Mountain Trip's June 8, 2009 West Buttress Expedit

In Talkeetna!

2009-07-01T18:23:00.000-07:00

The team has all flown from the glacier to the little hamlet of Talkeetna. They plan to spend the evening in town and will drive back to Anchorage tomorrow. It is a bit of an abrupt transition to go from the heart of the Alaska Range to downtown Anchorage too quickly.

I'll try to get the guides to add a post or two, and will encourage everyone to send me photos to add to this dispatch blog, but for now...that's all folks!

On their way to Base Camp

2009-07-01T06:56:00.000-07:00

One of the guides from another Mountain Trip team called an hour ago, and reported that the crew had recently passed through Camp 1 at 7,800'. Temperatures are fairly cold, so the glacier between Camp 1 and Base Camp should be in good shape. They should arrive in the next few hours, and the weather looks great for flying!

Not much beats flying out from the glacier early in the morning, catching a quick shower, and heading down to the Talkeetna Roadhouse to challenge your appetite against their whopping "Full Talkeetna Standard" breakfast. Few, but Denali climbers, are up to the task...

The suspense is over!

2009-06-30T14:48:00.000-07:00

I just received third-hand news from the team and we know know who made the summit.

Jack Strickland, Babptista Kwok and Martin Douthitt all reached the summit the day before yesterday.

I do not know the circumstances surrounding Christian, however he and the rest of the team are all at Camp 3 at 14,200' (4328 m), and should be descending shortly. They planned on sleeping late today, and will pack up and head down to Camp 1 at 7,800' (2380 m) this afternoon or evening, Alaska Time. Guide Bill Dwyer needed to get back for personal reasons, so he descended through the night last night and is currently in Talkeetna.

Congratulations to all the team. Climbing Denali is a lot of hard work and you all did great!

I'll keep posting as I receive updates on their descent.

Messages from 17,200 feet

2009-06-29T13:58:00.000-07:00

I just received a barely intelligible message from Greg Nappi. Some of the climbers would like us to pass along the following messages. I'm sorry that I still can not give any more information as to who summitted, because I am still not certain. So much for high tech satellite communication!

Here are the messages:

Jack Strickland: (admittedly plagiarizing Sir Edmund Hillary) "We knocked the bastard off!"

Baptista: "To the Apex Dental staff, friends and family, and Christine, we're doing well and coming downtoday."

Christian: "To Krista and Franz, we're OK and coming down!"

A view from the top!

2009-06-29T13:53:00.001-07:00

Here is a video I shot in 2007 from the summit of Denali on a day very similar to the one the crew experienced yesterday.

Summit!!!

2009-06-29T12:18:00.000-07:00

I received word that the team made a push for the summit yesterday (Sunday, June 28) and that three of the four climbers made it to the summit!

Sorry for the suspense, but I do not know who the three climbers were, or which of the guides went to the top with them. The day looked like a beautiful summit day, so their views from the top of North America must have been absolutely stunning.

The route up from High Camp ascends a long, rising traverse up to a saddle that separated the north and south summits of Denali. From this saddle (Denali Pass), the team made a hard right hand turn and climbed up through some rolling terrain to reach a large plateau at 19,500, known as the Football Field. The Football Field is a great place to rest up and re-group for the push up to the summit ridge. There is a steep 500' hill to climb which puts the climbers on the knife edged summit ridge that leads to the summit. The climbing through the last several hundred feet is spectacular and very engaging, with big drop offs of either side of the ridge.

Congratulations to all the climbers for their hard work. I'll post more details as I receive them.

Still at High Camp

2009-06-27T18:04:00.000-07:00

The team woke up to -15 F (-22 C) temperatures this morning, which is unseasonably cold for Denali. The wind higher up was ferocious and they sat tight and watched as clouds steamed past.

Tomorrow will be their 20th day on the mountain, and they are feeling all the emotions and pressures associated with spending so long in such an unforgiving environment. Hopefully the weather will improve and they will get a chance to head for the top tomorrow.

Today was a classic example of how the weather forecast can be completely wrong. It sure looked like a good day on the weather site, but I guess Denali does not get internet, and missed last night's weather call, because it did not cooperate.

Hang tough up there, fellows!

Resting and Acclimatizing at High Camp

2009-06-27T07:58:00.000-07:00

Greg called in late last night and said that yesterday (Friday) was not a good summit day. High winds and a thick lenticular cloud conspired to make the crew take a rest and acclimatization day. The additional time at High Camp should help a lot if they have a summit window today.

High Camp is a stark, windswept landscape, surrounded by BIG views. It is hard to relax up there, because the altitude makes everything difficult, and you're feeling pretty anxious about the next day of work. You pass the hours keeping an eye out for telltale signs that the weather might be improving enough to make a go for the top, and that makes it a bit tough to just kick back and read those last chapters in your book.

