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our first night on the West Ridge of Mount Hunter.
"there are strange things done in the midnight sun, but the men that moil for gold".
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Slush & Rock - Alaska 2008
Three Base Camps in Two Weeks: An Alaska Range AdventureJuly 2008
Approaching Mt. Hunter's northeast face on the Tokositna Glacier. Courtesy of Greg Sievers.Brad Grohusky and Greg Sievers from Colorado spent two weeks on three different glaciers in the Alaska Range in June. Here’s Greg’s report.
As I reached the end of the third short rappel, I sank to my waist in what felt like a blended margarita. Gripping the end of the unknotted ropes just below my device, I packed out a platform on the 45-degree slope and asked myself what the hell was keeping the snow from ripping off in one big oozing avalanche. With another mile of exposed and corniced ridge facing us, we debated for an hour before admitting the conditions were too warm and unstable to continue, thus ending our second attempt on Mt. Hunter within five days.
The original plan was to climb a new route on the virgin face at the west end of the Tokositna Glacier. In 2005, Edward Corder and I made our first attempt and climbed 1,700' feet directly up the central rib of the 4,000' northeast face of Mt. Hunter; we coined the name Zircon Rib. We turned back when heavy black skies from the northwest descended on us like an impending Kansas tornado. We returned in May 2006 only to find such a late winter that there was still snow on the ground in Talkeetna. Temps at our base camp hit –25°F, and we didn't get jack done, just shivered. Three years later, Brad Grohusky and I arrived in early June to discover that the hanging glacier at two-thirds height had calved off some critical mass, leaving a convex wall overhanging the face and preventing the relatively safe passage we had counted on.
Chastised, we tried to make lemonade out of lemons and enjoy the tranquility at the isolated upper end of this glacier. We climbed a little snow summit just east of the Mini-Moonflower, dubbing it Mutha’s Milk, and also had a day of sweet Alaskan blue ice on Peak 11,520' just east of our base camp. Then we called in the sky-chariot and hopped over to the Kahiltna for a stab at the Beckey-Harrer Route on the west ridge of Mt. Hunter, only to be denied once more by the soupy snow.
Now we were on our second glacial flight in as many days, and our Tour de Glace soon dropped us on the Pika Glacier, about 20 miles down valley from Kahiltna international airport.
I was introduced to the Pika Glacier by name in the early ’80s, when I absorbed stories from the neighborhood heroes while living in Anchorage. Local legend Nick Parker and I were dating roommates, and on rare occasions the girls were home at the same time. He had just done a first ascent on the west face of the Throne, and I asked him more questions than he had answers. I tucked the dream of visiting the Pika into my overflowing hope chest. Now, 25 years and eight Alaskan climbing trips later, I was finally getting the chance.
The TAT turbine-powered DeHavilland Otter whirred off the Pika Glacier in what seemed like 200 yards, leaving us feeling like we’d been marooned. Granite giants surrounded us, and it was now dead silent—I love that sound. However, for the first time in a week we were near people. Bummer. We like solitude, and preferred to have the adjacent Trolls as neighbors rather than humans. The good news was that three of the five teams flew out the next day, and one more the following day.
Using Joe Puryear’s guidebook, we made the Little Switzerland Tour du Jour, ticking peaks from Joe's list. First day: the Lost Marsupial on the Throne, then the Munchkin on a drizzly day, followed by the First Buttress of Dragon's Spine. After a rain day, we made a damp morning a jaunt up the south face of the Middle Troll, and finally Gargoyle Buttress of Royal Tower. Phew! What a great week! Good fun, a great friend, and cold beer on the glacier.
To see Greg Sievers’ great photo album from this Alaska Range trip, click here.
Approaching Mt. Hunter's northeast face on the Tokositna Glacier. Courtesy of Greg Sievers.Brad Grohusky and Greg Sievers from Colorado spent two weeks on three different glaciers in the Alaska Range in June. Here’s Greg’s report.
As I reached the end of the third short rappel, I sank to my waist in what felt like a blended margarita. Gripping the end of the unknotted ropes just below my device, I packed out a platform on the 45-degree slope and asked myself what the hell was keeping the snow from ripping off in one big oozing avalanche. With another mile of exposed and corniced ridge facing us, we debated for an hour before admitting the conditions were too warm and unstable to continue, thus ending our second attempt on Mt. Hunter within five days.
The original plan was to climb a new route on the virgin face at the west end of the Tokositna Glacier. In 2005, Edward Corder and I made our first attempt and climbed 1,700' feet directly up the central rib of the 4,000' northeast face of Mt. Hunter; we coined the name Zircon Rib. We turned back when heavy black skies from the northwest descended on us like an impending Kansas tornado. We returned in May 2006 only to find such a late winter that there was still snow on the ground in Talkeetna. Temps at our base camp hit –25°F, and we didn't get jack done, just shivered. Three years later, Brad Grohusky and I arrived in early June to discover that the hanging glacier at two-thirds height had calved off some critical mass, leaving a convex wall overhanging the face and preventing the relatively safe passage we had counted on.
Chastised, we tried to make lemonade out of lemons and enjoy the tranquility at the isolated upper end of this glacier. We climbed a little snow summit just east of the Mini-Moonflower, dubbing it Mutha’s Milk, and also had a day of sweet Alaskan blue ice on Peak 11,520' just east of our base camp. Then we called in the sky-chariot and hopped over to the Kahiltna for a stab at the Beckey-Harrer Route on the west ridge of Mt. Hunter, only to be denied once more by the soupy snow.
Now we were on our second glacial flight in as many days, and our Tour de Glace soon dropped us on the Pika Glacier, about 20 miles down valley from Kahiltna international airport.
I was introduced to the Pika Glacier by name in the early ’80s, when I absorbed stories from the neighborhood heroes while living in Anchorage. Local legend Nick Parker and I were dating roommates, and on rare occasions the girls were home at the same time. He had just done a first ascent on the west face of the Throne, and I asked him more questions than he had answers. I tucked the dream of visiting the Pika into my overflowing hope chest. Now, 25 years and eight Alaskan climbing trips later, I was finally getting the chance.
The TAT turbine-powered DeHavilland Otter whirred off the Pika Glacier in what seemed like 200 yards, leaving us feeling like we’d been marooned. Granite giants surrounded us, and it was now dead silent—I love that sound. However, for the first time in a week we were near people. Bummer. We like solitude, and preferred to have the adjacent Trolls as neighbors rather than humans. The good news was that three of the five teams flew out the next day, and one more the following day.
Using Joe Puryear’s guidebook, we made the Little Switzerland Tour du Jour, ticking peaks from Joe's list. First day: the Lost Marsupial on the Throne, then the Munchkin on a drizzly day, followed by the First Buttress of Dragon's Spine. After a rain day, we made a damp morning a jaunt up the south face of the Middle Troll, and finally Gargoyle Buttress of Royal Tower. Phew! What a great week! Good fun, a great friend, and cold beer on the glacier.
To see Greg Sievers’ great photo album from this Alaska Range trip, click here.
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