Day 1 – Sunday 3rd June

The Inlet B&B was small but a good size for our needs as it just about fitted all the group in one go – only Rodney was forced to find an alternative venue. Dale and Mike made their own arrangements so six of the nine got to enjoy the hospitality of Barbara the owner.

Team composition was 9 clients (1 Alaskan, 1 Australian, 2 Brits, 1 Irish, 1 Japanese-Brazilian and 3 from mainland US) plus 3 American Guides. We were greeted by Chris (lead guide), Dave (just 2 days off the mountain) and Drew. A gear check at 10am followed and much to my horror I needed more gear = more spend! Down pants (never used), bottle insulators (essential but bottles still froze), overboots (could have got away with but not worth the risk), mitts and pee bottle (necessity!). The overboots I bought didn’t fit so I walked back from B&B to shop. Got lost but found a friendly local directed me (all local Alaskans seem friendly) only to find the shop closed.

At lunch we went to the local ‘Bear Tooth’ café set within a cinema, and had a large steak burrito & local pale ale, very nice and cheap too! Guides and team on initial impressions seem like good people.
No mobile reception though did see an internet case when driving around so will walk there and try to email Libby and the little monster. Weather today has been mild, mostly cloudly.

Day 2 – Monday 4th June

After yesterdays admin hassle today felt like we were on the trip proper. Got up at 6am, breakfast then packed kit into trailer. Said “hi” to Chris Davenport (apparently a famous skier?), who was meant to be catching a lift to Talkeetna with us.

Arrived at midday in Talkeetna and bought overboots from the AMS store. Talkeetna is a real one street, frontier type of town. Weighed in kit at airstrip, personal kit = 65lbs, group kit for 12 = 1400 lbs; managed to speak to Libby.

Got to sit in the co-pilots sit for flight into glacier which was great, though views spoilt by low cloud. Landed at basecamp we then cracked on with camp admin, rigging sleds, packs and ate food. Relaxed start but tomorrow with a single carry across the kahiltna Glacier will be a big day. Very mild, around 5C and raining in the evening.

Day 3 – Tuesday 5th June - Kahiltna Base Camp (2,200m) to Ski Hill (2,400m) – dist 5.5m

Sitting at camp 1 after an eventful day. Had a ‘slow’ start, up at 3.30am but not moving until 6.30am. Everything takes a little longer in this environment. Having rigged our sleds last night, we set off in 3 rope teams, each led by a guide. ‘Team (The dogs) Bollocks’ was led by Dave with Ben, Andrew and myself on the rope. We only got 2 yards when Andrew’s sled flipped, then jammed in a hole – an omen for the rest of the day. The 6 mile move done in single carry meant carrying 90lb pack and 30lb sleds – painful! Toshi (Jpy-Brazilian) reached the first rest stop in a bad way. He had been delaying his rope team and after a discussion was decided he was going back and his trip was over – a lot of cash for an hours walk on a glacier. We then encountered serious crevasse action. Best moment being a ‘double-header’ where Chris encountered an ankle grabber and in backing up Andrew in front of me reversed into a ‘body snathcer’ disappearing instantly – quite impressive. Took around 30 minutes to get an extraction and would have been a goner without the rope. Now all safely at camp 1 with great views of the Messner Couloir, Cassin Ridge and Denali Summit.

Day 4 – Wednesday 6th June - Ski Hill (2,400m) to Upper Kahiltna (3,200m) – dist 3m

Did a load carry to 10,200ft to cache group & personal gear. Steady ascent up Ski Hill (like a beginners ski slope) done in about 4.5hrs. Once we’d cached the gear – requiring a large snow hole and marking our spot – we went back down to camp in one go. Most of day has been low cloud with poor visibility and light snow.

Day 5 – Thursday 7th June - Ski Hill (2,400m) to Motorcycle Hill (3,400m) – dist 4m

Lying in my sleeping bags as I write at 11k ft, after we had broken camp, and moved up to motorcycle hill. Weather today has been tough with high winds, snow, poor visibility and cold. Up at 5.15am on the move at 7.30am (starting to become a slick operation!) we moved at good speed making 4 stops en route. Arriving at camp the weather was still bad and I for one was highly motivated to set up camp and establish some shelter. The process is simple, dig a platform and walls then carefully pitch the tent, making sure nothing blows away. It’s amazing how warm it can get in the sleeping bag inside the tent, very cosy. Saw my first mountain wildlife on Denali, a yellow/ green finch type bird (grey crowned rosy finch?) which flew around our campsite in the morning before turning up half way through the hike, perching on our rope whilst we moved. Sadly it was last seen being mown over by my sled and reportedly trodden on by Dale, probably a blessing in disguise.
Greeted by two jovial Eastern Europeans singing loudly in the gale force conditions gesturing wildly – first signs of altitude sickness?

Day 6 – Friday 8th June - Motorcycle Hill (3,400m) Back Carry – dist 2.5m

Today we back carried, going back to collect our stash, effectively an active rest day. Led going which was enjoyable as I could largely dictate the pace. Dug up the cache and back to camp, all within 1 hour. Cheese toasties were good – food so far has been top notch – followed by gear sorting, brief nap, dinner then bed. Tomorrow we carry to 13,500 or maybe 14,200 Basin Camp to cache gear, which will involve ascending Motorcyle Hill, Squirrel Point and going around Windy Corner. The weather forecast is poor so could be interesting.

Day 7 – Saturday 8th June - Motorcycle Hill (3,400m) to Cache (4,100m) - dist 1.75m

Carried to 13,500 ft today, up Motorcycle Hill, Squirrel Hill and Windy Corner. No squirrel or motorbikes spotted and barring certain team members there was little wind to note. Some good exposure with good views of Peters Glacier and out to the Tundra. Piled down at a fast pace as temperatures started to get really hot. Number of parties going up slowly looking like they weren’t enjoying the experience. A typical Denali day with crazy weather, -5C at 9am, sweltering at the end. Back at camp we watched Davenport and team ski some extreme lines