Mt. McKinley Expedition: Okita and Team Down But Not Out
It's been a long day that started in the wee hours of the morning. The alarm sounded about 2 hours after I sent our last dispatch. 2:00 am was a harsh hour of the day to begin our final walk out the Kahiltna Glacier, but essential to safely navigate and cross the crevasses on our way to the airstrip.
At that time the day is about as dark as it gets, which is to say it's about as dark as 1/2 hour after dusk, perhaps. Combined with cloudy, overcast weather, I wasn't entirely psyched for the walk out. But, as the morning developed things began looking brighter. We finally started off at 4:20 am and initially encountered great walking conditions. Unfortunately, as we lost elevation the snow became softer and softer, having not frozen hard overnight because of the cloud cover holding the earth's heat in. This resulted in a few minor crevasse 'falls' where some individuals broke through crevasse bridges up to their waste at most. Of course, by the time you hear their stories, these crevasse falls will have taken on epic proportions. (A night at the bar can have the same effect)
Well, we finally arrived at Base Camp with our weather outlook improving and hopes to be flown off in short order high in everyone's mind. Unfortunately, Mother Nature had something else in store for us, as it's now evening and raining out. Although comfy and snug in our tents, and happy we're not enduring a big storm up high, we of course would rather be back in Talkeetna, and a little closer to you.
Hope to see you soon!
RMI Guides Brent, Leon and Maile
More to Explore
Mt. McKinley: Okita & Team Descend to 11,200’
June 1, 2011