Climber found dead on Denali, North America’s highest peak

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A mountaineer was found dead Monday on North America’s highest peak, Denali, a day after a family member told rangers they hadn’t heard from them in days, authorities said.

According to a statement from Denali National Park and Preserve, the climber used a satellite communications device to stay in touch with his family during a solo attempt to climb Denali. Rangers found the climber’s tent and used information from interviews and location data from their satellite device account to figure out where they might have been.

A climbing team reported seeing the climber last Wednesday traversing from a 17,200-foot plateau to Denali Pass at 18,200 feet, the park said.

The data indicated that the device had not changed its location since Thursday, “suggesting that a fall from the Denali Pass crossing occurred that day,” the park said.

The climber’s body was found on Monday and the park said recovery efforts would be undertaken as soon as weather conditions permitted. The climber’s name was not released.

They were one of at least 14 people who have died in falls along this section of the West Buttress route in Denali since 1980, the park said. There are currently about 350 climbers on the route, but most are lower because it is still early in the climbing season, the park said.