This is the fourth trip to Alaska that I've had in various stages of planning... but just the first to see me actually get into the range. The wait did not disappoint. I've climbed on big alpine faces before... and certainly at a higher altitude but Alaska is just different. I've felt stagnated with climbing, going to the same areas and doing the same types of climbs.... Alaska has opened a door and I don't think I'll be looking back.
Though Dan and Eric had spent three days waiting to get into the Tok'... Marcus and I pretty much showed up and flew into the range. Of course no other pilot than Paul with TAT would have flown that day... fly with that guy or learn to love the Talkeetna nightlife...
The Stumptown basecamp.... only fourty five minutes from pancakes and coffee to ropes and ice screws on the Colton-Leech! Our route starts in the obvious couloir above the camp, left of center, and continues to the butress before climbing ramps up and right to the summit.
The initial couloir was about 2,000' of bulletproof calf-burning ice. I climbed a lot of ice this season but I need to devise a new training method to prepare for the unrelenting front-pointing this feature offered.
Marcus cruising about halfway up the couloir....
The second ramp before the final constriction....
Marcus following the first pitch of the second constrictions...
Upon reaching the top of Count-Zero Buttress we saw a dark mass of clouds coming from the South and a massive lenticular formed around Denali's summit. It seemed like a good time to retreat before the oncoming storm which caught us about halfway down the couloir. Even the initial squall sent a lot of slides down the couloir and made anchors difficult. We we're happy to be down on terra firma and eating pancakes while we waited for another break in the weather.
1 comment:
pretty sweet nate!
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