Lowell Short called in from Camp 1 at 7,800′ as the team broke down camp in preparation for moving up the glacier to Camp 2 at 11,200′.

The move will entail ascending a long hill on the glacier, known as Ski Hill.  This is a real warm up for the day, no pun intended on a hot sunny day like today…  It climbs about 1,700′ in a short linear distance, so it gets a climber’s attention right away.

After topping out Ski Hill, the team will hike a couple of miles of mellow glacier before turning just before the very start of the glacier and climbing up another hill to arrive at their next camp.  The next camp is a beautiful one, looking out across a heavily glaciated Kahiltna Dome to the tundra stretching off to the horizon.  It is ringed on the three other sides by fairly steep slopes, some with rugged ice cliffs and teetering ice blocks known as seracs.  This camp seems to catch orange and pink alpenglow as the sun passes around to the north of the mountain, not… really… setting these days.

Here’s Lowell!

recording