Editor’s Note: On Monday, August 31, President Obama announced that Mount McKinley would be renamed Denali, the name historically used by native Alaskans.

Ever wonder how a National Geographic magazine story starts? It’s fairly simple. The director of photography walks into your office and tells you the editor of the magazine wants to do a wolf story in Denali National park. “Would you like to do the story?” she asks. “Sure!” I say, at the same time thinking to myself, “Denali is in Alaska … right?”

No sooner than I’ve agreed does the six-million-acre immensity of the project become crystal clear. After countless hours of research, meetings with the National Park Service here in D.C., and phone calls to photographers