Overlooking Icy Bay from Mt. St. Elias. Peter Inglis

(Back to: North America, Alaska, Wrangell-St. Elias Mountains)

Mt. St. Elias, summit and sea.

By Peter Inglis, AAC

At 18,008′ and 12 miles from salt water, Mt. St. Elias offers the world’s biggest summit to sea drop. Canadians Marcus Warring and Ryan Bougie and I (Telluride, CO) wanted to climb the southwest ridge (Harvard Route) and then ski as much of the mountain as we could. Although parts of this route have been skied and climbed, according to my research, no one has completed the entire route both up and down.

On June 6, pilot Paul Claus dropped us on the Haydon Shoulder (9,750′), where we set-up base camp. On June 10, we summited and descended, two-thirds on skis, to our base. Above our 13,200′ high camp we deviated slightly from the Harvard Route by going far to climber’s right on the south face, where we found better snow conditions for skiing.Back at base camp, we spent a week waiting for the cloud sandwich to lift. On June 18, we made a break for it…. (read more)

Print Friendly

The west-northwest ridge of Peak 8,329'. Howard-Swinburne collection

(Back to: North America, Alaska, Wrangell-St. Elias Mountains)

Upper Granite Creek and Jefferies Glacier, probable first ascents.

By Stuart Howard and David Swinburne, U.K.

From July 16 – August 6, upon the recommendation of well-known bush pilot and mountaineer Paul Claus, we visited the upper Granite Creek and Jefferies Glacier areas. From our drop-off point (3,014′; N 60°44’16″, W 141°57’11″) in upper Granite Creek, a lengthy ridge leads up Peak 8,329′ (GPS elevation; 8,320′ on map; N 60°41’52″, W 141°42’32″), which dominates the left flank of the glacier. [Map elevations are from the USGS 1:250,000 Bering Glacier map—Ed.] We gained the undulating west-northwest ridge by loose scrambling through and around a series of low buttresses. At one point we had to drop 180m before resuming the final section toward the summit. This final section—almost one km long—was the most interesting of the route. Several gendarmes offered easy slabs and short walls, though we skirted two on their left. Never difficult (AD) but with extensive scree and boulder debris, the route was interesting and finished with a short snow slope to the top. The route involves 1,100m of ascent and the ridge itself is almost four km long…. (read more)

Print Friendly

(Back to: North America, Alaska, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park)

Peak 10,510′, first ascent, West Face.

By John Kelley

In late July, Jim Beyer and I made the likely first ascent of Peak 10,510′, across the glacier northwest of Mt. Hobbs. We landed on an unnamed glacier on the south side of the range, a mile (at most) from the peak, then scrambled up a scree gully and onto the hanging glacier west of the peak. The West Face started around 40° and steepened to 65° at the top. About 3,000′ of ice led to the summit block, which was a short pitch of 5.4. We rappelled the route, mostly on V-threads, returning to camp in a 20-hour round trip.

Print Friendly

An aerial view of Snider Peak, with the route Dicktation. Mark Henspeter

(Back to: North America, Alaska, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park)

Snider Peak, Dicktation to west summit pillar.

By Mark Henspeter

Growing up in the heart of the Wrangell Mountains in interior Alaska, I have always had a penchant for vertical escape. My friend John Giraldo also shares this interest, and together we spent our teenage years pushing ourselves on little-known peaks in the Wrangell and Chugach mountains. In 2009, at age 19, we mustered the courage to try a new challenge: Snider Peak.

Located within Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve near Glennallen, AK, this jagged rock pyramid sits between 12,010′ Mt. Drum and 14,163′ Mt. Wrangell. Snider isn’t the tallest summit at 8,200′, but its nearly vertical 3,000′ north face and the serrated spires on all corners gives this small peak an aggressive stance. Despite standing less than a 15-minute flight from Gulkana airport, Snider had no documented climbs. After our aborted 2009 attempt, we returned to Snider in May 2010…. (read more)

Print Friendly

Dave Johnston below Mt. Drum, with arrows indicating the new route (summit not visible). Willi Prittie

(Back to: North America, Alaska, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park)

Mt. Drum, northwest face.

