Entries from Mt. McKinley
Today we slept until the sun crested the West Rib of Denali, quickly warming the zero degree nip of the night. Another great bacon, bagel and coffee breakfast with stories around the posh house quickly lead to the post noon hour. The team had a few hours to rest and hydrate. The afternoon brought training for the fixed lines and running belays we'll encounter on our final carry tomorrow. The crew is very excited to be in the final preparations leading to our summit bid, hopefully a few days from now.
The weather continues to be absolutely wonderful. Keep the positive vibrations coming our way and we'll be in touch soon.
RMI Guides Tyler Jones, Garrett Stevens, & Erik Endert
Hello, this is RMI Guide Jake Beren checking in from 11,000' on Mt. McKinley. Today we re-traced our steps and went below camp to retrieve our cache. With all of our gear now at 11,000' we are re-organizing and re-packing. Our plan is to move a load of gear tomorrow towards our next camp at 14,000' and place a cache. We are hoping to make our move to 14,000' camp in the next few days if the weather cooperates.
All's well here. Our team is strong and doing great, so we'll be checking in from higher up the mountain.
RMI Guide Jake Beren
On The Map
Even though this mountain has a reputation for fierce weather, we have been enjoying gorgeous days during the last week. The team had another sunny, windless day on our move to 14k today. We arrived, after four plus hours of walking, to a deserted camp sight fixed with 4 great tent platforms and a nice mountain business station. While we'll have a little bit of buffing out to do to bring camp to our 5 star standards, it's still nice to just walk right into ready-made platforms.
The team climbed strong today, and is currently resting after getting settled in to the tents. Tomorrow will be dedicated to the art of mountain chilling, and hopefully the small snow squall that just recently moved over camp will clear out and give us the up close and personal views of Denali's west face. The group seems to be acclimating well and should be set for the upcoming carry and move to 17k camp in the next few days. Have a great rest of the weekend!
RMI Guide Tyler Jones
On The Map
Hello everyone. It’s Jake checking in from Camp 3 at 11,000’ on Mt McKinley. Everyone in our party is strong and doing great, the weather is cooperating and we’re thoroughly enjoying expedition life in the Alaska Range. Our plan is to back-carry tomorrow and pick up our cache at 9,500’, then return to camp at 11,000’ for some R&R. The day after tomorrow we’ll climb ‘Motorcycle Hill’ and place a cache in the vicinity of Windy Corner (13,300’), descend, and once again camp at 11,000’. Camp here will be home for the next two nights, then weather permitting we’ll move up to 14,200’ and establish Camp 4. But we don’t want to get too far ahead of ourselves. So long for now.
RMI Guide Jake Beren
This is Adam calling from Kahiltna Basecamp. We’re back and everyone is safe and sound, but our adventure isn’t over yet. Weather permitting we will fly off today, but at this point of the trip we defer to the expertise of the Alaskan bush pilot. The weather here is cloudy, with fog banks creeping in and out of base camp. The pilots must have perfect visibility in order to safely land here, so all we can do is sit and wait. It’s funny how much the weather dictates all movement on Mt McKinley; airplanes and climbers both! Yesterday was my 36th birthday and what a great place to celebrate life! Though everyone is looking forward to reuniting with family and friends, our climb of the Upper West Rib and reaching the summit of Mt McKinley is something we’ll always remember with pride.
If the planes get in, this will be our final dispatch. Otherwise, I’ll keep you posted on how we’re entertaining ourselves and dreaming of things we all take for granted in civilization!
RMI Guide Adam Knoff
On The Map
After a big day of work getting half our kit to the 14,200ft camp, the team is enjoying a much deserved rest day in our plush camp at 11,000'. Our breakfast of bagels, cream cheese and bacon was a wonderful way to start the day, and the mostly clear skies and lots of sun are making the day quite pleasant for swapping jokes and stories around camp. The agenda for the day is more eating, drinking and resting, with an eye towards packing up and moving higher tomorrow.
Days like today are the reason many of us come to the mountains: to spend quality time with friends old and new, be present in the moment, and have an unforgettable experience in one of the most incredible places on the planet. Even though thoughts tend to trend towards the summit on beautiful days, we're happy to just be here, soaking in all the glory that Alaska has to offer. Thanks for following our progress and cheers for now!
RMI Guide Tyler Jones
RMI Guide Adam Knoff called on June 10 at 5:50 pm (PST) to report the team was on the summit of Mt. McKinley!
They made a great push starting at 9:00 am this morning and were celebrating at the top. The weather was warm and beautiful and it was the best day ever for their team. They were going to head down to 17,000' camp to spend the night. On Saturday they plan to head to 14,000' camp and spend another night.
The whole crew made it to the top and were very excited that their second push paid off!
Congratulations to the team!
We flew onto the Kahiltna Glacier this morning! Our packs are rigged and we are ready to walk up hill to their 7,800' camp. Everyone is healthy, happy and ready to go!
We'll check in again when we are settled in at camp.
RMI Guide Jake Beren
On The Map
We are at the base of Washburn Thumb, heading to high camp. We will rest at high camp this evening and attempt the summit early tomorrow morning. Everyone is feeling great and excited for their summit push! Weather is sunny and warm. It's almost too warm as we were climbing with the sun radiating off of the glacier.
We'll check in again soon.
Wish us luck!
RMI Guide Adam Knoff
On The Map
It's a little soupy here at 11,000' camp this afternoon, but we're sitting pretty after retrieving our cache from 10k earlier today. A frosty morning greeted us when we woke, but a hearty round of hot drinks & breakfast burritos (eggs, cheese, salsa and hot sauce all wrapped in warm tortillas) soon chased the chill away and fueled us up for the quick trip downhill to our gear buried in the snow. Within minutes after arriving at the cache, we were packing all the food and personal luggage into our backpacks and sleds for the short uphill stretch to camp. The team moved smoothly back up and is now settled in for another afternoon of rest. We're hopeful that the weather holds for a carry to 14k tomorrow, which will be the biggest test of strength and stamina so far. But the crew continues to impress with the collective performance so we're confident about what lies ahead.
Last night at dinner, we shared some of your comments with the group. Everyone says thank you very much for keeping the team in your thoughts, and they appreciate your interest in our trip. Keep the positivity flowing as we continue our adventure!
Cheers,
RMI Guides Tyler Jones, Erik Endert & Garrett Stevens
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Hello ALL mountaineers… Folks send their admiration.. Tim and Justin. Thinking of lots of questions to ask ...such as ...see any wildlife along the way?, see the aurora borealis lights? are you sunburn? This must be a life altering experience as you move upward toward the Arctic.
I am enjoying all of the updates. Many thanks!!
Sharon
Posted by: Sharon Halls on 6/14/2011 at 8:26 pm
Hey Steve, Ashleigh, Mom and I took a walk at 10pm Tuesday night just to get out and see the full moon. Just like the movie “An American Tale” we were looking at the moon possibly when you and your group were. How cool. Keep your nose to the grindstone and you’ll succeed. Bye for now. Dad
Posted by: Nick Doinidis on 6/14/2011 at 8:04 pm
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