The first people to climb King Peak were some students from the University of Alaska, in 1952. They climbed from the foot of Quartz Ridge, where most of their supplies had been dropped in by a plane. They reached Camp 2, on the west ridge, on 3 June. They waited two days for a storm to pass, and then two of them set out for the summit, while a third had to stay in camp because of a knee injury. They reached the top on 6 June.