May 31 Denali Expeditions Update

AMS Denali Expeditions Update 

...Cloudy with high chances of snow for the next several days...

May 12 Expedition led by Wes Bunch have decided to move down from high camp today. As of this posting, they have arrived safely at 14,200' camp.

High Camp, photo: Taylor Bracher

May 19 Expedition led by Adam Fabrikant is resting at 14,200' as planned. 

14,200' camp

May 23 Expedition "Hustlin' Huskies" led by Con Severis is at 11,200' camp and ready to move when the weather allows. 

Expedition Bert Bros. led by Aaron Divine is at 11,200' camping in the clouds and enjoying some tent time while they wait to move higher.

May 26 Expedition led by Scott Patch moved to 11,200' in the clouds today, this is a day filled with hard work and big rewards. 

11,200' Camp

Expedition "Send It" led by Josh Hoeschen is working well as a team and are acclimating and avoiding the crowds at 10,000' 

Moving to 10,000' on the Upper Kahiltna Glacier

May 16 Expedition led Michael Gardner has arrived at Kahiltna Basecamp and we all hope there will be a good weather tomorrow for Talkeetna Air Taxi to pick them up. they are among over 60 climbers waiting to fly back to Talkeetna when the weather clears.

Busy Day at Basecamp, after a wait for the weather. 

May 30 AMS Denali Expedition Update

AMS Denali Expeditions Update

May 12 Expedition led by Wes Bunch rested ar 17,200' today, they considered going for the summit decided to wait at high camp due to strong winds at higher elevations.

17,200' high camp

May 16 Expedition led Michael Gardner reached the summit of Denali yesterday! They all arrived back to high camp to eat dinner and were back in sleeping bags resting before midnight. This is a small, fast-moving team who descended to 14,200' this afternoon and will rest there for a while.  Weather permitting, we may even see them in Talkeetna as soon as tomorrow.

AMS Denali Summit Day: Photo Josh Hoeschen

May 19 Expedition led by Adam Fabrikant carried up the fixed lines to 16,500 feet and felt great.  They plan to rest at 14,200 feet tomorrow and then move to high camp when the weather allows. 

AMs Climbing at 16,500' on the West Buttress proper

May 23 Expedition "Hustlin' Huskies" led by Con Severis Carried and cached food, fuel and gear around Windy Corner to the 13,200 feet area. They are sleeping at 11,200 feet tonight and are well.

AMS rounding Windy Corner 13,200'

Expedition "Send It" led by Josh Hoeschen carried and cached to 13,500 feet tomorrow. They are camped at 11,200 feet tonight and plan to move to 14,200 feet tomorrow if the weather allows.

Expedition Bert Bros. led by Aaron Divine back carried to 10,000 feet today and are settled in at 11,200 feet camp.

11,200' Camp

May 26 Expedition led by Scott Patch carried to 10,200 feet today and cached food, fuel, and equipment in a deep snow pit, that they dig each time they make a cache. They hope to move to 11,000' tomorrow.

AMS on the Upper Kahiltna Glacier

Here's a link to the Denali Climber's weather forecast, forecasting is incredibly difficult up there - so this is just part of the picture and to be used as a general guideline.  https://www.weather.gov/afg/denaliclimbing_forecast

May 29 AMS Denali Expedition Update

AMS Denali Expeditions Update

May 12 Expedition led by Wes Bunch moved to 17,200' high camp today. This is a big move and requires a lot of heard work. Its a beautiful section of the route on a nice day.

May 16 Expedition led Michael Gardner went for the summit today, they are headed back to camp - more news to come!

May 19 Expedition led by Adam Fabrikant is doing well at 14,200'.  Today they went to 13,500' to retrieve their previously cached food and fuel. Making the day an active rest day, which helps a lot with acclimatization.

May 23 Expedition "Hustlin' Huskies" led by Con Severis moved to 11,200' camp yesterday and today was an active rest day - they descended to retrieve their previous cache at 9,800'. 

Expedition "Send It" led by Josh Hoeschen also moved to 11,200' today and are feeling strong; they are now adjusting to a new altitude and will be switching to crampons from here on out.

