Arrived at 12,200 foot High Camp.

The team floated across the rest of the traversing section of ridge and has High Camp established at 12,200 ft. Our information indicated a relatively nice travel day for the crew. This will be their last camp on the ascent. From here they will wait for a nice day to make their bid for the summit. This summit day is a big one, about 5000 feet! Fortunately, for the guys, their loads will be very light.

Thanks for posting comments to the team. We try to relay them as best we can. They certainly appreciate the thoughts and support.

We'll post again as soon as we hear anything about a possible attempt for the summit.

Until next time...think warm sunny thoughts for the guys!

Traversing the long ridge toward Foraker.

The team checked in Wed. night. After a pretty long and strenuous day, they have established themselves about 1/3 of the way across the long traversing ridge. From a distance the ridge looks relatively easy. In reality it is quite technical terrain with many route finding challenges. The crew passed one of the famous knife edge sections on the ridge today with great ease.

The team is now going to single carry to their final camp at 12,200 ft, situated near the base of the long summit ridge. Their loads were heavy Tues. as they have all the food and fuel they could need for the next week.

Everyone in the group wishes to say hello to friends and loved ones back home. We are able to share your thoughts from the comments section via sat phone. They are all very interested in the happenings of the "inside" world.

Thanks again for following the team as they attempt one of the more elusive summits in the AK Range.

Happy Trails.

A winner and a podcast!

We had a winner in our trivia challenge! Big Creek Brew - shoot us an email with your address and T-shirt size and we'll hook you up with a neo-classic, Mountain Trip shirt, thereby making you the envy of everyone in town!

In other news- we received the following call late last night from the team:

Past Mount Crosson.

The team moved camp over the summit of Mount Crosson on Tues. Their new home lies on a spectacular ridge between Crosson and Peak 12,472 at about 11,700 feet. They report the view to be remarkable!

The crew is climbing strong and working really well together. The weather was great for the move with light winds and favorable temps. This next section of the climb is a real treat. It's amazing how close to Kahiltna Basecamp the team is, yet it feels like all of the hustle and bustle of the West Buttress is a world away.

A little AK Range trivia for those following this blog. For whom is Mount Crosson named, and what is the significance relative to climbing in the area? Post your answer in the "comments" section.

Happy Trails!

Podcast from the boys!

This came in last night:

Carry past the summit of Crosson.

The team checked in to report they made a carry over the summit of Mount Crosson (12,800 ft) and placed a cache at 11,700 ft on the other side. Monday night was spent back at their camp at 10,800 ft on the Southeast Ridge of Crosson. The plan is to move camp past the summit of Crosson today. Everyone is doing well and in great spirits. They wish to say hello to everyone following their journey.

The route from here will include a bunch of up and down as they will more or less be traversing to the base of the summit ridge on Foraker. The next big objective for the group will be to get over another small peak along the ridge, Peak 12,472. After that it's nearly 5 miles to the base of the summit ridge. The following days will include some remarkable climbing for this group. As they work along the ridge, the North side of Denali National Park sprawls toward eternity on the right and the heart of the Central Alaska Range sits to the left.

Until next time...make it a great day!

Back Carry Today!

We got word tonight the Foraker crew did a back carry today. After a big breakfast this morning the team descended to the Gendarme Camp on Mount Crosson to pick up their cache of gear. It's always a good feeling when you return with the cache. Tucked into a comfy camp with all of your food and supplies, what could be better?

The information we received didn't indicate a plan for tomorrow. It is likely the team will either carry a load over the summit of Crosson or possibly try move their camp over. There are a couple really comfortable camps on the other side of Crosson heading toward the Sultana Ridge.

Until next time...happy trails!