Entries from Alaska

Tuesday, May 27, 2025 - 12:02 am PT

Day 10 of eating our way across Denali brought to you by RMIGuides.com…as we all lay in our tents in the frigid cold morning air, waiting with bated breath for the verdict go/no go for the day, are we going for a stroll up to 17,000' Camp or will we chill at camp for another day waiting for our perfect window and eating as many snacks as humanly possible? The more important thing we were all waiting to hear is “breakfast in 5”. Because snacks are definitely not enough calories obviously for this group.  These words drive us all to struggle out of our cozy sleeping bags, and put on our puffy pants and jackets, hats and boots as quickly as possible to see what delicious 5 star Yelp meal awaits us to start our day…this morning, they had me at “bacon”.  This word is special to me as I live with the most incredible vegetarian on the planet, my spouse Dr. Lauralynn Jansen, who is an amazing cook and human being, but there is no way in hell she is ever cooking bacon in our kitchen. Gotta get it when I can! Love ya babe!  We stagger out of our tents making our way to the warm cook tent like we haven’t eaten in days and get settled shoulder to shoulder and all check in on each other and on our sleep for that night, sipping a hot drink as we wait for our gourmet bagels and BACON!!

Jason apparently got a full 7 hours and was bragging just a bit. Said he was amped to get the acclimatization hike and summit attempt all knocked out today and call it good.  He may need to lay off the moxy a bit or the rest of us need to get on board and step up our game! I think the rest of us were not necessarily on the same page….as far as my sleep, the outstanding loaner inflatable mat allowed me about a good solid 15 minutes of comfort as it proceeded to slide right out from under me like it was greased up with Crisco prior to me using it.  I relished that precious 15 minutes however.  I’ll take the short stints of comfort when I can get it. 

After breakfast we decided to take a walk around the camp to stretch out the legs and do some meet and greet with other climbers which ended up being bartering for toilet paper and kielbasas (shocker) as we certainly need to make sure we do not run out of food or TP at this stage of the game. That kielbasa could potentially save our lives for sure in the long run and you know, that TP speaks for itself.  We also had a nice visit with the Park Rangers and we made our way back to camp to some yoga, stretching, pushups, 7-min abs, and some squats to get the blood pumping. Oh how I miss going for a run, but this will do for now as the energy expenditure and effort is about to go up exponentially in the next few days much to our chagrin. Welcome to the reality of why we are here. 

Some home renovations also took place today for our three musketeers tent that needed some leveling work for sure. Team effort, supervised by Task Master Juan (much less critical than previous Project Manager Ethan for sure) provided a much needed leveling upgrade to our snow flooring which will hopefully keep me from unintentionally violating tent space as I roll off my mat. We were also super pumped to see our RMI Team come in from their summit that gave us hope for our team and the effort it will take to reach the top.

Meanwhile, the cook tent was transformed into Casino Royale with Ocean’s 15 blowing up (minus Brad Pitt and George Clooney- sorry guys) as Farkle die were flying and high stakes betting was taking place for Snickers, gorp, sausage, Oreos and other high value items that we certainly don’t have enough of already.  If memory serves me correctly, Senior Juan put the smackdown on the other players and holds bragging rights until the next game fired up.  In addition, Christmas came early as Seth showed up later in the day with an additional inflatable mat for us to use so we will be living large in Musketeer Central.  A special thanks to Grace for burning the incense as it’s getting a bit ripe in these parts let’s be honest and it was lovely to the smell…We have really enjoyed this down time to enjoy each other’s company and continue to rest, hydrate and of course eat… speaking of eating, we hear the hot water brewing as our Master Chef Seth once again prepare the evening meal of Jambalaya and Oreo Cheesecake deliciousness. Shut the front door!  Thank you again to our fearless leaders Seth, Jackson and Ray.  Especially for taking care of my feet. I continue to embrace and appreciate each and every moment of this journey and look forward to what tomorrow brings to this team. 

Thanks for all of your support! It is greatly appreciated!

