Entries By jessie poquerusse
This mornings skies were a welcome sight after a few days of white. Clear skies also brought colder temps for us at
Kahiltna Base Camp. It was not long before the clouds rolled back in but that did not stop the team from having some fun. We ventured to a crevasse field and gave folks a chance to see the inside of a the icy maw and climb out. Lots of laughs and pictures today around those cracks. Later in the afternoon we received word from K2 that they were launching the fleet to drop a team off and that we should be ready within the hour. That was a frantic hour indeed but the team got it done in short order. As soon as the dust settled we found out that the planes turned back so we set up a new camp downtown on the airstrip. Forecast is calling for more snow the next few days so we will see what the future holds.
RMI Guide Leon Davis
May 24, 2017
Today began the exercise in storm living. The low pressure south of us arrived and brought with it a foot of new snow. The team entertained themselves with funny stories over a few rounds of hot drinks and a long breakfast. In the afternoon we stretched our legs with a four mile walk on the main
Kahiltna Glacier before blowing snow and a disappearing track turned us back. Thankfully a little bit of stormy weather is not enough to lower the morale of this great group of strangers become friends. Tomorrow we anticipate more snow and winds but that will not be a problem for this team. Hope everyone at home is warm and dry.
RMI Guide Leon Davis
May 23, 2017
Woke up to better weather than the forecast said so we took advantage of the fleeting visibility. Most of the day was spent cycling thru
crevasse rescue in a nearby crevasse and rigging sleds. We believe one of Sally's sons had a birthday in the last 24 hours so a special shout out to her progeny. More weather is supposed to be on its way so we are taking it one day at a time here in base camp. Still lots of fun being had and learning as well.
RMI Guide Leon Davis
May 22, 2017
We had a warmer night due to the current snow storm that rolled in last night, a few inches of snow blanketing our tents and gear.
Weather days are a breeze when you have such an engaging and talkative group. We enjoyed a casual breakfast with multiple rounds of coffee while the group shared all sorts of conversation ranging from favorite cocktails to the intricacies of interviewing international terrorists. Our day progressed with more snow, Avalanche beacon clinic, naps and skills practice. We are hoping for the weather to lighten up and move camp in the next few days. Until that point the group continues to be eager to learn, laughing often and practicing the variety of mountaineering skills taught so far. To finish the day the team engaged in group snow Yoga and began building a shrine of some sort. Time will tell.
RMI Guide Leon Davis
May 21, 2017
After a brisk wake up, we stretched our legs by heading up glacier to the
base of Radio Tower, east of camp. Threatening seracs and a maze of crevasses thwarted our progress further towards Radio Tower, so after a brief lesson on glaciology and safe glacier navigation, we quickly adapted our itinerary to the conditions and headed to the base of the northeast ridge of Mt. Frances instead. A thinly veiled sun and intermittent clouds provided an eerie ambience to our travel. Once at the basin, we donned crampons and practiced up and downhill climbing and cramponing techniques, a helpful review. A well-deserved downhill walk back to camp and a long-sought after dinner wrapped up another excellent day out in the hills with a most energetic and engaged team.
RMI Guide Jessie & the AMS-E crew
May 20, 2017
The clouds did not stick around so long this morning but the chill lingered for much longer. The team enjoyed blue skies as they built a few snow block walls around camp under a steady drone of the numerous otters flying in to drop off more climbers. After a short siesta we moved into some anchor building and simple hauling systems in preparation for proper crevasse rescue. For now we are doing some packing for a morning trip around the
SE Fork to see how things are for climbing.
RMI Guide Leon Davis
May 19, 2017
This evening we are coming to you from
Kahiltna Base Camp! The team enjoyed a relaxing morning and leisurely lunch as we waited for a break in the weather. Just when we thought we would be spending another night in town, K2 gave the signal and our two pilots Randy and Barry carried us over the clouds into the range and descended into the heart of the mountains.
Now we are enjoying some late evening sun cooking dinner and setting up camp. The team is very excited to be here, especially the ladies who cannot stop smiling.
RMI Guide Leon Davis & Team
Our
Alaska Mountaineering Seminar May 17 - 27 team is here in Talkeetna, packed and ready to fly...but sometimes ready is not enough. A Southwest flow over the Aleutians is slowly pushing that warm moisture that brings snow and rain to the range. So we played the game of waiting and lost the luck. Nonetheless the team here is of joyous enthusiasm and energy and we shall try again tomorrow.
We will hope for clear skies in the morning.
RMI Guide Mike King
May 15, 2017
Now that we have a second to breathe, there is time to recap our last day on the glacier. The team woke at 0400 to the hard whiteout conditions and the forecasted 6 inches of new snow turned out to be a few feet. We slowly packed up camp and headed downhill at 0700 as things were not getting better. We were walking in full instrument conditions and even walked in a circle trying to find wands that mark the old track. Hard to tell up from down, left from right that morning. A strong wind followed us down
Ski Hill where we emerged from the soup and kept up all the way to Heartbreak Hill. By 1300 we were at the airstrip hoping the Otters would be able to handle the crosswinds for landing on the SE Fork of the Kahiltna. Sure enough, by 1600 our team was loaded up on two K2 planes and back to the green smells of town. Grand experience for us all and we appreciated the tenacious nature of our climbers.
RMI Guide Leon Davis
May 13, 2017 - 8:21 pm PT
We woke up this morning when the cold bites the hardest and wasted little time making hot water for cereal and tea. Today we went to venture up the
Kahiltna Dome ridge with good weather on our side. The work we did yesterday breaking trail was worth it as we made quick work of the steep slope. Once atop the ridge the sun made its appearance coming from behind the west buttress and warming our bones. We began walking the ridge crest in deep snow and quickly found the maze of cracks shooting across. Progress was slow climbing with an axe in one hand and a probe in the other. The deep snow and one too many crevasse falls stopped us and so we headed down to camp but not before enjoying the sunrise from our 11,000' perch. Now the snow has started and we plan to make the long walk to base camp in the early Alaska twilight.
RMI Guide Leon Davis
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HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO PATTY K! Sending love from flatter and warmer places and wishing you clear skies ahead! You rock!
Posted by: Ruth on 5/26/2017 at 7:06 am
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