Mountain Trip guide, Marcus called in with the final dispatch for the May 7 Team who have wrapped up their expedition and are now safe back in Anchorage. Their summit day was cut short by worsening weather and climbing conditions that turned the team back around to their tents at Camp 4 17,200 ft (5242 m), also known as “High Camp”.
While summiting is a great goal team safety must always be the priority and the climbing on this section of the route can only be safely attempted in clear, calm weather. The team should be proud of their massive effort and how far they were able to go together! They also made great work of getting off the mountain which is no small feat.
The descent from High Camp can take one to two days, depending on the team’s strength and motivation to get home. Surprisingly, the long descent can be more difficult than the ascent, as we often shoulder our heaviest loads of the trip hiking down to Camp 2 11,200 ft (3413 m). On the return to base camp, the team was able to catch a flight back to Talkeetna for food and showers. Not much beats your team’s farewell dinner after working hard on Denali!
This climb is the experience of a lifetime and we’re excited this team got to see that firsthand. Congratulations, everyone.
