REVISED DENALI MANAGEMENT PLAN

[Dechristo]

Interested climbers have until July 15 to send comments to Denali National Park

regarding the revised Draft Backcountry Management Plan that will affect the

park for the next 20 years. The AAC is analyzing the almost 600-page document,

and a preliminary review of the alternatives shows that most, but not all, of

the climbing-specific issues have been addressed satisfactorily:

 

 

* Capacity levels for climbing Mount McKinley/Denali will be set at realistic

levels, slightly above current use.

 

* Fixed-anchor use is managed in the way recommended by the AAC.

 

* Human-waste management will be enhanced, which will leave a cleaner

mountain.

 

However, the AAC's recommendations for safeguarding natural soundscapes and the

sense of relative solitude from future degradation were not incorporated in the

plan's "preferred alternative" (Alternative 4). Alternative 4 appears to leave

the park vulnerable to rapid growth in scenic flights and other motorized uses

of the backcountry. Alternative 3 appears more closely aligned with the AAC's

position on climbing-specific issues, as well as protection of the natural

environment from human-induced changes.

Review the plan at:

http://parkplanning.nps.gov/document.cfm?projectId=10016&documentID=11389 Email

comments before July 15 to dena_bc_plan_comment@nps.gov or mail them to

Superintendent, Denali National Park, P.O. Box 9, Denali Park, AK 99755.

[wfinley]

Thanks for posting this... i have been wading through the plan bit by bit but I was having a hard time figuring out how it pertains to climbers.

 

people can also find a bit of info here: http://www.akcenter.org/action.html#denali

Edited June 24, 2005 by wfinley

[Kraken]

Does anyone have any more information as to a fee increase for the 2007 climbing season? I haven't heard anything on this end so I can only assume that they haven't changed yet.