Field Report, June 17

June 17, 2015 Posted by: Maureen Gualtieri, Roger Robinson

TODAY'S STATS

Mt. McKinley

Mt. Foraker

Registered Climbers

1,071

15

Climbers Currently On Mountain

402

2

Completed Climbs

561

13

Number of Summits

240

4

Summit Percentage

43%

31%


The Walter Harper Talkeetna Ranger Station also maintains a daily automated statistics phone line, so if this blog is lagging behind and you need up-to-date registration numbers, call (907) 733-9127. 


Weather Report

14,200 feet - Skies were clear this morning. Wind was 4 mph from the east, gusting to 38 mph.   

In the last 12 hours:
Current temp:  14 F (-10 C)
Low temp: 10  F (-12 C)
High temp:   19 F (-7 C)   

7,200 feet - Skies clear, with an 8 mph wind from the east, gusting to 19 mph. 

In the last 12 hours:
Current temp: 39 F (4 C)
Low temp: 34 F (1 C)
High temp: 41 F (5 C) 

National Weather Service forecast  


Ranger Update

NPS Denali Patrol #4 (Chenoweth, 4 VIPs)  The health of climber/patient who the patrol treated for mild HAPE in recent days has improved and they will descend to 14,200-camp without ranger assistance. Tucker and 3 of the VIPs went to the summit yesterday, the first NPS patrol of the season to reach the top.

NPS Denali Patrol #5 (McBrayer, 4 VIPs) plans to head up to high camp tomorrow, swapping campsites with Patrol #4. 

NPS Denali Patrol #6 is (Gentzel, Corn, 4 VIPs) are remaining at the 11,200-foot camp tonight, and intend to move up to 14,200-foot camp tomorrow.    

NPS Basecamp Patrol #5 (Shain + 1 VIP) is getting in some short rock climbs in this good weather.

The biggest news of the day is that Rangers Joe Reichert and Chris Erickson have worked the last several days helping install an FAA webcam on the Kahiltna Glacier at the base of Mt Hunter. This webcam is a pivotal step forward in flight safety, providing pilots with a real-time view of weather conditions on the approach into the Kahiltna Basecamp and surrounding areas. As of this morning, the webcam is up and running at http://avcams.faa.gov/  Look for the "Kahiltna Glacier Advisory WX" location on the map. Big thanks go out to Joe Reichert and the FAA for making the webcam a reality! 

Today, the ice core researchers will be flown off of Mount Hunter, where they have been gathering ice core data over the past several weeks. Currently, the research team aims to give a local presentation on their project, tentatively scheduled for Friday night at Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge...we will confirm the date, time, and location tomorrow.


Route Conditions

Good weather persists with climbers moving up and down on Denali. Upper mountain and the summit has had 20-25 mph N winds. Somewhat challenging but doable if prepared for the wind chill. 

The lower glaciers are still in relatively decent travel condition so far, despite the warm temperatures and blazing sun. Nevertheless, they are starting to decline and most climbers are travelling on a night schedule to take advantage of cooler nighttime temps.

A report came in of some light rockfall activity between Windy Corner and the Headwall as a result of increasing temperatures.  

 

Photo of the Day 

Dragon Spine Panorama

A stunning panorama taken during a recent climb of the Dragon Spine in Little Switzerland made by Tom Plotke and James Gustafson. Photo courtesy of Tom Plotke.

Last updated: July 21, 2015

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Contact Info

Mailing Address:

PO Box 9
Denali Park, AK 99755

Phone:

907 683-9532
A ranger is available 9 am to 4 pm daily (except on major holidays). If you reach the voicemail, please leave a message and we'll call you back as soon as we finish with the previous caller.

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