|
TODAY'S STATS - 7/14/23 |
Denali |
Mt. Foraker |
|
Registered Climbers |
997 |
12 |
|
Climbers Currently On Mountain |
0 |
0 |
|
Completed Climbs |
997 |
12 |
|
Number of Summits |
308 |
4 |
|
Summit Percentage |
31% |
33% |
While the numbers above are not completely finalized, they are getting dangerously close according to front desk staff. A relatively low year in terms of both climbers AND summits. At the final hour, the number of registered climbers dipped below 1,000 for the first time since 1991, in part due to a handful of climbers that cancelled late season expeditions after watching the dismal weather trends. As for the low summit percentage, we go all the way back to 1971 to find a lower rate -- in that year, only 29% of the 163 registered climbers reached the top
Mountain Weather
Weather station telemetry data from 7K and 14K are transmitted hourly to the MesoWest website, including temperatures, wind speed, wind direction, snowfall, and solar radiation.
MountainWeather.com compiles a Denali Weather page, complete with links to the MesoWest data, the NWS Denali Climbing Forecasts, as well as links to FAA webcams.
With no climbers left on the mountain, the National Weather Service has stopped publishing their mountain-specific forecast for the season, though it is normally found here: Denali Climbing Forecast
The FAA webcam on the Kahiltna Glacier was never even installed for the 2023 season, a result of several issues, predominantly the dearth of clear, flyable days that coincided with both technician and helicopter availability.
Ranger Reports
With tremendous relief, we happily report that all of the NPS mountaineering camp gear was flown off Denali yesterday -- a long beautiful day of flying and a lot of hard work! TEMSCO helicopter pilot Jon Combs flew to 14,2000-foot camp with the two most acclimated climbers in Talkeetna -- Ranger Chelsea Bomba and Alaska Mountaineering School guide Claire Bicknell. Bomba and Bicknell spent the day on the ground at 14K hooking up the five remaining net-loads of camp gear to the helicopter long-line for hauling to Basecamp.
Meanwhile, down at 7K, Rangers Galen Dossin and Jake Kayes worked with K2 Aviation pilots to internally load the gear into three Otter flights...with K2 Aviation staff heading back into Basecamp last night to take care of the last (fourth) Otter load of the day. (Thank you, K2, for making Joey McBrayer's day!)
The only remaining flight mission of the season is to remove the Sultana radio repeater, a temporary repeater placed on top of Mount Crosson each season to enhance mountain radio communications during the months of May, June, and July.
With all the flying underway yesterday, no one had time to take photos on the mountain, but the view greeting staff this morning at the Walter Harper Talkeetna Ranger Station was a similiarly beautiful one signifying the end of the 2023 season:
The 2023 Denali climbing season is officially hung out to dry. (NPS Photo / Maureen Gualtieri)
Photo of the Day
Meanwhile, earlier this season, Ranger Travis Baldwin welcomes fellow Ranger Alan Davis to the 14,200 foot camp. (NPS Photo / Eric Wickenheiser)