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 May 3, 2009, a team of climbers will arrive in Anchorage. They will be accompanied by three Mountain Trip guides and a Swiss mountain guide:
Dave Staeheli from Palmer, Alaska
Pablo Puruncajas from Seattle, WA
Adam Smith from Anchorage, Alaska
Lucas Iten from Switzerland
The Swiss Denali Team consists of:
Heribert Oebel
Matthias Christian Berthold
Georg Hasch
Andreas Steigenberger
Hans Maier
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.
High Camp on summit morning, looking over at Mount Foraker
Climbing above High Camp (click on the photo and you can see the tents at top right), through the long traverse to Denali Pass 18,000 feet.
Climbing above Denali Pass at about 19,000 feet.
Part of the team headed toward the summit, on the dramatic, knife-edged summit ridge.
On the top of North America!
The last few meters can seem the hardest, as you step off the ridge and re-group below the summit...
On the summit!!
The sun was sinking low in the "Land Of The Midnight Sun" as the team descended back to high camp, following the summit.
On the descent the team stopped at Camp 2 for food and to pick up their skis for the remaining 9.5 miles (15 K) of descent.
The crew team, back at base camp.
