35-year-old solo climber missing for a week is found dead on Denali, rangers say

A 35-year-old Austrian man solo-climbing North America’s highest peak was found dead on Denali in Alaska, rangers say.

An aerial search Friday, May 6, found the body of Matthias Rimml, a professional mountain climbing guide, below Denali Pass, a National Park Service news release said.

Rimml, the first registered climber on Denali this season, had been missing for nearly a week, rangers said. He last checked in with a friend by satellite phone Saturday, April 30.

“Rimml likely fell on the steep traverse between Denali Pass at 18,200 feet and the 17,200-foot plateau, a notoriously treacherous stretch of the West Buttress route,” rangers said.

Twelve other climbers have died in falls along the traverse, rangers said. Rimml’s body will not be recovered until a rescue team has acclimated to the high altitude.

Denali is a 20,310-foot mountain about 240 miles north of Anchorage.

Rimml began his ascent April 27 after acclimating to the mountain, rangers said in an earlier news release.

He planned to climb alpine style, “or travel fast with relatively light gear,” taking about five days to complete the climb, the release said. He carried 10 days of supplies.

On April 30, he told his friend he was at 18,200 feet elevation on the West Buttress, rangers said. Rimml reported feeling tired but not in distress.

Daytime high temperatures at the upper elevations were between between 25-30 degrees below zero, rangers said.

Rimml was alone on the mountain as other climbers and rangers acclimated at the base camp, the release said.

This story was originally published May 8, 2022 at 9:58 AM with the headline "35-year-old solo climber missing for a week is found dead on Denali, rangers say."