High Camp is your final stop before the summit! Find this camp on your mountain and complete your last three activities.Weather and Climate of Denali
NPS Photos What is weather?Look out the window or take a walk outside – what do you observe? Is it sunny, cloudy, rainy, or snowy? Does the temperature feel hot, warm, cool, or cold? Weather describes these conditions at one time and place. On any day of the year, the weather where you live might feel different from the weather at Denali. To find out what the weather is like at Denali right now, visit this National Weather Service website. 1) Is the current temperature at the Denali Visitor Center warmer or colder than the current temperature where you live? Write "Denali is _____ than where I live!" and fill in the blank next to High Camp on your mountain.What is climate?Climate describes weather over a long period of time, typically 30 years or more. Denali has two distinct climates separated by the Alaska Range. The climate north of the Alaska Range has warmer summers, colder winters, and less precipitation than the milder and wetter climate on the south side. Scientists have recorded daily weather observations of temperature and precipitation at Denali since 1925. That's almost 100 years of data! Denali is one of few places in Alaska with such a long climate record. This helps scientists compare current weather observations to historical averages.
The graph below shows the average precipitation measured each season at Denali Park Headquarters over the same 30-year-period: 
NPS Figure 2) How does the climate at Denali compare to the climate where you live? Write two words describing each climate next to High Camp.Extreme Fun in Extreme SeasonsDenali's landscape changes dramatically with the seasons. Spring snow melts in late May or June to reveal brown mountains that turn emerald green in days. Summer wildflowers bloom until late July. Fall is in full swing by early August, with bountiful berries and colorful leaves. Winter blankets the land in snow for the rest of the year, with temperatures as low as -40°F (-40°C). Drag the sliders below to watch Denali change seasons. 
Left image
Right image
Left image
Right image
Each season brings different ways to have fun outside. Visitors watch wildlife waking up from hibernation in spring, hike for hours in all the daylight of summer, marvel at the colorful leaves of fall, and ski or snowshoe through snowy forests in winter. Anyone can have fun in extreme temperatures with the right clothes for conditions of the day. As the old saying goes, "there's no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes!" 3) Next to High Camp on your mountain, draw a picture of yourself wearing the right clothes for winter where you live. At the summit of your mountain, draw a second picture of yourself wearing the right clothes for winter in Denali.
NPS Photos 
NPS Photo Learn More, Climb Higher(Optional) To take a detour and learn more about the weather and climate of Denali, please visit: Ready to complete your journey? Click on SUMMIT using the interactive mountain map! ⇒ |
Last updated: February 4, 2025