Minggu, 13 September 2015
Sabtu, 12 September 2015
12- Day Course Back in Town!
Melis Coady's team of nine are back from a challenging time in the Alaska Range. They saw it all: rain, snow, cold and finally blazing sunshine! They were able to climb two peaks yesterday, get in some ice climbing and learn a lot of skills.
I believe their agenda is something like this: sort gear, dry gear, put away gear, take shower, eat food, party, sleep in a real bed.
I believe their agenda is something like this: sort gear, dry gear, put away gear, take shower, eat food, party, sleep in a real bed.
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| Amos can't wait to get those boots off! |
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| Damien's got dish duty. |
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| Gayland is all smiles after surviving twelve days in the Range. |
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| Jeremy's ready to party! |
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| Paris helps unload the van. |
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| Tony and Matt about to head off for the showers carrying their gear. |
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| Lots of gear to sort. |
Expedition Availability 2015
We are busy processing paperwork for the 2015 Climbing season.
Denali, West Buttress, 21 days, $7400, 6 climbers: 2-3 guides.
Denali, West Buttress, 21 days, $7400, 6 climbers: 2-3 guides.
April 27 – May 17, 5 spots available
May 4 - May 24, 6 spots available
May 8 - May 28, 5 spots available
May 11 - May 31, 5 spots available
May 15 - June 4, 3 spots available
May 18 - June 7, 5 spots available
May 25 –June 14, 6 spots available
May 29 - June 18, 5 spots available
June 1 - June 21, 6 spots available
June 9 - June 29, 6 spots available
June 12 - July 2, FULL
June 15 - July 7, 6 spots available
June 23 - July 13, 6 spots available
June 24 – July 14, 6 spots available
June 25 - July 15, 3 spots available
Denali, Upper West Rib, 21 days, $8400, 4 climbers: 2 guides
June 3-23, 4 spots available
Foraker, Sultana Ridge, 21 days, $ 8400, 4 climbers: 2 guides
May 6 - 26, 4 spots available
This summer has not been a classic season in the Alps. Continually unsettled weather with frequent snowfall has made it quite challenging to get any climbing done at all. So it was with this in mind that I met up with John and Peter for our annual two week Alpine hit.
The first thing we did was quite the regular venues of the Vallais, Oberland and Mont Blanc ranges for the Ecrins. Further south and with better weather generally, these mountains were reported to be giving good climbing under the snowier conditions. We were very glad to make this move. The extra four hours driving went well enough and the weather was better but still far from perfect. What we did find though was a very warm welcome and particularly helpful locals.
The story of our trip will appear on the Jottnar Blog very soon but in the meantime here are some images to give a flavour of the trip.
12 Day Mountaining Course Update
Instructor Melis Coady from the 12 day mountaineering course called in from the the Ruth Glacier this afternoon.
The class is having a great time and learning lots. Among many other things, they have been traveling on a variety of terrain including: glacial moraine, bare glacial ice and snow covered glacier. They have climbed vertical ice as well. They have been traveling and camping on very remote areas of the Ruth Glacier, Glacier One and Backside Glacier.
This morning, as they were moving back to their original camp, they crossed a river running on top of the Ruth Glacier - pretty cool. Also today, they climbed a peak above Backside Lake and they reached the top at around 2:00 pm.
These students and instructors have experienced a full range of weather during their course - from cold rain and high winds to sunny blue sky days and freezing nights. Sounds like good wilderness mountaineering to me! We look forward to all of their stories and their return.
The class is having a great time and learning lots. Among many other things, they have been traveling on a variety of terrain including: glacial moraine, bare glacial ice and snow covered glacier. They have climbed vertical ice as well. They have been traveling and camping on very remote areas of the Ruth Glacier, Glacier One and Backside Glacier.
This morning, as they were moving back to their original camp, they crossed a river running on top of the Ruth Glacier - pretty cool. Also today, they climbed a peak above Backside Lake and they reached the top at around 2:00 pm.
These students and instructors have experienced a full range of weather during their course - from cold rain and high winds to sunny blue sky days and freezing nights. Sounds like good wilderness mountaineering to me! We look forward to all of their stories and their return.
Jumat, 11 September 2015
Denali Shrunk!
This news just in!
“That’s 83 feet shorter than we thought,” Treadwell said, according to a press release on Wednesday. “The good news is: Denali is still the tallest peak in North America.”
According to the press release, the new height was measured in 2012 as part of Alaska’s Statewide Digital Mapping Initiative.
The mapping also revealed the entire ridge line of Mt. Dickey in Denali National Park had been missing from previous maps.
The mapping effort has been running since 2010 and has been funded by both the state and the federal government. It’s nearly 50 percent complete and the release says it’s on schedule to be finished by 2016.
The United States Geological Survey has produced 400 new Alaska maps and will produce more than 11,000 maps of the state. All the maps are available for public download at http://nationalmap.gov/alaska.