By Willi Prittie, AAC, Mountaineering Club of Alaska

On March 17, Dave Johnston and I climbed what we believe to be a new route on the northwest face of 12,010′ Mt. Drum in Alaska’s Wrangell Mountains. This mountain is well known to anyone who has driven the Richardson or Tok highways, as it is the farthest north- western outlier of the Wrangells. I fell under its spell and felt compelled to plan a trip to come to know a little of this huge massif. We left on March 5, skied from Gakona on the Tok Cutoff Highway for about 35 miles to the northwest glacier of Mt. Drum. We crossed the frozen Copper River and skied up the Sanford River and Northwest Glacier Creek, intersecting the glacier at about 4,600′.

We had hoped to remain on skis all the way up to 10,000′, then ascend one of two unclimbed ridges. At 4,600′ and up to almost 10,000′, we encountered wind-scoured, hard blue ice and heavily crevassed glacier, so we left our skis behind…. (read more)

Print Friendly

Tim Dittmann in the perfect ice hose on the Eye Tooth. Jared Vilhauer

(Back to: North America, Alaska, Denali National Park)

Eye Tooth, new climbing to junction with Talkeetna Standard.

By Jared Vilhauer, AAC

During the last two weeks of April, Tim Dittmann, Dave Ahrens, and I attempted a new route on the west face of the Eye Tooth. We started up the obvious cleft between the Orgler route (Dream in the Spirit of Mugs, Bonapace-Haas-Orgler, 1994) and the Talkeetna Standard (Hollenbaugh-House, 2003). After the initial snow slopes, we roped up at the base of a chimney system cutting through the first rock band. This chimney was two pitches. The first: high-quality “frozen white stuff.” The second: committing, low-quality “frozen white stuff” that proved as nerve-wracking for the belayers as for the leader. We simul-climbed the middle snowfield to the base of a second chimney system, which had been a big question mark from the Ruth Glacier. Upon arrival at the chimney we were psyched to find perfect, narrow, steep ice—an amazing pitch…. (read more)

Print Friendly

Mt. Bradley from the southeast: (1) East Buttress (Jochler-Orgler, 1987). (1a) Frieh-Johnson variation (2010). (2) Season of the Sun (Ichimura-Sato-Yamada, 2007). (3) Vitalogy (Allen-Zimmerman, 2010). The Bourbon Bottle (Crouch-Donini, 1996) starts on the left side of the lower shield that borders the start of (3), and the two routes weave similar terrain near Vitology’s upper dots). Other routes exist to the left of the deep cleft left of the Bourbon Bottle. Clifford Cochran

(Back to: North America, Alaska, Denali National Park)

Mt. Bradley, Vitalogy.

By Mark Allen, AAC

Graham Zimmerman and I landed in the Ruth Gorge on March 28, and soon spotted a virgin line on the southeast buttress of Mt. Bradley. We made an initial attempt on March 31. On the evening of April 2, we left camp carrying 40 hours of food and fuel in a 20-pound second’s pack and a 15-pound leader’s pack, regained our highpoint, and established five more pitches. At mid-day we bivied on a prow, sheltered from what loomed above. The 1,500′ day included Zimmerman climbing several M5 pitches and me dealing with sustained 5.9 rock, an A1 tension traverse, and a transition from boots and crampons to rock shoes and back. Later that day the temps cooled and we climbed the beautiful ice ribbon that had initially drawn us in…. (read more)

Print Friendly

Renan Ozturk at the belay below the “Bleeder Pitch” on the Swamp Donkey Express, Moose’s Tooth. Zack Smith

(Back to: North America, Alaska, Denali National Park)

Moose’s Tooth, Swamp Donkey Express.

By Freddie Wilkinson, AAC

Zack Smith, Renan Ozturk, and I flew in to the Ruth Gorge on May 17, psyched to find perfect conditions: hard freezes at night but warm enough daytime temps to comfortably wear rock shoes. After a day to pack and scope, we left basecamp at 6 a.m. to do the dangerous approach to the Root Canal camp, beneath the south face of the Moose’s Tooth, in the morning shade. I had navigated this same icefall seven years before, and was surprised at the amount of traffic it had received this year. Several distinct boot tracks left by different parties crisscrossed up the glacial canyon—some more exposed to hanging seracs and avalanche slopes than others.

