Sitting at over 14,000' on the west side of the mountain it takes the sun awhile to reach camp in the morning, so when we got up this morning it was cold, cold, cold. We hurriedly wolfed down breakfast and loaded up our packs with supplies for our cache, all the while hopping back and forth from one foot to the other trying to generate whatever body heat we could. By 8:30 we headed out of camp. Below us the entire lower Kahiltna Glacier came into view as we climbed higher, stretching for dozens of miles through the peaks of the Alaska Range. Above unfortunately wasn't quite so clear and a bank of clouds swirled over the summit of Denali. We climbed straight up the side of the West Buttress above 14 Camp, soon reaching an ice bulge at 15,500' known as The Eyebrow. From there the route steepens to 50 degrees or so for the final 700' of climbing to reach the ridge line of the West Buttress itself. This section is set with fixed ropes to help protect climbers on the exposed terrain. After a quick break we set out up the fixed lines, soon setting into a comfortable routine as we worked our way up the face, sliding our ascenders up the ropes as we climbed. Before long we topped out of the fixed ropes onto the ridge, stopping at 16,200' on a beautiful but exposed ridgeline, both sides rolling away several thousand feet. By now the clouds which started higher on the mountain had settled down around us, occasionally parting to reveal 14 Camp below us to the south and the Peters Glacier to our north. We cached our small load of supplies there before turning around and heading back down the fixed lines and continuing on into camp. The team climbed well today, making good time and figuring out the intricacies of fixed lines travel easily. With our cache of gear established on the Buttress we are planning on taking a rest day tomorrow before heading up to high camp for our summit bid should the weather allow. We are all looking forward to some down time tomorrow and are excited to be preparing for the summit push. RMI Guide Linden Mallory

On The Map