Sleeping and eating in Anchorage

This is Chris Kerrick, one of the guides on our exceptional adventure. Please understand that I am recovering from a late, late night last night. It was our last night together and our guests demanded from the guides endless toasts and speeches. Many of you whom have been following our trip may get to see some of the video footage taken at Orso's restaurant. Anush has a keen ability to capture people on video while they are at their worst. I would like to thank George for paying the bill last night. Your short speech is one that I will always remember. Thanks again.
This was my sixteenth trip on Denali and I feel that in many ways it was the most successful trip which I have been a part of. In the beginning we were 12 people from all over the world and at the end we were a team whom worked hard and cared for one another. I have never had so much help setting up camp, building the kitchen and snow walls. It is my hope that these trips inspire our guests to further explore life.
Thanks for following our climb on Denali,
Chris kerrick

Everybody's in Anchorage

They flew off the mountain this afternoon, and I brought them back to Anchorage this evening. A bunch of happy, sunburned faces.

God job everyone!

Trying to fly

The crew is all assembled at what is known as the "upper airstrip." The traditional strip was too soft and mushy for the pilots to want to attempt a landing, so the team hiked to the back up strip, located a half hour and several hundred feet higher. They are hoping to fly out today, but clouds have been moving in and out of the Range, so we are not certain if they will have a chance to fly or not.

We call this the "hurry up and wait" program. You need to hurry up to the upper strip and get yourselves ready for the air taxi, but you just might have to wait a while. Tempering your enthusiasm is crucial at this juncture. Rumor has it that some of the lads cached some beverages, which might help pass the time.

Be patient, hope for light winds to blow those clouds out, and stay tuned...

Coming Home

Chris called from Camp 3 this evening while as they were picking up some gear, and continuing down the mountain. They'll rest for a while along the way, but it's a pretty quick descent and they plan to be in base camp tomorrow.

Summit of Denali!!

Chris just called from the Summit of Denali at about 8:15pm AK time. They were enjoying a pretty nice evening up there, and the rest of the team was busy snapping pictures, and trying to catch there breath at 20,320 ft. They did great today, and will be heading back down to high camp in just a few minutes, the top of Denali isn't a place to dilly dally. George and Anush had to turn around with Peter, a guide from the other Mountain Trip team at around 19,000 ft. They are doing fine, it just wasn't their day to reach the top. It's the longest day of the trip, and everything has to be right to make it to the top. George and Anush are safely back in camp, so that's a success as well.

They'll begin the relatively quick descent to basecamp tomorrow, and be down in just a couple of days!

Congratulations.

Here's a link to a video that Todd took from the summit of Denali in 2007. It's a stunning place.

High Camp

The crew took a day to rest and acclimate today. They spent a few hours this afternoon digging in, and building walls with snow blocks to protect them from the wind. It was a bit windy today, not bad, but enought to encourage them to fortify their camp in case it picks up. This is a pretty common form of entertainment and exercise at high camp. Chris is pretty a meticulous wall builder, so they've probably got the best walls and squarest snow blocks in camp. They'll be watching the weather closely tomorrow (Tuesday) and hope to get a shot at the summit.

High Camp!

They made it to high camp today at 17,200 ft. It's a big day, and a pretty strenuous climb to get up there, so everyone is a bit tired tonight, but doing great. They'll plan on taking a rest day tomorrow, they'll need to be feeling strong and rested before the final push on up to the summit. They are excited to have made it up to high camp, now they just need one nice day to reach the summit.

The last 1000 ft of climbing up the ridge to reach high camp is some of the most beautiful on the West Buttress route. Here's a picture of the ridge looking back from camp, if you click on the image you can see climbers on the route.


Here's a picture of high camp, with the trail leading to Denali pass, and on to the summit in the back.