The June 6th team is officially on the mountain! After waiting out the weather in Talkeetna, the team finally got the call to fly today and wasted no time once their boots hit the snow. By around 5 PM, they had pushed all the way to Camp 1.

Hitting the ground running like this is an impressive way to open an expedition. Rather than spending the night at Basecamp, the team took advantage of the open window and pushed straight on to Camp 1, knocking out one of the longer days of the lower mountain right out of the gate. The move from Basecamp to Camp 1 covers about 5.5 miles and starts with the descent down Heartbreak Hill before stretching across the lower Kahiltna Glacier. It’s a long, grinding day with heavy loads in tow, and getting it done on day one means the team has already made up some valuable ground after the days spent waiting in town.

The skills work the team put in during their Talkeetna delay is paying off already. Tent setup, rope team travel, and the small efficiencies they drilled in town are exactly the kinds of things that make day one on the glacier feel manageable instead of overwhelming.

For now, the June 6th team is settled in at Camp 1, getting tents pitched and bodies fed after a long day. With the first big move behind them, the team is in a strong position to keep building momentum on the route.

Life in Camp 1

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