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Entries From McKinley W. Buttress 6-5-12

Mt. McKinley: Jake Beren & Team - Expedition Ends

Posted by: Jake Beren, Elias de Andres Martos, Thomas Greene | June 24, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Mount McKinley
Elevation: 348'

A few hours ago we were sitting on the glacier, Heartbreak Hill already a fading memory. Now we are back in Talkeetna, showered and fed and reconnecting with life off of the mountain. Our final day’s walk was truly magnificent, with the light of the solstice in full effect as we marched downhill into thicker and thicker air, gaining strength as we went despite the accumulation of many days of work and little sleep. Waiting a few hours for a flight in the warm sun in the stillness of the Southeast Fork took the title as my best airport experience ever.

Once again we are all happy and healthy, glad to return to everyone back home safely and with an excellent time with friends on The Great One.

RMI Guide Jake Beren

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Mt. McKinley: Beren & Team on Descent

Posted by: Jake Beren, Elias de Andres Martos, Thomas Greene | June 22, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Mount McKinley
Elevation: 11,200'

Hello everybody this is Jake and crew at the start of the Kahiltna Glacier at 11,000’.  Today we descended from 17,000’ down to 11,000’ where we are making a camp for a few hours before trying to walk on the lower Kahiltna while it’s still frozen in the early morning.  With any luck we will be at the runway in time to catch a flight back to Talkeetna.

We hope everyone is doing very well there and trust that we are doing well here.  With what may be our last night on the mountain.  Hopefully, I didn’t jinx us and that we will be heading home soon.

So see you all then.
RMI Guide Jake Beren

On The Map

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Mt. McKinley: Beren & Team Reach Summit!

Posted by: Jake Beren, Elias de Andres Martos, Thomas Greene | June 21, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Mount McKinley
Elevation: 20,320'

Hello, this is Jake calling from 17,000’ camp on Denali after what was an unbelievable summit day.  The team is back in camp safe and sound.  We are having some dinner before turning in for a very well earned night’s sleep.  Everybody did fantastic today, we had perfect conditions.  It was a really beautiful climb.  I’ll give a little more information after we get down.
Just know that everybody is safe after a wonderful day here in Alaska.
Alright, that is it for now.

RMI Guide Jake Beren

On The Map

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Mt. McKinley: Beren & Team Ready for Summit Bid

Posted by: Jake Beren, Elias de Andres Martos, Thomas Greene | June 20, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Mount McKinley
Elevation: 17,200'

Greetings from 17,000’.  Our team is at camp doing great and tucked into their sleeping bags with an absolutely beautiful evening here on Denali.
We are going to cross our fingers for good weather tomorrow and with any luck, we’re gonna give it a shot.  So, wish us the best weather.  Our team is doing great, very strong.  Hopefully we will go take a shot at it tomorrow.  So that is all from 17,000’.  We are ready to launch…

RMI Guide Jake Beren

On The Map

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Mt. McKinley: Beren & Team Ready to Move

Posted by: Elias de Andres Martos | June 18, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Mount McKinley
Elevation: 14,200'

Today we purposely awoke early for our carry to the top of the headwall. Our intentions to provide the team with the flavor of the frigid temperatures of Denali in anticipation of what a summit day will feel like, were embraced by every team member. Four hours later we dug our cache atop the fixed lines and returned in a speedy mode to our camp at Genet Basin  to enjoy ourselves practicing our favorite sports of “eating and napping”. Everybody is excited for our move tomorrow to 17 camp and the upcoming launching. Regards!

RMI Guide Elias de Andres Martos

On The Map

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Mt. McKinley: Beren & Team Rest at 14K Camp

Posted by: Jake Beren | June 17, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Mount McKinley
Elevation: 14,200'

Happy Father’s Day to all the Dads in the lowlands!

