Denali is a mountain that draws the attention of climbers from around the world.  We love sharing the Alaska Range with international climbers who have traveled great distances to challenge themselves on the icy flanks of North America’s highest peak.  At 20,230 feet (6194m), Denali rises a full 18,000′ (5500m) above the surrounding landscape.  It’s location at 63 degrees north latitude makes the upper mountain one of the coldest places on the planet at times and the mountain can act as a magnet for fierce storms.

It is also a place of tremendous beauty, with fluted snow slopes providing the canvas for grey granite and black diorite.  All in all, the Alaska Range is immense, spectacular and unforgiving.  Climbers who come have spent months preparing for the challenge and we love providing them the opportunity and support to help them achieve their dreams of climbing to the top of North America.

On the 24th of June, a team of climbers from China met our Mountain Trip guides in Anchorage to embark on an expedition to climb Denali.  Over the course of the next two to three weeks, they will hike up huge glaciers and climb snow and ice for 13,000 vertical feet in their attempt to reach the top.

The climbers in the group are:

Zheng Liu

Xioahua Lu

YongGan Wang

Wei Zhang

Ge Zu

James Huang as liaison/translator guide

Mountain Trip Guides include:

Pablo Puruncajas from Ecuador
Josh Garner from Oregon
Chip Crawley from Virginia

Here’s a photo of the team at their pre-trip briefing in Anchorage:

We will do our best to post regular updates; however, please keep in mind that communication from rugged terrain like the Alaska Range is difficult on a good day.  Weather and steep peaks between the satellite phone and the satellites can make communication challenging.  No News is Good News we always say!