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TODAY'S STATS - 5/13/22 |
Denali |
Mt. Foraker |
|
Registered Climbers |
1.084 |
17 |
|
Climbers Currently On Mountain |
127 |
7 |
|
Completed Climbs |
13 |
0 |
|
Number of Summits |
0 |
0 |
|
Summit Percentage |
0% |
0% |
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The Walter Harper Talkeetna Ranger Station also maintains an almost daily automated statistics phone line, so if this blog is lagging behind and you need up-to-date registration numbers, call (907) 733-9127. |
As of May 13, there are 60 backcountry users exploring the Alaska Range:
- 21 in Upper Kahiltna
- 21 in the Upper Ruth
- 8 on Mount Hunter
- 3 on the Tokositna Glacier
- 4 in Little Switzerland
- 2 on the Lower Kahiltna
Mountain Weather
Wednesday, May 13, 8:00 AM observation from ranger Chrissie Oken: Light but gusty down glacier winds at BC. ~2 inches new snow. Ceiling ~12,000 feet across Kahiltna - can barely see the top of Mt. Crosson
Rangers Galen and Alan at 14K report that winds were calmer than yesterday, starting off as a nice day at 14K.
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.
Click here for the National Weather Service Denali Climbing Forecast
The FAA webcam on the Kahiltna Glacier -- Installation work started yesterday (Thursday the 12th), but weather shut down Ranger Joe and the FAA installation crew. Need to shop around for another good weather window to finish the job.
Conditions Reports
Denali is seeing the standard early season conditions:
- Windy Corner is blue ice
- Headwall is also blue ice. Conditions described as Alpine Ice 3. Fixed lines are sporadic, with sections unknown.
- Squirrel Hill is icy as well, but new snowfall has helped.
Another update from the Moose’s Tooth/Root Canal left in the Route Conditions Binder:
(5/7/22) Ham & Eggs: "Fun and in good conditions all the way to the col."
(5/11/22) Shaken Not Stirred "P1 day. We recovered stuck ropes on our way down. We did up to the top of narrow. Very snowy but good/fair ice under. Didn’t make the crux but appears no ice at all with snow on top."
And some new conditions reports left by climbers recently in the Ruth Gorge:
(4/25 to 5/9) North Face of London Tower: "Mixed line on west side of face. Did 3 pitches of mixed up to MS with poor snow. Rapped due to poor conditions."
Escalator/Mount Johnson: "Good snow and ice until final 300 feet. Poor snow on final slopes."
COVID Update
The 2021 Denali climbing community got lucky last year with no reported COVID cases during the mountaineering season. This season, with more contagious variants and fewer prevention protocols in place internationally, COVID has begun to make its mark in the Alaska Range.
Following reports in the past several days of climbers returning from the mountains to Talkeetna with signs and symptoms of COVID, Denali NP rangers strongly encourage preventative measures to ensure climbers don’t contract the virus before their flight into the Alaska Range. These measures include the CDC recommendations:
- Staying up-to-date on vaccinations and boosters;
- Wearing a mask when indoors
- Staying 6 feet away from others
- Avoiding crowds and poorly ventilated spaces
- Washing hands frequently.
These precautions are especially important in the two weeks before your expedition start date and during your time in Talkeetna! You have likely invested a great deal of money, time (months? years?), and energy into planning this expedition. Don't let COVID-19 ruin that investment.
Although optional COVID testing is now available daily in downtown Talkeetna by the non-profit partner Denali Education Center (click for more info), testing does not take the place of prevention. The virus, particularly with the current variants, is not always detectable in asymptomatic individuals.
Search and Rescue
On Monday evening May 9, two injured climbers were evacuated from an area of the Lower West Rib route known as the Chicken Couloir. An independent party of two was swept in a 1,000-foot avalanche. They survived the avalanche, but both climbers incurred multiple injuries. The team contacted Lisa at Basecamp via FRS radio to request a rescue.
The park’s high altitude helicopter pilot and two mountaineering rangers launched from Talkeetna and flew straight to the team’s location on the Northeast Fork of the Kahiltna Glacier. The rangers did a medical assessment and flew the two climbers back to Talkeetna where local EMS providers took over care and transport.
Ranger Reports
NPS 14K Patrol #1 (Dossin, Davis) Patrol #1 has the Communications tent mostly up and running and will shift priority to constructing the Medical Tent. If they have time, they might head down to Windy Corner and grab their cache. Today they count 4 teams of 2 each in camp -- still quiet at 14,200 feet!
NPS 14K Patrol #2 (Oken) Patrol #2 spent the morning packing and is now officially headed up the West Buttress, destination 7,800 feet for tonight's campsite.
NPS 7K Patrol #2 (Dalpes) Ranger Mik Dalpes and Ranger Taylor Bracher, a Backcountry Ranger from Denali's north district, are currently awaiting good fly-in weather to start their Basecamp patrol.
Meet the Temsco Crew
For very obvious reasons, Denali National Park's mountaineering operations are largely possible due to the strong partnership with contractor TEMSCO Helicopters. Each season, Denali NP and TEMSCO sign a 120-day exclusive use contract for the A-Star B3e helicopter, a powerful, yet agile aircraft well-suited for high altitude search and rescue operations on Denali. For the next three weeks we will introduce you to the three members of the TEMSCO team that make it possible. Today, meet Eric Ridington, the primary pilot for the 2022 contract. While its Eric's first year with the Denali contract, he is no stranger to high altitude flying.
Eric's background is in the guiding industry. He is an Association of Canadian Mountain Guides Ski Guide with over 14 years heli-ski and ski-mountaineering experience. Before that he was a Pro Ski Patrol on Whistler Mountain for 11 seasons and had a summer river guiding business. Eric always wanted to fly helicopters and heli-ski guiding fueled the dream.
Now in his 16th year as a pilot, Eric is a mountain flying specialist with over 8,000 hours experience in Alaska, Canada, and Nepal. He has worked as a flight instructor for both the TC glider and FAA CFII helicopter. His flight experience spans firefighting, heli-skiing, fish and wildlife surveys, aerial filming, offshore platform operations, drill moves, production/precision longline, power and pipeline patrol, arctic and winter mountain flying, helicopter tourism, and high altitude rescues.
Welcome, Eric, we are grateful to have you on the team!
Eric Ridington, primary pilot with TEMSCO Helicopters. (Photo courtesy of Eric Ridington) The Sanctity of Space
This Friday and Saturday, May 13 and 14, Denali Rescue Volunteers and Denali Arts Council are teaming up to present the Alaska premiere of the Sanctity of Space on the big screen in downtown Talkeetna, Alaska. "Inspired by the photography of legendary explorer Brad Washburn, three friends traverse some of Alaska's most challenging peaks." Showtime is 7:00 PM each night at the Sheldon Community Arts Hangar. Filmmaker and climber Freddie Wilkinson will introduce the film, and there are exciting and valuable door prizes to be won – flights, gear, clothing, etc.
Learn more about Denali Rescue Volunteers, an organization that helps make Denali National Park and Preserve's mountaineering operations whole! Thank you for all that you do each season, from helping equipping our volunteers, housing them before and after patrols, and supporting our recruitment process!
Photo(s) of the Day
The "Before" shot. Volunteer Mariel Terry and Ranger Chelsea Bomba pause for a breath on day one of the basecamp set-up patrol. (NPS Photo/Taylor Guetschow)
The "After" shot. In contrast to most teams who are just passing through Basecamp, the first 7K patrol of the season must plan ahead and dig a deep platform for the NPS weatherport tent to account for the gradually melting snow in the months ahead. (NPS Photo/Taylor Guetschow)