Mt McKinley: Treacherous Mountain

Mount McKinley in Alaska is the tallest mountain in North America standing at 20,232 feet above sea-level. Of the Seven Summits (each of the seven continent’s highest mountains), it ranks third highest.The highest mountain (measured from the top to sea level) is Mt. Everest.

Mt McKinley is situated on the Denali National Park which is home to nearly 12,000 lakes. Glaciers cover around one-sixth of the park, which covers roughly one million acres. More than forty of the glaciers in the park are named, leaving tens of thousands of glaciers unnamed. Some extend from 800 feet above sea level and reach as high as 19,000 feet.

The severe cold and treacherous glaciers are not the only challenges that climbers have when trying to reach the summit of Mount McKinley.Only about 50 percent of people who attempt to reach the summit are successful.  If you want to face the ultimate challenge of this massive mountain, the experts say the best months to do so are April, May, and June.

THE WEATHER ON MOUNT MCKINLEY’S PEAK CAN BE A FRIGID -75 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT WITH A WIND CHILL OF -118 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT. THESE HARSH TEMPERATURES CAN FREEZE A HUMAN BEING IN A MATTER OF SECONDS. SNOW AND GLACIERS COVER THE ENTIRE TOP HALF OF THE MOUNTAIN. A WEATHER STATION IS POSITIONED AT 18,700 FEET ON THE MOUNTAIN AND CONSTANTLY RECORDS TEMPERATURES AND THE MOUNTAIN’S CLIMATE.