Inspired by extreme hunger for big and very remote mountains, 4 of us flew up to Anchorage on May 2nd this year and quickly found ourselves at the Ultima Thule Lodge in Wrangell St. Elias NP. We had arranged to be flown onto the Klutlan Glacier on the east side of Mt. Bona, about 20 miles from the Yukon border. Our intent was to spend 1-2 weeks climbing and skiing Mt. Bona and then spend the last half of the month in a nearby glacier valley skiing as many unnamed peaks as the weather gods would allow!
Only a few come to this corner of the park each year and we were the first team on Bona in 2010. Our gear pile included 4 weeks of food and fuel, 4 pairs of Backside skis, and 3 bottles of Whiskey (3 bottles was at least 1 too few).
On May 3rd, our pulse's raced as the glacier plane flew out of the Chitina River basin and towards Mt. Bona. In all directions we saw endless possibilities on thousands of peaks, many if not most, still without a name. The Turbine Otter’s skis glided to a stop at about 10K and we unloaded our gear in the much thinner air. Because of favorable glacier/weather conditions we had been able to land right at our intended basecamp and soon we had two tents and a cook tent surrounded by a wall of snow blocks.
The weather was nothing but stellar with no wind and mostly clear skies while temps dropped to -25F at night. On day 2 on the mountain we set our route to 12K and then on day 3, to above 14K. With no sign of wind or an incoming storm front, we decided to shoot for the summit on day 4. Originally there was to be a high camp but with beautiful weather and little desire to haul heavy packs, we opted for 6,500' of climbing in a single shot.
It was ridiculously cold at 3AM as we started our day and we all felt fatigue from the last couple of days - being totally unsure of the weather, we had rushed our acclimatization. By noon that day, we were skinning above 15K where the thinner air became quite apparent. Heavenly views encouraged us on and across an exposed and wind blown 2-mile long plateau between Mt. Bona and Mt. Churchill. Icy sastrugi made for an exhausting traverse, especially when coupled with frequent probing for hidden crevasses. It was just before the summit pyramid that myself and teammate Tony decided to call a stopping point as we were winded, still about 2 hours from the summit and facing a very long and crevasse-riddled descent. Tough call, as those decisions always are but I am here in Seattle injury-free now to tell the story and week 1 of 4 in the middle of nowhere was no time to push too far.
Adam and Eric still felt strong, so they pushed on to the top of the highest volcano in the US with gnarly snot-cicles growing from their beards. Tony and I spent the next couple of hours dodging crevasses as we skied 5,500' of nearly every snow condition imaginable. I'd call the skiing 'delightfully strategic'! Stoked to be in camp, we started melting water and awaited the arrival of our two comrades. A short while later, we heard celebratory yells as they slid into basecamp. They reported it being crazy cold up top but also crazy beautiful with views as far as one can see at 16,421'!
Rehydrated freeze-dried dinner was served in the late night sun as we all relished in the thought of a post-summit rest day!
All for now...more from the rest of the trip later!
Cheers,
Chad Beeman - K2 CS Team
Chad! Thanks for keeping us informed about the trip. Great work. I want to give you a shout about a couple things you may be interested in--re. photos, article grist, etc. Sue and Casey are visiting. Been here since the first and work has been crazy busy in the meantime. But we should try to get together and chat soon. Gimme a shout or I can give you a holler in the next few days. I would be curious to find out what is next regarding your expedition plans.
Brad
Chad Beeman, you are a rock star.