Today's forecast and view from the TAT webcam look favorable, so if visibility is decent, I suspect the crew will pack up and start heading up the long, rising traverse called the Autobahn that leads to Denali Pass. From this point, they will be able to better see the summit proper, and can reevaluate whether to puch higher.

Jack sends a message out to his friends and family: "Target in sight! Thanks for the love and support"

Jack has put more time in on that mountain than mmany climbers, so I sure hope the weather gives him a shot.

Best of luck to all of you up there at 17,200' on Denali. We'll keep everyone else updated on their progress as we hear reports throughout the day.

Continuing the Camp 3 "Hang."

2009-06-25T11:07:00.000-07:00

The crew is still hanging out at Camp 3. The weather has improved tremenously today, however the recent snows have created some degree of avalanche hazard, so they will probably wait for the new snow to settle or slide before heading up hill.

We received some reports of avalanches in the vivinity of the fixed lines, so that area might become cleared out enough for the team to head up, but I would bet that they will wait until tomorrow to head up to High Camp.

Yet Another Snowy Denali Day...

2009-06-24T00:17:00.001-07:00

They watched the snow again today. They described the weather as living inside of a ping pong ball, white all around. The low pressure is expected to hang around for another day, and then weaken. They've got plenty of time, food, and patience left.

Messages from the guys: (as best as I could understand them)

Christian is fine say's hi to Christa and Ron

Jack: Hi, Jeff wish you were here to carry my pack.
Hey Kate get off my cloud.

Yep, another snowy day.

2009-06-22T20:31:00.000-07:00

You get the idea... same as yesterday, watching the weather and trying hard to wish it away. The only thing you can count on with the weather is that it will change.

Yet Another Snowy Denali Day...

2009-06-21T20:57:00.000-07:00

Pretty much the same story as yesterday up high on Denali. The winds have picked up a bit and it is expected to be a bit stormy for a day or two. They'll hang out for another day or two waiting for the break that almost always comes.

They are in good company at this camp right now, we have 2 other Mountain Trip groups there right now, as well as lots of other teams. They'll probably be obsessing over the weather forecasts, but we like to say that the forecast is for entertainment purposes only, and not a decision making tool. The forecast is posted on a board next to the Park Services tents, and climbers watch it constantly as if they could wish the weather away if they just try hard enough.

Jared just got back to the house in Anchorage, after leaving Camp 3 less than 24 hours ago. He's still coughing and feeling pretty crappy, but he's back to the lowlands with lot's of extra oxygen where he can get better.

A snowy day on Denali

2009-06-20T20:18:00.000-07:00

It was another snowy day up at 14,ooo today, but the guys were able to go for a climb to about 15,500 ft to get some exercise and help acclimate. They did great today, and after another day of rest, hope to move right on up to high camp.

Jared is still not well, and has gotten a bit worse over the last couple of days. He's going to have to come down with another team this evening. He's disappointed to have to leave the group, but he's not getting better and he needs to come down so he can get healthy. This still leaves the team with 3 guides, so they've got plenty of help. Jared should be in base camp by tomorrow morning, and will fly out right away.

Resting and Acclimating at 14,000 ft

2009-06-19T17:22:00.001-07:00

The team is resting and acclimating today again, a couple of days will pay off when they get ready to move higher. Jared is still fighting a cold, so a couple of days rest won't hurt him at all either. Not much to report, everyone is doing good and eating very well. They'll probably take another rest day tomorrow, and then start making plans to move up to high camp.

Moving up to Camp 3, 14,200ft

2009-06-17T23:47:00.000-07:00

The team made the move up to Camp 3 today. It was a bit snowy, but otherwise a pretty reasonable day up there. The guys were definitely tired when they got to camp, but they made it and are doing great. They settled in for at least 4 nights at this camp, so it will be home for a little while. This is a spot where lots of teams congregate waiting for good weather to move up higher on the mountain so it becomes quite a social scene. It is a pretty entertaining place with climbers from all over the world.

Tomorrow they plan to sleep in and take a rest/acclimitization day.

Here's a picture of the 14k camp taken from above, it's a bit of a tent city during the climbing season. Mount Hunter is the biggest peak in the background.

Carrying Loads around Windy Corner

2009-06-15T20:39:00.000-07:00

The guys got back to work today carrying a load of food and fuel up to 13,500 ft around the aptly named "Windy Corner". They had a beautiful morning, and some clouds started building up in the afternoon, but nothing much on the weather front.

They got back to camp this afternoon a pretty tired crew, and plan to take a rest day tomorrow before pushing on up to the next camp.

