Hey this is Dave Hahn with the final RMI Denali climb of the season. We are on the summit of Denali. We got here ten minutes after two, and it's ten minutes to three now, so we've been here a good 40 minutes. It's that kind of day, a perfect day, beautiful sunshine, nice and calm, absolutely wonderful day on top! We're going to have a nice safe descent back to high camp, and we'll be in touch. Bye for now!
Dave Hahn calling from the Summit of Denali July 6, 2019
Friday, July 5, 2019 - 11:02 PM PT
We woke up when the direct sun hit our tents and sprung into action. We had done coffee and ate some breakfast and headed downhill.
After a great climb along the ridge out of 17,000' Camp, we hit the fixed lines and made our way down to 14,000' Camp.
Since the temperatures have been so warm lately, we decided to set up camp here at 14k. We will head further downhill when the temps are cooler and the glaciers are more frozen. We will see how far we make it on our walk out tomorrow. We may make it as far as Basecamp and catch a plane tomorrow. If the snow gets too soft, we can camp one more night and head back to Talkeetna the next day. Let's hope for a good freeze!
RMI Guide Mike Haugen & Team Siete
I bet you are all ready to get off the mountain- Meghan did you bring any wine to celebrate?
Congratulations and hope everyone has an easy descent!
Hugs, Lisa
Posted by: Lisa Miller on 7/6/2019 at 10:43 am
Who ever thought you would need cooler temps to continue? Prepare yourself. It’s 100 degrees and higher, in many states throughout the US, and California has had its share of earthquakes/aftershocks during the past 2-3 days.
Enjoy yourselves and be safe as you complete this amazing journey. Kristen is looking forward to seeing you,Tym. Don’t forget to send a few pictures.
Friday, July 5, 2019 - 9:46 PM PT
Finally, the perfect weather arrived! We made good use of this clear, calm, sunny, relatively warm day as we motivated on up to 17,200' Camp. The alarms at 14 Camp went off at 4:30 and we were walking uphill in pleasantly cool shadows by 6:45. We had the advantage of having traveled this terrain before, we had the added advantage that other teams had tracked it in for us yesterday following the days of new and blowing snow. And finally we had the huge advantage of the extra acclimatization days and nights spent at 14,000. We were on the beautiful crest of the West Buttress proper before the morning sun found us. And we were up Washburn’s Thumb and taking a break close to 16,900 when we greeted Mike Haugen’s victorious team making their way carefully down the ridge crest. It wasn’t long after that -at 12:40- when we rolled into the camp they’d just left for us at 17,200. The early arrival and pre-built camp meant we had a very easy afternoon of resting and drinking water. We tried to limit our time out in the intense high altitude sun, but every now and then one of our climbers or guides could be found at the easily accessible edge of camp, staring wide-eyed at the drop down to 14 Camp or the bigger drop to the Kahiltna Glacier... or to the bigger drop down to Anchorage. There is still smoke in the air, but I didn’t hear many complaints about limited views.
In late afternoon we sat down to talk about the summit attempt we’ll make in the morning. The forecast could not be better. We’re feeling quite lucky and optimistic.
Even so, it will be a tough climb and it will work us hard. Every climber took an extra portion at dinner with the big day in mind.
Dead calm at 8:40 PM, sun still high in the sky, all for tonight. Stay tuned.
Best Regards
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Thursday, July 4, 2019 - 11:32 PM PT
All of our hard work and efforts paid off today with a trip to the summit of Denali!
As soon as we woke up, we knew the the mountain was finally inviting us to go to the top. Although there were some pretty good winds along the summit ridge, it was clear and sunny and it allowed us to achieve our objective. What a view from the top today!
We are so proud of our team and all of their hard work! It has been a long day with over a 12-hour round trip from high camp!
I think we need some sleep!
RMI Guide Mike Haugen and Team Siete
Thursday, July 4, 2019 - 9:38 PM PT
Independence Day on Denali dawned clear and a bit gusty. Moving higher wasn’t terribly practical for us on this day, although it didn’t seem impossible. We were encouraged at our 9 AM breakfast to know that Mike Haugen’s RMI team was starting out from high camp bound for the summit. That will make our move tomorrow a great deal easier as we’ll be able to coordinate a "gear swap".
Today, forecasts called for high pressure building, hence the wind, but the prediction was that the wind would calm as the day went on, which is what we saw. It was still gusting pretty good as we set off at noon for the “Edge of the World”. Twenty minutes of roped glacier travel brought us to the very edge of the plateau we are camped upon. It is always a fun shock to look virtually straight down for thousands of feet to the glaciers below. After days of camping on a flat expanse, one can forget how high we’ve already climbed and a visit to the edge serves as a great reminder. The views of the West Rib and a portion of Denali’s South Face are stupendous and today we enjoyed smoke-free views of the southern Alaska Range. Mt Spurr and the Tordrillos seemed much closer than their hundred miles. We each ventured out on an overhanging granite boulder for a hero shot or two and a look into the abyss.
