Zach Johnson just called in to report that 2/3 of our team made it to the glacier, with the remaining three climbers and Zach waiting to fly later today. Three planed departed for the glacier and Zach’s was a bit slower than the others. By the time they reached the Alaska Range, the clouds that…
Welcome to the dispatch blog for Mountain Trip’s May 15th West Buttress expedition. A team of nine climbers and three of our guides have gathered in Southcentral Alaska and are now in the process of attempting to climb to the summit of North America’s highest mountain. Let’s meet the team! Nicholas Bailey Ted Watrous Lar…
The participants from our May 14th 12-Day Mountaineering Course are all on the Kahiltna Glacier. They met in Anchorage and drove to the small town of Talkeetna yesterday. Fortunately, the weather was cooperative and they were able to make the 45 minute flight into the heart of the Alaska Range, saving them about a week…
Yesterday, Qobin, Peter Inglis and Zach Quine departed Anchorage, Alaska en route to the small town of Talkeetna, where they spent some time being briefed about some of the challenges of climbing Denali by Rangers from the National Park Service. They were fortunate in that the weather was cooperative and they were able to board…
Hi Folks, We really apologize for the delay in posting, but rest assured that the May 8th team is doing great. They have been moving strong and yesterday carried a load of food, fuel and supplies up and around a key feature of the route, namely a massive, steep ridge of rock and ice that…
Sean called in last night from 10.200′ on the Northwest Buttress. The team is doing great and feels energized to be on the route. His reference to “Thanksgiving Dinner” means that they dined on a guide favorite of turkey and stuffing with re-hydrated cranberries and mashed potatoes and gravy. Sounds like pretty good living for…
The 11,200′ basin is a tough place to get messages out from, as the steep walls provide scant chances for satellite phones to connect with the orbiting satellites. Bryan called this in, and it’s nice to hear his voice, although it gets rather garbled. Enjoy! [audio:http://mountaintripdenali2011.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/audio-post-2011-05-16-04-38-00.mp3|titles=Audio Post]
Hi followers, Lead guide Joe Butler called in last night to report all is well, and the team is gearing up for a day of work and snow school tomorrow. A few of the guides will be carrying loads to the next camp, while the climbers will learn crevasse rescue skills and practice how to…
Brian called this in from the base of their route. I’ll not spoil the surprise, but his brother should listen! [audio:http://mountaintripdenali2011.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/audio-post-2011-05-14-03-30-27.mp3|titles=Audio Post]
Hi folks, Jared called in to report that the team had back carried to Mt. Caps, then headed down again to their camp on the Peter’s Glacier. Tomorrow they will move to the first camp on the route of the North West Buttress of Denali, at an approximate elevation of 10,500 feet. Everyone is doing…