We arrived at the Root Canal by 1 p.m., waited out a day of squally weather, then crossed the bergschrund and began soloing the snow slopes to the col between the Bear Tooth and Moose’s Tooth. The south-southeast face of the Moose’s Tooth is an obvious challenge that had been attempted sporadically for several decades. Badly rotten rock and a deceptive section of gendarmed ridge had defeated all teams within the first 100 vertical feet above the col. Our real challenge was not letting these discouraging reports affect our morale before we started. …

(read more)

Print Friendly

Ladies’ Couloir on Mantok II. Christopher Wright

(Back to: North America, Alaska, Denali National Park)

Mantok II, first ascent, Ladies’ Couloir; Peak 10,020′, northwest face to summit ridge.

By Christopher Wright, AAC 

After reading trip reports and getting beta from Freddie Wilkinson, who along with various partners has established multiple climbs in the area, from April 8–20 Joey McBrayer and I explored the Northeast Fork of the Yentna Glacier. In mostly dismal weather we attempted several unclimbed features with limited success. Early in the trip we climbed the northwest face (3,000′, AI4+ M5R) of an unnamed 10,020′ peak, but did not continue to the summit. The peak is on the wilderness boundary just over two miles southwest of the Bat’s Ears (Peak 11,044′, AAJ 2009, pp. 130–132), and marked on the map on p. 153 of the 2008 AAJ.

After considerable cowering and a few more aborted efforts, we made what we believe was the first ascent of a ca 9,600′ peak we called Mantok II….

(read more)

Print Friendly

Mt. Foraker from the southeast: (1) Infinite Spur. (2) French Ridge. (3) Dracula. (4) False Dawn. (5) Southeast Ridge. (6) Viper Ridge (to junction with (5), no summit). Colin Haley

(Back to: North America, Alaska, Denali National Park)

Mt. Foraker, Dracula.

From June 13–15, Bjørn-Eivind Aartun and Colin Haley climbed Mt. Foraker by starting on False Dawn, then making the first ascent of a 3,000′ mixed wall on the southeast face, and finishing via the French Ridge. Their climb, Dracula (AI4+ M6R A0), rises 10,400′ from base to summit. They descended the Japanese Route, completing the round- trip in a sleepless 71-hour push. Beforehand, while acclimatizing on Denali, they simul-soloed the Cassin Ridge in 17 hours, coming close to the fastest known time for the route. See Aartun’s feature article in the 2011 Journal.

Print Friendly

(Back to: North America, Alaska, Denali National Park)

Denali National Park and Preserve, summary.

In 2010, notable new routes and rapid repeats continued [see below], as did the inevitable rescues and tragedies. Thirty-five climbers were stricken with injuries or illnesses that required medical intervention by NPS rangers and volunteers, with cases ranging from climbing falls and altitude sickness to kidney stones and mental instability. Two climbers died in falls on Mt. McKinley (one each on the Cassin Ridge and West Buttress), and an avalanche in the Ruth Gorge killed two climbers.

Nancy Hansen, Felix Camire, and Doug Fulford were selected as the 2010 Mislow-Swanson Denali Pro Award winners for their assistance with a rescue and for helping a distressed solo climber.

Quick Statistics—Mt. McKinley and Mt. Foraker: …

(read more)

Print Friendly

(Back to: North America, Alaska, Delta Range)

College Glacier area, various ascents.

By Jeff Apple Benowitz, AAC

The routes on the southwest face of Peak 8,100' (arrow showing descent line) and the east ridge of Peak 8,110'. Jeff Benowitz

In the College Glacier region, numerous 8,000′ peaks (the highest peaks in the Delta Mountains south of the Denali Fault) make for good late-April/early-May weekend outings with a small rack of pins and pickets for glacier travel. With various Fairbanks folks active in the area over the years, first ascent histories are largely unknown, thus the peaks lend themselves to the ever-common second, third, and fourth first ascents. [The claiming of new routes that have already been climbed—Ed.]…

(read more)

Print Friendly