‘Always had a smile on her face.’ Climbing ranger with local ties dies on Denali
A National Park Service mountaineering ranger with South Sound ties died on Denali on Thursday while working on patrol. Reports say she fell into a crevasse while unroped near 14,000-foot camp (also known as Camp 3) on Denali’s West Buttress.
Denali, located in south-central Alaska, is the highest mountain in North America at 20,310 feet.
In a statement, the NPS identified the ranger as Robin Pendery, 33, of Enumclaw, Washington, who had been working as a seasonal ranger on Denali’s mountaineering staff since 2024.
National Park Service personnel responded immediately to the incident, but despite their efforts, Pendery did not survive.
The accident came less than two weeks after three members of a Latvian climbing team also died on Denali’s West Buttress.
The NPS says Pendery’s death is under investigation, and additional details are not available at this time.
“We are heartbroken by the loss of a member of our Denali family,” Superintendent Brooke Merrell said in a statement. “Our mountaineering rangers dedicate themselves to serving visitors and helping others in one of the most challenging environments in the world. Today, we mourn the loss of a valued colleague, friend, and teammate. Our thoughts are with Robin’s family and loved ones.”
A Northwest life
Pendery grew up in Logan, Utah, but quickly found her way to the Pacific Northwest after college. Along with working as a mountain guide for Seattle’s Alpine Ascents, she worked as a ski patroller for Crystal Mountain before going back to school to become an ER nurse. She landed at Harborview Medical Center but continued to work at Crystal Mountain on its Advanced Life Support team, providing high-level medical care alongside other nurses and paramedics.
At Crystal Mountain, Pendery originally worked as a ski patroller and forecaster with Crystal’s snow-safety team, evaluating snow conditions and coordinating avalanche mitigation efforts.
“Everyone respected her strength and ability as a patroller,” Crystal Mountain patrol manager Brent Okita told The News Tribune. “But it was her warmth and enthusiasm that endeared her to all. Her big smile and love of life would brighten anyone’s day.”
Okita, who guides with RMI Expeditions, would often run into Pendery on Mount Rainier while taking clients to the summit.
“Robin impressed me in her first year of guiding, earning my respect and admiration for how she related to her clients and for the decisions she made while climbing,” Okita said. “At Crystal, in her new role as an ALS care provider, it was inspiring to see her take command of an emergent medical situation and literally save lives.”
Okita says it wasn’t just her expertise that endeared her to Crystal patrollers, it was her character and unstoppable energy.
“Physically, Robin was small,” Okita remembered. “Barely over 5 feet tall. But that didn’t keep her from being one of the strongest patrollers or guides around. I would regularly see her carrying packs that would challenge big, strong guides. She could handle toboggans on the ski slopes with patients over double her weight on the steepest slopes. And she could walk uphill as fast as anyone, and there were many around who could walk uphill well.”
At Alpine Ascents, director of operations Jonathan Spitzer remembers Pendery as a close friend and colleague with over 12 years of working in the mountains together.
“Robin was a unique person,” Spitzer told The News Tribune. “She was next-level great and incredibly smart. She’s the only person I know who went to nursing school and thought it was easy.”
Pendery began guiding at Alpine Ascents when she was 21. Over the past 12 years, she has guided trips for Alpine Ascents on Mount Rainier, Mount Baker, Denali and many peaks in Asia, particularly in India.
Spitzer says he was amazed Pendery never had an issue breaking trail, even when it was up to her waist: “She always had a smile on her face.”
Her fuel of choice was Nerds Gummy Clusters.
“She was just really caring,” Spitzer says. “The accident happened on Thursday, and I was texting with her on Wednesday. She was on the mountain and asking me about how our new puppy and our son were doing.”
A tight-knit family
Tributes poured in over the weekend for Pendery from many different mountain communities.
Northwest Avalanche Center said in an Instagram post that Pendery was an integral part of its community for years.
“We want to extend our deepest sympathies to Robin’s family, friends, and community,” the post said.
Chrissie Oken of Denali Rescue Volunteers said in an Instagram post that she was “devastated” to report the loss of Pendery and that she was grateful for the outpouring of love and support and would have more to say about her beloved friend and coworker soon.
Harborview Medical Center sent the following statement about Pendery to The News Tribune:
“We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Robin Pendery, a former member of our Emergency Services Nursing team at Harborview Medical Center. Robin’s compassion, dedication, and commitment to caring for others—both patients and colleagues—were defining qualities that left a lasting impression on those fortunate enough to work alongside her. We recognize the profound loss felt by all who knew Robin, and our thoughts are with Robin’s family, friends, and all who knew her.”
In an email to The News Tribune, Okita wrote:
“Robin was a big part of the mountain community in the Northwest, a part of a tight-knit family of patrollers and guides who work and play in a beautiful, challenging, and sometimes unforgiving world. We have lost a cherished friend to the mountains. We’ll hurt and cry for a while, thinking about how much life was still ahead of this wonderful person, and how we’ll miss her. But we’ll go back to the mountains. Yes, Robin’s life ended in the mountains, but they also give us so much. It’s why she was there.”
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