On Wednesday, June 17th, a small group of climbers met in Anchorage, AK to join a team of Mountain Trip guides for an attempt to climb the highest peak in North America.  Denali rises 20,320′ above the not-too-distant sea.  Located close to the Arctic Circle, it is famous for presenting climbers with extreme cold and weather, in addition to it’s high elevation.  Climbers have been attempting to climb the peak for over 100 years and we are celebrating the centennial of the first ascent of the mountain this year.

Let’s meet the team:

Caitlin Hague and

Dan Starr.

The team met at the Millennium Hotel in Anchorage yesterday for a team meeting and equipment check.  Afterward, they spent the rest of the day running around Anchorage picking up a few last minute necessities, and enjoying the rich, full air of Anchorage. Early this morning, the team will pack up and head north approximately 2.5 hours to the small town of Talkeetna.  The are probably still on the road, as I type. In Talkeetna, the team will participate in a mandatory National Park Service climber orientation, and weigh-in all of the team’s equipment and supplies with Talkeetna Air Taxi, our air services provider.  If the weather cooperates, the team will fly to the glacier this afternoon.

We invite you to follow the team through posts and audio dispatches that the team will call in from the mountain.  We try to post dispatches on a daily basis, but many factors can prevent that from occurring, so please be patient and remember the old adage, “No News is Good News!” Also,  we encourage you to post comments, but please realize that we have no good way to pass each comment along to the team.  Climbers do enjoy reading through your comments and good wishes, so please let them know you are thinking of them!