Denali Part 3: Camp 11,200

On Day 2, waking up to sore hips and a sore back, and with "Ski Hill" on the agenda, Aaron and I decided that it was time to double carry--take all our stuff to 11,000 ft camp in two loads, rather than one.  We hauled a little over half of our gear to 11,000 feet, cached it, and then returned to sleep at 7,800 feet.  I think it took us a little over 5 hours to climb to 11,000 feet.  It took us about 25 minutes to descend on skis from 11,000 feet to Camp 2.


On Day 3, we moved our camp to 11,000 feet, retracing our steps from the previous day.  The weather was on and off.  Sometimes it was hot.  Sometimes it was cold.  Sometimes it was windy and foggy.  Sometimes it wasn't.  By Day 3, we figured out that glacier UV radiation is intense.  We should have done better to cover up the first two days.

Aaron showing off his raccoon eyes.  

Camp 3 at 11,000 feet is located at the base of Motorcycle Hill, which I wrote about in a previous post.  It's said that Camp 3 is in somewhat of a weather sink in that it is often snowing at Camp 3 when other places (like Camp 4) are clear.  We found Camp 3 to be a likeable place.  


On Day 4, we hauled a load to 14,000 feet.  They say that the climb really begins at Windy Corner, and I agree with that.  As we climbed through Windy Corner, the clouds came in and out.  The crevasses looked huge and daunting.  The "trail" wound through and over a few "man eaters."  Every once in awhile on an adventure, you come across a sight that takes your breath away--at least I do.  Seeing the huge crevasses through the clouds with the backdrop of Foraker was one of those moments for me.  I was in awe.  I took a photo, but, really, you had to be there.

Just below 14 Camp.

I made this little video journal clip of the scene at 11,000 feet: