower slopes you’ll definitely want a sun hat because its easy to get burned. I used a baseball cap. The sun on Denali can be pretty brutal, especially since you’re surrounding by glaciers which just amplify the damaging rays.

Buff – A buff is just an elastic gaiter that you can wear around your neck to protect you from the sun. Some people stretch it around their face and use it as a super light balaclava as well.

Bandanna – A bandanna is a useful item just because it’s flexible. Some people use it instead of a buff and wrap it around their neck. I brought a buff and bandanna to Aconcagua, after my experiences with them I left the bandanna at home for Denali.

Glacier Glasses – These are nothing but sunglasses but with side shields to completely block out the sun.

Ski Goggles – On higher camps you’ll probably put your glacier glasses away and only wear the ski goggles. Ski goggles are great because they also block out the wind from your eyes. On Denali you will need to make sure you have a good seal with the ski goggles around your balaclava so that no skin is exposed.

Clothing

Light Long Underwear – For light long underwear I simply bought some spandex type gear I got from a climbing store.

Heavy Long Underwear – My heavy long underwear for my legs was some thick wool I got from REI. For my upper body I used some random polyester and a north face fleece. I never ended up wearing the polyester top.

Soft Shell Jacket – A goretex windbreaker that I also used as my casual street jacket was my soft-shell.

Soft Shell Pants – Goretex mountain hardware pants were used for my legs. Make sure you have full side zippers.

Ski Pants – Ski pants are great because they are breathable and durable. I wore these as my outside layer everyday on Denali except on severe weather days. On summit day I wore them under my down pants.

Expedition Down Pants – Micropuff pants were suggested on the internet and I agree they work great. These also had full side zippers so that you can slip them off if you get too hot without having to remove your boots. I wore them only on summit day.

Fleece – For my fleece I simply bought a warm North Face brand. I actually see people wearing it all the time as casual clothing out in Virginia but it’s great for serious trips as well.

Micropuff Jacket – My micropuff jacket was very light weight and extremely warm, I wore it almost everyday on Denali.

Expedition Down Parka – I bought the top of the line North Face Himalaya Parka. This is a great expedition jacket with many considerations such as large pockets to keep two liters of water in your jacket to prevent them from freezing.

Hand Wear

Lightweight Gloves – These should be the lightest thinnest gloves available and used as a base layer.

Heavyweight Gloves – The heavyweight gloves can be used as a second layer of your lightweight gloves or as a base layer in extreme cold conditions with the expedition gloves or mitts going over them.

Expedition Gloves – These gloves are important for extreme cold when you need to use your fingers. Since the gloves are large and you won’t be that ambidextrous with them on you need to make sure you have either the lightweight or heavy weight gloves on underneath in case you have to quickly remove them for something. The expedition gloves should a removable liner inside.

Expedition Mitts – These gloves are mostly for summit day or when its extremely cold and you’re around camp. Like the expedition gloves, they should have a removable liner inside and basically be pairs of mittens that can be combined with your lightweight or heavyweight gloves for a variety of combinations to fight the cold.

Foot Wear

Plastic Double Boots – Supposedly one of the warmest boots ever made, I used Koflach’s Arctis Expe. I wear a size10 street shoe and bought the size 10.5 Koflach boots. They were slightly too big but I think a 10 would have been too tight which would reduce circulation. These boots got the job done but had some slight issues on Denali, I found the liner was extremely difficult to dry out once it was wet. Replacing the Boot Liner – There are special foam liners you can use that are fitting to your feet and made to replace your existing liner. They cost around $200 but supposedly are much warmer but I didn’t buy them since the only long expedition I used these boots on was Aconcagua. I think the foam liners dry out much better so if your boots are old I’d get them.

Down Booties – You can bring a pair of light down booties for camp to give your feet a break from your big boots while you are hanging around camp. Some people avoid down booties and simply wear their boot liner inside their over boots, or even their socks directly into their over boots. Another combination is to buy the down booties and wear them inside your plastic boots with the liner removed.

Over boots – These were something new to me, but basically a thick liner that goes around your plastic double boots making a third pair. Make sure your crampons can still fit over your over boots.

Gaiters – Some pants have built in gaiters so some climbers don’t bring any regular gaiters with them. I brought super gaiters mostly for warmth purposes because I heard they make a huge difference in conserving heat.

Wool Socks – I brought 3 pair of thick wool socks that were labeled for mountaineering.

Liner Socks – 3 pair of liner socks are essential to avoid blisters.

