May 31 team- carry to 13,500′
The expedition moved up Motorcycle Hill, across the Polo Fields at the base of the Washburn face and around Windy Corner to cache a load of gear at 13,500′ yesterday.
Trip Reports
The expedition moved up Motorcycle Hill, across the Polo Fields at the base of the Washburn face and around Windy Corner to cache a load of gear at 13,500′ yesterday.
Hello and welcome to the expedition blog for our June 12th Team. The team will assemble beginning on June 12th in Anchorage for a gear check, team meeting, and make any last purchases that are necessary. The following day they will drive up to the sleepy little town of Talkeetna, where they will be given…
The expedition has returned from the field and have said their goodbyes to each other after a successful expedition. By all accounts it was an extraordinary trip. Look soon for the final blog entry by lead guide Jacob Schmitz. Thanks for following along!
The traverse team is now poised to summit Denali and continue over to the north side of the Alaska range. They are currently in a new camp at 17,800′ on the upper Harper glacier, just over Denali Pass and are planning on making an attempt for the summit today if conditions permit it.
Justin Overdorff called in with the latest, greatest news from the beautiful basin camp at 11,200′ on the West Buttress. He also had a (somewhat sheepish?) request for Jules out there. [audio:http://mountaintripdenali2011.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/audio-post-2011-06-07-04-25-45.mp3|titles=Audio Post] (Editor’s note) Jules, you gotta understand that a Denali climb takes lots of mental and psychological preparation. Some things can’t help but…
Lead guide Rob (Durny) Durnell called in to let us know that the team carried gear around Windy Corner today. Windy Corner is a prominent rib of rock that drops down from over 15,000′ on the West Buttress and creates a challenging zone for climbers to pass on occasion. It sounds like today it was…
Chris and Greg called to report that they all carried a load of gear to about 18,500′, up and over Denali pass to the upper Harper glacier. They stood out among the rest of the West Buttress crowd because they pulled sleds full of gear up the ‘autobahn’, where most parties only have light packs. …
The May 31 team pushed up the Kahiltna from camp 1 to establish camp 2, which is traditionally at 11,200′. This camp is up off the main flow of the Kahiltna glacier, tucked in a smaller tributary valley that is relatively sheltered from weather systems. Crevasses run throughout the area, so a lot of time…
The weather didn’t cooperate today, and the team stayed at 11 in hopes of acceptable conditions in the near future.