April 12 day Mountaineering Course

Dan Corn is leading our first 12 day Course of the 2010 season. We have a 6 day Mountaineering course in the mountains right now as well. Dan Corn was here in Talkeetna as a baby on his mother's back 30 years ago and now he's leading Mountaineering Courses and guiding expeditions on Denali.

This crew of future alpinists was in, out and around AMS all morning. They were checking all of their equipment, learning a bunch of new knots and hitches. Practicing how to ascend out of a crevasse, getting all of their gear weighed and labelled for the flight in to the glacier.

Leighan Falley called in on the satellite phone from the Mountain House earlier this morning reporting that the weather was perfect, they were having a great time and eating lots of good food. They are just up glacier from where Larry Holmgren is leading our 6 day course.

AMS' medical training starts tomorrow for our guides. It is 3 days packed full of medical scenarios, discussions and lectures covering everything from wound care to altitude medicine. We have a cardiothoracic surgeon lecturing to us this year about a variety of topics. We'll post some photos from that in a few days.

It is getting quite busy around AMS. Our season is just about in full swing. In another week our First Denali expedition of the year will brief and start packing. It's super cool to be finally meeting all of the folks in person that we have been talking and emailing with all winter.

Here's a picture from our Glacier Travel & Crevasse Rescue Workshop from the other day. Here, Nick D'elesio does a demo of how to properly ascend a fixed rope. All of our climbers that we climb and travel with in the mountains learn how to ascend out of a crevasse on their own as well as pull another climber out with a mechanical advantage system using nothing but the tools and cordage they carry with them at all times. This workshop took place on the Matanuska Glacier.

See you all soon.

AMS