Mount
McKinley‘s (the name Denali is an Alaska Native word for
the mountain which means the "The High One")
elevation is 20,320 feet (6190M), the highest mountain
in North America. Denali was renamed Mount McKinley for
William McKinley, a nominee for president, by Princeton
graduate and gold prospector, William Dickey. Dickey was
one of hundreds of prospectors seeking gold in the 1896
Cook Inlet stampede. He had written an article for the
New York Sun where he described the mountain as the highest
in North America at over 20,000 feet." When asked
later why he named the mountain after McKinley, Dickey
replied that the verbal bludgeoning he had received from
free silver partians had inspired him to retaliate with
the name of the gold-standard champion." McKinley
is one of the world’s greatest expedition challenges with
a vertical relief greater than any other mountain on the
planet (18,000 feet), making it a world-class expedition.
While McKinley is exceeded in elevation by peaks in South
America and Asia, its arctic environment carries extreme
conditions; temperatures even in summer average 20 to
40 degrees below zero during the day (and colder at night,
with recorded temperatures of 148 degrees below zero).
Severe storms with 100 mph+ hurricane-force winds and
great height above the Alaska plain make it a severe test
of personal strength, teamwork and logistics.
No
peak in the world has greater relief: Denali rises 18,000
feet above its surrounding plain, compared to Kilimanjaro
(14,000 feet) and Everest (13,000 feet); from our landing
spot on the Kahiltna Glacier Denali’s summit rises another
13,000 feet.
Because
of these challanges and extreme conditions it was not
until 1913 that the first successful ascent of McKinley
was made by a group of four, led by Hudson Stuck and Harry
Karstens. Climbing a high mountain is a serious undertaking
with much demand on one’s body. This demanding experience
can only be enjoyed if one is prepared, therefore physical
fitness is one of the subjective hazards of mountaineering
over which we can exert a great deal of control. It is
especially important for the mountaineer to realize that
being fit can make dealing with objective hazards less
dangerous. One’s physical capacity for mountaineering
is determined primarily by one’s level of aerobic power
and physical strength. Long hikes in the mountains or
hills is the best form of preparation.
There
is no such thing as a walk up route on Denali. We will
be carrying heavy loads and dragging massive sleds daily.
Sleeping and eating conditions will not always be ideal
and severe storms may keep us tent-bound for days. We
must prepare ourselves mentally and physically for the
many challenges of the climb. At any point in time you
can make a step in the wrong direction while on a ridge
roped and harnessed in with a 2500 ft. vertical drop on
one side and a 4500 ft. vertical sure death drop on the
other side or step on a glacier cravass and have tons
of ice crunch you like an egg. Furthermore, you could
get caught in an avalanche with hundreds of tons of snow
and ice turning you into frozen scrambled eggs, need we
say more.
We
as climbers are risking our lives to save children's lives,
do not be confused, every year people die on Denali. It
has been said that if you are climbing Denali, get your
affairs in order first. People working around the mountain
offer to buy your life insurance in order to cash in if
you don't come back, the odds are better than the lottery.
You see, if the fall doesn't kill you the cold snow, ice,
below zero temperatures or altitude sickness will.
It
was said by the climbing team in late October of 1981
who recorded one of the lowest temperatures on record
on the summit of Mt. Everest, "a cold day on Mt.
Everest is a tropical/a warm day on Denali/Mt. McKinley.
Our point is climbing Denali is not a walk in the park.
Environmental
Statement
Any
person who becomes a wilderness mountaineer has a deep
and abiding responsibility to help preserve the wilderness
environment for the present and future generations. Walking
softly is a fair start. The mountain regions throughout
the world constitute the domain of mountaineering. This
dwindling and finite resource depends on the wilderness
traveler for its future preservation.
Mountaineering:
The freedom of the Hills, 1992
The
climbing team of Climb For America’s Children is committed
to the above philosophy and climbing clean, leaving nothing
on the mountains. The following statement outlines the
methods and procedures that will be maintained, throughout
the entire expedition.
The
most important part of clean climbing is planning ahead,
which is a major part of the climb. This expedition
began in 2001 and is a time intensive undertaking, which
micromanages every part of the expedition in order to
insure its successful conclusion.
Leave
nothing in the mountains. The Denali 2001-2002 Expedition
team will carry out everything brought in including
human waste.
Litter
removal: Everything MUST be carried off the mountain.
Each
team member of the expedition has a personal responsibility
to manage his or her garbage and waste on the way up
and down the mountain.
Human
waste and sanitation: The Climb For America’s
Children Expedition will use a scientifically formulated
blend of polymers and enzymes in specially designed
plastic bags to manage human waste. It is first contained
and then converted into environmentally friendly waste,
and then the enzymes begin to consume the waste products.
When there is nothing left for the enzymes to feed on,
they consume themselves, leaving basic salts and water.
The result is an environmentally friendly and sanitary
bag that can be disposed of in any trash container.
All
trash monitoring and human waste, will be managed in
strict accordance to new industry guidelines under development,
which may include our expedition participating in the
actual study where the expedition food would be weighed
at base camp using a spring scale and tripod, meal planning
and packaging techniques would be noted at the beginning.
Upon the expedition’s return to base camp all left over
food and trash would be weighed separately. The trash
would be checked to make sure it contained only food
trash and scientifically manufactured environmentally
friendly human waste bags with the salt and water end
result. No gear will be incorporated into this study
for waste other than miscellaneous waste or excess water
weight.
Conclusion:
The issue of trash and human waste in pristine environments
such as the remote and hostile regions of Denali will
continue to present challenges to the people who use
them. The climbing community as a whole, is more aware
of these challenges and collaborative efforts to raise
awareness and seek solutions seems to be prevailing.
The future progression of The Climb For America’s Children
Team and the climbing community itself will be to utilize
every possible environmental strategy and technique
available. Some of the opportunities are “The Clean
Mountain Can” prototypes waste disposal units, and following
the guidelines of “Leave No Trace” a booklet being published
by an environmental non-profit organization - Outdoor
Skills and Ethics for glaciated environments such as
Denali. This publication is gathering information from
the Denali National Park, The American Alpine Club and
other environmentally conscious organizations
