denali training tips?

I want to climb denali but dont know anything about mountaineering. anybody wanna give up some trainging tips and gear advice?

start by climbing a lot of smaller mountains first. work into it. climbing all those other mountains first will give you want you need for Denali. in the process you'll figure out what gear you'll need and like.

thanks, im not planning on making an ascent this summer or the following. i go up to talkeetna evey summer, should i ask some of the climbers that have come back or are going ? i also plan on making alot of day trips with at least 16 miles in it. i have a variant 52 would that be a good pack to use? what would be some good starter mountains? hunter, mooses tooth?

mike, is there a NOLS website, and if so do you know it?
thanks

Have fun walking up Hunter and the Moose's Tooth. Ha!

good man, looks like you know that you have time. i first climbed denali at 25. just start climbing peaks close to home, something you don't have to take a plane to get to, Chugach! climb what you can in there with what you have. then look at the next peak you want to climb and what it will require from you and your gear, and keep going.

FUNGUY wrote:Load up big pack and hike up hill slow for hours.

as you will realize, Denali is more than carrying a heavy pack slowly for hours!

...everyone know that the best training is to load up a heavy pack and walk uphill FAST. (being sassy here)

"I suggest going out to the nearest pub and getting completely, and utterly, wasted. Make sure you smoke at least 1 pack of unfiltered Camel's. Get the full ashtray, pour a drink in it and then pour the mixture into a water bottle.
When you get home (ideally around 3:30am) stick the vile mixture into your freezer. Put on your best goretex and thermal layer. Climb in. At 5:30am, get out, drink (chew?) the mixture and go run the biggest flight of stairs you can find. Run until your heart threatens to explode.
Your dehydration caused by the alcohol should adequately simulate what you may experience at higher altitudes. Your lung capacity should be sufficiently impaired by the smokes to simulate a oxygen poor environment. The freezer episode should adequately replicate a bivy. Drinking the booze/butt mixture should simulate your lack of appetite.....
Oh — once your finished your workout, go to work (to replicate the long walk out)." — Greg Hamilton suggesting an altitude training methodology.

AKA learn to suffer, it is fun, I just wish I had the time and money for big mountains. The higher the altitude you can train at the better. For me training at 900ft in Missouri for just several climbs between 13-14,000 ft was tough.

Get real good at taking a shit in a small bucket with the wind blowing up your ass.

Mike McHugh wrote:Chansmeyer: Get yerself up to Palmer! nols.edu/courses/locations/… in specific: nols.edu/courses/locations/… BTW, I'm real happy with my Dana Astralplane. It's an old one - but last time I got down the hill and weighed it, I was carrying 120# pretty comfortably. Good pack.

thanks, it seems a bit to expensive for me but is probley a good idea.

pete, do you hvae any favourites in the chugach for training? i'm planning a spring hiking trip through powerline pass with a detoir to porquipine peak.

what are some of the climbing grades for mountaineering, im familiar with rock and ice grades.

o'malley peak would be a great start. go up there, have a look around from the top and find another peak that strikes you. find out what it is and make it your next outing. if you don't have it already, the mountaineers book "freedom of the hills" will get you going, touches on everything. enjoy!

okay, i've alwas heard omalley is a good one, but never done it

Do NOT think the skills you need to climb Denali can be learned in one, two, or even 3 seasons. You need to be comfortable in ALL conditions and experience a wide array of scenarios on smaller less dangerous mountains. Pound for pound, Denali is more dangerous than Everest. If you live in Alaska, you have a slew of mountains to learn on and I would highly recommend traveling down to BC AFTER you have successfully done a couple 14er+ peaks, to learn with some guides on British Colombian 19ers. I would further recommend after 3 seasons of learning 13, 14, 15,16,17,18,19ers that you travel to the lower 48; to Washington state and send Baker and Rainier. THEN get with a group and head to Denali.

I've been climbing for 2 years, I am a complete newb still, but I have the blessing of being a rock climber for the past 9 years. Between that and all the gear I have accumulated from climbing 13 and 14ers the past two seasons, I have about 1/10 the experience I would need for Denali. Its on my list, but its WAY down on the list...about 8 spots before Everest.

Join the Colorado Mountain club and take their courses.
Backpacking, Basic Mountaineering, and High Altitude Mountaineering.
There you'll meet people with similar skills, maybe those with
better skills, and you may be able to partner up with them.

Stefan Whittaker wrote:Do NOT think the skills you need to climb Denali can be learned in one, two, or even 3 seasons. You need to be comfortable in ALL conditions and experience a wide array of scenarios on smaller less dangerous mountains. Pound for pound, Denali is more dangerous than Everest. If you live in Alaska, you have a slew of mountains to learn on and I would highly recommend traveling down to BC AFTER you have successfully done a couple 14er+ peaks, to learn with some guides on British Colombian 19ers. I would further recommend after 3 seasons of learning 13, 14, 15,16,17,18,19ers that you travel to the lower 48; to Washington state and send Baker and Rainier. THEN get with a group and head to Denali. I've been climbing for 2 years, I am a complete newb still, but I have the blessing of being a rock climber for the past 9 years. Between that and all the gear I have accumulated from climbing 13 and 14ers the past two seasons, I have about 1/10 the experience I would need for Denali. Its on my list, but its WAY down on the list...about 8 spots before Everest.