-RMI Climber Shannon

Monnday, May 26, 2025 - 8:09 am PT

Mt. McKinley Summit!

It was a splitter morning, so we prepped for a big day and left at 10:15 with sun on camp and the Autobahn in the shade. For that reason we were wearing pretty much everything we had. There had been maybe one other guided team above 17,000' this year, and not much traffic overall, so the infamous Autobahn needed quite a bit of foot scuffing and picket hammering as we passed. It made for tough work, but we were across to Denali Pass. Light wind and clouds that were in and out were the rest of the day, and at 6:15 AK time, we walked onto the summit. It’s always emotional reaching a big goal, and we took it in before turning our attention downhill. Moving down under the late Alaskan light we made good time and were back at camp at 10:15. A late dinner, recovery, and sleep are in store.

Tomorrow we’ll start the descent to the airstrip, which is always incredible in its speed.

RMI Guide Pete, Nick, Ben, and a very happy and tired team.

Sunday, May 25, 2025 - 10:16 pm PT

We continue to hang at 14,000' Camp, acclimatizing, resting, going on small walks to stretch our achy legs, and working on the skills that we will need to ascend the higher reaches of the mountain. After a leisurely morning, our guides had us practice using our ascenders, clipping in and out of anchors, clipping in and out of anchors, and descending the fixed lines using the trusty arm wrap. We repeated until Seth was confident that we could perform these drills with cold hands.

As the pace of life has slowed during this phase of the expedition and we have many (many) hours in the tent with our own thoughts, I’ve curated my top 5 life hacks from the top of North America:

      1. Say goodbye to dish detergent and sponge - fresh powdery snow makes a great all-natural scrub for cleaning your single bowl, mug, and spork. Just step outside, grab a handful of nature’s Dawn, and get to work! Please be sure you select a patch of snow that is indeed white.

       2. Alternatively, forget the dish washing routine altogether and embrace the complex layerings of flavor that can only be experienced when you brew tea in the same mug as last night’s corn soup, or slurp Cinnamon Toast Crunch with undertones of Madras Lentils.

      3. Worried that your sticky-fingers roommate will take your last slice of leftover pizza, or a sneaky coworker will swipe your oat milk creamer AGAIN? Here’s what you gotta do: wrap your precious perishables in a trash bag and bury it deep in the snow! Your goodies will stay cold and fresh, and hidden from greedy scavengers. Just budget a good 20 minutes to dig it up when you need it.

      4. Too lazy to take dry clean only items in for a proper cleaning? Just set dingy laundry like sleeping bags and boot liners out in the sun to sanitize. At least, we think it’s working - our noses have become desensitized to our collective eau de parfum naturel.

        5. Lastly, to all my nocturnal urinators: A pee bottle is the greatest luxury you can add to your life. Not only does the pee bottle save you a trip outside the tent in the middle of a cold night, but you can then tuck it in your sleeping bag as a sort of cozy hot water bottle. Just make sure it has a spill-proof lid. 

In all seriousness, we love and miss you all back home! Sending so much love to ma and pa in Vancouver, David in NYC, Grammie and Granddad and family in Nova Scotia, all the fam in Toronto and Boston, and our supportive friends in Seattle!

A special shout out to our youngest reader, Gene, burgeoning outdoorsperson and super rad human! Say hi to your mom for me!

Love,

RMI Climber Grace

Monday, May 26, 2025 - 12:07 am PT

Summit success for the Mt. McKinley May 8th Expedition!  Yesterday Pete Van Deventer and team reached the highest point in North America.  Pete checked in when the team had safely returned to 17,000' Camp.  More details will be coming soon (we hope).

Congratulations team!

Sunday, May 25, 2025 - 9:48 am PT

We are all set up at 14,000 Camp acclimating and waiting for our weather window.  After a breakfast of bagels and bacon we went and picked up our cache at Windy Corner.  The next few days look to hold plenty of rest as we expect some weather to move in.

