May 7th West Buttress Team calls in from Talkeetna
The May 7th Denali West Buttress Team has made their off Denali and back to Talkeetna. Everyone is back to civilization happy and healthy. Time to go grab some pizza! recording
May 10th West Buttress Team — Team heads down from High Camp
Patrick O’Neill calls in from Camp 14,200′ after some nights at High Camp. The team endured high winds and very cold temperatures at 17,200′ and made a decision to retreat back down to 14,200′. Due to these extreme conditions the team has decided to not make a summit push and will begin to make their…
May 23rd West Buttress Team — Skills day at Basecamp
Lead guide Yoshiko calls in from basecamp. The team flew in yesterday and spent the day of May 25th practicing skills around basecamp. They went on a tour around the lower Kahiltna glacier to become familiar with surrounding peaks and to of course get some exercise. The plan to leave early on May 26th to…
May 18th West Buttress Team — Caches at 13,000′
Lead guide Karl calls in with the May 18th West Buttress team after a successful cache day up to 13,000′. Weather is pleasant with some rowdy winds around the aptly named feature of Windy Corner. The team is well, healthy and planning to move up to camp 14,200′ tomorrow on May 26th. Stay tuned! …
May 7 West Buttress Team at High Camp!
Climber Lachlan Grassie called in an update for the May 7th team, who reached High Camp yesterday evening! Lachlan said they had an “awesome day” heading up the 16-Ridge (Lachlan must have a healthy tolerance for wind and cold temperatures 😉 ). From Camp Three, the team ascended the steep headwall above 14,000′, up the…
May 10 West Buttress Team at High Camp!
Lead guide Matt Park called in an update from High Camp at 17,200′. Matt mentioned that the teams had a “super alpine day” on the 16-Ridge, battling wind and cold temperatures to reach Denali High Camp yesterday evening, one step closer to reaching the summit. From Camp Three, the team ascended the steep headwall above…
May 7 Denali West Buttress Team – Moves to High Camp (17,200′)
Quick Update on the May 7 West Buttress Team: The May 7 team is moving to high camp (17,200′) today. Lachlan Grassie and Akshay Nanavati are the climbers moving to high camp along with Lead Guide Logan Demarcus and Assistant guide Dan Hohl. The team will call in a dispatch tonight, and we’ll have a…
May 10 Denali West Buttress Team- Weather Day at 14,000′ Camp
The May 10 Denali West Buttress Team took a weather/rest day yesterday at 14,000′ Camp (Camp 3). Rest days are great for teamwork and building camaraderie between the team members. Weather days often include multiple cups of coffee, and a little bit of hard work. Building walls is a common way to keep busy around…
May 18th Team Moves to Camp 2
Cameron Kenny jumped on the satellite phone to update us all from the site of their new camp, nestled in a small, but stunningly pretty basin at 11,000′. The team packed up their camp at 7,800′ early this morning and headed up the long ascent of Ski Hill, gaining almost 2000′ before the glacier’s slope…
Meet the May 23 Denali West Buttress Team!
This will be our 47th season guiding on Denali, and we’re honored to welcome the May 23 team and all of the other climbers that have trusted us to help them test their fortitude on the highest mountain in North America. We’re incredibly excited to have teams back in the Alaska Range after a year…