Entries from Mt. McKinley

Mt. McKinley: Beren & Team Back Carry to 14K Camp

June 15, 2012

Posted by: Jake Beren, Elias de Andres Martos

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley

Elevation: 14,200'

Climbing consistently gives you opportunities to improve, especially on Denali. A summit day is possible only after weeks of getting in position. During those weeks we are dedicating ourselves to improving all aspects of our game. This morning we took the lessons of yesterday's approach to go pick up our cache at Windy Corner. Getting ready in the cold morning will pay off as we move higher. The crew did well on the back carry and the little bobbles in our rigging were addressed when we got back with everyone taking a little time to do some homework dialing in their cold weather systems. Tomorrow we will rest here at 14,000', reviewing fixed lines, running belays and if we have some visibility, taking a short cruise to THE EDGE OF THE WORLD for some views. Then it all depends on the weather, but the team is feeling great. RMI Guide Jake Beren

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Happy Fathers Day Jim! Hope you are having a fun adventure. Halsey: sunscreen!!! Give each other a hug for us. Love Anne and Jack

Posted by: Anne on 6/16/2012 at 11:36 pm

Ross and K,

Keep plugging away! Take some pics tomorrow at the edge of the world. Been thinking of you guys today, hope all is well with tent life and the elements. Try to keep everything dry! A dry hand is a happy hand. Your in the middle of it, enjoy the views. -Dave

Posted by: dave kolar on 6/16/2012 at 8:36 pm

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Mt. McKinley: Walter & Team on the Move

June 15, 2012

Posted by: Mike Walter

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley

Elevation: 7,800'

Hello from the Kahiltna Glacier. We had beautiful weather yesterday and were able to fly in to Base Camp. Thanks to K2 Aviation and our turbine Otter pilots Jeff and Randy for a great flight. The weather was warm and sunny at base camp, and we took advantage of it by lounging around! (we needed to wait for the air and snow temperatures to cool down for safe and efficient travel conditions). By the time we left camp, at around 11pm, the conditions were perfect for walking, and stayed that way all the way to the base of Ski Hill at 7,800' where we made our camp at 4 a.m. Now we're enjoying bagel and cream cheese with smoked salmon for brunch. We're planning to continue with our nocturnal ways and move to 9500' tonight. Ciao for now, RMI Guide Mike Walter

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Have a great time and glad to know you are all ok! Matt we’re already celebrating here for you :)

Posted by: Vanessa & Daniel Elkins on 6/16/2012 at 9:56 pm

HAPPY FATHER’S DAY! Great webcam pics to watch the weather and know everyone is somewhere out there. Blessings to all!

Posted by: Betsy V on 6/16/2012 at 9:25 pm

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Mt. McKinley: Jones & Team On Top!

June 15, 2012

Posted by: Tyler Jones, Eric Frank

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley

Elevation: 20,320"

Hey everyone, It's Tyler and team on the summit of Denali. Pretty nice weather, little bit of breeze and quite a cold day. Everybody is in good shape. We are going to spend a few minutes on top taking some pictures and then we will be headed back down to high camp and we'll let you know when we get back. Thanks for all your support. Talk to you soon. RMI Guide Tyler Jones

RMI Guide Tyler Jones calls from the summit of Denali.

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Congratulations! Woot! Way to go! Wishing a safe descent to everyone!

Posted by: Jenn on 6/16/2012 at 7:12 am

Yay! Now come home!

Posted by: Megan Berge on 6/16/2012 at 7:09 am

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Mt. McKinley: Walter & Team Situated at Ski Hill

June 15, 2012

Posted by: Mike Walter

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley

Elevation: 7,800'

We are on the Mountain! After landing at Basecamp our team loaded our sleds, grabbed our packs and we were on our way. We moved during the night to 7,800' on the Kahiltna Glacier, located at the base of Ski Hill. Everyone is doing well. The weather has been beautiful- nice and warm during the day and good travel conditions at night. RMI Guide Mike Walter

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Best of luck to your climbing crew. Look forward to your posts and pictures.

Posted by: Mike Morrissey on 6/17/2012 at 8:25 pm

WOW!I am impressed and envious Lee. Enjoy yourself and be safe. I look forward hearing your story when we run.

