Epilogue

The team which I was supposed to join enjoyed a successful summit on May 21st. All returned safely on May 26th. Congrats to all. I hope to join the climb next year.

My Team Members Depart

The members of the team that I had planned to be a part of has departed for Denali base camp. The Alaska Mountaineering School established a blog to keep track of the teams headed to Denali and Foraker. check out the May 6th post- Mt Foraker and May 6 Denali are in. at
http://www.alaskamountaineeringschool.blogspot.com/

South America

Well, as most everyone knows by now, I made a trip to South America. The main reason for the trip was to take part in a hike on the Inca Trail to Macchu Picchu. I had also hoped to get some sightseeing in as well. I managed to do both. Unfortunately, I injured myself on the very last day of the trip.

Actually, I am recovering well. It's still tough realizing that my team has already left for Alaska, leaving me behind. I'm seeking comfort in planning for my 2009 attempt at Denali.

Regardless, I thought I would go back and write about my South America experience. Even though the trip ended on a sour note, I did have fantastic experiences in the Galapagos, the Amazon and in Macchu Picchu.

2008 Expedition Postponed

Due to injuries I sustained in a fall at Wayna Pichu in Southern Peru, I will be unable to participate in the 2008 Mt. Denali expedition. Eric

Denali Weather - Part I: High Winds

Mount Denali is located in a region that scientists refer to as a subpolar low. In this space, arctic air moving from the north converges with warmer air moving from the south at a latitude of 60 degrees (Denali is located at 63 degrees). This convergence creates a belt of unstable weather at this latitude.

Associated with the subpolar low is a semi-permanent area of low pressure known as the Aleutian Low, located in the vicinity of the Aleutian Islands. Weather systems generated or passing through the Aleutian Low often take a straight path for the Alaska Ranges and hit Mt. Denali with little warning. Mt. Denali also has a reputation for streaky weather with long periods of continuous bad weather or more rarely, long periods of good weather. This explains why inexperienced, clueless climbers may reach the summit while veteran climbers die on its slopes. As a result of its proximity to the Aleutian Low, the weather on Denali is unlike the weather on any other major mountain in the world. Extreme cold is another hallmark of Denali’s weather and temperatures routinely fall to -40 F (-40 C). Unfamiliarity with Denali's weather is an underlying cause of many accidents. Weather patterns generally fall under the following categories: High Winds; Low Pressure Systems from the Gulf of Alaska; Low Level Moisture; and Good Weather. In this section, we will focus on "HIGH WINDS."

HIGH WINDS. Mt. Denali undergoes long periods of clear skies and high winds, and these conditions are most often seen during early part of the climbing season (which is the time period for my expedition, May 5th through may 26th). During these periods, many of the mountain slopes are swept clean of snow leaving behind solid blue ice and testing the cramponing skills of even the most experienced climbers. Denali Pass and the upper part of the West Rib are especially notorious sites for accidents when these conditions occur. During such weather, many climbers are lulled by the clear skies into going for the summit. However, these winds routinely exceed 100 mph and have been known to pick climbers up and throw them down the slopes. Windstorms often come with little if any warning and are thus amongst the most feared weather patterns on the mountain. The first signs of increasing high winds are the appearance of lenticular cloud caps over the summit (see picture to left). Many of the accidents in 1992, Denali’s deadliest year, occurred during such a weather pattern.

Mammoth Mountain

The name says it all. With lodging at 9,000 ft and a top peak of 12,000+ ft, Mammoth is a great place to get exposure to high altitude. I did a quick trip up there (only 5 hours from Orange County) to get in some high-altitude runs.

One note of caution: keep in mind the altitude when consuming alcohol! This is a video of me discussing the mountain.

Training Diet

I often get asked about my training diet. It's a multi-prong approach. Let's start with dinner, the most important meal because you'll sleep on it all night at a low metabolism. I really paired back on this. First of all some ground rules: no cheese, one slice of bread max, low in fruits, a vegtable dish, and protein. Tonight I had a solid, efficient dinner consisting of one vegtable dish - 8 ounces with 180 calories; protein - basic turket cuts, heated in microwave -120 Cal, 6 g of carbs, and 10 g of protein; one orange - 37 calories; one slice of bread - 120 calories and 22 g of carbs. So, the total caloric intake is 457, which is not bad for one meal. One cautionary note: the protein dish carries 1,200 g of sodium, which reminds me to look for lower sodium meats (wow, that's why this lunch meat was on sale). By the way, I'm not adverse to having some red wine as well.

Son't forget to drinks lots of water.