Climbing Gear

Ice Axe – This is a very important tool on Denali due to all the crevasses and slopes. Aside from rescuing yourself or others, an ice axe is a very useful tool in to help maintain the camps.

Crampons – I wore Black Diamond Sabre Tooth crampons with my Koflachs. You’ll need these at higher altitudes when the snow gives way to solid ice. I don’t recall having any issues on Aconcagua with these crampons but on Denali I noticed that they didn’t lock very well into my plastic boots. They never came off and I wasn’t worried about losing them on the move but they could have been better.

Snowshoes – These are used to prevent you from sinking very deep into the snow. On the way up Denali we had packed snow and didn’t need them, on the return we did have to break out the snowshoes. You’ll cache them at 11,500 feet and won’t need them any higher.

Ski Poles – On most trips these are an option but on Denali they are pretty much essential. I can’t think of any reason why someone wouldn’t want to bring them since they are extremely useful for balancing yourself with all that weight and bulky gear.

Climbing Harness – You want your harness to be simple and lightweight. It doesn’t need to be some super expensive top of the line design. My harness was a rock climbing one I bought several years ago since it was on sale, $35 + a free class!

Climbing Helmet – In my opinion bringing this is a complete waste of energy and simply takes up weight. When you cross windy corner there is a rock slide hazard and some climbers have been killed there so people where a helmet. The chance of a rock hitting you in the head is very small but of course it has happened. If the rock is a huge boulder then your helmet will make no difference anyway. Windy corner takes about 15 minutes to cross so if you are concerned then bring the helmet, its not needed on fixed ropes and other sections of Denali.

What to Expect

Now that you’ve gotten all your gear and are in shape you’re ready for the actual climb. I’ll try to give a brief explanation of what you can expect on a day to day basis with the west buttress route and a quick comparison to other mountains.

Base Camp

You’re flight will arrive at the Kahiltna glacier where you’ll immediately set up your base camp. This is probably your easiest day on the mountain since you basically do not travel or have to worry about building a strong camp.

Camp I

The single load carry from Base Camp to Camp 1 was one of the most strenuous days of the trip. You begin by going downhill about 400 feet and then the terrain will level off. It is slightly up hill and over the day you’ll gain another 1,000 feet. The slight incline is difficult because of the heavy loads. It took me about 5 hours to reach Camp 1, other groups took as long as 9 because of poor weather or snow conditions.

Camp II

From Camp 1 you will do a cache carry to 10,000 feet then the next day move all the way to camp 2. Your main challenge is ski hill which begins immediately after Camp 1. The hill isn’t very steep, but after you complete it you have a relatively flat but extremely long way to go until you reach the Kahilta pass. From here you make a 90 degree right turn and have about an hour uphill to Camp 2. This day is steeper than the single load carry to Camp 1 but much easier since there is half the weight.

Camp III

The move to Camp 3 is the last move with the sleds but also by far the steepest. Motorcycle hill looks impossible to carry a sled up but its not nearly as bad as it looks. After motorcycle hill you will immediately zig zag up Ski hill which is difficult but not as bad as Motorcycle hill. You get a slight break from the polo field which is a gentle slope that leads to windy corner. Windy corner is usually windy like its name suggests, after that you have another hour of a annoying angled slope to advanced base camp. Despite the last slope not being very steep I found this part to be extremely challenging due to the high altitude.

Camp IV

Moving to Camp 4 is by far one of the most interesting days on Denali. From Camp 3 you’ll have a steep incline that takes over an hour until you reach the fixed ropes. The fixed ropes are over 50 degree ice and a bergschrund that levels out as you get higher. I found the fixed ropes easier than the incline before it since you are more secure and can use the ropes as balance and to pull yourself up. The following ridge is the worst part of the day, but maybe it’s because I had mentally thought I was finished after the fixed ropes. The ridge will take about 2 hours and has some very steep and narrow sections. There are also areas with pickets and fixed ropes so you will need to continue to clip in and out. Some in my group thought this day was harder than summit day, but I personally thought summit day was the most challenging.

Summit Day

Everyone assumes on summit day you’ll be going without a pack. While it won’t weight nearly as much as the 50lbs you carried up the ridge on the way to Camp 4, it’s required that you bring a sleeping bag, mat, plus your normal gear like several layers, two liters of boiling water, and plenty of food for the day. Since I brought a 6lb camera, which I’ll never do again, my pack weighed around 20lbs for the day. The famous beginning to summit day is the autobahn named after several climbers slipped to their deaths. I found the autobahn easy but extremely annoying because you have to clip into pickets every 5 minutes it seemed. Zebra rocks is after the autobahn and Denali pass and begins on a steep incline with more pickets but will level off. You have an hour or more of gentle terrain that leads to the football field. From here is your last hill, pig or profanity hill that is pretty steep but doesn’t take too long. The final summit ridge looks intimidated and has some pickets as well but is very short, maybe about 20 minutes or so to the summit.

