Denali - Southwest Face

The discovery of the West Buttress of Denali by Bradford Washburn, which he first described in the 1947 AAJ, was a momentous event in the mountain's climbing history, though the route itself wouldn't actually be climbed until 1951. Now the normal route on the mountain, it sees hundreds of climbers every year, including virtually all the "seven summiters". Yet, for all its description as a mere snow slog, icy conditions, altitude and extreme conditions take their toll even on seasoned climbers, with summit success rates much lower than one could expect.

This image shares a lot of routes with the South Face poster, and is similarly based on a 1977 Bradford Washburn aerial image, but shows the southwest/west aspect a lot better, including most of the features on the normal route, as well as some more difficult walls: Father and Son, Washburn Face and Direct West Buttress in particular.

Photo used with permission from Alaska's Digital Archives/University of Alaska Fairbanks.

Free download link - medium resolution, personal use only (no printing allowed)

Route List

1: Northwest Buttress, Alaska Grade 4, F. Beckey, B. Hackett, D. McLean, H. Meybohm, C. Wilson, 05/1954
2: Tranquillo Couloir, Alaska Grade 4, 65°, S. Lyall, Z. Schlosar, 06/2004
3: Extraterrestrial Brothers, Alaska Grade 5/6, Scottish VII, I. Parnell, K. Cool, 06/2001
4: First Born, Alaska Grade 5, 5.7 WI5, S. House, E. Elmuth, 07/1995
5: Mother's Day Variation, Alaska Grade 5, Scottish Grade VI, J. Voorhis, M. Gardner, 05/2016
6: Great White Fright, Alaska Grade 5, Scottish Grade V, P. Ramsden, G. Willett, 2003
7: Common Knowledge, WI6 R, B. Gilmore, K. Mahoney, B. Miller, 06/2001c
8: Beauty is a Rare Thing, Alaska Grade 5, 5.8 90°, S. House, 06/1996
9: Washburn Face, Alaska Grade 5, 55°, G. Collins, P. Powers, T. Walter, 06/1991
10: Upper Peters Couloir, GRADE, D. van Etten, M. Schmidt, 05/1983
11: Thunder Ridge, GRADE, M. Covington, B. Holton, S. Olsen, 06/1982
12: Direct West Buttress, GRADE, D. Muetzel, K. Groff, N. Beidleman, G. Banks, 06/1980
13: Upper Kahiltna Glacier Couloir, Alaska Grade 3, T. Saukko, P. Mattson, 05/1990
14: Canadian Pillar, Alaska Grade 4, R. Cloutier, M. Kurth, M. Bilodeau, 05/1990
15: Windy Ridge, Alaska Grade 3, B. Hickok, S. von Glinski, 05/1982
16: 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: 11k Camp
        B: Motorcycle Hill
        C: Squirrel Point
        D: Windy Corner
        E: 14k Camp
        F: Fixed Lines
        G: 17k Camp
        H: Autobahn
        I: Football Field
 17: Rescue Gully, Alaska Grade 2 
18: Rescue Rib, Alaska Grade 2, J. Applebee, S. Koch, 1993
19: Denali Face, Alaska Grade 2, J. Jones, 06/1977
20: Mcclod's Rib, Alaska Grade 3, B. McKeith, 06/1977
21: Trans-Canada/Turtle Ridge, Alaska Grade 3, M. Stump, P. Fitzgerald, C. Anker, 05/1990
22: Messner Couloir, 48°, R. Messner, O. Olz, 06/1976/S. Saudan, 1972 (!)
23: Šmíd Route, 5.8 70°, M. Šmíd, 05/1991
24: Orient Express, 44°, P. Morrow, B. Ehmann, 06/1977
25: West Rim/Reilly’s Rib, Alaska Grade 4, B. Ehmann, P. Morrow, 05/1977
26: West Rib Cutoff, Alaska Grade 3, M. Hatakeyama, A. Shoji, T. Nakamura, 08/1975
27: Infinity Direct, Alaska Grade 5, 5.7 WI4 M4, V. Babanov, R. Slawinski, 05/2005
28: West Rib, Alaska Grade 4, 60°, P. Sinclair, J. Breitenbach, B. Corbet, B. Buckingham, 06/1959
        A: Apex Camp
        B: Bergschrund Camp
        C: Upper Ridge Camp
        D: Balcony Camp
29: Clod Face, Alaska Grade 4, B. McKeith, E. Grassman, J. Jones, A. Derbyshire, 06/1977
30: Duperier-Langestein Descent, Steep, T. Duperier, B. Langenstein, 05/2022
31: Roberts-Mccartney, Alaska Grade 6, WI5 5.9 A3 S. McCartney, J. Roberts, 06/1980
32: Denali Diamond, Alaska Grade 6+, WI5+ M6 A1, B. Becker, R. Graage, 06/1983
33: Light Traveler, Alaska Grade 6, M7+ WI6, S. Koch, M. Prezelj, 06/2001
34: Cassin Ridge, Alaska Grade 5, 5.8 65° WI4, R. Cassin, L. Airoldi, L. Alippi, G. Canali, R. Perego, A. Zucchi, R. Goodwin, 07/1961
        A: Japanese Couloir
        B: Cowboy Arête
        C: First Rock Band
        D: Second Rock Band
        E: Third Rock Band
35: Mascioli's Pillar, Alaska Grade 6, 5.10 A0 WI6, S. House, S. Swenson, 06/1997
36: Ramp Route, Alaska Grade 3, 55°, M. Kajiura, K. Kaburagi, H. Nakamura, S. Nishimae, 07/1965
37: South Buttress, Alaska Grade 3, 60°, G. Argus, E. Thayer, L. Viereck, M. Wood, 05/1954

Sources and Credits

• “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
  
• “Denali’s West Buttress,” Colby Coombs, The Mountaineers, 1997
  
• “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
  
• “Mt McKinley Climber’s Handbook,” Glenn Randall, Genet Expeditions, 1984 
  
• “Mountain Profile: Denali,” Steve House, Katie Ives, Alpinist Magazine, Issue 24, Summer 2008
  
• “Mount McKinley, Direct West Buttress Routes,” AAJ, 1991
  
• “Mount McKinley from the North and West,” Bradford Washburn, AAJ, 1947
  
• “Extraterrestrial Brothers,” Kenton Cool, AAJ, 2002
  
• “Denali, Father and Son Wall, Mother’s Day Variation,” Jimmy Voorhis, AAJ, 2017
  
• “Denali, Great White Fright,” Guy Willett, Alpinist Magazine, 2003
  
• “Walls in Shadow,” Kevin Mahoney, AAJ, 2002
  
• “Light Traveler,” Stephen Koch, AAJ, 2002
  
• “Infinity Direct to Upper West Rib,” Raphael Slawinski, AAJ, 2006
  
• “Ski Seasons: Modern Ski Alpinism in the Alaska Range,” Sam Hennessey, AAJ, 2022
  
• Annual Mountaineering Summaries, Denali  National Park, NPS

Updates

Dec 3, 2025: Corrected the altitude of the north peak