Rangers locate climber’s body on Alaska’s Denali

By MARK THIESSEN
Associated Press

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — National park rangers in Alaska have located the body of the year’s first registered climber on North America’s tallest peak. Because it’s so early in the climbing season, 35-year-old Matthias Rimml was alone on the upper part of Denali. He was a professional mountain guide from Tirol, Austria. Denali National Park and Preserve officials say Rimml’s body was spotted during a high elevation aerial search on Friday. A friend had contacted the park Tuesday after not receiving a periodic check from Rimml. Park officials say Rimml likely fell on a notoriously treacherous stretch of the West Buttress route. Officials say 13 climbers, including Rimml, have died in falls along that steep traverse.