 

Expedition Bert Bros. led by Aaron Divine hauled their huge expedition packs and sleds higher today and to moved to 11,200'.

May 26 Expedition led by Scott Patch reviewed safety skills at Basecamp yesterday and then moved to 7,800' camp, arriving last night at 9:30 pm. Everyone is doing great!




Here's a link to the Denali Climber's weather forecast, forecasting is incredibly difficult up there - so this is just part of the picture and to be used as a general guideline.  https://www.weather.gov/afg/denaliclimbing_forecast

Custom Mountaineering Course: LAUNCH

AMS guide Eric Roberts and climber Bradley Hartman group photo today

May 28 Custom Mountaineering Course launched today to the Pika for a four-day course and glacier travel skills refresher. These two are going to have a great time in a beautiful spot looking out to Mt. Foraker. 

AMS photo by Amanda Erickson of Mt. Foraker from the Pika glacier 

May 28 All mountain update

AMS Denali Expeditions Update

AMS 2019 photo of glacier travel by guide Eric Roberts

May 12 Denali Expedition led by Wes Bunch is waiting out the weather at 14,200' and hope to move to high camp soon. Everyone is well!


May 16 Denali Expedition led Michael Gardner have moved to high camp. They are enjoying soup after a big move day. 

AMS 2019 photo of the fixed lines, from guide Eric Roberts 

May 19 Denali Expedition led by Adam Fabrikant moved to 14,200' camp today. Strong work team! This day entails going around Windy Corner which requires efficient movement. 

AMS photo by guide Eric Roberts of Squirrel Hill area, approximately 12,300' 

May 23 Denali Expedition "Hustlin' Huskies" led by Con Severis moved to camp at 11,200' today. 

AMS photo of 11,200 camp by guide Eric Roberts

Denali Expedition "Send It" led by Josh Hoeschen carried to around 10,000' today... This strong team will surely crush it. They are camped at 7,800' tonight

May 25 Denali Expedition Bert Bros. led by Aaron Divine made a carry of gear and cached at 10,000., they are camped at 7,800' tonight.

The photo below is a group resting on "Ski Hill", approximately 8,500', 7,800' camp can be seen in the near distance.

May 26 Denali West Buttress, Scott Patch: LAUNCH!

AMS headquarters fixed line ascension practice 

May 26 Expedition led by Scott Patch had an excellent day gear checking and lunch packing yesterday and they flew to Kahiltna basecamp this morning. 

AMS team photo: Klaas, John, Guide Scott Patch, Guide Kane, Lisa, Sylvie, Elizabeth, Nick

May 27 AMS Denali All Mountain Update

Happy Memorial Day 

We hope you are having a good day out and about today. During our busiest time of the year, we take time to remember and honor those who have died while serving in the US Armed forces. 

AMS Denali Expeditions Update

A recent photo from AMS guide Eric Roberts of a bird hiding out under a sled. This happens occasionally during wind storms, such as the one Denali just experienced. 

May 12 Denali Expedition led by Wes Bunch have been waiting out the weather at 14,200' and hope to move to high camp soon. Everyone is preparing and feeling excited.

AMS photo of the view of Mt. Foraker from 14,200'

May 16 Denali Expedition led Michael Gardner have been enjoying their storm days and are hoping to get an early start and move to high camp soon. This team feels ready!

AMS photo by guide M.Postle of Michael Gardner on a previous expedition 

AMS photo of 14,200 camp village with Mt. Hunter rising from the clouds 

May 19 Denali Expedition led by Adam Fabrikant plan to move to 14,200' tomorrow. They are looking forward to reaching the next camp.

AMS photo of 11,200 camp by guide Eric Roberts 

May 23 Denali Expedition "Hustlin' Huskies" led by Con Severis reviewed skills today and plan to move to 11,200' camp tomorrow, they are ready to roll when the time is right.

AMS photo of 7,800'

AMS photo of guide Chelsea pouring hot drinks. Photo by AMS guide Eric Roberts

AMS May 25th Custom Denali Expeditions: LAUNCH!

Denali Expedition "Send It" led by Josh Hoeschen arrived in basecamp this afternoon. During a rainy day, yesterday in Talkeetna they kept busy reviewing rope work and skills, so they won't miss a beat once they touch down on the glacier.

