Denali ranger dies after falling into crevasse on Mount McKinley

A Denali mountaineering ranger died after falling into a crevasse near 14,000 Foot Camp on Mount McKinley, a fatality that puts the park’s own rescue staff at the center of the dangers they confront every season on North America’s highest peak.

The National Park Service identified the ranger as Robin Pendery of Enumclaw, Washington, a seasonal mountaineering ranger assigned to Denali National Park and Preserve. Pendery died around 2 p.m. Thursday, June 5, 2026, while on a climbing patrol. Park personnel responded immediately, but Pendery did not survive. The incident is under investigation.

Pendery joined the Denali mountaineering staff in 2024, where he supported climber safety, emergency response, and mountaineering operations across the mountain. Denali Superintendent Brooke Merrell said the park was “heartbroken” by the loss of a member of the Denali family and said the rangers dedicate themselves to serving visitors and helping others in one of the most challenging environments in the world. The National Park Service said it is focused on supporting Pendery’s family, friends, and colleagues.

The death came during one of the busiest stretches of the climbing season. As of Monday, June 1, 2026, Denali reported 513 climbers on Mount McKinley, most of them on the West Buttress route. Park dispatches showed 97 climbers had completed their trips, while 381 were still left to check in and begin their climbs. Denali’s mountaineering registration for the 2026 season opened January 1, and climbers attempting Mount McKinley or Mount Foraker must register at least 60 days before their start date so rangers can contact them before they arrive in Talkeetna, Alaska.

The fatal fall also follows a string of recent emergencies in the Alaska Range. On May 28, 2026, Denali rangers responded to two search-and-rescue cases overnight, including a report that four climbers from a seven-member team fell near Denali Pass at 18,200 feet. Earlier incidents show how persistent the danger is: a 43-year-old climber died after falling into a crevasse near Mount Hunter in May 2022, and a ski mountaineer died after a crevasse fall near the Eldridge Glacier in May 2021.

Denali covers six million acres of glaciers, ridgelines, and unstable ice fields, where weather can shift quickly and crevasses can be hidden under snow bridges. In that terrain, every patrol carries risk, and the work of keeping climbers safe often demands the same exposure to cold, altitude, and uncertainty that those climbers face themselves.