Is Denali (Mount McKinley) the Highest Point in the U.S.?

Yes. Denali (federally renamed from Mount McKinley in 2015, restoring the Koyukon Athabascan name) is the highest mountain peak in North America and the highest point in the United States.

Key Facts

• Elevation: 6,190 m (20,310 ft) above sea level (2015 USGS survey).
• Location: Denali National Park and Preserve, Alaska Range, south-central Alaska.
• Coordinates: 63.0690° N, 151.0070° W.
• Prominence: 6,144 m (20,156 ft) – 3rd most prominent peak on Earth (after Everest, Aconcagua).
• Isolation: 7,450 km (4,629 mi) – nearest higher peak is in Mexico.

Name History

• Denali ("The High One" / "The Great One") – Koyukon Athabascan, used for millennia.
• Mount McKinley – Named 1896 by prospector William Dickey for presidential candidate William McKinley; federal recognition 1917.
• 2015 – Obama administration restored Denali via Secretarial Order (Sally Jewell, Interior).
• Alaska state government used "Denali" since 1975.

Climbing

• West Buttress (standard route) – 21–28 days; ~1,200 attempts/year; ~50% summit rate.
• First ascent: 1913 (Hudson Stuck, Harry Karstens, Walter Harper, Robert Tatum).
• Dangers: Extreme cold (-40°C), altitude, crevasses, storms, avalanches. ~100 deaths total.

Denali's vertical rise from base (~5,500 m / 18,000 ft) exceeds Everest's—making it arguably the world's tallest mountain from base to summit.