After our day of training, we were raring to go carry up the fixed lines. Packed up, alarms set but when we woke the wind was blowing and the snow was swirling. Dragging our feet provided little clarity, with the basin clearing out just enough to show high winds on the West Buttress. Tough to establish a trend, but we decided to wait another day here at 14 Camp. It ended up being a good call as the clouds regained control of camp and it has snowed heavily since.

Armed with an optimistic forecast, we plan to carry tomorrow and get in position for a move as soon as we can. Wish us luck down there and enjoy the day celebrating all the Fathers.

RMI Guide Jake Beren

On The Map

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Mt. McKinley: Beren & Team to the Edge of the World

Posted by: Jake Beren, Elias de Andres Martos, Thomas Greene | June 16, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Mount McKinley
Elevation: 14,200'

Today we enjoyed the luxury of waking to the sun on the tents, avoiding the early morning cold. Once up and fed, we took a fantastic walk to THE EDGE OF THE WORLD. Perfect views of the lower Kahiltna Glacier 7,000 feet below our perch and we all took turns peeking over the edge and snapping a few photos. Don’t worry friends and family, we were on belay the whole time.

For the afternoon we rested and welcomed the RMI 4 team after their stylish send on Denali yesterday. Nice job everyone!

Then it was back to work, setting up a fixed line practice and trying as many variations as possible to prepare for the cache tomorrow. Now it’s dinner time, catch y’all tomorrow.

RMI Guide Jake Beren

On The Map

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Mt. McKinley: Beren & Team Back Carry to 14K Camp

Posted by: Jake Beren, Elias de Andres Martos, Thomas Greene | June 15, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Mount McKinley
Elevation: 14,200'

Climbing consistently gives you opportunities to improve, especially on Denali. A summit day is possible only after weeks of getting in position. During those weeks we are dedicating ourselves to improving all aspects of our game.

This morning we took the lessons of yesterday’s approach to go pick up our cache at Windy Corner. Getting ready in the cold morning will pay off as we move higher. The crew did well on the back carry and the little bobbles in our rigging were addressed when we got back with everyone taking a little time to do some homework dialing in their cold weather systems.

Tomorrow we will rest here at 14,000’, reviewing fixed lines, running belays and if we have some visibility, taking a short cruise to THE EDGE OF THE WORLD for some views. Then it all depends on the weather, but the team is feeling great.

RMI Guide Jake Beren

On The Map

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Mt. McKinley: Beren & Team Move Into 14K Camp

Posted by: Jake Beren, Elias de Andres Martos, Thomas Greene | June 14, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Mount McKinley
Elevation: 14,200'

Waking to perfect conditions, clear and near windless, we decided to saddle up and move on up to Genet Basin and make a new home at 14,000 feet. Our hard work yesterday really paid off, leaving us with a perfect trail to camp. It was even downright hot as we pulled into camp and we found a great camp left to us by our friends now living at 17,000 camp. Thanks.

It was still tough, but our team held together well and turned in early for some much needed rest. Tomorrow we will most likely retrieve our cache and spend the afternoon relaxing and preparing for the fixed lines higher up. Cross your fingers for some high pressure. A week would be plenty.

RMI Guide Jake Beren

On The Map

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Mt. McKinley: Beren & Team Break Trail to Cache Supplies

Posted by: Jake Beren, Elias de Andres Martos, Thomas Greene | June 14, 2012
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Mount McKinley
Elevation: 11,200'

After our rest day yesterday, we were certainly ready to bust a move this morning. Clear and cold conditions soon gave way to snow flurries and minimal visibility. We made ready, grabbed another cup of coffee and caught enough of a lull to try to carry loads higher on the mountain. Our plan was entirely dependent on conditions encountered on each stretch and despite being the first trailbreakers since the storm, we were able to kick a proud track through several feet of new snow up to Windy Corner and make our cache. Our team opened the route up in good style and if favored by workable weather will try to push it up to 14 Camp tomorrow. Everyone is doing great and will surely enjoy a good night’s sleep after a solid day in the mountains. Thanks also for the messages to the team!  Keep ‘em coming! 

RMI Guide Jake Beren

On The Map

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