Climbing Allocation Comment Period Extended

The American Alpine Institute just received the following email:

In response to requests, the National Park Service is extending the public comment period for the Climbing Allocation for Mount McKinley Environmental Assessment (EA) through Monday, October 31, 2011.  The extension will ensure that the public has adequate time to comment on the allocation of climbing permits between commercial guided climbing operators and independent, non-guided climbers on Mount McKinley.

The EA for this issue is entitled “Climbing Allocation for Mount McKinley.”  It is available at the NPS planning website at http://parkplanning.nps.gov.

Comments may be submitted online at http://parkplanning.nps.gov, faxed to (907) 683-9612, or mailed to the address below:
                 Superintendent
                 Denali National Park and Preserve
                 ATTN:  Climbing Allocation EA
                 P.O. Box 9
                 Denali Park, AK  99755

For additional information about the about the EA, or if you need a hard copy, please contact Paula Homan, Project Planning Lead, at (907) 683-6223 or paula_homan@nps.gov or Martha Armington, Project Lead, at (907) 683-9529 or martha_armington@nps.gov.

Over the last ten years there has been a major shift on Denali.  More and more people wish to go with a guide. In 2010 49.1% of the climbers on the mountain wanted to climb the mountain with a guide.

If the park limits the number of guided climbers on the mountain, literally half of the guides who currently work there will not have access to work on the mountain.  And literally hundreds of people who wish to climb Denali with a guide will not be able to do so.

If you are interested in learning more about this, please feel free to give me a call at 360-671-1505.

--Jason D. Martin