The 1967 Denali Disaster: 7 Climbers Trapped Above 19,000 Feet | Disaster Strikes E 260

In July 1967, only 213 people had ever stood on the summit of Denali. When an inexperienced climbing team was denied a permit, the National Park Service made an unusual decision: merge them with a stronger team of strangers and send all twelve climbers up the mountain together. At first, everything goes according to plan. But as two powerful weather systems begin converging over Alaska, a series of decisions—some debated to this day—leave climbers high on North America's tallest peak just as one of the most violent mountain storms ever recorded arrives.Were the climbers warned? Why did they continue toward the summit after spending a night exposed above 19,000 feet? And could anyone have survived what happened next?In this Disaster Strikes episode, we examine the 1967 Denali Disaster, the controversy that followed, and the lessons that forever changed mountaineering on North America's highest mountain.

00:00 Disaster Strikes Intro
00:48 Lost Above 19,000 Feet
02:12 A Team That Was Never Supposed to Exist
05:02 The Long Approach to Denali
08:04 A Storm Begins to Form
10:05 Two Summit Teams
12:07 A Dangerous Decision
14:35 The Last Radio Call
17:08 Waiting Out the Storm
20:18 The Search Begins
22:05 What Really Happened?
25:40 Lessons That Changed Denali Forever
28:20 Legacy of the Seven

References — The 1967 Denali DisasterPrimary & Contemporary SourcesAmerican Alpine Journal. “Mount McKinley Tragedy and Resulting Expedition.” American Alpine Journal, 1968.
https://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12196811702/North-America-United-States-Alaska-Mount-McKinley-Tragedy-and-Resulting-ExpeditionAccidents in North American Mountaineering. “Alaska, Mt. McKinley.” American Alpine Club, 1968.
http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/13196802200/Alaska-Mt-McKinleyBooks & Firsthand AccountsSnyder, Howard H. The Hall of the Mountain King: The True Story of a Tragic Climb. 1973.Wilcox, Joe. White Winds: America’s Most Tragic Climb.Tabor, James M. Forever on the Mountain: The Truth Behind One of Mountaineering’s Most Controversial and Mysterious Disasters.Hall, Andy. Denali’s Howl: The Deadliest Climbing Disaster on America’s Wildest Peak. 2014.Babcock, Jeffery. Should I Not Return. 2012.Additional Articles & SourcesNational Geographic. Interview with Andy Hall about the 1967 Mount McKinley disaster.
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/140720-mountain-climbing-denali-mount-mckinley-alaska-national-parksOutside. “Life and Death on America’s Highest Peak.”
https://www.outsideonline.com/culture/books-media/life-and-death-americas-highest-peak/Anchorage Daily News. “A Poetic Turn on Denali Tragedy.” 2017.
https://www.adn.com/alaska-life/we-alaskans/2017/07/22/a-poetic-turn-on-denali-tragedy/ExplorersWeb. “McKinley 1967: Triumph and Tragedy, Part II.”
https://explorersweb.com/mckinley-1967-triumph-and-tragedy-part-ii/American Alpine Journal. “White Winds.” Book review.
http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12198230200/White-WindsAmerican Alpine Journal. “Forever on the Mountain.” Book review.
http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12200845600/Forever-on-the-Mountain

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