Today the team did a “back carry” where they went back down the hill to pick up the cache they left a couple of days ago, and brought all that gear up to camp. Back carry days are usually relatively easy days and teams can sleep in and have a leisurely morning, with just a…
Karen Bockel called in with a recap for the past few days from their new home in a beautiful basin at 11,200′. They moved up to camp this morning and are well fortified in a stunning location. Tall walls of snow and ice cliffs border them to the south, west and north, while the view…
The team carried a load of food, fuel, and extra equipment from Camp 1 (7,200 ft) to Kahiltna Pass at about 10,200 ft today. They dug a hole in the snow, cached the gear, and returned to Camp 1 for the night. This is the strategy they’ll use for most of the rest of the…
The team got off to a quick start after their delay in Talkeetna. They set off very early this morning with all the food, fuel, and equipment for their expedition on in their packs and sleds. They hauled these big loads just over 5 miles up the Kahiltna glacier to Camp 1 at 7,200 ft. …
The team flew to base camp this afternoon. They had just about done everything they could in Talkeetna to prepare for the mountain, and to entertain themselves, so it was nice for the weather to cooperate and let them get to the glacier. They sent some pics as they were loading up the plane and…
The weather is still not allowing flights into base camp today, but the team made some good use of their time to do what they called “Glacier Dryland Training”. There is plenty of rigging and skill practice to keep them busy for a day, but they are anxious to get going and put it all…
The team drove up to Talkeetna yesterday and attended an orientation p[resented by the National Park Service about climbing Denali. They wandered over to the airstrip to finish arranging their mountain of baggage at the shop of Talkeetna Air Taxi, and finally, feeling completely ready to fly… they proceeded to wait. Weather at Base Camp…
This morning a group of climbers from around the world will meet in Anchorage, Alaska to finalize their preparations for an attempt on the classic West Buttress Route of Denali. The team has been preparing for months, training and acquiring the highly specialized clothing and gear that their ascent requires. Today, they will meet three…