Welcome to our 2010 Foraker expedition

When the first reports of a tremendous mountain range in central Alaska began to trickle out to the world, the conventional wisdom was that the peak lying to the west of the three behemoths that dominated the range was the tallest. Early explorers must have been a bit confused, as the local name for the mountain was "Sultana" or "Menali," meaning Denali's sister. It appeared bigger than Denali, and was often more obscured by clouds.

We now know that the apparent extra height of the peak we call Mount Foraker is an illusion, created by its southerly location, relative to it's big brother. Partly because of the intense draw of Denali and partly because of the additional challenges of attempting Foraker, it has been overlooked or, perhaps more aptly, avoided, by the masses over the decades. Situated to the southwest of Denali, Foraker acts almost as if a magnet for weather coming into the range. There are no "easy" routes to her summit, and every route is very committing.

Mountain Trip led the first guided ascent of Mount Foraker via the southeast ridge and we are continuing our tradition of guiding climbers up challenging climbing routes with our 2010 Sultana Ridge Expedition. The Sultana or Northeast Ridge is a sublime, glaciated ridge that drops 5,000 feet down from the summit of Foraker. To access the route, climbers must first climb up and over two 12,000 foot peaks and traverse out a long section of corniced ridgeline that connects to the Sultana. It is a long and challenging route, with a very difficult summit day, due to the vertical relief involved.

On April 25, 2010 a team of four climbers will meet in Anchorage to finalize their oprganization for the ascent. Let's meet the team!

Guides:
Bill Billmeier from The Bench, AK
Michael Burmeister from Anchorage, AK

Climbers:
Miles Vinar from Australia
Harold Orner from New Mexico

We will make every effort to keep posts on this dispatch blog up to date, but please keep in mind that occasionally weather or workload may prevent the team from communicating to us via their satellite phone. Keep in mind the old axiom, "No News Is Good News," as we will always be kept apprised of any sub-optimal news.

Enjoy the dispatches. We'll post photos from the expedition after the trip returns to Anchorage, so please check back after the climbers are back in town as well.