Mount Huntington is a striking rock and ice pyramid in the central
Alaska Range
The Alaska Range is a relatively narrow, 600-mile-long (950 km) mountain range in the southcentral region of the U.S. state of Alaska, from Lake Clark at its southwest endSources differ as to the exact delineation of the Alaska Range. ThBoar ...
, about 8 miles (13 km) south-southeast of
Denali
Denali (; also known as Mount McKinley, its former official name) is the highest mountain peak in North America, with a summit elevation of above sea level. With a topographic prominence of and a topographic isolation of , Denali is the thir ...
. It is also about 6 miles (10 km) east of
Mount Hunter, and two miles west of
The Rooster Comb
The Rooster Comb is a multi-peak mountain located in the Alaska Range, in Denali National Park and Preserve, in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is situated 4,000 feet above the Ruth Glacier along the southwest margin of the Don Sheldon Amphitheater, ...
. While overshadowed in absolute elevation by Denali, Huntington is a steeper peak: in almost every direction, faces drop over in about a mile (1.6 km). Even its easiest route presents significantly more technical challenge than the standard route on Denali, and it is a favorite peak for high-standard technical climbers.
![Mount Huntington aerial view](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Mount_Huntington_aerial_view.jpg)
Mount Huntington was first climbed in 1964 by a French expedition led by famed alpinist
Lionel Terray
Lionel Terray (25 July 1921 – 19 September 1965) was a French climber who made many first ascents, including on the 1955 French Makalu expedition in the Himalaya (with Jean Couzy on 15 May 1955) and Cerro Fitz Roy in the Patagonian Andes (wit ...
, via the Northwest Ridge, from then on also called the French Ridge. The second ascent the following year, via the West Face/West Rib, is reported by
David Roberts David or Dave Roberts may refer to:
Arts and literature
* David Roberts (painter) (1796–1864), Scottish painter
* David Roberts (art collector), Scottish contemporary art collector
* David Roberts (novelist), English editor and mystery writer ...
in ''The Mountain of My Fear''. The mountain can be accessed either from the West Fork of the
Ruth Glacier
Ruth Glacier is a glacier in Denali National Park and Preserve in the U.S. state of Alaska. Its upper reaches are approximately 3 vertical miles below the summit of Denali. The glacier's "Great Gorge" is one mile wide, and drops almost 2,000 feet o ...
, on the north side of the mountain, or the
Tokositna Glacier
Tokositna Glacier is a glacier in the Alaska Range of Denali National Park and Preserve in the U.S. state of Alaska. The glacier originates in two major arms on the east side of Mount Hunter, moving east until the main arms join, then turning so ...
, on the south side.
Notable ascents
* 1964 ''French Ridge''
Lionel Terray
Lionel Terray (25 July 1921 – 19 September 1965) was a French climber who made many first ascents, including on the 1955 French Makalu expedition in the Himalaya (with Jean Couzy on 15 May 1955) and Cerro Fitz Roy in the Patagonian Andes (wit ...
et al.
* 1965 ''Harvard Route'' (VI 5.9 A2 70-degree ice) by
David Roberts David or Dave Roberts may refer to:
Arts and literature
* David Roberts (painter) (1796–1864), Scottish painter
* David Roberts (art collector), Scottish contemporary art collector
* David Roberts (novelist), English editor and mystery writer ...
, Ed Bernd, Don Jensen, Matt Hale.
* 1978 ''North Face'' Jack Roberts and Simon McCartney, summit reached on July 6, 1978.
* 1978 ''Southeast Spur'' Joseph Kaelin, Kent Meneghin, Glenn Randall and Angus M. Thuermer Jr., summit reached on July 9, 1978.
* 1980 ''The British Route, East Face''
Roger Mear and Steve Bell, summit reached on May 16, 1980.
* 1981 ''Colton-Leach Route, West Face'' Nick Colton, Tim Leach.
* 1989 ''Nettle-Quirk Route'' disputed FA by Dave Nettle and James Quirk, summit reached May 24, 1989.
* 2017 ''Gauntlet Ridge'' , Clint Helander and
Jess Roskelley
Jess Fenton Roskelley (July 13, 1982 – April 16, 2019) was an American mountaineer. On May 21, 2003, at age twenty, he became the youngest American to reach the summit of Mount Everest. He died in an avalanche while climbing on Howse Peak ...
, five days on route, two nights spent sleeping on summit.
[http://www.alpinist.com/doc/web17w/newswire-huntington-complete-south-ridge-ascent]
Popular Culture
Characteristics of the mountain was the inspiration of the
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...
logo.
References
Further reading
*
*
External links
American Alpine Journal "The Timeless Face: The North Face of Mount Huntington" by JACK ROBERTS, Bufl Alpine ClubMount Huntington on Summitpost.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Huntington, Mount
Mountains of Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska
Mountains of Alaska
Denali National Park and Preserve
Alaska Range
Mountains of Denali National Park and Preserve