Trapper Creek, AK - Let's Climb Denali ! ! !

OK, you have climbing Denali on your bucket list. I’ll go with you. Here’s what we need to do.
First, let’s look at the challenge. Here’s a 12’ x 12’ model of a 20 square mile section of Denali NP with its center, Mt. Denali, our goal. There are several routes that climbers have taken but we’re going to take the most common route which is to fly in and land on the Kahiltna glacier, establish base camp and then begin the climb. It will take approximately 21 days, if we’re lucky to make the climb.

You’re going to fly in and land to the right of the green dot at the lower right hand corner. There you’ll move from number to number until you hit #1 at the top. At each number, you’ll stay a few days to get acclimated to the altitude and thinness of the air. You’ll climb this without oxygen since it really isn’t necessary for this height and thus will only add weight to your pack. The toughest part is climbing from #4 to #3 since that is up the headwall and pretty steep.

 

First we should be prepared, we should have climbed some other glaciated mountains like this, we should be experienced in spending 3+ weeks in arctic conditions (this is an expedition, not a hike), we should know how to walk on glaciers, we should have trained carrying a 40 - 70 lb. pack (there are no sherpas on Mt. Denali) and pulling a 60 — 80 lb. sled for 6 - 8 hours at a stretch, we should have the right equipment (this is not cheap - let’s get a second job), we should - well, ‘we should’ but, as we know, the National Park Service lets everyone who wants to climb Denali, climb it. We’ve filled in an application to pre-register, paid a fee of $385, sent it in and we’ve gotten a call from a ranger to ascertain our readiness to make this climb. They might try to dissuade us but, if anyone wants to climb Denali with no experience and no skills, go ahead. They’ll even rescue you for free - well, actually we taxpayers pay for your rescue. But we also pay to rescue people who are at sea also.

So, we’ve paid our fee, we’ve gained experience, you’ve trained, we’ve got the correct equipment and we’ve even hired a guide service, now we’ve come to Talkeetna, AK, gone to the National Park Ranger building and checked in. Here we’ll get a talk about the hike and watch a film. Then, we hope we’re not like Sean, here, who’s been waiting for the weather to clear for 2 days. He’s sick and tired of playing scrabble but he got the notice today that his plane is flying at 2:30. He and his team will load up and fly into the Kahiltna glacier to set up their base camp then.

We’ve chosen to hike up the West Buttress since 90% of climbers attempt this route. We’ve also chosen to hike up on May 22, since the best weather is between May and July. Tomorrow we fly in. We’re not going to be alone, this is one of the ‘Seven Summits’, the tallest mountain on each of the 7 continents and it’s popular. Over a typical climbing season, 500 - 600 climbers will be on Denali. Sometimes, there might be several hundred climbers setting up camp at the same time.

Our trip will probably take 17 - 21 days, though this will depend upon the conditions and - the weather. Most expeditions plan for 21 - 28 days with food for this length but the Ranger who gave us our talk told us that their expedition never got a window for the final assent before they had to descend because they were running out of food.

Our plan is to follow a ‘leap-frog’ strategy, i.e. we’ll carry a load of gear forward and drop it off, then descend to a lower elevation camp for the night and advance the following day to our gear, and carry that higher and descend again to a lower elevation to camp for the night. This way we’ll acclimate to the altitude and won’t wear ourselves out. The rule of thumb is generally 'climb high and sleep low', and don't ascend more than 1,000 feet (300m) per day above 10,000-feet elevation.

You’ll mark your cache with this 4’ bamboo stick with your team’s number on it. The ravens have learned that these sticks mark food so you’d better bury it deep ‘cause they’ll find it if you don’t.

Weather and wind chill. Deal with it. This is the only one of the Seven Summits that is near the Arctic, most are near the equator. On Denali temperatures can get down to -35F and there will be wind - maybe 50 - 60 mph. Maybe more. Snow storms are common and frostbite is a common ailment. (The NPS has already had to rescue 3 climbers this year with frostbite.) At the higher elevations, you cut snow into large blocks and arrange them around your tent for a wind screen. If you’re lucky, you might find someone else’s snow wall.

Altitude sickness. Don’t climb too fast. 1000’ per day is the rule of thumb. I’m going to take Diamox prior to the climb to help prevent altitude sickness and I’d recommend that you do too. But, remember if you get a headache or nausea, you might have altitude sickness. Don’t brush it off - do something about it.

We’ve got rope since we’ll be roped to everyone else in our team so that no one falls through a crevasse without being tied to someone else. If you are on either side of the person who has fallen in immediately shove your ice axe in behind you, get as low as possible so you aren’t dragged in too. Now the person inside the crevasse has to ice axe him- or her-self out. Ah, here’s where all those push-ups and pull-ups come in handy.

No can, no climb. Hmmm. You got it, this refers to human waste. The Ranger told us that there was a designated ‘pee’ spot in every camp. But solid waste has to be deposited into a plastic lined can. When the can is full, the plastic bag is dropped down a very deep crevasse. At higher altitudes, it is saved and brought down the hill. Rangers patrol the climbing route and, if they ask if you have a CMC (Clean Mountain Can) and you do not, they will end your climb and send you back down to base camp. Women use a Lady J or a Freshette (a funnel kind of thing) and you can buy these on Amazon. She told us that practicing use of this prior to your climb was absolutely essential.
Although it takes 21 days to ascend, we’ll probably descend in 2 days.

On second thought, maybe I won’t go. Maybe I’ll just sit in in my warm RV waiting to congratulate you when you get back.

And, that’s what we learned about hiking Denali from a Ranger who actually had gotten most of the way up until their food ran low waiting for the weather to clear for their final assent.

Around the room were other pictures. I particularly liked this one showing the first woman who ascended the peak. Here They are climbing another mountain with full packs.

There was another small room with artifacts from previous climbs.

Here’s a neat display comparing what climbers wore in the past with what they wear today.

On the other hand, they had a display about a young man who died on Denali, Naomi, Uemura.

He’s the first person to summit Mt. Denali solo in the winter. Unfortunately he died on the descent and his body remains on the mountain. He had already been credited with being the first to solo on Mt. Denali in the summer. He was also the first Japanese climber to reach the summit of Mt Everest, the first solo adventurer to the North Pole by dog sled, the first soloist to reach the summits of the highest peaks in North & South America, Europe and Africa. He also journeyed down the Amazon River from the mountains to the sea on a raft he had built.

A very sobering reminder to those eager climbers we saw today.

Alaska has an estimated 100,000 glaciers, ranging from tiny cirque glaciers to huge valley glaciers. There are more active glaciers and ice fields in Alaska than in the rest of the inhabited world. The largest glacier is the Malaspina at 850 square miles. Five percent of the state, or 29,000 square miles, is covered by glaciers.