Course Objectives

• Develop cold weather survival skills.
• Cover all technical snow/ice climbing skills necessary for winter mountaineering and climbing Denali.
• Discuss climbing at high altitudes and proper acclimatization processes.

Note: Early spring conditions often present high avalanche conditions or inclement weather. In such cases, low traverses around the mountain will be undertaken instead of summit attempts. Often the overall experience is enhanced by experiencing and evaluating these conditions, rather than focusing on the summit as a goal.

Course Itinerary
Day 1: 7:00am orientation and gear check. We drive to the mountain and snowshoe to our first camp. During the course, snowshoe training is combined with pulling gear sleds. The afternoon will be devoted to snow camping techniques, including safe camp locations, snow shelters, cooking and cold-weather health maintenance.

Day 2: Move camp and snow climbing instruction. We spend the morning packing and moving camp. This allows us to easily access practice areas, while honing both packing and camp set-up skills. Students learn the fundamentals of moving safely and efficiently on snow slopes of all degrees. Instruction includes: kicking steps, balance and rest techniques, using the ice axe, self-belay, self-arrest and snow climbing in rope teams.

Day 3: Technical climbing on snow. After moving camp, anchor placements and technical rope climbing instruction for ascending steep snow slopes is given and practiced. Special emphasis is placed on setting and ascending fixed lines. Other instruction includes: belaying, lead climbing, rappelling and descending fixed lines.

Day 4: Glacier travel. Proper rope up techniques using sleds will be taught. Considerable time is spent route finding through crevassed areas and identifying our position on maps. Topics such as travel in white-outs and inclement weather are discussed and practiced.

Day 5: Crevasse rescue. You learn to rescue yourself and others from crevasses. More importantly, you learn how to stay out of them! Instruction includes setting rescue systems and prussiking out of a crevasse with pack and sled.

Day 6: Move to high camp. Weather permitting, we pack camp and move up the glacier to high camp. Discussions include avalanche conditions and safe route-finding. In camp, we prepare for summit day and bed down early.

Day 7: Summit day. Conditions permitting, we attempt a summit climb. This long and demanding day affords the opportunity to apply all of the skills learned during the course

Day 8: Navigation, route-finding and map reading. The group leads the guides out to the trailhead. This is the final skills test and a great introduction to expedition navigation. Upon return, we celebrate completion of the course.

Student Comments
"I can summarize the course in a sentence: It was a fantastic experience, with excellent leadership backed by a substantial body of mountaineering knowledge. I would recommend it to anyone who desires an intensive dose of mountaineering information." —James G.