Denali Gear Checklist
A Denali summit climb is a three week expedition on a glacier, and the park is blunt that over 90 percent of climbers take the West Buttress. The gear that matters is the kit for that mountain: boots and a bag for -30 F and colder, a sled to drag weeks of fuel and food, a cook tent, snow saws, and a Clean Mountain Can that the rangers hand out at orientation. People who have done it also say what they left behind, from dried fruit to a spare pair of hard shell pants.
What shapes your gear on Denali
- Route and season
- The park says over 90 percent of climbers attempt the West Buttress, the least technical of the common routes. The usual season runs from late April to mid-July. May is colder and windier, June and July bring milder temperatures and more snow, and several hundred climbers are on the mountain from mid-May to mid-June.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 1: Planning Considerations
- Registration
- Climbers register at least 60 days ahead, by paying online and emailing a signed special use form. The 2027 fee is $475, or $375 for climbers 24 or younger, plus a $15 park entrance fee unless you hold a pass. Every team member attends an in-person orientation at the Talkeetna ranger station with photo ID.
- Cold and wind
- The park says the upper mountain regularly sits between -30 F and -40 F, and that gusts above 80 miles per hour are common and can last for hours or days. A team stuck at the high camp reported winds that peaked at 90 miles per hour over six days.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 3: Equipment and Clothing and WildSnow: An Average Ascent of Denali's West Buttress: Part 3
- How long you pack for
- The park advises three weeks of food, at 4,000 to 5,000 calories per person per day. Unguided climbers describe bringing 21 days and 25 days of food. One three person team reached Talkeetna on day 20 after a storm turned them back at 14 Camp.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 3: Equipment and Clothing, Noah Lang Photography, WildSnow: An Average Ascent of Denali's West Buttress: Part 1 and WildSnow: An Average Ascent of Denali's West Buttress: Part 3
- Getting in
- Most climbers fly on skis from Talkeetna to the Kahiltna Glacier base camp at 7,200 feet. One climber says the air taxi weighs your gear and his service included 125 pounds, with a charge per pound beyond that.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 1: Planning Considerations and Noah Lang Photography
- Moving the weight
- Nearly all climbers pull a sled on the lower glacier. On the first full day one team's packs and sleds each weighed about 60 pounds. Another climber split his load about 70 percent sled and 30 percent pack.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 3: Equipment and Clothing, WildSnow: An Average Ascent of Denali's West Buttress: Part 1 and Noah Lang Photography
What the agency requires on Denali
Clean Mountain Can for solid human waste
Every expedition is issued cans with biodegradable bags at the Talkeetna ranger station. Below 14,200 feet, solid waste must come off the mountain. Above that, it can go to one marked crevasse at the camp. Each party must reach that camp with at least one can.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 4: Clean Climbing
Labelled and buried caches
Every cache carries a tag that names the expedition, gives the permit number and says when you will return. The rangers hand out printed tags at orientation. Caches must be buried at least a meter deep, marked with wands, and food caches below 6,000 feet go in bear-proof containers.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 4: Clean Climbing
Pack out your fuel cans and cartridges
Leaving extra gear, food, fuel or wands behind is banned, and rangers write citations. Be ready to show your fuel cans and cartridges when you return to base camp, or to name who took them.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 4: Clean Climbing
Special use permit and orientation
The special use permit is required for a climb of Denali, and every team member must attend the in-person orientation in Talkeetna, showing government photo identification.
What hikers carry on Denali
A sled with the heavy gear low
The park says nearly all climbers use one and to keep the heavy items on the bottom. It also says to clip the pulls near your waist and add a backup attachment. One climber put dense items like fuel in the sled and brought parachute cord to lash the load. He says his sled side-tailed at Windy Corner and nearly pulled him off.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 3: Equipment and Clothing and Noah Lang Photography
A bag and two pads for the high camps
The park calls a bag good down to -20 F the minimum acceptable. A climber who used a -10 F bag with a 30 degree quilt on top at 14 Camp says a -20 bag would have worked better. Both climbers pair a foam pad with an inflatable one, as the park suggests.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 3: Equipment and Clothing, Mountain Project forum and Noah Lang Photography
Camp booties and warm feet gear
A 2022 climber calls camp booties a godsend for lounging and sleeping. The same climber wore overboots a lot around camp but never over the climbing boots. The park says upper-mountain boots must handle -30 F to -40 F and advises testing the full boot, overboot and crampon system.
