Entries from Mt. McKinley
This is Seth checking in from 11,200 feet on Denali. Today we completed our carry to 13,500 ft. The weather was spectacular when we awoke and our climbers were psyched to get higher up on the mountain. Everyone put in a good effort and we made great time. The forecast looks good for tomorrow with a deteriorating trend starting on Wednesday. So our plan is to move to 14k tomorrow and wait out the weather there. That's all for now.
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
Our team is back at camp now, after a successful day. We cached food and fuel at ~13,700', got some great views of the upper mountain, and stretched the legs on our climb today. Now we are in position to move to Camp 4 (14,200') when the time is right. Everyone is doing well and the team climbed strong today.
RMI Guide Mike Walter
After a calm night and a good night's sleep at Camp 3, we're packing our backpacks and getting ready to head out to take a cache of gear to 13,500'. The weather is beautiful, sunny with no wind...but the temps are still cold!
We'll be in touch tonight or tomorrow and let everyone know how our day went.
RMI Guide Mike Walter
First things first: Happy Mother's Day from our Denali climbing team!
Yesterday we woke to clear skies and cool temperatures at Camp 2, and we packed up camp and moved up to Camp 3 at 11,200'. The snow conditions were excellent for traveling, and the temps were cool but comfortable, and perfect for climbing .
After good day of climbing, and a few hours of establishing camp, we settled in to the comfort of our cook tent to enjoy a delicious meal of chicken quesadillas.
Today we are resting, hydrating, and acclimating to this new altitude. After a huge breakfast of eggs and bacon, we have begun to fortify our camp- reinforcing our snow walls and our tent anchors. This afternoon we will spend time sorting our gear in preparation for taking a cache to 13,500'.
Everyone is doing well, and we're hoping for good weather tomorrow to get our cache in place. We will check in again tomorrow, and let you know what we're up to.
Mike
Hello from 11,200' on Mt. McKinley. Our team is wishing all moms a Happy Mother's Day. We're having a nice rest day in a little bit of a storm. Our tents are nice and toasty though and we'll be all set to carry a load to 13,500' tomorrow if the weather allows.
We're at 11,200 feet! The camp is quite the scene as there are at least 6 nationalities represented. The weather today was stellar and we moved smoothly into camp. We're all set up for a few days here, and tomorrow we plan to take a well deserved rest day.
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
Yesterday we flew in to Kahiltna Base Camp to start our climb. The weather was beautiful, and everyone enjoyed the spectacular flight from Talkeetna; flying over the tundra and then into the Alaska Range; seeing the extensive span of mountains, with the dominating presence of Hunter, Foraker, and our objective, Denali; passing the Pika and the Ruth Glaciers then over the Kahiltna and landing on the glacier. We arrived at Base Camp early, and took advantage of the good weather to pack our equipment and move to Camp 1 at the base of Ski Hill.
Today we moved up to Camp 2 pulling our sleds loaded down with equipment, food and fuel for the next couple of weeks. The conditions have been great for traveling and the weather cooperative. Some clouds moved in this afternoon and very light snow started as we got to camp. The forecast looks good, with some light snow tonight and tomorrow; we should be able to get to Camp 3 (11,200') tomorrow.
Everyone is doing well. We'll be in touch again soon.
Cheers,
RMI Guide Mike Walter
Today we moved to 9,300' on Mt. McKinley. We had great weather on the trail. As we reached the top of Ski Hill it started to snow so we set up camp and hunkered in for the evening. We are all settled in and are resting for another great day tomorrow.
We will keep you posted on our progress.
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
This is Seth checking in from 7,800 feet on the Kahiltna Glacier. Today we awoke to clear skies in the Alaska Range. It was great to have a 'normal' day after a whirlwind start to our trip. Yesterday was supposed to be our packing day in Talkeetna but we had an opportunity to fly in the evening so we decided to go for it and now we're a day ahead of schedule. After a breakfast of bagels and smoked salmon we spent 5.5 hours on the trail. We then enjoyed some warm weather while we had dinner in camp. Now the sun is behind the mountains and everyone is tucked in their warm bags. It's been a great start to the trip.
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
Everyone (and their baggage) arrived on time in Anchorage yesterday, and we headed north to the small town of Talkeetna. We had a relaxing evening, eating dinner as a group at the famous West Rib Pub, talking about the trip, and getting to know each other. This morning we met at the the Talkeetna Roadhouse for a group breakfast to formalize our plans for packing and preparing for our upcoming expedition. Talkeetna is a small and unique town; situated on the south side of Denali National Park, it is the staging point for hundreds of climbers who venture into the Alaska Range. Town is still sleepy this time of year, just coming out of its winter hibernation; the streets are quiet, few airplanes are in the air, and patches of snow are still in the yards. When we return in a few weeks, Talkeetna will be in full swing; tourists and climbers will be walking through the streets, the air will be filled with the buzz of single engine aircraft (and mosquitoes), and all of the trees and lawns will be green.
Most of the day today was spent at the hangar of our bush pilots, K2 Aviation, packing our gear and going over all of our equipment. While we all have spent months planning this trip, today was still a very busy day making sure we had the right gear for the trip, inspecting our tents and stoves, and double and triple checking everything.
We also met with a National Park Service climbing ranger for a formal orientation to Denali, which included a slide show of our climbing route.
We plan to fly into Kahiltna Base Camp tomorrow (weather permitting) to start our adventure. We will be in touch with detailed dispatches throughout the trip. Everyone says hello to our friends and loved ones back home. Here’s to a safe and successful trip!
RMI Guide Mike Walter
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Go Jerald! Watch out for Yeti men.
Posted by: Mike Oleson on 5/10/2011 at 4:28 pm
Jeffy,
Hiked Windy Hill in perfect weather this am and thought of you. Stay strong and warm as you climb. Wish I were joining you!
Love,
Your Sister
Posted by: Alyssa Rapp on 5/10/2011 at 12:44 pm
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