Denali, previously Mount McKinley, is the tallest peak in North America. At an astounding 6,190 meters (20,310 feet) above sea level, Denali is situated in the Alaska Range in the U.S. state of Alaska.
In Alaska’s distant tundra, where the landscape is changed by unknown forces, a tremendous mountain rose. Millions of years ago, beneath what would eventually become Denali, two Earth titans—the Pacific Plate and the North American Plate—conducted a long but forceful dance. Subduction is the process by which the Pacific Plate sinks beneath the larger North American Plate as it moves forward. This was not a dramatic or violent catastrophe, but rather a steady, persistent movement that altered and shook the land for millennia.
Deep pressure brewed beneath the surface. A core of pink quartz monzonite, a robust and durable granite, was formed deep inside the Earth’s crust as molten rock started to cool and solidify. This core would eventually grow into the center of Denali, the peak that would eventually dominate all of North America. However, this was just the start of its adventure.
The granite was compressed upward by the Pacific Plate as it continued to grind its way underneath, raising the land steadily. However, other forces were at work to mold Denali’s form even as this enormous force raised it. The softer, weaker sedimentary rock layers surrounding the rising peak were gradually removed by wind and water, the dynamic sculptors of the Earth. The solid core, a rough testament to the mountain’s power, was all that was left.
However, Denali’s construction was not a gentle affair. The massive pressure exerted by the moving plates resulted in profound fractures within the Earth’s crust. These cracks formed fault lines, the most notable of which was the Denali Fault. Along this fault, the Earth quivered and cracked, resulting in regular earthquakes. In certain locations, the Denali Fault curled, resulting in what geologists refer to as a “restraining bend.” This curve was like a giant hand pulling the crust up even higher, bringing Denali to its breathtaking height.
The restless Pacific Plate remains active beneath the surface, and this tectonic zone, known as the “McKinley Cluster,” continues to produce earthquakes and quakes, changing the terrain and mountains above. Denali exists today as a witness to the immense forces that shaped it—a granite monster formed by the collision of continents, the grinding of plates, and the gradual but relentless hand of erosion.
The Koyukon Athabaskans named this peak Denali, which translates to “the tall one” or “the high one” in their tongue, long before European explorers ever laid eyes on it. The mountain’s cultural and landscape significance is honored by its indigenous name. Denali’s importance to Native people around the region is reflected in the fact that it is known by a variety of names in many Alaskan languages.
But in 1896, a gold prospector gave the summit the name Mount McKinley in recognition of William McKinley, the eventual 25th President of the United States. Through an act of Congress, President Woodrow Wilson formally recognized it as Mount McKinley in 1917, although this name continued throughout the early 20th century. Politicians in McKinley’s home state of Ohio vehemently opposed any efforts to reinstate the native name for a long time.
However, in 2015, the U.S. Department of the Interior, led by Secretary Sally Jewell, formally renamed the mountain Denali following forty years of lobbying by Alaskans and indigenous organizations. The decision, which was made shortly before President Barack Obama’s trip to Alaska, symbolized a return to its origins and respect for the native inhabitants of the land.