30 May 2006 (SMS Update)
Yay... SUMMIT SUMMIT SUMMIT!!!! It took us 12 hours in howling winds! But we made it. This mountain was extraordinarily tough.
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27 May 2006 (SMS Update)
Sorry about the complete lack of email contact. We spent the last 6 days and 7 nights at 17,000 ft. That much time at high camp takes everything out of your body. The winds varied from 60 to 100 miles per hour. For about 48 hours they were 100 miles per hour. The tent shook and we had to sit with our backs to the wall to hold it up. Our one tent pole is ripped in two places, and the vestibule is so ripped up that no amount of duct tape can fix it. We were unable to move from the tent. We ate nothing but freeze-dried potatoes and ramen for 6 days. Most of the time we were unable to move from the tent. This mountain has wild, wild weather and we have to respect it.
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22 May 2006 (SMS Update)
Rest day and a much needed one at that! Today we eat chocolate!!
Tonight we will sleep like zombies!
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21 May 2006 (SMS Update)
We woke up at 5:30am to try to be one of the first groups on the fixed lines. We were terrified.
At breakfast we forced down multiple cups of water in an attempt to help our bodies deal with the 1000m altitude we would gain.
The first three hours went beautifully. We felt strong and the weather was kind. We made it up to an ice ledge and took a long break, marveling in the view and organising our gear for the lines.
Tony started coughing and we noticed with fear that he was coughing up blood. Tony had been sick with a cold for a few days but at altitude your health can change really quickly. He told us he felt well and wanted to go up the lines. So our rope...
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...ascend. It was with utter joy that we made it to the top and began to traverse the ridge.
Due to the wild weather in the previous days the lines were in bad shape! Yet our trouble was only beginning! On the ridge Tony began to double over. He was seriously ill. We got him to empty his pack and attached a separate rope between him and another member of our rope team and sent them straight down. The rest of us carried our loads to 16,400 ft and cached them.
The way down the fixed lines proved very hairy. There should be separate down and up lines but these became tangled, leaving us and a cluster of climbers dangling for 20 minutes until we could fix them.
We made it down, and found Tony asleep. He has a respiratory tract infection which means his climb is over. We are all sad and the team mood is low. But we are also thankful he is OK and will be able to recover with descent and antibiotics.
Exhausted and starving, we had a huge dinner and went back to our tent to assess injuries. Cheryl's ankle had swollen to four times its size and continued to swell with her boots off. It had taken a severe beating with the steep ascent. She had done extremely well climbing. Nikki lifted her shirt to find blood. There was a huge blister just above her hip from carrying a heavy pack. It had burst and continued to rub raw. It was large and painful and we were worried about infection.
Tonight we will sleep like zombies!
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19 May 2006 (SMS Update)
Today we moved to the 14,000 ft camp. It was one of those days that reminds you how truly dangerous mountaineering is. We began by carrying large loads up Motorcycle Hill which was a feat in itself. It was -25°C when we set out, yet when we reached the top of the hill the winds picked up. The extreme power of nature hit us immediately.
Despite our crampons we had difficulty standing or moving forward without being knocked over and the temperature dropped by over 20°C. We reached Squirrel Point and our faces were wind burnt and we were very worried about frostbite, yet it was amazing how Heaven and Hell could meet so closely.
Two years ago a large avalanche killed and injured climbers and the area is very unstable.
Before the corner we took a wrong turn and found ourselves ascending a blue ice slope. Though the sun had hit, the wind still ripped through us. Nikki's hands were so cold they were aching and it was becoming increasingly difficult to move them.
Here the wind died down and we were able to warm Nikki's hands which were OK. Then it was only an hour into camp where, exhausted, we had to set up a tent and build icewalls...
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...skills for the fixed lines. These are on the top of the headwall after three hours of solid uphill climbing. The fixed lines are 800 ft of static cord covering vertical blue ice. This is when you really feel like a climber! But it is also extremely dangerous. You are reliant on your ascender for safety, and if this fails there is a long way to fall! There are also lots of teams on the line at any given time and if something goes wrong with one person, everyone is stuck hanging there unable to move. Every year big accidents happen on the lines! Needless to say, we were absolutely terrified! We spent the rest of the afternoon resting, eating and preparing.
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18 May 2006 (SMS Update)
Today we carried 20kg for around 7 hours. Just when you thought it was over there was another impossibly steep section to climb.
When we made it to Windy Corner we hit a huge crevasse field. For the smaller crevasses we'd take delicate steps with the rope tight and then sprint to get the sled over. For the larger ones we were completely reliant on our rope. When we finally made it through we cached our gear and made it back to our completely snow covered camp.
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17 May 2006 (SMS Update)
We got a sleep-in this morning. We had brekkie at 5am. Crawling out of the tent was difficult as it was covered in snow! It drove us nuts because when we saw how much had fallen all we wanted to do was ski!
We headed down the mountain harnessed up to pick up the gear we had cached. It took a lot of digging to uncover it from where we had buried it in the snow a few days before.
Now we are back at camp eating lots and trying to organise for a big carry day up Motorcycle Hill tomorrow.
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16 May 2006 (SMS Update)
Hello from 11,000 feet where it's snowing heavily and visibility is poor! We are starting to realise that this is a long, cold and heavy mountain. Our packs are huge and we have been dragging massive sleds with a month of fuel behind us up steep slopes.
Cheryl's ankle has been holding up but we have been icing it at night.
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15 May 2006 (SMS Update)
Early 5am start for load carry to cache just below camp 2. All well except for my [Cheryl's] sprained ankle which is a worry. Now up on ice and strapped but we'll see how it is tomorrow.
It was snowing at camp 2 but back at camp 1 hot and sunny.
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14 May 2006 (SMS Update)
Saddled up with heavy packs and full sled and hiked to camp 1 at midday. Fierce sun. We go from freezing to furnace. On a practical note we are trying to learn to pee through a funnel standing up but are failing so far.
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13 May 2006 (SMS Update)
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After this we rigged the sleds, checked the rope and did a final gear check. It's beautiful at base camp, with stunning views of Mt. Foraker, Mt. Hunter and of course Denali! We are slowly remembering expedition living: The pee holes with zero privacy, the freezing cold and sharing a tent! But we are very excited!
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