A day of rest at 11,200ft

2009-06-14T22:28:00.000-07:00

The guys took a day to rest and acclimate today. Not much to report, lots of time to sleep in, eat a big breakfast, nap, read, eat, nap, read, repeat... Climbing is such hard work.

Denali Camp 2

2009-06-13T18:22:00.000-07:00

The guys moved on up to Camp 2 at 11,200 ft this morning, and Jared just called in at around 5 pm AK time. They did great today, moved slow and steady up to their new home for the next few nights. Jared is feeling a bit better, but the new altitude isn't helping him kick the cold. They are currently hiding from the sun in their tents and taking an afternoon nap before dinner. Tomorrow they'll probably just take a rest day to relax a bit and acclimate to the new altitude.

There were some personal messages from the guys.

Jack- Happy Birthday to his Wife and Daughter!

Christian - Christian sends a Denali mountain of kisses.... then we were cut off, I'm sure you know who you are. Maybe Jared will call back to give me the last of the message this evening.

Moving up to Camp 2

2009-06-13T13:57:00.001-07:00

The team is doing great, Jared is feeling better, and they are moving on up to Camp 2 today. I'll fill in some details after their evening Sat phone call.

Camp 1

2009-06-11T21:12:00.000-07:00

The team moved up to Camp 1 today, about 6 miles up the Kahiltna glacier. Yesterday they spent the day in base camp going over some crevasse rescue skills, while two of the guides hauled some food and fuel up to stock Camp 1.

The view of Denali from Camp 1, looking up the NE fork of the Kahiltna.

The route from Base Camp to Camp 1 does not gain much altitude overall, but the trail drops about 600 feet right out of Base Camp, so the total altitude gain ends up being about 1,200 ' (365 m). There are a couple of fairly heavily crevassed sections along the way, and the team needed to take care to negotiate these areas. There is not nearly as much crevasse hazard from Camp 1 until they turn Windy Corner at about 13,500' (4115 m).

A view looking southeast over Camp 1 toward the E Fork of the Kahiltna, with Mt Francis to the right and Mt Hunter in the clouds at center. (shot from previous trip)

Everyone is doing great, except Jared the lead guide who has picked up a bit of a cold. He's doing Ok, but is certainly hoping he gets better in the next few days.

Base Camp!

2009-06-09T21:40:00.001-07:00

The team flew in right on schedule today, so they are now camped out at base camp 7,200 ft on the SE Fork of the Kahiltna glacier where the plane dropped them off. They'll wait until early morning before travelling on the glacier so they can take advantage of the cool temps and frozen snow. It can get quite warm on the lower glacier this time of year when the sun is shining.

The Team in Anchorage

2009-06-08T23:16:00.000-07:00

Here's the team. They met in Anchorage this morning for the pre trip breifings, gear check, and a stop at the local climbing store for a few last minute items. The guys are fired up and ready to go. They'll be heading to Talkeetna tomorrow morning, and will be flying onto the glacier by mid day.

Welcome to Mountain Trip's June 8, 2009 Denali Climb

2009-04-24T11:16:00.000-07:00

In the far north lies one of the most magnificent ranges of mountains in the world. The Alaska Range stretches 400 miles across southcentral Alaska. It is a wild place, covered in glaciers and punctuated by rugged peaks. The crown of the range is Denali, at 20,320 feet (6194 m), the highest peak in North America. Located so close to the Arctic circle, Denali can present some of the most challenging and rugged conditions of any mountain on earth.

Each year a relatively few climbers from around the world migrate to test themselves on the slopes of Denali. Mountain Trip has been assisting these climbers achieve their Denali dreams since 1976. We love what we do and are happy to help provide you a taste of what these climbers are experiencing by updating their progress in this blog. Following the expedition, we will post numerous photos from the expedition, so please keep checking in.

On June 8, 2009, a small team of climbers will arrive in Anchorage. They will be accompanied by the following Mountain Trip guides:

Zach Schlosar from Anchorage, AK
Jared Villhauer from Ophir, CO
Adam Smith from Anchorage, AK
Bill Dwyer from Juneau, AK

The climbers are:

Martin Douthitt from the US
Jack Strickland from the US
Christian Welponer from Italy
Baptista Kwok from the US

Please keep in mind that communication from the big mountains can be challenging and occasionally intermittent. We will post updates as often as possible, but please keep in mind the old adage, "NO NEWS IS GOOD NEWS!" when it comes to communications from the Range.

Also, please be advised that while we will attempt to pass comments along to the climbers, this is not always possible. The intent of this dispatch blog is to keep you up to date on your friends' and loved ones' progress while on the expedition, and to give you an opportunity to express your support of their dreams. We are certain they will love to read all of your comments when they get back to civilization, so please do post comments.