Durny checked in with today’s update form the 11,200′ camp. Jeff took Jurgen and Tamera up above camp to carry a load to about 13,500′. Durny stayed behind with Sangeeta, whose feet suffered from some blisters formed while coming up the lower glacier. A day of healing can do wonders, especially if taken before moving too high up on the mountain.

The three load carrying climbers first climbed up a 1000′ slope known as Motorcycle Hill. This starts immediately out of camp and is better than coffee (well – not really) for climbers starting out in the wee daylight hours of the Alaskan solstice morning. They then climbed a couple more fairly steep slopes before making a long traverse alongside the craggy West Buttress, contouring along a glacier we call the Polo Field. At the end of the Polo Field, they turned around the bottom of a sharp ridge called Windy Corner and hiked their loads another 400m or so up to a site where they cached their supplies.

The team then descended back down to 11,200′ camp to rejoin Durny and Sangeeta and welcome another Mountain Trip team that arrived at that location today.

Here’s Durny!