Denali Expedition: Walter & Team Push to 14,000ft to Cache Gear
Posted by: Mike Walter, Abby Westling, Henry Coppolillo
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Denali
Elevation: 11,000'
Monday, May 16, 2022 - 9:47 am PT
Yesterday (Sunday) we awoke to beautiful blue skies and light winds. After a nice breakfast of bagels with cream cheese and salmon we packed up gear and food to cache around Windy Corner. This was the first day of the expedition in crampons without sleds which felt awesome as we made our way up Motorcycle Hill. We had excellent views of the surrounding mountains and could even see all the way down to the tundra below the Peter's Glacier! After rounding Windy Corner the weather was holding and everyone was climbing strong so we decided to keep pushing all the way to 14,000' camp! As soon as we finished burying our cache winds picked up and we got our first taste of some nasty Alaska Range weather. By the time we got back to the Polo Fields the winds had abated and we enjoyed a nice walk back to 11,000' Camp. Winds picked back up overnight and this morning has been a bit frigid and blustery in camp today are taking a well earned rest day to recover from the previous five days of hard effort. We're looking forward to moving to 14,000' Camp in the coming days.
Comments (4)
I can’t wait to see your pics from the top, MAK!
Posted by: Jenn on
Keep the toes warm and good luck!
I’ll be just over the pole in Svalbard…hit me on the radio….
Posted by: U2 on
Enjoy reading your happenings everyday. Looks so beautiful. Glad you are having some great weather. Thanks for the updates.
Posted by: Anne Kimmell on
That snow is kind of deep. It looks extremely hard to trudge along in. It’s really one of the 7 summits that’s for sure. Good luck. Stay safe. Really amazing to see and follow along.
Posted by: Scott Pederson on