The May 30th team officially made the move up to 14 Camp today! After working their way through the lower mountain, it’s a big step forward and a well-earned arrival at one of the most important camps on the West Buttress.

The move from Camp 2 to 14 Camp is one of the bigger days on Denali, gaining roughly 3,000 feet of elevation through demanding terrain. The team climbed up Motorcycle Hill, worked their way across Squirrel Hill, pushed through Windy Corner at around 13,500 feet, and finished at 14 Camp at 14,200 feet. It’s a long, physically demanding day with heavy loads, and getting the team into camp ready to settle in is a real accomplishment.

14 Camp itself sits at the center of any West Buttress expedition. It’s the staging ground for the upper mountain, the launching point for summit pushes in the days ahead, and a noticeably different environment from the lower camps. From here, the team’s focus will shift to acclimatizing to the new altitude, recovering from the move, and looking ahead to the next phase of the climb.

For now, the May 30th team is settled in at 14 Camp, getting tents pitched, kitchens running, and bodies fed after a big day on the rope. With the move behind them, the upper mountain is in view, and the team is in a great spot heading into the next chapter of the expedition.

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Interested in more information about conditions and happenings on Denali? Be sure to also check out the Denali National Park’s Denali Dispatches Blog where they post weekly Field Reports.