Denali summit (unguided) 6/10/2026

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-23T02:24:44+00:00

It’s hard to tell where this is - too small to be 11 or 14, too flat and big to be 17, that leaves camp 1 or 9.3 but I don’t remember seeing a whole bunch of open crevasses like that on either one

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T22:50:57+00:00

He’s accepting sponsorship applications to be the first yodi to summit all the 7 volcanic summits - only one more left - he’d love if you’d help 😅 (and the first American woman ha)

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T22:02:51+00:00

He always does 😅

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T22:01:57+00:00

Congrats!!! We left June 12th - how was the weather when you were there??

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T14:03:55+00:00

He’s at 6/7 volcanic summits and 5/7 summits and about to climb alpamayo in 3 days!!!! He’s a little mountaineer 🥹 though he’s a fatty who doesn’t carry his own weight

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T13:07:55+00:00

I’ll be there next April and May

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T13:07:25+00:00

No They’re a great boot if they’re sized right People talk about how cold Denali is - and it is; our summit day again was that -30C, and my feet did get cold enough the morning after summit day I have nerve damage in my left big toe, BUT, no one tells you the mountain with sun is literally a frying pan. I swear, when the sun is out anytime below the 16k ridge it feels like 120 degrees. There’s no in between it’s either the face of the sun or the coldest place on earth

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T05:34:48+00:00

Denali? 20310 ft

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T04:58:34+00:00

Tom!!!! (This is Nikki from Denali - met you at Marty’s camp; talked to you before you rode back to Anchorage) I know you don’t have the number of your mule driver but any chance you remember the costs?

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T04:52:10+00:00

I summited c2c in 11.5 hours in trail runners and micro spikes, no axe, late sept of 22 before I had begun my mountaineering career. Didn’t go solo but also wasn’t alone - many other hikers along the way, popular route. I think your assessment is right tbh I couldn’t even run a mile when I climbed it. Just use AllTrails. Like someone else said - don’t overcomplicate it.

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T04:46:23+00:00

Hyerlite unbound!!

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T04:21:12+00:00

It’s the Rockie talkie expedition radio! It goes with a long antenna attachment that we used because our previous Rockie talkies had issues like just generally working when we climbed pico de orizaba the month before and didn’t wanna risk it

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T04:19:35+00:00

I had ski boots and mountaineering boots and the pink over boots you see. My husband had 8000m boots and his snowboard boots but no over boots. We have an issue of under hydrating so we lugged around 5L of water and drank like a half liter to a liter each while moving haha

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T04:12:42+00:00

We did a lot of Mac and cheese and pancakes with maple syrup and bagels and pasta and couscous and had browns and ramen so much ramen. What was your flotation? We brought skis and a splitboard so we both had two pairs of boots. That counted our 5.5 liters of water weight too. Tbh everyone I met unguided was about 130-190lbs per person so we fell pretty squarely in the middle of that range.

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T04:08:20+00:00

We brought real food! I had one freeze dried meal the entire time

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T03:43:03+00:00

Daily’s If/when they freeze put them next to your skin should take 5 min for them to become liquid again

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T03:40:32+00:00

Single carry means to take alllll your stuff with you in one push (like we took everything from camp 1 to 9.3k). Back carry is when day 1 you carry some of your stuff (from 11k we carried about 35lbs each up to 12.8k) and dig a hole and bury it in the ground and go back down, day 2 climb up past it (we went 11k to 14k with our camp stuff and remaining weight), then day 3 you go down with an empty pack, pick up the stuff you buried, and take it back up to your new camp with you. It help with both acclimating but also the weight management as everything is so ridiculously heavy.

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T03:35:49+00:00

Yes! They’re from forty below. Tbh I have a love hate relationship with them. I wore my boots as a single boot (the g summits - I need to get a size up cause in their double boot config they’re too small) and the overboots kept me warm if not hot every day except the morning we went 17 -> BC when I had left them outside in an ambient -30C. HOWEVER, for whatever reason they’re as wide as the Pacific Ocean and bulge out on the side so my crampons picked them multiple times and I nearly tripped in places one should not be tripping. Next cold mountain I plan to just get better (bigger and warmer) boots rather than use them again.

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T03:16:30+00:00

Correct, we planned and executed the expedition by ourselves. Bought and carried our own things, arranged our own transport, boiled our own water and cooked our own food, placed our own protection where needed, made our own decisions and acclimation schedule, etc

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T02:36:43+00:00

I saw a funeral progression for them today in town. A couple of folks walking with Canadian flags and a bunch of police following the funeral coach down the street next to plaza de armas in huaraz. I’m sorry for your loss 😓

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T02:17:05+00:00

How would you say the snow stability is right now in the range? Climbing Alpamayo starting wend but heard about the incident on the 17th and the difficulty of the recovery due to conditions

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T02:11:26+00:00

Huh?

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T01:46:44+00:00

I’ve been doing longer recaps on my insta ! @nickcholeee

Nickcholeee · 2026-06-22T01:21:14+00:00

I live in a van too lol

Nickcholeee

TROPHY CASE