Training Recap 3/13 - 3/18

Well, big progress this past week. Today was, in fact, my biggest workout to date in terms of pack weight. I first did a one-hour trail hike through Laguna Hills with my new backpack - a Bora 95. At 6,000 cu. in., it's expedition size. I weighted it down with 20# to give me some light resistance as I hiked. You can see my new "Sunrunner" hat from Outdoor Research; when it comes to sun exposure, I don't mess around. I'm taking the best solar protection available. Although you can't see my altitude watch, it's on and working. Not bad given that I've have not used it in three years. And finally, I wore my new hiking shoes, Merrell, which seem to be just fine. These will be my primary hiking shoes for the Inca Trail in early April.

Later, I walked over the the gym, loaded the pack up with 60# of weight (2 x 30# hand weights) and hiked for 25 minutes. This is the heaviest weight I've carried to date. From the profile picture, you can get a sense of the pack's size. It was a tough carry.


Yesterday, I did a longer hike at a lower weight. In the gym, where I test changes in any variables - weight, speed, incline, neww gear - I carried 40# for 55 minutes. After a short 5 minute rest, I continued with a 35 minute walk with the same weight. This was much easier than when I first tried 40#.


On Sunday, I did a one-hour hike with 20# of weight.


From Wednesday through Saturday of this past week, I did long 1 - 2 hour hikes without weights or a pack. For some of these walks, I wore my new Merrell hiking shoes to help break then in.

AMS mountaineering course, May 4th – 13th, 2002

This mountaineering course was my first serious experience with mountaineering. Before this, I had done some moderate technical routes – Mt. Shasta’s Avalanche Gulch, Green Butte, and Sargents Ridge routes; and a high-altitude climb – Mt. Kilimanjaro’s Arrow Glacier route. But, these routes could not compare to the intensity of this course.

In my journal from this time, I compared this course to Navy boot camp and submarine duty at sea. A particularly telling phrase was this entry on May 7th: “This is advanced stuff. I’m cold, tired, worn out and wondering how I’ll make it the whole trip. My tent is totally disorganized.” Still, I progressively adjusted to the challenge. On May 11th, I wrote, “Overall, I had an awesome day. Sitting here, writing this, I feel totally calm and at peace. I’ve become comfortable here.”

The picture at right is a younger me updating my journal at the "high camp" of 8,200'. My journal has been a valuable reference in my preparation for this expedition.

The Guides

I hope you did not expect me to go about this business by myself!

Please meet Alaska Mountaineering School. AMS is the most prestigious guiding company for all climbs in the Alaska Range, Talkeetna Mountains, and Chugach Mountains. To understand AMS is to understand the history of guiding on Mt. Denali. The names of Colby Coombs (pictured to the right), Caitlin Palmer, Brian Okonek, and Diane Calamar Okonek are synonymous with this history. Each has played a major role in shaping the company’s approach to and philosophy of guiding. A single blog post would not do their roles justice, so please accept a brief introduction. I promise to lay out this history in part sequence throughout this blog.

My personal introduction to AMS, or AMS/ADG as it was known at the time, came through my participation in a six-day AMS mountaineering course in May of 2002. I signed up for the course as a way to prove to myself as well as to AMS that I could cut it on a Denali expedition. It was a thrilling experience. I learned more about mountaineering in that week than in any period of time before or since. AMS Director, Colby Coombs, told me that my acceptance into the 2008 Denali West Buttress Expedition was based upon my performance in this course.

Training Recap 3/3 - 3/10

Good progress this week. Monday, March 3rd was a solid start. It was a strength workout with a good warm-up. Started with 20 min cycle and 10 min treadmill walk at 2.8 mph, followed by the mandarory stretching - hamstring, gluts, oblique, and quads. Then, it was onto the strength section, where I followed by standard sets and reps. Bench was 3 sets with hand held 30 lbs weights for 30 reps, with biceps of 3 x 20 reps x 30lbs in between each bench rep. hen I moved to full triceps, 3 sets x 40 lbs x 30 reps, and half tri-ceps with the same. Military press was 3 sets x 2, 20lbs weights x 15 reps. Incline bench at 3 sets of 25# hand weights for 20 reps finished off the workout.

Tuesday was too good of a surfing day to pass up. I met friends at the Huntington Beach Power Plant for two hours of 2 - 3 ft low rollers. Usually my surf days are rest days, but I managed to fit in a nice backpack workout in the evening. I carried a 40 lbs back pack 20 minutes on the treadmill at a 2.8 mph pace. This was the heaviest carry to date and with the pace, I averaged a 130 bpm heartrate during the exercise. The strain on my shoulders was the limiting factor. I load my pack with two 20# weights, which concentrates the load on the shoulders.

Wednesday found me sore from tuesday's carry. So, I lowered the intensity and only did a 20 min cycle and 20 min treadmill walk at 2.8 mph, no load.

