Denali - South Face

The steepest and largest face of the highest mountain of North America, the south face of Denali (formerly known as Mt McKinley) is home to one the most sought after prizes in world mountaineering, the Cassin Ridge (lines 17 and 18 for the original 1961 start), as well as some of the hardest and most committing routes in Alaska, the Slovak Direct (19) and the Denali Diamond (13), which are now seeing incomprehensibly fast ascents by world class climbers.

This poster is unique in that it doesn't use one of my own photos, instead relying on the incredible work of climbing and photography pioneer Bradford Washburn, who discovered the West Buttress (line 2, now the normal route on the mountain) and spent a lifetime photographing the Alaska Range from small planes. This particular photo was shot in 1979 and was licensed from Washburn's archives currently held by the University of Alaska Fairbanks. It is also the first fully black and white Mont Blanc Lines poster!

Download: Medium resolution, personal use only

Explore: Full resolution, interactive version

Route List

1: Northwest Buttress, Alaska Grade 4, F. Beckey, B. Hackett, D. McLean, H. Meybohm, C. Wilson, 05/1954
2: West Buttress, Alaska Grade 2, 50°, B. Washburn, W. Hackett, J. Gale, H. Buchtel, B. Bishop, J. Ambler, J. More,T.M. Griffiths, 06/1951/T. Ueki, 1970
  A: Fixed Lines
  B: Ridge Camp
  C: 17k Camp
3: Rescue Gully, Alaska Grade 2
4: Mcclod's Rib, Alaska Grade 3, B. McKeith, 06/1977
5: Messner Couloir, 48°, R. Messner, O. Olz, 06/1976/S. Saudan, 1972 (!)
6: Šmíd Route, 5.8 70°, M. Šmíd, 05/1991
7: Infinity Direct, Alaska Grade 5, 5.7 WI4 M4, V. Babanov, R. Slawinski, 05/2005
8: West Rib, Alaska Grade 4, 60°, P. Sinclair, J. Breitenbach, B. Corbet, B. Buckingham, 06/1959
9: Wickwire 1972,A. Bertulis, L.N. Patterson, C. Raymond, R. Schaller, T. Stewart, J. Wickwire, 06/1972
10: Clod Face, Alaska Grade 4, B. McKeith, E. Grassman, J. Jones, A. Derbyshire, 06/1977
11: Duperier-Langestein Descent, Steep, T. Duperier, B. Langenstein, 05/2022
12: Roberts-Mccartney, Alaska Grade 6, WI5 5.9 A3 S. McCartney, J. Roberts, 06/1980
13: Denali Diamond, Alaska Grade 6+, WI5+ M6 A1, B. Becker, R. Graage, 06/1983
14: Light Traveler, Alaska Grade 6, M7+ WI6, S. Koch, M. Prezelj, 06/2001
15: Slovak Variation, 5.9 60°, Z. Demján, J. Nežerka, 05/1991
16: Henrich-Volkman,Henrich, Volkman, 1983
17: Cassin Ridge via Japanese Couloir, Alaska Grade 5, 65° 5.8, A. Kawagoe, H. Ujiie, 05/1967
  A: Japanese Couloir
  B: Cassin Ledge
  C: Cowboy Arête
  D: Hanging Glacier
  E: First Rock Band
  F: Second Rock Band
  G: Third Rock Band
18: Cassin, 1961 Start, Alaska Grade 5, 5.8, R. Cassin, L. Airoldi, L. Alippi, G. Canali, R. Perego, A. Zucchi, R. Goodwin, 07/1961
19: Slovak Direct, Alaska Grade 6, WI6 5.9, B. Adam, F. Korl, T. Križo, 05/1984
20: Japanese Direct, Alaska Grade 6, K. Kimura, T. Watanabe, Y. Tsuneto, M. Yamaura, Y. Senda, 07/1977
21: Canadian Direct, Alaska Grade 6, 5.9 M6 AI4, L.P. Ménard, M. Turgeon, 05/2006
22: Fransson Ski Descent, 5.4 E5, A. Fransson, 05/2011
23: Haston-Scott, Alaska Grade 5, D. Haston, D. Scott, 05/1976
24: American Direct, Alaska Grade 6, 65° 5.7 A2, D. Eberl, R. Laba, D. Seidman, G. Thompson, 08/1967
  A: Grassy Ledge Camp
  B: Unspeakable Camp
  C: Spiral Camp
  D: Spiral Couloir
  E: Camp IV
  F: Camp V
  G: The Cleft
  H: First Buttress
  I: Second Buttress
  J: Camp VI
  K: Third Buttress
25: Milan Kriššak Memorial, Alaska Grade 5, 65°, M. Orolin, D. Bakoš, P. Johnson, V. Petrik, 06/1980
26: Mascioli's Pillar, Alaska Grade 6, 5.10 A0 WI6, S. House, S. Swenson, 06/1997
27: Ramp Route, Alaska Grade 3, 55°, M. Kajiura, K. Kaburagi, H. Nakamura, S. Nishimae, 07/1965
28: South Buttress, Alaska Grade 3, 60°, G. Argus, E. Thayer, L. Viereck, M. Wood, 05/1954
29: Ridge of no Return, Alaska Grade 6, WI5, R. Casarotto, 05/1985
30: Isis Face, Alaska Grade 5+, WI5 5.8 A1, D. Stutzman, J. Tackle, 1982
31: Anubis, WI5 M6, M. Gardner, S. Hennessey, 04/2021
32: Southeast Spur, Alaska Grade 4, 65°, S. Cochrane, B. Everett, 06/1962

Sources

• “High Alaska, A Historical Guide to Denali, Mount Foraker & Mount Hunter,” Jonathan Waterman, The American Alpine Club, 1988

• “Denali Climbing Guide,” R. J. Secor, Stackpole Books, 1998

• “Mount McKinley, The Conquest of Denali,” Bradford Washburn, David Roberts, Abradale Press, 2000

• “Alaska, A Climbing Guide,” Michael Wood, Colby Coombs, The Moutaineers Books, 2001

• “Alaska Climbing,” Joseph Puryear, SuperTopo, 2006

• “Fifty Classic Climbs of North America,” Steve Roper, Allen Steck, Sierra Club Books, 1979

• “Mountain Profile: Denali,” Steve House, Katie Ives, Alpinist Magazine, Issue 24, Summer 2008

• “Mount McKinley from the North and West,” Bradford Washburn, AAJ, 1947

• “Mount McKinley’s South Face, 1967,” Del Langbauer, Roman Laba, AAJ, 1968

• “McKinley’s South Face, Alpine Style,” Alex Bertulis, AAJ, 1973

• “Cassin Ridge Variation,” Zolo Demján, AAJ, 1992

• “Light Traveler,” Stephen Koch, AAJ, 2002

• “Infinity Direct to Upper West Rib,” Raphael Slawinski, AAJ, 2006

• “The Canadian Direct, Walking a Fine Line on the South Face of Mt. McKinley,” Maxime Turgeon, AAJ, 2007

• “Slovak Direct, Climbing a Legendary Route on Denali,” Anne Gilbert Chase, AAJ, 2019

• “Ski Seasons: Modern Ski Alpinism in the Alaska Range,” Sam Hennessey, AAJ, 2022

• Annual Mountaineering Summaries, Denali National Park, NPS

• American Alpine Institute

• Mountain Project

• Summit Post

• Climbing Magazine

• Planet Mountain

• Teton AT

• The Internet Archive

• Nick Sweeney

Updates

Jun 20, 2024: Initial version.

Mar 9, 2026: Minor graphic update

Apr 26, 2026: Caption update (month of ascent and initials, whenever available)