Trip Reports
Our 47th Denali season is well underway with quite a few teams on the mountain. We would like to welcome the latest expedition, the June 6 Denali West Buttress Team, to Alaska! For many mountaineers, climbing Denali is a massive dream, a lifelong goal, and the culmination of months (or years) of training and preparation.…
Lead Mountain Trip guide Yoshiko Miyazaki called in an update on the May 23 team, who successfully cached up on the 16-Ridge above the fixed lines up the steep headwall above 14,200′ camp. With their cache in place, the team just has to wait for a good weather window to move up to High Camp…
Guide Robert Caldwell called in an update on the May 27 West Buttress team, who spent the day backcarrying below Camp Three at 14,200′ to retrieve their cache near Windy Corner. After returning to camp, the team spent the rest of the day practicing skills essential for the upper mountain–like ascending a fixed line and…
Climber Roi Negri called in an update on the May 30 West Buttress Team, who spent the day heading up from Camp Two at 11,200′ to cache around the infamous Windy Corner. At Camp Three, the approach to the climb ends, and the real climbing begins: The team will leave behind snowshoes and poles at…
Mountain Trip lead guide Brian Muller called in an update on the June 3 team, who flew onto the glacier just yesterday afternoon, and has now established their Camp One at 7,800′ on the Kahiltna Glacier. The team plans to head up the glacier on a night schedule, as is typical for teams departing closer…
We’re honored to welcome the June 3 team and all of the other climbers that have trusted us to help them test their strength and fortitude on the highest mountain in North America this season! For many, reaching the summit of Denali is a lifelong goal, and the culmination of many months of training, and…
May 10th West Buttress Final Dispatch After being stuck one day in Talkeetna we began our climb with very good weather of the lower mountain. We made good time during our cache and move days and were not held up by the weather until we reached camp 3. The day we moved from camp 2…
Challenge accepted, Amy! Leif stepped up and jumped on the satellite phone to share a really nice update from Genet Basin at 14,200′. The team had a big day as they climbed up from their Camp 2 at 11,000′ and up the thousand foot slope known as Motorcycle Hill. After a brief rest, they set…
Thanks Jay Beaudoin for the nice update from Camp 3 on the West Buttress of Denali. The team packed up the food, fuel and extra supplies that they might need at High Camp for their summit bid and carried their loads up and out of their Camp 3. The day began with a climb up…
Our May 30th West Buttress expedition checked in from their Camp 2 at 11,000 feet. I believe it was Matt Millard on the satellite phone, updating us that the team had a relatively easy day today. They slept in, ate a fat breakfast, and then hiked downhill about 900′ to the site if the cache…