RMI Guide Seth Burns
 

Saturday, May 24, 2025 - 9:03 pm PT

We made the big move and started the final push. Things looked good this morning so we got things running early, packed all the necessities for going up high, and walked out in the shade. Soon the sun was on us, and cold became very hot. We made good progress up the fixed lines, across the West Buttress and into 17,000' Camp. We’ve got camp built, stoves are roaring towards dinner, and we’ll wake up and see what tomorrow brings.

Best,
RMI Guides Pete, Nick, Ben, and team

Friday, May 23, 2025 - 2:24pm PDT

Yesterday It was a cold, clear morning that promised to warm quickly with the sun. The ridge above looked calm, and everything pointed to a great day to go climbing. We watched a few other teams with similar intentions start out as we packed, and then set out ourselves. We made smooth progress to the fixed lines and then up to the ridge at 16,200. Surprisingly, we found ourselves effectively at the front of the pack, and feeling spry, we continued on along the West Buttress to 17k camp. It is some of the most engaging and interesting climbing on the route, and the views were stunning. We dropped our small caches at 17 and headed back for 14. It was a long, big-effort day, but 9.5 hours of work got the job done and got us back to camp happy and hungry. We’ll take a rest day tomorrow and then start looking for our summit window.

RMI Guides Pete, Nick, Ben, and Team

The hottest new restaurant in Alaska is Maureen’s, currently located at the 11K camp on Denali. Started by a trio of up-and-coming chefs (Jackson, Ray, and Seth), who also happen to moonlight as mountain guides, Maureen’s serves up delicious Tex-Mex fare with Asian and Creole inspirations, reflective of the chefs’ diverse backgrounds. “Corn is pretty much my greatest inspiration; I can turn a tortilla into just about anything,” says Chef Jackson, citing his Iowan roots. The pop-up restaurant is small, seating 9 and squatting 1.

On a busy night of service, guests can hear Chef “Sweet Baby” Ray rapping to OutKast with an inexplicably thick Eastern European accent while whipping up a jambalaya in the open kitchen. The portions are generous, much appreciated on big efforts such as caching heavy packs of gear up to 13K ft.

When not working the breakfast shift, Chef Seth runs front of house, chatting up the regulars and offering sweet words of affirmation, which they desperately need to wake up each morning. There is relatively little to complain about, except maybe the limited beverage list (despite the chefs’ weird insistence on tasting the glacial terroir — it’s just hot water), the overpowering red polyester decor (reportedly Maureen’s favorite color), and the ever-present undertones of body odor. Dress code is casual, although insulated down is highly recommended. Gluten-free options are available upon request.

– Jason

Wednesday, May 21, 2025 - 10:59 pm PT

Sunshine!

It was great to see the sun today. After a leisurely breakfast we got our one main task done for the day, going to pick up our cache at 10,200ft. Despite some annoyingly cold wind and deep trail breaking, we got this done in a short three hours.  The rest of the day was spent relaxing and resting up. Tomorrow we hope to climb higher, putting in a cache just above Windy Corner around 13,500'.

RMI Guide Seth Burns

Wednesday, May 21, 2025 - 10:29 pm PT

Things started to turn nicer up on our big hill. The snow and clouds blew out today, winds quieted, and we spent the day addressing logistical hurdles. The first was that we found out last night that the downline of the fixed lines hadn’t been freed of its icy tomb, so there was a rope going up but not down- recipe for a traffic jam. We made a plan with teams from AMS to send a couple of guides from each team up to sledge hammer out the lines. Accordingly that meant we couldn’t go for a carry as a team. Additionally another guided team needed a guide loan to get their back carry in. So, Nick helped another team with their carry, got back in time for Ben and Pete to head uphill, then Nick took the group to the Edge of the World to look down on the lower Kahiltna Glacier and our first camp at Ski Hill. We were all reunited this evening over a tortellini dinner, and we’ll assess whether to get our carry in tomorrow!

Full team day.

RMI Guides Pete, Nick, Ben, and team

PC: Pete Van Deventer, Edge of the World. From Previous Expedition