Mt. McKinley Expedition: Hahn and Team Cache at 13,500’
Posted by: Dave Hahn, Sam Hoffman, Calvin Jiricko, Bailey Servais
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Alaska Mt. McKinley
Elevation: 11,000'
Sunday, June 22, 2025 - 9:30 pm PT
Forecasts weren’t great for today, but when we looked out in the morning, the actual weather wasn’t bad. We packed up and got our spikes on by 8:20AM to begin working up Motorcycle Hill. It was great to be climbing in crampons and using an ice axe again. We took our first rest break in the middle of Squirrel Hill and our second in the Polo Field just under the end of the West Buttress. It was a little breezy, but since temps weren’t very cold it wasn’t at all uncomfortable.
Most of our day was spent in brilliant sunshine with blue sky, while clouds filled in below us. Windy Corner wasn’t particularly windy, and the travel conditions were good, so we made it to our cache target of 13,500 feet in four hours. We did a bit of hard digging to keep our things safe from ravens. After one last look at the great South Peak of Mt. McKinley (our destination) we dropped back around the corner and had an easy climb down to Camp at 11k. The final 30 minutes was in a mild whiteout as we descended into the clouds.
The round trip was a pretty respectable 6 hours and got us back in plenty of time for a restful afternoon while it snowed lightly on our tents. Fingers crossed for moving weather tomorrow as we would like to get to 14k camp.
- RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Comments (1)
Thanks for the update! Sounds like things are going well for your team. I am in awe of ALL of you and the hard work you’ve put in to accomplish this great achievement!
Hope you’re also having fun!
Posted by: Kari Servais on