Friday: After a rest day, which, coincided with the UCLA-Stanford game (UCLA won in overtime), I did a mix strength/aerobic workout. On the aerobic side, I cycled for 15 min and walked, unloaded, for 30 min at a 2.8 mph pace. For strength, I did the usual routine: bench, bicep, tri-cep, and military. I upped bench and bicep weights to 32.5 #, completing the sets without problem.

Saturday's workout represented some good progress when I successfully carried a 40# pack for 65 minutes at a 1.8 mph pace with an average heart rate of 100 bpm. I was pleased to see my heart rate under control.

Sunday & Monday: I'm combining these days because I surfed both days in the mornings. Sunday's surf was at Middle Tressles in San Clemente; Monday's was at Huntington Beach Powe plant. Unfortunately, Monday's surf session allowed this cold/flu thing to overtake me. Until now, I had successfully avoided all Winter illnessess. So, anticipate some rest days here.

The Gear is Here

Of course, no expedition would be fun if it did not involve the buying of all kinds of cool gear, some of which is absolutely necessary!

The necessary stuff keeps you alive. The most important piece of gear to arrive recently is the North Face Himalayan Parka with 800 fill down. There is no better parka on the market for high-altitude mountaineering. I also received my Julbo Micropore AltiArc glacier glasses this week. This pair carries a Category 4 rating, meaning that the lenses block 92% - 97% of all available light (and, of course, 100% of UVA/UVB). To the Julbo glassess, I added a Beko noseguard. Surprisingly, noseguards are tough to find. The $6.00 noseguard from AAI carried a $21 shipping charge! It's definitely a crucial buy. The noseguard cuts down on the amount of zinc oxide you need to carry. Plus, I experienced serious sunburn while wearing the zinc sunscreen because I kept wiping my nose.

Now, on to the fun stuff. The coolest thing I've seen in a while is this hand-held wind turbine that I might be able to use on the expedition for charging electronics. The LA Times ran an article about it and I placed an order the same day. For $70, the kit has the mini-wind turbine, arm-strap and a small solar panel. It looks cheaply made, but I'll soon put it to the test. It's called the HYmini and is made by this Taiwanese company called MINIWIZ Sustainable Energy Dev. Ltd. Well, stay tuned for more fun stuff on the way.

Training Recap 2/26 - 3/2

This is a quick recap of this last week's training, which I focused on leg strength and aerobic fitness. Tuesday's exercise was a 40 minute walk at 2.8 mph with a 30 pound backpack, my largest carry to date. On Thursday, I finally felt ready to begin outdoor hiking with inclines. I carried 15 pounds for a total of 1.5 hours. Friday was a long slow walk day wihout a pack. Saturday brought a return of strength training with Bench, Bicep, Military and Tricep sets along with a 20 min treadmill walk at 2.8 mph. Also, I added an exercise designed to mimic the motion of standing with a 60 pound pack. Holding one 30 pound weight in each hand, I rose from a crouching position to full standing position for six reps. Although I had some soreness on Sunday, I felt ready to repeat this exercise on Monday. Sunday was a repeat of Monday with long slow walking.

More Training & why one should train with a backpack

Sunday Training

Training never ends. As we used to say in Navy boot camp, "the only easy day was yesterday."

Good training sessions over the past two days. On Sunday, as predicted, rain swells cancelled out surfing. So, I took to pack training. This involves treadmill work while carrying a pack. An example will help underscore the importance of this type of training.

As we also said during my Navy days, "train like you fight." During my training class with AMS on the Ruth Glacier back in 2002, we practiced many of the skills necessary for the Denali expedition. One of the training days involved breaking camp at 6,000 feet and carrying all gear (except some supplies cached at base camp) up a few thousand feet to base camp. When I put on my pack, I instantly had a feeling of regret.

You see, back in Talkeetna, the town from which all expeditions depart, it seemed like a really good idea to carry some personal items to have on the glacier. Despite concern from one of the guides, I put in a hardcover journal and a 200 page book on Alaskan history. I pictured myself reading around the camp stove and reflecting on the days events in my journal. In case my total naivety was not completely clear, I also had amenities like a full tube of toothpaste, a large bottle of saline solution for my contacts, and other items whose weight I had not really considered.

Well, I should say, not really considered until I was about 1,000 feet above base camp, on back-country skis, carrying a 63 pound pack and dragging a 40ish pound sled. Being in a four-person rope team for maximum cravasse safety, travling at my own pace was not an option. To use another Navy term (probably not for the last time), I was the, "weak link in the anchor chain." I dragged the team as the others crept before and after me (I was second in the chain).