Posted by: Bill R on 6/17/2012 at 9:08 am

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Mt. McKinley: Beren & Team Move Into 14K Camp

June 14, 2012

Posted by: Jake Beren, Elias de Andres Martos

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley

Elevation: 14,200'

Waking to perfect conditions, clear and near windless, we decided to saddle up and move on up to Genet Basin and make a new home at 14,000 feet. Our hard work yesterday really paid off, leaving us with a perfect trail to camp. It was even downright hot as we pulled into camp and we found a great camp left to us by our friends now living at 17,000 camp. Thanks. It was still tough, but our team held together well and turned in early for some much needed rest. Tomorrow we will most likely retrieve our cache and spend the afternoon relaxing and preparing for the fixed lines higher up. Cross your fingers for some high pressure. A week would be plenty. RMI Guide Jake Beren

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All the best for the head wall and beyond. Let us know that you’re all doing fine please.

Posted by: AK on 6/16/2012 at 3:53 pm

Great climbing everyone, keep it up. Bob, the summit is around the corner, stay strong! Everything good at home.

Posted by: John Spinks on 6/15/2012 at 8:11 pm

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Mt. McKinley: Jones & Team Ready for Summit Push

June 14, 2012

Posted by: Tyler Jones, Eric Frank

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley

Elevation: 17,200'

This morning provided blue bird skies and little to no wind. Though the air was cold at around -5F, the team broke camp, dug a cache and loaded our packs for our summit push. With Okita's team reaching the summit yesterday we once again shared the burden of equipment transportation by swapping some equipment to lighten the load. Okita's team saved some weight for their long descent to the bottom, and more importantly our load was lightened up to high camp. We are thankful for the established camp with wind walls and a ready to go kitchen. The stroke of luck rarely happens as teams do not often come up and down from high camp on the same day. As we have been saying throughout the entire trip "Patience pays" and today it most certainly did. Water boils at a fairly low temperature at this elevation. In fact, you can drink a hot cup of your favorite flavor right out of the boiling pot - a wild first for many team members. A hot dinner and soup re-energized our spirits and warmed our souls. The team is climbing strong and with a little more luck from the weather tomorrow we will make a push for the top of North America to Denali/Mount McKinley's summit at 20,320'. Wish us well for our final push! RMI Guide Tyler Jones

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Keep it tight and enjoy the views!
We are proud of you! M&T

Posted by: sHARON on 6/15/2012 at 5:44 pm

Nice work Tyler, Larry and all - I hope by now you are savoring the summit experience!
The summit is for the ego - the journey is for the soul. I’m hoping your egos are at a high point - be safe and enjoy as you complete the journey!

Posted by: Tim Halls on 6/15/2012 at 12:50 pm

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Mt. McKinley: Beren & Team Break Trail to Cache Supplies

June 14, 2012

Posted by: Jake Beren, Elias de Andres Martos

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley

Elevation: 11,200'

After our rest day yesterday, we were certainly ready to bust a move this morning. Clear and cold conditions soon gave way to snow flurries and minimal visibility. We made ready, grabbed another cup of coffee and caught enough of a lull to try to carry loads higher on the mountain. Our plan was entirely dependent on conditions encountered on each stretch and despite being the first trailbreakers since the storm, we were able to kick a proud track through several feet of new snow up to Windy Corner and make our cache. Our team opened the route up in good style and if favored by workable weather will try to push it up to 14 Camp tomorrow. Everyone is doing great and will surely enjoy a good night's sleep after a solid day in the mountains. Thanks also for the messages to the team! Keep 'em coming! RMI Guide Jake Beren

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Jake, congrats to you and the team. Sounds like you are all doing well, with a great leader. Big Hug, Hello and best wishes to Karwande!!! Keep those fingers warm and battle on!!!! :) cs

Posted by: courtney on 6/14/2012 at 8:07 pm

¡Hola, equipo! Glad to hear things are going well and moving upwards.

Today I completed a successful mission to deliver homemade cookie to the folks at Muir (and got to try out the new skis!)

Stay strong and keep thinking happy thoughts…

Posted by: Bridget on 6/14/2012 at 7:31 pm

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Mt. McKinley: Walter & Team are Packed and Ready

June 14, 2012

Posted by: Mike Walter

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley

Elevation: 358'

Well, the gang's all here and we're ready to fly on to the Kahiltna Glacier to start our Denali expedition. We spent all day packing our gear and preparing for the trip, paying close attention to the finest details. We are all very excited to get on the mountain and start climbing! Hopefully the weather holds and we can fly tomorrow morning. We will update you on our progress as soon as we can. Stay tuned! RMI Guide Mike Walter

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Yay Sasha! You can do it!

