Alaska Photos 4

Alaska Photos 4
Flight Over Denali, Part 1

On Monday (April 20, 2009), Jodie and I took a fixed-wing flight over Denali. You probably know Denali by its other name - Mount McKinley.

America's highest mountain was first charted in 1794 by the British explorer, George Vancouver. In 1896, this mountain was named after the future president, William McKinley. The U.S. Board of Geographic Names still calls the mountain 'McKinley', but the Alaska Board calls the mountain 'Denali', which is the name used by the local Athabascan Indians. The Athabascan word 'Denali' means 'The Great One' or 'The High One'.

Locals are quick to correct you when you call the mountain 'McKinley'. They will tell you that while they have nothing against President McKinley, the man never set foot in Alaska. They kindly remind you that the correct name of the mountain is 'Denali'.

A trivia question: What is the tallest mountain in the world? You say 'Everest' - right? Wrong! Everest, with its peak at 29,029 feet above sea level, is the HIGHEST mountain in the world, but Everest actually sits on a 14,000 foot base. This means that Everest is really a 15,000 foot mountain sitting on a 14,000 foot base. By contrast, Denali (whose peak is 20,320 feet above sea level), sits on a short 2,000 foot base. This means Denali is an 18,000 foot mountain, making it the TALLEST mountain in the world.

As a result, our pilot had to begin the ascent toward the summit shortly after our takeoff from Lake Hood. It takes quite a while to gain sufficient altitude to clear the summit in a single-engine propeller airplane.

Rust's Flying Service hosted our flight. Our pilot, Paul Norden, was a veteran with over 28 years of flying experience. The flight was incredible. Paul was an awesome pilot and fantastic tour guide. Highly recommended.

Our Plane. Our pilot is the guy with the white beard (gear in arms).

That's me (Brad), in the plane, waiting to take off. 'What is taking so long? Let's go!'

Jodie, in the plane

Flying toward Denali. See a moose? Jodie sure was looking for one.

Approaching Denali

Flying over the Denali-Alaska Range

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