Off the Mountain

They all made it to basecamp, and flew out to Talkeetna yesterday!  They'll be making their way to Anchorage this afternoon, and catching flights home very soon.   Congratulations to everyone.  They even made it into the local newspaper, the Anchorage Daily News.   Check out the story at www.adn.com    

At the 14,000 camp on the West Buttress

Zach called tonight from 14,000 feet on the West Buttress route.  They are on their way down, and met up with 2 of our other expeditions in camp.   They are spending the night with the other crew and sharing dinner and stories, and they'll continue on down tomorrow.   They should be in basecamp in the next couple of days.

ON TOP!! FIRST SUMMIT OF THE SEASON!

Zach just called. He and Lianne are descending from the summit of Denali! They were the first two climbers to stand on top in 2008.

The weather is absolutely beautiful and the temperatures are balmy, according to Zach. An Australian climber followed them to the summit, arriving about five minutes behind our team.

It has been three hard days in a row, and the plan is to descend to their high camp just below Denali Pass. Tomorrow the team will descend down to 14,200 feet or lower, depending on how everyone is feeling.

I cannot express how challenging an expedition this has been. The team has worked extremely hard and they have accomplished a truly impressive feat.

A hearty congratulations to all the climbers and all our wishes for a safe and uneventful descent.

Camped at Denali Pass!

The team made a big push today, with the intention of going up and over Denali Pass at 18,200'. they decided it was more prudent to camp just below the Pass, as Maria's knee is acting up again. Everyone is doing well, other than Maria's knee.

Way to hang in there Maria! This is a remote trip and descending back down the Muldrow is not a good option. The fact that you made it up to Denali Pass is a testament to your toughness and fortitude. Bien hecha! It was a very cold morning this morning with -35 degrees Fahrenheit. Brrr!!!

The plan is for Zach and Lianne to make a summit bid tomorrow morning. They will have radio contact with Sam and Maria and if they can get up to the summit quickly, they will radio back down and Sam and Maria will break camp for the descent to 17,200' on the West Buttress route. Apparently, there was a team camped at that camp only a couple of days ago, who did not make the summit. This should mean that the crew can move down and find snow walls already established, which will save them a lot of work.

We have a team that should move to 14,200' on the West Buttress the day after tomorrow, so the Sourdough's should have plenty of support as they descend down the Buttress.

I'm really proud of everyone for digging deep and persevering on such a committing endeavor.

Let's all wish the team luck tomorrow.

Ciao,

Todd

Still nestled in at 14,600'

I heard from Zach about an hour and a half ago. They didn't move up today, as it was pretty blustery this morning. Wind, swirling snow and low visibility dominated much of the day, so they sat tight in their tents. The weather seemed to have blown through and conditions improved a lot in the afternoon.

The team has plenty of food and fuel, so they decided to take an additional rest/acclimatization day in preparation for the big push up and over Denali Pass. they need about three good days to push up and over the Pass in order to descend to high camp on the West Buttress.

Zach reports that everyone is doing well, but it was a cold day, with windchills in the -20s. It sounds like a great day to stay snuggled up in a sleeping bag, which they all did.

Still camped at 14,600 feet.

Zach just called from 14,600 feet. They took a rest day today, as Maria's knee was swelling up from the big move up to camp and they decided it best to take a day to let her recuperate as much as possible. The plan is to punch as high as they can tomorrow and then try to make it over Denali Pass to our high camp at 17,200 feet.

The weather has been pretty good overall, with very mild snowfall recently and manageable temperatures. The team is doing great and has plenty of food and fuel left to make it over Denali Pass. Our South Side teams can help support them once they are over the Pass, which will alleviate some of the feeling of remoteness that I am sure they are currently experiencing.

They reiterated that they are having a blast and that the views each day have been amazing. I can't wait to see the photos!

The team is camped at Browne's Tower

Zach called this evening. He said everyone is doing well and that the weather has been good for the past couple of days. They are camped at Browne's Tower at 14,600 feet and plan to move to 16,000' tomorrow.