Entries from Mt. McKinley
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Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley
Hi RMI this is Linden Mallory calling, it’s about 10 AM on Monday morning and we are calling from Denali Base camp.
We made it down this morning. We woke up about midnight last night and had the beginnings of a descent freeze, so we decided to pack up and see how the glacier treated us. We fired up the stoves and cooked up some breakfast and then we were walking in the middle of the night. It was a long but relatively uneventful walk down the glacier. We picked our way down and made it to Base camp about an hour ago. Right now we just packed up all our gear and we are waiting on the airplanes to come and pick us up. We have some low hanging clouds but we are fairly optimistic, a few planes have made it in.
So hopefully our next call is from Talkeetna. We'll check in and let you know how it goes.
RMI Guide Linden Mallory
Our weather changed a bit for the worse today, but not before we were able to get our work (and play) accomplished up on the West Buttress. As we started stoves a little before 8 AM, there was already an upper cloud layer above the mountain and a fairly thick blanket below. But there was no sign of wind on the upper ridges so we felt pretty comfortable in gearing up to climb after breakfast. Two hours of steady uphill trudging got us to the slightly more interesting terrain of the bergschrund and the headwall above. We latched onto the fixed ropes and made our way up the 45 degree slopes. Conditions were excellent as there were staircase-quality footsteps in the steep snow. We topped the ropes in good time and it was obvious that everyone was game for going higher, but as we rested at 16,200' it began to snow and so we buried the supplies we were carrying (to protect the food from greedy ravens) and we beat feet back down to 14,200'. We weren't away more than six hours for the round trip but even so it was a significant effort and we were proud of our accomplishments. Three or four of the team broke personal altitude records. We rested away the remainder of the day as snow showers came and went. Tomorrow is a rest day for our team anyway, so we don't mind if a little unsettled weather plays through... but just a little. We are already getting excited for a move up to high camp.
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Hi Geoff, Jeff and I have been e-mailing back and forth on how your trip is going. It`s been a tough go for your team but Mike Walters#1-RMI team from May 2nd is Following you and good luck as you seek your peak. Can`t wait to hear the stories. Good luck Ken Young
PS GO BRUINS
Posted by: Ken Young on 7/11/2011 at 4:36 pm
Frank,
What an accomplishment! Truly awesome and inspiring. See you soon!
Posted by: Michael Duran on 7/11/2011 at 9:04 am
Hey RMI this is Linden Mallory calling from the Kahiltna Glacier. It’s about 3pm on the 10th of July. Those clouds that were building last night covered the Glacier and it never quite got cold enough last night for us to travel. So we are holed up here at 8,700’.
We had a pretty relaxed little day, hanging out, chatting and eating as much food as we can. Right now we are in a cloud bank, no snow at the moment but obscured skies. Things are definitely warm. We are keeping our fingers crossed that the clouds burn off by the end of the day and we are able to get a good freeze tonight and make it to Basecamp tomorrow.
We will check in and let you know how it goes. Take Care.
RMI Guide LInden Mallory
Hi RMI this is Linden Mallory calling from 8,500’ on the Kahiltna Glacier on Denali. We woke up this morning to a pretty gorgeous day up at 14 Camp. We packed up camp and headed downhill. Definitely big loads leaving 14 Camp but we managed to fit everything into our packs and our sleds and motor back down the route reaching 11 Camp mid day. We dug up a small cache that we had left there with excess gear, trash and supplies that we didn’t need higher on the mountain earlier in the trip. We packed that up and moved it into the back of our sleds and kept moving down the glacier.
We got to about 8,500’ here on the Kahiltna Glacier just above Ski Hill which is just about 700’ above what is actually considered the true Lower Glacier. It was quite warm by that time of the afternoon and it was just getting a little too exciting to cross all those crevasses. We decided to set up shop here just above Ski Hill and cooked up a big dinner. Now we are waiting for the temperatures to drop and we’re watching some clouds blowing from the south of the Kahiltna Glacier. These clouds basically insulate the glacier so they keep the warm temperatures down here and don’t allow things to freeze. So we're not really sure how it's going to shake out for us tonight. If the clouds recede and it clears up we're going to pack up in the middle of the night and try to make it to Base camp by tomorrow morning. If these clouds stick around and it stays warm and the snow bridges across the crevasses don't freeze, we will just be hanging out here until conditions improve. So we will check in tomorrow and let you know how it goes.
Take care.
RMI Guide Linden Mallory
RMI Guide Linden Mallory Checks in from 8500 on Denali
The light is at the end of the tunnel! Can’t wait to hear all about our adventure and see all the pictures! Love you daddy!
