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Overview | Mt. Bona Expedition | First Ascents
Climbing and mountaineering in the Wrangell St. Elias National Park is an unforgettable experience. Our largest National Park is host to the highest concentration of peaks over 14,000 feet in North America, and there is still much left to explore. Our First Ascents Expedition will attempt to explore unclimbed terrain, either via a new route an unclimbed peak!
May 16 - 27; June 13 - 24 (12 days)
Cost: $3250 per person (does not include bush pilot fee)
Client to Guide Ratio: 2:1
Beginning to Advanced Level Climbing
Private itineraries are available upon request.
The First Ascents Expedition takes place in The Wrangell - St. Elias mountain range in Alaska. The Wrangell, and St. Elias mountain ranges converge in what is often referred to as the "Mountain Kingdom of North America." The largest unit of the National Park System and a day's drive east of Anchorage, the park-preserve includes the continent's largest assemblage of glaciers and the greatest collection of peaks above 16,000 feet. Mount St. Elias, at 18,008 feet, is the second highest peak in the United States. Adjacent to Canada's Kluane National Park, the range is characterized by remote mountains, valleys, wild rivers, and a variety of wildlife.
The First Ascents Expedition is designed for the mountaineer that wants practical skills climbing on rugged, glaciated mountains. The course covers alpine snow and ice climbing skills, snow camping, expedition behavior, glacier travel, crevasse rescue, glacier navigation, high altitude climbing and finally culminates in a summit attempt or two of a major mountain in the area. The remote and pristine arctic setting will prepare you for expeditions to the Himalayas, Andes, or Denali. Participants need to have basic mountaineering and backpacking skills before signing up for this course, preferably our 3 or 5 Day Mountaineering Course in Colorado or equivalent.
Day 1: Arrive in Anchorage. Meet as a group and do an equipment check. Stay in a local hotel or bed and breakfast.
Day 2: We'll be shuttled to Chitina where we'll be picked up by Paul Claus of the Ultima Thule Lodge and then flown into his amazing compound in the heart of the Wrangell St. Elias National Park.
Day 3: Given good weather, we'll fly into our basecamp today. Possible locations include the Barnard/Jeffries Glaciers, and the Bagley Ice Field.
Day 4: Today we'll begin by reviewing some of the basic principles of mountaineering and how they apply to terrain in Alaska. We'll move into the more advanced topics of team travel on the glacier as the day progresses.
Day 5: Exploration. Utilizing the concepts we covered the previous day, we'll venture out to begin to identify some possible objectives for the coming days. Routfinding and planning will be taught in detail throughout the day.
Day 6: Climb a new route. Because many of the First Ascents potentials are at a lower evelation, we can make an attempt on a route or peak without a significant amount of time spent acclimatizing. This means more potential for climbing throughout the trip.
Day 7: Move to an alternate base camp and prepare for another climb, or take a rest day in preparation for another climb in the area.
Day 8: Make another First Ascent!
Day 9: Extra day to climb in case of poor weather. In the evening we'll make our way back to the landing strip where we'll eventually be picked up by Paul.
Day 10: In the morning we'll be picked up by Paul in his Turbo Otter and flown back the Ultima Thule Lodge where we'll feast and celebrate another succesful trip into the mountains! This is also an extra climbing day in case of poor weather during the preceding days.
Day 11:Fly back to Chitina in the morning and drive to Anchorage to catch an evening flight home.
Day 12: Arrive home!
Note: This is an approximate itinerary and may be adjusted according to weather, bush flight schedules, group speed and ability. It is important to begin the trip with a flexible, open minded attitude as we may sometimes have to dramatically alter the itinerary due to poor weather or other limiting factors beyond the guides' realm of control. Daylight hours are unusually long so we have a lot of time to refine our snow camping and climbing skills.
Cost Includes: An AMGA trained Alpine Guide, group camping & climbing equipment (tents, ropes, stoves, etc), and food while in the mountains.
Cost does not include: Domestic airfare to Anchorage, hotels stays in Anchorage, food in towns or cities, bush flight fee, transportation fee from Anchorage to Chitina, cancellation or emergency evacuation, insurance, costs of a personal nature, or costs associated with flight or trip delays.
Equipment: Download the Alaska Expedition Equipment Checklist
Registration and Cancelation: You will need to fill out a Expedition Application, cancellation policy agreement and a liability waiver, and send it to us with a 50% deposit 60 days before trip date. Balance is due 30 days prior to trip departure date. Please click on our Registration/Travel link to access the required forms.
Prerequisites: Participants need to have basic mountaineering and backpacking skills before signing up for this course. Preferably our Three or Five day Winter Mountaineering Course or equivalent.
(Authorized permitee in Wrangell/St. Elias) |
Alaska
