Windy Corner

The June 6th team got a cache in around Windy Corner today! It’s a significant milestone on the West Buttress and a key step toward establishing the team higher up the route.

Windy Corner sits at around 13,500 feet and is one of the more notorious sections of the route. It earns its name by funneling wind off the upper mountain, and conditions there can shift quickly. Getting a cache through that section takes good timing, focus, and willingness to seize the right window. The team did exactly that today and got their supplies staged higher up the mountain.

Looking ahead, most of the team will be making the move up to 14 Camp tomorrow, while a smaller group will spend an additional day at Camp 2 before joining the rest of the team higher up. Splitting the team like this is a common, flexible approach on Denali, and it lets each climber move at the pace that’s right for them. Once everyone is at 14, the team will be ready to focus on the upper mountain phase of the climb.

For now, the June 6th team is back at camp with another solid day behind them. With supplies now staged past Windy Corner, the team is in a strong position to keep building momentum on the route.

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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.