Posted by: Claire on 6/15/2012 at 8:24 am

Sasha

We are watching the blog. Have a wonderful and safe trip. We are delighted that you have such awesome and competent companions.

Love Dad, Mom, Brooklyn, Spencer and Waldo

Posted by: Charles Selby on 6/15/2012 at 7:08 am

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Mt. McKinley: Brent & Team Summit!

June 14, 2012

Posted by: Brent Okita, Leon Davis, Lindsay Mann

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley

Elevation: 17,200'

Hi, this is Brent from 17,000' on Mt. McKinley and I just wanted to report that we did summit here last night and we actually just going to bed right now, [it's] about 3:30 in the morning. It was a bit of an epic night with some trail breaking and some cold winds but everyone did really well and we are all safe back at camp. So congratulations to the team here, we will be descending down to probably 11,000' [camp] tomorrow. Alright, talk to you later. Bye bye. - RMI Guide Brent Okita

Brent from High Camp after Summit Day

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Gary, Congrats! It’s been awesome to follow along! Rory keeps asking me “how does Uncle Gary do that?” He’s excited to get back to the climbing wall! Love, Lorrie, Chas, Carson and Rory

Posted by: Lorrie, Chas, Carson & Rory on 6/16/2012 at 4:37 pm

Congratulations Kristen! We want to hear all about it when you get back to the Upper Valley.

Posted by: ASOLO USA on 6/15/2012 at 1:39 pm

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Mt. McKinley: Okita & Team - War and Peace

June 12, 2012

Posted by: Brent Okita, Leon Davis, Lindsay Mann

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley

Elevation: 17,200'

Held hostage by the fickle nature of the weather for ten (or is it eleven now?) days at 17,200' my brain is in hardly any shape to draw all the parallels to that epic saga and our own story here. But some stand out: Ours has become a very long story of the challenges we face when not all elements in our world are in our control. And in our struggle to deal with these challenges, we face a bit of an emotional roller coaster as optimism fades when a new reality asserts itself. This morning the hope of a nice summit day came crashing down as we received heavy snow and high winds starting in the wee hours of the morning. Tyler Jones at 14,200' camp reported over two feet of new snow and 50 mph winds. So, once again we dug out camp with face protection, heavy gloves or mittens, and ski goggles on before breakfast. It was here that, given what we've been through up here, and the reality of just how long a human being can actually live at this altitude and harsh environment, we chose Thursday as our 'up or down' day. But, this still gives us a chance to summit. Tomorrow might not be perfect, but, Thursday has been forecasted to offer 'light and variable' winds. I'm generally an optimist, but at this point even I can succumb to a heaviness in my outlook after having so many of my summit plans thwarted. But, as we discover in Tolstoy's classic, sometimes what matters most is not some obvious achievement, but rather a deeper sense of accomplishment or understanding that comes with living life well, and to the fullest. Let's hope tomorrow our dispatch will be a bit more succinct. Like just one word. Love, kisses and heavy thoughts from your team at 17,200'. RMI Guide Brent Okita

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Nice work Kristen, we’re all excited for you here in Norwich. Put some rocks in Brent’s pack and tell him Stu says hello.

Posted by: Stuart Close on 6/15/2012 at 5:52 pm

I am the mother of one of the climbers from Alpine Ascents who made the summit on Saturday, June 2—I think the last team to summit. He has been back home for a week now and you guys/gals are still up there (we hope). Just want you to know that we have all (son, father, mother, neighbors for goodness sake!) been following and cheering for your team and checking on you every day. You have provided immense entertainment—and inspiration. We think if you make the summit you are the team of the season. Our very best wishes…

Posted by: Sue Seitz on 6/14/2012 at 4:15 am

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Entries from Mt. McKinley

Mt. McKinley: Beren & Team Back Carry to 14K Camp

On The Map

Mt. McKinley: Walter & Team on the Move

On The Map

Mt. McKinley: Jones & Team On Top!

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Mt. McKinley: Walter & Team Situated at Ski Hill

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Mt. McKinley: Beren & Team Move Into 14K Camp

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Mt. McKinley: Jones & Team Ready for Summit Push

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Mt. McKinley: Beren & Team Break Trail to Cache Supplies

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Mt. McKinley: Walter & Team are Packed and Ready

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Mt. McKinley: Brent & Team Summit!

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Mt. McKinley: Okita & Team - War and Peace

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