Follow along as St. Elias Alpine Guide Josh Fine retells his experience leading one of our recent Intro to Mountaineering Courses. 

Day 0: We picked up our clients at the footbridge in the early evening to take them back to the Powerhouse for a gear shake-down and home-cooked meal. After dissecting their packs and going over essential layers and gear, we distributed food and group gear. Some of the critical items we wanted everyone to have were crampons, harnesses, glacial travel equipment, avalanche safety and rescue equipment, and proper insulating layers. Once we got the gear straight, it was time to feast! Tonight’s meal in preparation for the trip ahead was led by a delicate fruit platter to warm the palette, Italian salad as the side, and tortellini with two different sauce options, red and pesto creamy deliciousness. The evening was enjoyed with laughter and stoke for the trip to come. As the night came to an end, we made our plans for the morning, and then it was lights out.

Day 1: That morning, Landon, my co-guide, and I prepared a quick breakfast and coffee. We had to get to the air strip for an 8:30 flight with Wrangell Mountain Air.

A flight over the massive Kennicot glacier got us right where we needed to be: completely isolated in the vast Wrangell Mountains. I flew out first with one of our clients, and Landon came second with the rest of the crew. Once Landon arrived, he stashed some emergency gear, and off we went. Our mission for the day was to climb this steep and loose rock glacier, roughly 2,500 feet, to the base of a confluence of several alpine glaciers. Our pace was steady, and morale was high.

We took the better part of the day to make the climb and enjoyed many much-welcomed snack breaks. Some chocolate covered smores combined with a couple of bites of cheese really did the trick for me. Once we got to a good stopping point on the slope, we made camp and set up our tents.

We still had some light in the day, so we decided to test the waters (frozen, that is) and explore the toe of the glacier we would be camping on the next day. We covered basic crampon technique and glacial travel skills to prepare for a day on the ice tomorrow. We made our way back to enjoy a hearty meal and get to bed early for a fresh start the next day.

Day 2: After breakfast and coffee, we packed up camp and made our way up to the glacier. We got our sharps on and climbed up to the snowline. It was here that we broke out the ropes. After going over appropriate tie-in techniques, we started to move through the firn – snow that lasts through the summer. This snow is very wet and has a rather dense consistency.

I was wearing ¾ Shank Scarpe Ribelles – a thin boot for the trip. My feet got wet rather fast; however, my clients and Landon all had more appropriate footwear (LOWAs) and managed to keep their toes a bit drier. After traveling roughly another thousand feet of elevation and going over various glacial travel techniques (including one crack punch by Landon), we found ourselves on a lovely saddle and broke camp.

This was more of a mountaineering-style camp because we were on snow-covered, glaciated terrain. We probed out a safe zone and showed our group how to set up a glacial camp.

It had been raining, so once the cook tent was dug out, we decided to get warm and dry while enjoying a lovely charcuterie board inside. After some much-needed leisure time, we capped the afternoon with a brief lesson on knots and hitches, and eventually made our way outside to practice snow anchors. It had cleared up, and we dialed in anchors in the evening light.

Day 3: The next morning, we woke up to the sound of rain on our tent. We knew this was going to be a tent-time kind of day (a perfect sampler of true expedition-style trips, although hopefully it’s snowing instead). After eating breakfast and enjoying multiple warm cups of coffee, we headed outside to practice snow anchor building and work on our haul systems.

Holding strong through the cold rain, our group got dialed on our crevasse rescue systems, and learned first-hand about good moisture and temperature management. We then went inside to dry out, warm up, and play a few hands of Durak, our favorite card game. After a warm meal and some good camaraderie, off to bed we went.

Day 4: The weather had cleared, and it was time to get out there and see the world. In the first half of the day, we went up the glacier and looked for a big enough crack that everyone could jump in and rescue each other.

Each participant had the opportunity to “fall” into a crevasse, and also catch a fall on a rope. To rescue the fallen person out of the crevasse, each participant had to build a snow anchor and haul system, putting all our practice to work. It was awesome to see each participant nail their systems.

After our indulgence in the crevasse, we set out to summit an awesome peak that we could see from camp. By this point, the weather had totally cleared. It was an exciting moment to stand on top of something and get splitter views of the mountains, glaciers, and our surrounding environment. This was a moment of true stoke for the group, and a memory for life! After many summit poses and photos, we decided to head down and make our way back to camp.

The day concluded with a sense of triumph and clear evening views. Having battled three and a half days of rainy weather, the clear evening skies and views of Mt. Blackburn felt well-earned.

Day 5: As we awoke for our final day of the trip, we welcomed the sunny morning with much appreciation. Our morning consisted of an avalanche rescue seminar, going over the basics, and getting some practice in. We then proceeded to pack up camp and hike down to the airstrip in order to catch our flights home. We had much to do and little time to do it – yet another perfect example of a classic mountaineering weather-led schedule. Later at the airstrip, I delivered an additional lecture on snow science while we waited for our ride – Riveting!

After a couple of flights, we all found ourselves back in civilization. The post-trip ritual consisted of a brief unpack, where Landon and I collected the group gear, and then a celebratory dinner at the Potato, our local watering hole.

Day 6: Waking up early, we cooked breakfast for our clients and enjoyed a final cup of coffee (or two) together. We made our way over to the footbridge to say goodbye and drop them off at the shuttle that would take them to Anchorage.

Landon and I spent the rest of the day unpacking our gear, sorting food, and debriefing the trip with our manager. And then later, our friends, back at the Potato!

Written by Josh Fine