Stefan, I mean no offense, but cannot agree with quite a bit of this. I agree with your intent, however, it may be a little misguiding. Someone who is highly motivated to learn could get out on their second or third season. It's not worth shooting down someone's dreams, when they are achievable. "13, 14, 15,16,17,18,19ers"...? And, you've also stated you're not that experienced yourself???

chansmeyer907, it is entirely possible for you to climb Denali in a few years, with the proper motivation and dedication (even if you're at ground zero). You have a couple options.

You could try and hook up with a guided group, but they will typically have other mountaineering experiences as a prerequisite. My understanding is that those prerequisites can sometimes be quite lax. Personally, I abhor the use of guiding services on Denali in lieu of experience... but it is commonplace. I think places like Ranier are better suited for that.

You could go the NOLS route, etc -- as previously mentioned. This is expensive and many of us don't have that much time free at one time. I'm sure the courses are excellent and thorough. But... I've also heard you will be lugging 90 lb packs instead of 70 lb packs!

The other real option is to get out there and teach yourself, with intermittent assistance from other climbers (or alternatively, hiring guides to teach you the 'ropes'). Teaching yourself can be daunting, but IMO, critical to make some of the connections on your own. This is the way I and many others have learned -- and IMO, is the most rewarding. If going this route, I'd do the following:

- As aforementioned, get a copy of Mountaineering, Freedom of the hills (the most recent edition, as some tactics have actually changed in the last 10 years). It is going to give you a good grounding in virtually all the basics... and it will present the real scope to you about what is involved. That alone may change your mind, or motivate you even more.

- Read other sources too, but be wary of taking advice from the web as 'correct' without checking it against another source.

- See if there are local mountaineering clubs (not the AAC) that may provide learning opportunities or just the opportunity to meet other climbers with similar interests. Personally, I'm not a big fan -- but they do usually have a place.

- Talk to others who have actually climbed Denali so you really understand the experience before investing all the time (you've already started).

- Put together a list of what you really need to know. If you really want to do Denali on a tight timeline -- you might even need a 'plan'. Sounds geeky, but at least you know what you're up against. If you want help with this, I could help you -- knowing what you need to know can be hard when you haven't been there.

- Find more experienced mountaineering partners and get out with them LOTS. Find multiple partners, so that you get a diverse exposure and can kind of 'cross-check' what you've learned. For a young guy, it may be more challenging to find partners -- but they will exist.

- Naturally, start small, move up. Push yourself, but always be sure you understand the risks and use care when being bold.

- Consider that a full mountaineering skillset also includes first aid skills, avalanche skills, self-rescue skills, nutrition, etc... not just the core technical skills. These can sometimes take the most time to build.

- Again, get out lots.

- And oh yeah... practice suffering, too!

Good luck.

Stefan Whittaker wrote:Pound for pound, Denali is more dangerous than Everest.

I haven't spent any time on the big E, but this is funny.

chansmeyer907 wrote:what are some of the climbing grades for mountaineering, im familiar with rock and ice grades.

... Freedom of the Hills.

avery, thanks for the advice, i just came back from talkeetna and it seems i've missed the big rush of climbers but there were some coming back and got some helpful advice. I've looked into the NOLS course and it is exspensive so i think learning myself is whats gunna happen.

In the great spirit of alasken adventure GO FOR IT!!!!

Ok, get your feet wet first (literally) hike out and climb Scotts peak, mt. Pendleton and some of the other peaks like Brooks. Great adventure climbing and you'll find out fast if you really want to climb the great one.

Find good partners and get out often and for gods sake don't drag your girlfriend out there... Unless she's into it herself!

chansmeyer907 wrote:it seems i've missed the big rush of climbers

Mid-may to mid-june is high-tide. Go there towards the beginning of June and you are sure to find an abundance of climbers returning from the mountain.

I couldn't agree with Avery more. NOLS is expensive and not at all necessary. Buy Freedom of the Hills, go out on smaller mountains to get the feel. Practice the stuff in Freedom of the Hills and develop your own judgment. If you are serious, don't take a course with NOLS, get out and start learning for yourself what works and what doesn't. The confidence and independence will serve you much better than a certificate.

Avery, Sorry for the misinformed message. I get above my head sometimes; I was just replying to him figuring he is a real beginner as he is asking for 'tips' on climbing the highest mountain in North America. Just came across as a brash question so I gae him a brash answer.

I do agree with Avery and David on the subject of educating yourself. That's the route I am taking. I have Freedom of the Hills and I have started small to see how I react the higher up I am. I started by doing an 8, then a 13er, the a couple other 13ers, then a couple 14ers. Now I am looking at more difficult 14ers to try and mixing different seasons with that notion. Also talking to people at higher levels on the mountain and partnering with climbers of higher experience is an extremely valuable asset. Keep asking questions man, I apologize for the brash answer, but I don't want to see someone added to the list of name in Talkeetna because they were over zealous and unprepared...not that I think any guide companies would take on the liability without a decent amount of previous knowledge.