15
Jun
inReach message from Robert Danger Byrd
Digging cache now. Much harder today, very steep, climb, no sleds heavy packs, 75lbs for me. Hot, no wind, blazing sun, no clouds weather is a bit too good.
Digging cache now. Much harder today, very steep, climb, no sleds heavy packs, 75lbs for me. Hot, no wind, blazing sun, no clouds weather is a bit too good.
We haul half loads up the exceptionally steep Motorcycle Hill to Windy Corner today and cache the gear around 13000′ and return to 11200′ Camp for the night.
29-63deg w blue skies today & windy. My hat was blown off thrice despite the strap. Lloyd lost one of his sleeping mats to the wind.
Today was easier than yest w lighter load. Still feel strong, but starting to feel cumulative effects. Don’t usually blister, but have from downhill run yest
We are done moving for the day & have a couple of hours work digging out tent sites & building ice walls. I’ll blog more about today after the work is done.
Relocating from camp 1 at 7.8k up to camp 2 at 11.2k today. We are moving out soon. Should be an wasy day w. 25lb pack & 43lb sled.
Monster avalanche in valley we are camped in. It’s a big valley so we were safe, but the power was impressive. It sent a plume of spray up hundreds of feet.
Getting many weather questions. Dramatic changes make it hard to dress for Denali. Last 24 hrs has ranged 10 to 71 deg. Clear blue skies, brutal sun & windy.
Back at 7k Camp. Lloyd our token Englishman set the pace by practically jogging down the MTN. Had a beautiful hike down through postcard scenery. I feel good
Have buried the gear at 11k camp & are heading down ski hill. Last year, legs were burning, gasping for air and suffering. This year was a comfortable stroll
This is the hill that destroyed me last year and got me voted off the island. Not this time! We reached the cache point & decided to go all the way to Camp 2
Today we haul half our loads up Ski Hill, dig a cache and drop back down to 7800′ Camp for the night. Tomorrow we haul the rest of our gear up to 11200′ Camp.
Today was a heavy day, but no significant elevation gain. My load felt light, I felt strong and despite the sun, I was comfortable.
We are done moving for the day & have a couple of hours work digging out tent sites & building ice walls. I’ll blog more about today after the work is done.
We are about to move. My final load is 120lbs almost 60 less than last year. It’s a beautiful day and the scenery is dramatic.
Correction for that last message. We leave base camp for camp one tomorrow.
Today we leave Base Camp and single carry, meaning we haul everything in one trip. We will descend Heartbreak Hill then begin climbing to 7800′ Camp.
Hallelujah! We lost 4 precious weather days but this update comes to you directly from the Kahiltna Glacier. Sleeping at base camp & will move out in the AM
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