Posted by: Samantha on 7/11/2011 at 7:05 am
Sounds like everyone is still enjoying their trek. Keep up the good work and contiue on a safe trip back to base camp and home.
Posted by: Lorraine on 7/10/2011 at 5:09 pm
Stunningly perfect weather today at 14,200'. We got the stoves going at a leisurely 8:30 AM since we knew we'd be deep in the cold shadows until 9:30. One of the gang measured the overnight temperature at -10 F which was quite a departure from the tropical conditions of the lower mountain. While it was something of a novelty for us to share a camp with so many other folks last night, they'd snuck away for the most part by morning. We did get to wish Linden Mallory's team luck as they departed. Around midday we roped up and strolled down a half hour to where we'd cached food and fuel two days back. Bringing this back up in about an hour and a half completed our ten day "approach" to the mountain. We spent the remainder of the day resting and preparing for the climb. If the good conditions continue we'll climb to 16 or 17,000' tomorrow carrying supplies and acclimating, but then we'll duck back down here to our comfortable camp in Genet Basin.
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Spencer Guinn are you on this team. If you are God be with you. We need you back.. Hope all is well.
I understand your calling to this peak. I’ve had many crazy adventures in my life that I needed to forfill. BE SAFE Hope to see you soon, Hugh
Posted by: Hugh Sales on 7/10/2011 at 7:45 pm
Hi Stewart,
Have been following the blogs and glad to see everything seems to be going well! Its nice and hot here needing some rain!
Love , Mom
Posted by: Ruby Fleming on 7/10/2011 at 11:04 am
This is Dave Hahn calling down from 14,200 feet on Mt. McKinley. It's 8:11 in the evening. It is a beautiful day, absolutely spectacular. We are way up above the clouds. The sun is still out, it hasn't gone behind the West Buttress yet. We did a great job getting up today if I don't say so myself. We started out this morning from 11,000 at about 9:15 a.m.. We weren’t really sure what the weather was going to do, but it did hold long enough for us and we made good progress coming up to 14. We came around Windy Corner and we were up here in six hours, which is always good. From having camp at 11 all to ourselves last night and being relatively alone on the mountain, so far, we're definitely in the community of guides and climbers up here at 14. A number of teams came down the mountain from up above including our friend Linden Mallory and his team. And it's great to be with those guys here at 14. They're spending the night as well, so we've got company.
Again, it's just perfect this evening there is not a puff of wind. We very are happy to be finishing up the approach to the mountain, and excited to begin the climb. Although, tomorrow we're actually going to finish up the approach. We're going to go back down and get the cache we left of food and fuel about 500 feet below camp. After we retrieve our cache then will be here for real. Bye for now.
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
RMI Guide Dave Hahn checks in from 14,000 on Mt. McKinley
WOW!!!!! I am so excited for all of you. Enjoy, Enjoy, Enjoy. Love thru the wind to you Wayne, Dinah
Posted by: dinah rogers on 7/9/2011 at 9:00 am
After three long days of climbing we are back at 14 Camp with the summit of Mt. McKinley under our belts. We couldn't believe our luck when we woke up at 17 Camp to absolutely beautiful weather so we set out on our summit bid mid morning, having waited a bit for the sun to warm everything up.
Nevertheless, it was still cold as we climbed the long traverse out of camp to Denali Pass at 18,500'. At the Pass a light but cold wind was blowing, so we kept our break short before continuing upwards. As soon as we climbed a few hundred vertical feet above the pass we escaped the wind that was funneling through there and it became great climbing. We made our way upwards, passing a few rock outcroppings before cresting into a broadd plateau called the Football Field (19,500') that sits below the final push to the summit. The weather remained perfect and the team strong so we set out, climbing the slopes to the summit ridge and then traversing the wildly corniced ridgeline to the summit. A moderate wind was blowing out of the southeast, which we had been protected from up till that point, but as we climbed along the ridge it blew plumes of powder snow around us - making for cold going. Finally we skirted the last cornice and climbed the final feet to the summit. It was beautiful from the top, with views in all directions.
After celebrating and soaking in thhe moment for a bit, we turned around and descended back to hig camp. The winds picked up as we descended but otherwise everyone climbed well, making it back to camp in the late evening.
This morning the wind continued to blow down through Denali Pass and into camp - not a great day to go for the top. We packed up camp and descended back down the West Buttress and down the fixed lines. It was smooth going but our legs felt the summit day yesterday, so we were all pleased to reach 14 Camp and take our packs off.
