Wrangell-St. Elias Climbing & Mountaineering Mount Blackburn Mount Sanford St. Elias Range

Wrangell-St. Elias and its Canadian neighbor, Kluane National Park, were set aside to preserve the foothills, glaciers and peaks of the Wrangell, Chugach, and St. Elias mountain ranges. This area includes many of the highest mountains and largest ice fields in North America. Superb mountaineering experiences exist here, found nowhere else in the world.

The severe changes in elevation, avalanches, ice, remoteness, and extreme winds and weather of this region require extensive knowledge of wilderness and mountaineering survival skills. Access is usually by chartered aircraft. (Contact tour operators in the area for more information.)

Climbers must be fully prepared and self-sufficient, because rescue and evacuation operations are are not heavily staffed, and it make take considerable time for rescuers to reach the scene of an accident.

The best time of year for climbing activity is April through June. Because they have elvations of over 16,000 feet, the most popular peaks for expeditions are Sanford, Blackburn, Bona, and St. Elias.

Many other peaks are equally challenging, and some have never been climbed. All climbers should fill out a trip itinerary and leave it at park headquarters, or one of the ranger stations in Slana, Chitina, or Yakutat. All climbing expeditions that enter Kluane National Park, Canada, must secure a permit in advance from the Superintendent, Kluane National Park. See Resources for contact information.

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