From Mountain Project forum and Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 3: Equipment and Clothing
A cook tent and a stove board
The park says many groups find a separate, well-ventilated cook tent helpful, and a flame-resistant cook board a big help. A 2022 climber calls the cook tent an absolute necessity for morale and says to dig it out deep enough to stand. His team used two stoves for five people.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 3: Equipment and Clothing and Mountain Project forum
White gas, more than one stove, and a spare
The park says most groups plan about one gallon of white gas per person for three weeks, plus an extra for the team, and that canister stoves perform poorly in the cold. A 2022 climber found a gallon each was too much for three weeks and about right for four.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 3: Equipment and Clothing and Mountain Project forum
A steel spade, snow saws and strong shovels
The park wants at least two big saws per party and a steel spade for the hard layers above 11,000 feet. At one team's orientation a ranger joked that the hardened snow at 14 Camp took a chainsaw to cut. The same climber found building camp left him gasping for air.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 3: Equipment and Clothing and WildSnow: An Average Ascent of Denali's West Buttress: Part 1
Two pairs of glacier glasses and a nose guard
The park says many climbers carry two pairs of eye protection, for normal and very bright days, in case one breaks. One skier-climber teased his teammates about their nose guards, then wore one after his nose burned.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 3: Equipment and Clothing and WildSnow: An Average Ascent of Denali's West Buttress: Part 1
High-SPF sunscreen and several lip balms
One unguided climber calls sunscreen and lip balm easy to forget and expedition-ending if missed, and says plain drugstore lip balm wrecked his lips.
Trekking poles with an ice axe
The park describes most climbers choosing a 60 to 70 cm axe for use along with poles. One climber thought poles were essential for pulling a sled, and held a pole in one hand and the axe in the other on summit day.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 3: Equipment and Clothing and Noah Lang Photography
A radio on the park channel
The park says rangers monitor channel 1 on small family radios from the camps at 7,200 and 14,200 feet. One team spoke by radio with another team that was stuck at the high camp in a storm.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 3: Equipment and Clothing and WildSnow: An Average Ascent of Denali's West Buttress: Part 3
Real food below 14 Camp
A 2022 climber says real meals like burritos beat freeze-dried on a long trip. Another climber saves just-add-hot-water meals for the high camp and says bacon and salami are some of the best things to bring.
12 people can go on one permit. Split this list between them so nobody carries two stoves.
Plan a trip hereWhat hikers regret or leave behind on Denali
Dried fruit and ramen
One climber found dried fruit rock-hard and useless in the cold mornings, and ramen too much work on a moving day, since no one wants to fire up a stove.
A gallon of fuel per person for a three week trip
A 2022 climber says it was overkill for three weeks and closer to what a four week trip needs.
A fancy stove board
The same climber says the board does not have to be elaborate. He over-built his and calls it wasted time.
Hard shell pants in good weather
A 2022 climber skipped them because the weather was great and did not miss them, but the park lists a waterproof shell jacket and pants as part of the kit. The choice depends on the forecast you get.
From Mountain Project forum and Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 3: Equipment and Clothing
Giving away your food before you are off the glacier
One team gave away most of its food at 14 Camp, then a storm turned them back to camp and forced a risky night descent.
From WildSnow: An Average Ascent of Denali's West Buttress: Part 3
Gear questions for Denali
How cold does Denali get on a summit climb?
The park says the upper mountain regularly sits between -30 F and -40 F, with gusts above 80 miles per hour common, which is why it asks for a -20 F bag at minimum.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 3: Equipment and Clothing
Do you need a sled on a Denali summit climb?
Nearly all climbers bring one for the lower glacier, according to the park. Most local air taxis lend basic plastic sleds, so confirm in advance.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 3: Equipment and Clothing
What do you do with human waste on Denali?
You use a Clean Mountain Can that the rangers issue at orientation. Below 14,200 feet the waste leaves the mountain. Above that it can go in one marked crevasse at that camp.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 4: Clean Climbing
How much food and fuel do you pack for Denali?
The park advises three weeks of food at 4,000 to 5,000 calories a day and about one gallon of white gas per person for three weeks, plus one for the team. Climbers who have done it say fuel at that rate was a little much for three weeks.
From Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS): Part 3: Equipment and Clothing and Mountain Project forum
How much does a Denali permit cost?
The 2027 special use fee is $475, or $375 for climbers 24 or younger, and the park adds a $15 entrance fee unless you have an eligible pass.
Sources
- Mountaineering · Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS) · Agency
- Part 1: Planning Considerations · Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS) · Agency
- Part 3: Equipment and Clothing · Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS) · Agency
- Part 4: Clean Climbing · Denali National Park & Preserve (NPS) · Agency
- Denali - Clothing Layers and Gear List · Mountain Project forum, Kyle Tarry · Forum thread
- Climbing the West Buttress on Denali: My Experience and Advice · Noah Lang Photography, Noah Lang · Blog
- An Average Ascent of Denali's West Buttress: Part 1 · WildSnow, Leif Whittaker · Trip report
- An Average Ascent of Denali's West Buttress: Part 3 · WildSnow, Leif Whittaker · Trip report