Now are sights are set on getting back to Base Camp so we can fly back to Talkeetna and then head home. We are spending the night here at 14 Camp before descending back to our first camp at 7800' at the head of the lower Kahiltna Glacier tomorrow. We plan to set up camp there for the evening and then wake up in the middle of the night to cross the lower glacier when things are nice and frozen and the snow bridges across the crevasses are strongest, hopefully arriving at Base Camp Sunday morning and flying out later that day. We'll need the weather to continue to cooperate but we're all feeling optimistic. We'll check in tomorrow from 7,800'.
Linden
Congrats to Frank and the whole team! Great job on a bigggg mountain!
Posted by: Tony Horness on 7/11/2011 at 7:41 am
We are all anxiously awaiting your return, but BE SAFE! A big hug to Frank.
Posted by: Laurie M on 7/9/2011 at 12:17 pm
The last push is always the worst. We woke up at midnight to see the sun almost set. The alpenglow on Denali was spectacular. After a quick breakfast we headed down glacier for a pickup at the airstrip, which had moved even further up the southeast fork of the Kahiltna Glacier. We are forced to travel at night on the glacier because we need the natural snow bridges that provide the path over and around the cravasses to be as frozen and firm as possible. We made the trip in a little over five hours with each team member silently cursing their sleds that usually have a mind of their own on what direction to go and how often they tip over.
I have been so impressed by how well this group of guys works together and has meshed as a great team. It is so easy to get overly frustrated with the mountain, your sled, and your rope-mates. Our group managed to take out these frustrations with positive humor, which is a huge reason for our success on the mountain! Within an hour of arriving at the snow airstrip, we heard the growl of the planes coming to pick us up. Thank God for modern communication. We used our satellite phone to make sure that the planes were coming for us. The person from K2 Aviation was concerned that since it was socked in with clouds in Talkeetna, the airstrip would be too socked in to land. She was almost as relieved as we were that there was not a cloud in the sky where we were!
As soon as we landed in Talkeetna, we tossed or packs and duffles in the hanger and went for a monster breakfast to power us up for the task of sorting through the heavily used gear and clothing that we had been carrying for the past 21 days. After our post climb chores were completed and some napping took place we enjoyed our celebration of a truly great accomplishment.
Summitting the mountain aside, we had a highly successful expedition by all the measures of fun, learning, and camaraderie!
RMI Guide Mike Haugen
Hey RMI, this is Linden Mallory calling from high camp on Mt. McKinley, 17,200'. We just got back a little bit ago from our successful summit of Denali. We had a relatively easy descent, the winds picked up after we left the summit so it definitely got quite cold. We were bundled up in goggles and down jackets and neck gaiters and all that fun stuff, but the team did well. We motored back to camp and right now we are changing into dry socks and brewing up some hot drinks and dinner and crash out and get some rest. It's been a long day. Everybody's doing well. We had a great climb today. I'll try to get a written dispatch off tomorrow.
Our plan is to head downhill. Try to make it down to at least down to 14 Camp or possibly further depending on the conditions that present themselves. Hope everyone is doing well at home. The team is very excited. Tired but excited. And we'll check in tomorrow.
Take care,
RMI Guide Linden Mallory
Linden Mallory and Team back at High Camp
Congrats! I’m so glad you lot were able to summit!
Posted by: Aimee on 7/8/2011 at 6:22 pm
Congrats to Frank & all - can’t wait for a first hand account.
Posted by: Pat & Jim on 7/8/2011 at 2:01 pm
This is Dave Hahn calling from 11,000' on Mt. McKinley. And we carried today. It was a beautiful day. Perfect weather, everything we could ask for. Very calm and clear, we could see forever. As we got up on the hills above 11K, we could look down onto the tundra of the North. And then when we were going around Windy Corner, we could see way down the Kahiltna Glacier. In fact we could see all the way to the southern end of the Alaska Range, which is rare.
We hope to move to 14,000' Camp tomorrow. Everybody's doing really well right now. It is all going great. It is clouding up a bit so we're hoping the good weather holds, but we're all pretty optimistic at the moment.
Bye for now.
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Dave Hahn checks in from 11 Camp
On The Map
Nice pic!
Posted by: michelle on 7/8/2011 at 7:13 pm
Pleased your weather has been holding. Great to move higher. Wayne, I am so very proud of your accomplishments. wonderful time down south. Back to paradise tomorrow. love U, dinah
Posted by: dinah rogers on 7/8/2011 at 2:35 pm
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Welcome back on low-altitude land! Kudos to the great guides who made it happen.
Alysse in the Forest
Posted by: Alysse on 7/11/2011 at 4:26 pm
Glad to hear everyone is safe and sound, can’t wait to hear all the stories. Thank you Linden for all the reports and getting everyone up and down safely.
Posted by: Toni on 7/11/2011 at 3:50 pm
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