Descending

We did a crazy 1 day decent from Camp 4 to base camp that took nearly 24 hours. I found the autobahn the most annoying descent on the way back from the summit since you had to keep clipping in like I mentioned earlier. Otherwise the rest of the decent wasn’t too annoying except for maybe the fixed ropes and the awkward feeling of stepping down steep hills. The most significant change I experienced were the crevasses between Camp 2 and Camp 1. I must have stepped into about 5 or 6 of them and they are everywhere. I was leading the team out on the way down so I was the unfortunate one to step into all of them while everyone behind me could see my mistake and walk around. This takes lots of energy, descending Denali, so make sure you bring lots of water and food.

Comparing to Mt. Aconcagua

I don’t think Elbrus or Kilimanjaro are worth comparing to Denali, so I will compare only my Aconcagua climb to this mountain. If you wish to see how I compared Kilimanjaro to Aconcagua then click on my Aconcagua page. So I will mention that I believe Aconcagua is twice as hard as Kilimanjaro, and that Denali is at least twice as hard as Aconcagua. I have heard some people say Aconcagua and Denali are about the same and as someone who has done both without porters, I have absolutely no idea how they have come to this conclusion.

For starters, I did well on both mountains except the decent on Aconcagua where I ran out of gas because I didn’t eat as much as I needed to. Aside from the decent I was very strong going up both mountains and think I can offer a fair comparison. So lets compare normal itinerary of Denali and Aconcagua.

First Days:

Aconcagua – For the first few days, 95% of all climbers have mules carry their gear to base camp. Climbers will be hiking in warm weather with just a day pack taking pictures of the birds and surrounding landscape.

Denali – Your first full week on Denali will be carrying well over a hundred pounds of gear. Plus setting up the tents and fortifying camp. If you consider that Denali is equal to 3,000 feet higher because its near the arctic then you’re essentially starting at the same altitude. (Add 3,000 feet to Denali’s starting point and that will put you at 10,000 feet, on Aconcagua you enter the park at 10,000 feet). The only difference is Denali is much colder and the huge loads you need to carry can’t compare to walking with a day pack and camera on Aconcagua. I have no idea how some people concluded pulling 130lbs between a sled and backpack on a glacier on Denali has the same difficulty as walking in 70 degree weather on Aconcagua’s lower altitude with a 5lbs pack.

Mid Expedition: Aconcagua – Once you reach Aconcagua base camp, many people stay there a week to acclimatize and do local hikes. Basically you are enjoying yourself and not carrying any heavy loads and you even have the option of a shower and internet.

Denali – You’ll normally spend a full week moving from Denali’s base camp to the advanced base camp at 17,000 feet. This involves pulling a sled and pack and doing cache carries in addition to fortifying camps. It’s likely you’ll be either wearing crampons or snow shoes while you do all of this work.

High Camps:

Aconcagua – After a week in base camp you’ll pack up your tent and then for the first time on the expedition put a heavy backpack on and set up 3 camps as you approach the summit. I think this part of the trip could compare to Denali since the weight might be about the same, but something else to consider is it is your first time working hard while on Denali you were doing this from day 1. Something else to consider though is that the terrain is much easier, you aren’t traveling in a rope team, and setting up camp is much simpler than on Denali.

Denali – After high camp in Denali you will have to do cache carries and then move up to Camp 4. By this time you are usually two weeks into the expedition which is about the same amount of time it takes to reach the highest camp on Aconcagua. The main reason why Denali is harder at this point is because you have been working non stop with pulling sleds, doing cache carries and building camps while on Aconcagua you probably just started this a few days ago. Also with Aconcagua, it takes about 3 or 4 hours to reach a camp and once there you set up the tent you are done. On Denali we spent 6 or more hours moving to another camp over much more challenging terrain and then had to spend several hours building ice walls and fortifying camp which makes the day twice as long as a high camp day.

Summit Day: I do believe summit days on both mountains are about the same. This depends on factors like weather and temperatures but pound for pound I don’t feel like either one was easier or harder. Overall I would certainly consider Denali a much harder mountain for the reasons I stated above like weather, temperature, group gear, sled pulling, heavier packs, ice wall building and camp fortifying.