The Last Mountain
Denali is the tallest mountains in North America one of the big 7. Denali was originally named Mt. McKinley in 1896 by a gold prospector who wanted to pay homage to the presidential candidate William McKinley. However, local people continued to call the mountain Denali, its native name. It wasn’t until 2015 that the Secretary of the Interior under the Obama administration finally declared an official and final naming convention. The mountain that had been known for thousands of years as Denali is now recognized again by that word again today, both locally and nationally.
It is a mountain that is climbed by a alpine style instead of a siege or expedition style which means no Yaks, Sherpa, porters, or vehicles used to get me to the top. Just me carrying over 100 lbs of my gear, and my old hip bone that was replaced with a new shiny metal one. Using backpack and a sled I will travel to the first few camps then double carry backpack, caching high and moving up the next day. It will be #7 for me, the last of the big mountains.
I will be out of coms for the next 25 or so days and can be tracked by Mountain trip/trip reports my team will be the May 30 West buttress team. I will be climbing with two climbers that I have climbed with in the past, Roi from Israel two seasons stuck with me in a tent in the Andes and Frank that I met first in Nepal and climbed in Indonesia together. Looking forward to seeing them again.
Preparation for the climb has been long and painful COVID has intruded into our lives, at home, work and on the mountains and I am glad to finally be free. Fully vaccinated and tested, like the mountains I don’t fear Covid but respect the danger so do what I can to mitigate the risk. I will spend my 38 wedding anniversary on the mountain and miss many other events, my work, family and friends over the next month. This is a big price to pay to chase these big mountains. I still believe this gives me chance to reset and become a better person form the experience.
Lesson to grandkids:
Finish what you start. But keep Balance, weigh the price of your actions against the outcomes. Balance the focus on self and others.