AMS guide Josh Hoeschen and Brock Roden with "Team Send It!" 

Plane ride with Talkeetna Air Taxi leaving the green of summer for life on the Kahiltna Glacier

May 25 Denali Expedition Bert Bros. led by Aaron Divine flew into basecamp today after waiting for one day in the rain in Talkeetna. These brothers know all about the Talkeetna Hang after having experienced it in 2018. May the force be with you!

AMS guides Aaron Divine and Alma Johnson with brothers from Belgium, Pieter and Jan Bert.

May 26 AMS Denali Update

All is well, but it was a stormy night and day on Denali. This is normal Denali weather patterns. Most AMS teams remain in place and are enjoying a rest day, eating pancakes, drinking hot drinks, shoveling, reading, repeat...

May 23 Denali Expedition "Hustlin' Huskies" led by Con Severis:  carried and cached items higher up to approximately 9,800' tonight. 

Photo: AMS Guide Simon Fretz-Albrecht of fellow guide Curtis Green at 11,200’ 

May 25 AMS Denali Update

AMS Denali Teams update

The West Buttress Route

May 7 Custom Denali Expedition led by Kai Girard 
      and 
May 9 Purple Heart Denali Expedition led by Dustin English 
have returned to AMS HQ in Talkeetna this morning - we are happy to see all of their smiling faces. - well done gentleman.

Last night the light was beautiful, this section of the climb is a favorite fo many!

May 12 Denali Expedition led by Wes Bunch climbed the fixed lines today and placed a cache of food, fuel and high camp gear at 16,500'. They are back at 14,200' again and are poised to move higher when the time is right. It is starting to snow now but the morning and early afternoon were clear and provided good climbing conditions.

Moving up the fixed lines to 16,200'

May 16 Denali Expedition led Michael Gardner climbed up the fixed lines today and placed a cache of high camp food, fuel, and gear at 16,500'. They are feeling great and made excellent time. They are back at 14,200' again and are poised to move higher when the time is right. Tonight's dinner is Burritos. Everyone is excited to get the ridge climbing underway!

Top of the fixed lines 16,200' Photo: Dustin English

May 19 Denali Expedition led by Adam Fabrikant Carried and cached food, fuel, and gear to 13,500' today around Windy Corner. They are ready to move to 14,200' when the weather allows. All teams are reporting that Windy Corner is icy this spring, requiring all climbers to travel carefully through the area. 

Rounding Windy Corner on the way to 14,200' camp on a not so windy day...

May 23 Denali Expedition "Howling Huskies" led by Con Severis arrived at 7,800' camp last night and plan to carry and cache items higher up tonight - they are climbing on a night schedule to avoid the heat of the day, which makes for much more comfortable travel.

Camp building requires lots of digging, teamwork makes the dream work.

May 24, 2019 AMS Denali Expeditions Update

AMS Teams on Descent : 

• May 7 Custom Denali Expedition led by Kai Girard and May 9 Purple Heart Denali Expedition led by Dustin English are both moving towards Base Camp this evening. The all-night descent is a workout and is also a very peaceful way to complete the expedition. If the weather allows, we hope to see them back in Talkeetna as early as tomorrow morning. We wish them a safe descent - all report that the traveling conditions on the Kahiltna Glacier are excellent.  All are well and are looking forward to a shower and burger back in Talkeetna.

Evening Light at approx. 12,000' on Denali's West buttress, just below Windy Corner

AMS Teams at 14,200', Camp 3, acclimating, doing well, and currently eating a tasty dinner.

• May 12 Denali Expedition led by Wes Bunch
• May 16 Denali Expedition led Michael Gardner 

Reviewing skills on a rest day at 14,200'

May 19 Denali Expedition led by Adam Fabrikant had an active rest day today and went to 10,000' to pick up their previously cached food, fuel, and gear. They are feeling great at 11,200', Camp 2. 

AMS camp at 11.200' with fantastic walls 

May 23 Denali Expedition led by Con Severis have flown into Base Camp on time this afternoon and are looking forward to getting started! 

Kahiltna Basecamp dropping of climbers.