To give an example of the energy I put out to carry that pack, I was sweating profusely to the point where my entire capilene long sleeve short was soaked with sweat. My cap was completely wet. My Gortex shell was fully unzipped, the vents were wide, and my bib was unzipped down below my waist

The temperature was 17 degrees.

The team ground to a halt at around 8,000 feet and we set up camp well short of our goal. To top it all off, the history book was boring and, anyway, it was far too cold to lounge around camp to read. My pen would not work outside the tent, so I had to write the journal in my sleeping bag.

So, as a result, I walked the treadmill for 60 minutes at a 1.8 mph pace with a 20 pound weight stuffed into my day pack. I have to do this at the apartment gym, since 24 Hour Fitness officially frowns on this practice. I should be hiking outside anyway.

Monday Training

I moved my strength training from Tuesday to Monday to avoid travel plans tomorrow. My workout started with the standard cycle of 20 min, followed by stretches, then Bench, Bicep, Lats (standing and kneeling) and Military in that order.

Monday's Dinner

If you're still with me, then allow me to brag about this evening's meal. My caloric intake has caught my attention, since I do not seem to have lost much weight in this process. this fact was quite embarassing when I put down 185 pounds on my expedition application only to have my physcian weigh me in a 190 during my recent physical. But, I digress...

So, tonight I cooked up the type of meal that I wished I had the discipline to eat every evening. Dinner consisted of 9 ounces of turkey breast @ 225 calories; 8 ounces of broccoli @ 75 calories; 1 slice of whole wheat bread at 110 calories; A grand total of 410 calories. Oh, I also ate two bannanas and one orange, so add in whatever calories that makes.

I'm sure to be starving tomorrow morning when I get up!

Denali Training Regimen

Today, Saturday, is one of the three weekdays I've set aside for strength training. The schedule is designed to replicate motions I expect to find on the expedition.

Like every exercise day, I start with 20 minutes of cycling, which gets my heart rate to 110 bpm. I follow this with leg stretches - hamstrings, gluts, hip flexors, and quads - holding each position for 30 seconds. Floor bench exercises are next. Lying down with feet up on an exercise ball, raise off the floor and hold for ten seconds. Do 10 sets.

For strength exercises, I subscribe to the theory of low weight and high reps.

Bench exercises, where I do 3 sets of 30 reps with 32.5 pound weights, kick off the cycle. In between sets, I do arm curls with 3 sets of 20 reps with 32.5 pound weights. On the incline bench, raised to 45 degrees, I do 3 sets of 15 reps with 15 pound weights. Building on these sets, Building snow walls and igloos will be demanding and these will help. Miltary press comes next. This is good for working with hands overhead, most obviously in crevasse self-rescue. I do 3 sets of 30 reps with 10 pound weights.

Triceps come into play when traveling with ski poles. Two exercises are helpful: The first involves kneeling before the weight stack and pulling down from overhead to the stomach. This replicates standing up with a heavy pack, which I expect to be 60+ pounds. The second relates more to using ski poles during glacier travel on show shoes or skis. I do 3 sets of 30 reps with a 40 pound stack. Then, standing, I do 3 sets of 30 reps with the same 40 pound stack.

I finished today off with a 35 minute treadmill.

Tomorrow is Sunday, which means it's time for surfing. That is, if rain storms don't turn the ocean into a polluted mess.

Denali Research

There is a tremendous amount of research material available for my study of this expedition. Given that I have signed up with Alaskan Mountaineering School (AMS) for the climb, I first read AMS founder, Colby Coombs' book, "Denali's West Buttress: A Climber's Guide to Mount McKinley's Classic Route." This book is a must for all West Buttress climbs.

The second book I read is "Denali Climbing Guide" by R.J. Secor. Secor describes all known and as yet unclimbed routes. Also an excellent preparation resource.

I've been studying books on cold injuries. One of the best books, for it's scientific discussion of such injuries, is "Hypothermia, Frostbite and Other Cold Injuries" by Gordon Giesbrecht and James A. Wilkerson. Another relevant book, and much more readable, is "Surviving the Extremes" by Kenneth Kamler, M.D. The author details the human body's reaction to extreme environments. It's great for incorporating high-altitude preparation into my training program.

I also recommend, "Knots for Climbers" by Craig Luebben. From my training course with AMS in 2002, I learned the importance of securing people and things with a set of key knots. Remember that mountaineers must be able to tie these knots in some of the worst conditions, which Mt. Denali is only too happy to provide. I practice tying these knots with my overmitts. this sounds impossible, but I witnesses my AMS guides do this on the Ruth Glacier.

Denali 2008 expedition

Hello. This is the first posting in the Blog I created to document and publish my preparation for the 2008 Mt. Denali (Mt. McKinley) expedition departing May 6th, 2008 from Talkeetna, Alaska.