What Does Denali Mean?

The word "Denali" is the local name for Mount McKinley in Alaska which is highest mountain peak in North America. The peak measuring 20,320 feet, situated in south central part of Alaska, is the center point of attraction of the Denali National Park and is also called as "the highest point in North America."

Denali is replete with snowfields which crown almost half of the mountain region. One can find innumerable glaciers in this region. Denali in local native language Den'ina, means "the great one." The peak was first explored and scaled by Hudson, the American explorer in the year 1913. People who swear by Denali argue that the peak is higher than Mount Everest. They claim that since the base of Mount Everest, i.e., the Tibetan Plateau is about 17,000 feet; the vertical rise of the peak in actuality is about 12,000 feet. The base of Denali is a plateau measuring just 2000 feet which gives the peak a meteoric rise of about 18,000 feet.