Back at camp we organized and pared down and packed for moving up.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Wednesday, July 3, 2019 - 10:22 PM PT
Yet another snowy, cloudy morning at 14,000' Camp. There was less wind today though, so it was easier to be outside. It wasn’t a day for moving up or down the mountain -everybody stayed put. We found diversions, like remodeling the walls of our bathroom and kitchen and generally just digging holes in the snow. There was a brief clearing around noon, but then things clouded up again and the wind appeared to ramp up on the South Peak. We did a mid-afternoon quesadilla session and then logged a little tent time. In the evening we attended a barbecue. The final National Park Service ranger patrol of the season is tasked with packing up the NPS camp at 14K and they decided they had too much meat. Not wanting it to go to waste, they invited all the remaining teams on the mountain to come over to socialize and get a cheeseburger, which we did. There were about fifty of us standing out in the snow, comparing home towns and countries and climbing goals. Up at 17,000 there may be another 25 climbers waiting for a weather break, but they are sadly out of cheeseburger range.
Believe it or not, we STILL like the forecast. We’ll get moving again tomorrow or the next day.
Best Regards
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Wednesday, July 3, 2019 - 8:26 PM PT
Another early morning peek out of the tent provided all we needed to know about how today was going to go...not very far. With terrible visibility and the sound of high winds above, we knew that we would add another tally mark on our tent wall!
Although all of us are more than ready to head to the summit and then get out of here, we are not exactly suffering. In fact, it turned out to be a relatively nice day in camp even though the summit was still angry.
We had some Mountain Pho (ramen) on our rock terrace at the edge of camp that looks 3,000 feet down to 14,000' Camp. It was good to have the whole team eating together instead of holed up in tents because of weather.
It feels like the weather is changing in our favor. Of course, we have felt that way for days! We are in negotiations with Denali for a summit tomorrow. Although we never have the upper hand in weather negotiations with big mountains, I think this team has put in enough hard work and patience to use as a bargaining chip. Put in a good word for us!
RMI Guide Mike Haugen & Team Siete
Hi Megan, thinking of you and so proud of your accomplishments!! Glad u missed the earthquake. I hope Vicky is ok. Xo Gayle
Posted by: Gayle C on 7/5/2019 at 1:18 pm
Welllllllllllll. Lying in my comfy bed reading this and not wishing I was you guys, but then again you are all my hero’s so I guess I totally am wishing I was one of you. That’s exactly who you all are….the people the rest of us imagine to be or aspire to be. So for us….go get that mountain for all of us! You got time, tenacity and tons of people cheering you on….Mother Nature will give you her window soon. You got this, side salad!
Tuesday, July 2, 2019 - 9:58 PM PT
It started snowing around 4 this morning, which was contrary to predictions. The entire day ended up cloudy, snowy and windy... about the nearest thing to a genuine storm that we have had. Forecasts still call for high pressure and nice weather out there somewhere, but it hasn’t found us yet. We gathered for meals in the shelter of the dining tent, but spent most of the day in our own tents, listening to wind and passing time. We’ll chalk it up to an extra acclimatization day, which is hardly ever a bad thing. There were a couple of calm periods and a few minutes of sun here and there, but the clouds never pulled off the upper mountain. Walking around camp in the flat light was a challenge as we’d frequently stumble into old holes dug in the snow for kitchens or caches or tents. Still, it never got particularly cold and the wind never hit more than about 25 mph, so we won’t complain too much.
Best Regards
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Tuesday, July 2, 2019 - 7:49 PM PT
We thought today would be our day... Until it wasn't. We woke up to blowing snow and zero visibility. It made our call easy once again. We thought that it would clear up later in the morning and give us a late try, but it has not cleared up all day. Oh well, we will wait!
The team is doing well with all of the waiting at high camp, in spite of being in tents most of the day. The weather has not been terrible at high camp, just not good enough to climb. So, more waiting, sport eating, and good weather finger crossing for us!
RMI Guide Mike Haugen & Team Siete
Monday, July 1, 2019 - 10:34 PM PT
Last night’s snowstorm was short-lived, we got perhaps one inch of new at 14 Camp. Afterward, the bulk of the night was calm and in the morning -with some of the smoke washed out of the sky- we were treated to long distance views of the Chugach Mountains to the SE and to volcanoes 150 miles or more to the South. Reports were that it was still windy high on Denali, but in our sheltered bowl at 14,000 ft it was a calm and easy day. We did a long and lazy breakfast of coffee and pancakes which took us pretty much up to lunch. Then it was time for napping, books, TV or movies on the phones, daydreaming, drinking and eating. An enormous cloud cap formed on the upper mountain and so it wasn’t nearly as hot today as it had been, but the mild temperatures have still made life at 14K considerably easier than usual. We are all for easy. With Mike Haugen’s team waiting up at 17,000 and looking to summit tomorrow, we’ll most likely wait another day at 14,000 so as not to crowd them. The forecast is calling for dry and stable weather, giving us the luxury of dragging feet for better acclimatization before we make the big jump up for our summit bid.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
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Congratulations team! Hope everyone is feeling and doing great!
Posted by: Shannon Smith on 7/7/2019 at 8:45 am
Congrats Hahn and Team! Gods speed home.
Posted by: Uncle Mike on 7/7/2019 at 4:43 am
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