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This is the Denali Report for July 4th, 2025

As of this week, there were 962 climbers registered to climb Denali this season. Only seven climbers remain on the mountain and 955 have finished their expeditions. On Mt. Foraker, 24 people were registered to climb that mountain this year.  All 24 climbers have finished their expeditions.

Last week brought heavy snowfall to the upper elevations of Denali. High Camp saw twelve inches fall during a 24 hour period. At 14,000 feet, 24 inches of new snow was reported. The precipitation ushered in widespread avalanches, causing teams to pause to assess the hazards. Even four days after the storm, snow conditions on the route to Denali Pass were reported to be unstable, sabotaging many summit attempts.

This season has brought multiple periods of weather delays, which has translated to congestion in the various camps. With so many people in close proximity, the potential for unhygienic conditions could be a real concern. Previous Kahiltna Base Camp Manager, Lisa Roderick, explains that, on Denali, that is not the case.

“Everybody tells me that I talk to that it’s one of the cleanest mountains they’ve ever been on.  I think people are just expecting to find conditions like they do on Everest or maybe Aconcagua, but no. Denali is extremely a clean mountain.”

What makes Denali so different is the Clean Mountain Can initiative.  

“They don’t have the clean mountain cans that we have.  All the human waste is contained inside these cans. You line it with a biodegradable bag, and then there’s one crevasse up at 14,000 feet that you’re able to dump your human waste into, but otherwise it’s always contained in a can.  You’re never going to the bathroom on the snow, because we gather snow everyday for drinking water and we melt it.”

The cans were the brainchild of National Park Service Ranger, Roger Robinson.  Between the years of 2001 and 2003, Robinson experimented with the concept. The mandate to carry cans on Denali became official in 2006. Roderick says that before the initiative, she dug a latrine at Base Camp, but now, even the Base Camp Manager participates in the program.

“I had a can at base camp. I’d hand it to a pilot and they’d fly it out and bring it to the ranger station, where they’re cleaned. We just have a stockpile of cans up at basecamp, cause there’s climbers that aren’t necessarily going up the West Buttress. There’s climbers climbing Hunter or smaller peaks around Base Camp. So they have to use their cans at Base Camp and then everything just gets flown out when they leave.”

With climbing season in its final week, the last of the mountain cans will soon be returned to the Ranger Station, sanitized and stored there until next season.

You’ve been listening to the Denali Report.  For KTNA, I’m Colleen Love.

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