Denali 2008

THURSDAY, JUNE 5, 2008

Coming off the mountain

As most of you know I'm finally off the mountain. 23 days waiting for the right timing to go for the summit, and 2 additional to come all the way off. It was definitely an adventure of a lifetime. For the past few days I've been eating like a pig....anything and everything in sight. It's been great. Just like coming off the mountain, all great things must come to an end. So starting tomorrow my eating habits will change and I'll begin exercising for whatever next adventure. In the near future Wendy and I have Mt. Rainier. That should be fun being able to share the experience together rather than sharing it through the connection of a satellite phone. Thanks to everyone that clicked in for updates and following along. It was fun. To the right I posted a few photos of the trip, and larger ones on the bottom. I'll see what I can do for a slide show. Thanks again. Wes

SUNDAY, JUNE 1, 2008

Wes in Talkeetna!

Wes landed in Talkeetna about 30 minutes ago. Dan and Brian were on the same flight as Wes. Jerry and Billy are also in Talkeetna. They had the first flight out. Wes, Dan and Brian got the second flight out because they had helped carry Jerry's stuff. The rest of the team will also be coming off the mountain tonight. Everyone says that this team set a new RMI record of being on the mountain the longest - 25 days! Wes said that the first flight from Hudson Air that landed at Base Camp greeted the climbers with a case of Miller Lite. Tonight the team will get together for a celebratory dinner. They will stay the night at the Talkeetna Hotel otherwise known as T.P. The team will take the shuttle back to Anchorage in the morning. Wes found out that the people around there call Denali "Big Mac." He has already shed his mountaineering boots and is walking around in flip flops. He said it feels weird to be without his boots. Everything is really green and it is about 75 degrees right now. They went from minus 50 with the wind chill to 75 degrees in just a couple of days. Wes is planning on staying at the Historic Anchorage Hotel tomorrow night and will be home on Tuesday. He said he met a bunch of really great guys on this trip. A big thank you goes out to the guides - Mike, Billy and Federico. They really seemed to be motivated and interested in making sure their team succeeded in the climb - even though it meant staying on the mountain longer than expected and foraging for extra food. The most important thing is that they made sure the team got back safely. This was a much different experience in terms of guides for Wes than last year. Thanks to all who wrote comments - I know the guys appreciated getting hellos from home. Tune in next year to catch the blog on Wes' next adventure - will it be Aconcagua or Cho Oyu? Now on to Rainier!

Team at Base Camp

The team left 11,000 feet this morning at 2:00 a.m. They hiked for six hours across the Kahiltna Glacier and got into Base Camp at 8:00 a.m. They set up a tent and slept for a few hours. They have all their gear ready in case they are able to fly out. The weather is marginal right now but the team is still hoping to fly off the mountain today. There are a lot of "walking wounded" - mainly some bad blisters. If they are able to fly out they will be taking the cold injury people off first. Jerry and the guy from India will be the first ones to go. I'll let you know when the team gets in to Talkeetna.

SATURDAY, MAY 31, 2008

Team Back at Medical Camp

The team has made it back down to Medical Camp. They plan to stay there for a little longer and then hopefully move down to 11,000 tonight and stay there until morning. They found out that it was 50 below with the wind chill when they were at the summit. There were a lot of frostbite injuries yesterday due to the severe cold. Jerry has some frostbite on his right hand. He is currently in the medical tent being taken care of. A climber from India on the AAI team is going to lose a couple of fingers - they are completely black. Wes said he was wearing every piece of clothing that he brought with him when he made the summit. He did not have any skin exposed at all. He said his La Sportiva boots were a great investment - his feet were really warm. When they got back to 14,000 they saw that their igloo was still standing. Wes went around with a sled full of food and fuel and offered it to some of the other teams that are making their way up the mountain. The more they can get rid of the less they have to take with them on the climb down.

Team Safely back at Camp V

Wes just called and sounds exhausted! He said the excitement of making the summit will probably set in later today or tomorrow. Right now he is too tired. He said they left yesterday at 10 am and did not get back to camp until 10 pm. They ate dinner around midnight (some freeze dried food) and then everyone passed out. He said no one tossed and turned at all, they slept like stones. Right now everyone is still sleeping. Wes said ALL of the team made it to the summit! He said it was everything he expected and then some. It was a real mental challenge. It was like running a marathon with a backpack on and breathing through a straw. It was one of his toughest days ever. He said it was really treacherous and very cold. They were all roped in but walking right along the edge of the mountain. It was pretty "insane." He said there were a lot of people going for the summit but not all of the people made it. Wes said he had plenty of food but it got to the point where his body just didn't want to take in any food at all. He said he sucked down a lot of Goo and it would take about 10 minutes to kick in and then he would feel energized to move on - however that didn't last very long and then he was sucking down more Goo. It was about minus 20 degrees with winds about 20 to 25 mph at the summit. John and Wes could see the curvature of the earth. He said the views were spectacular. They didn't spend much time at the summit. He said everyone was so tired and didn't have the energy to take many pictures but they got some. The plan for today is to rest a little longer and eat breakfast. The team will then move down to 11,000 feet tonight and spend a few hours. Tomorrow they will move down to Base Camp and hopefully fly out to Talkeetna. The weather is supposed to be good. They will probably spend the night in Talkeetna on Sunday and get back to Anchorage on Monday. Wes may come home Monday really late or spend the night in Anchorage and get home Tuesday (four weeks after he left).

SUMMIT!!!!!!!!!!

After 23 days on the mountain the team has summited Denali! They summited at about 6 pm yesterday. More details to come when Wes calls in.

FRIDAY, MAY 30, 2008

Team on the Move!

The team is making their summit attempt today! According to the RMI website all three teams at High Camp are making their bid for the summit right now. The weather is sunny with minimal wind at the moment. As of 12 pm Alaska time, Wes' team is right below the other two RMI teams who have reached Denali Pass at 18,200! Will keep you posted.