McKinley climber starts season on classic route

The 2008 Mount McKinley climbing season started this month with a woman at the top.

Lianne Noble of Scotland on May 5 was the first to reach the summit, accompanied by guide Zach Schlosar of Eagle River, Alaska, said Denali National Park and Preserve climbing rangers.

The climbers started their approach to the mountain by dogsled from near the park headquarters a month ago.

From there, they mushed to the old mining town of Kantishna to meet guides and head for the mountain. This was the traditional approach to the 20,320-foot summit of North America’s tallest mountain until the West Buttress route became the standard after a landing strip was established near 7,200 feet on the Kahiltna Glacier decades ago.

The airstrip has created a small, seasonal tent city easily reached by small plane from Talkeetna. From Kahiltna Base Camp, the West Buttress presents a fairly straightforward route to the top with limited technical difficulties.

However, the route from the north requires a lengthy trek into the park and a climb up the longer, more isolated, Muldrow Glacier route.

Deep snow this year is a blessing of sorts. Last year, the mountain saw little snow and climbers were falling into glacial crevasses. Snow that piled up at least 15 feet deep this winter bridged the gaps.