Samuel Johnson's Alpine Essence

Hayes 2010 Expedition Video

2010-09-04T18:36:00.001-08:00

Hayes 2010 Expedition Video from Samuel Johnson on Vimeo.

Audio from Jerene's "Three Cups of Tea: A Mother's Perspective"

2010-09-02T21:54:00.001-08:00

Follow this link to the KSKA post about Jerene's presentation, and this link to hear the audio broadcast of Jerene's recent presentation at UAA.

Jerene Mortenson and Central Asia Institute

2010-08-28T11:11:00.003-08:00

Hushe School, a school I visited with my local friend Little Karim in 2007. Hushe school was one of the early schools built by Central Asia Institute.

I had the pleasure of meeting and introducing Jerene Mortenson for a recent UAA Social Work Department backed presentation this week. Jerene is a humanitarian and mother of Greg Mortenson, author of Three Cups of Tea and Stones into Schools. I thought I might take the opportunity to share the links for Central Asia Institute and Pennies for Peace since I have greatly loved the time I have spent with the people of Pakistan and the work Central Asia Institute is doing is extremely inspirational. May you also be inspired. Tom Brokaw donated 100 bucks to the cause back in the 1990s...maybe you can donate 101!

Sam and Wendy Eklutna Adventure

2010-08-26T23:23:00.000-08:00

Wendy and I coordinated for a fun 4 day trip in the Chugach. We biked out to the junction of the Eklutna Lake trail and the East Fork trail, then bushwhacked on animal trails up through small cliffbands on the South side of Stiver's Gully to a basecamp on the moraine between Bold (7,522') and Bashful (8,005') Peak. We put in attempts on both peaks and came close to the summit of both, and overall had a really good trip and caught some wild scenery in the heart of the Chugach.

Wendy approaching the Stiver's Gully approach on the East Fork trail through the initially healing aftermath of the 2010 Eklutna Lake Fire.

Our basecamp below Bashful Peak's North face

A nice shot of me by Wendy high on Bold Peak's West Ridge

Mist on Bashful Peak's West Ridge high above the Eklutna Valley

Gorgeous cloud as we search for a path down from our basecamp back into the Eklutna Valley to find our bikes and head back to town...

Hayes 2010 Trip Report

2010-06-11T15:58:00.011-08:00

Please see previous two posts for an expedition summary and route photo topos. We climbed two new routes and tagged one summit. Both of the routes have been attempted prior to our climbs.

Below: Rob Wing landed his Super Cub on wheels on the ice of the Hayes glacier following our unproductive time on the Gillam glacier. Then we hiked up glacier into the hayes basin with a LOT of stuff. Photo: Ryan Hokanson

Following are photos from each of the climbs we engaged in. Please see previous post for routeline photos.

Direct West Face of Mount Hayes: V AI3 R 6,500 ft (ca. 9,000 feet of climbing)

12 hours on route

Below: Taking a break a couple thousand feet up the Direct West Face at around 10,000 feet to pull out the ropes and begin simul climbing. We climbed the route in about seven simul pitches. Photo: Ryan Hokanson

Below: Ryan heading up terrain typical of much of the route, climbing toward spectacular ice and rime gargoyles beneath the summit ridge.

Below: Me following yet more alpine ice to a simul transition at Ryan's belay. The scale of the face is apparent in this photo. Photo: Ryan Hokanson

Below: Me starting the last simul pitch to the summit ridge at around 13,000 feet. Photo: Ryan Hokanson

Below: Ryan following the last simul pitch to the summit ridge.

Below: Ryan on the summit of Mount Hayes (13,876 ft/4230m), 12 hours after starting.

Below: Ryan in the midst of many rappels on the northern portion of the West face.

Northeast Buttress of Mount Balchen: V AI4 M6 3500 ft

10.5 hours on route to turnaround at ca. 11,000 feet on the summit ridge due t o due to lightning strikes. Again, see previous post for routeline photos.

Below: Me climbing the initial icefield on the Northeast Buttress. Photo: Ryan Hokanson

Below: Ryan approaching a short mixed crux on the Northeast Buttress.

Below: Ryan climbing an 80+ degree alpine ice smear to bypass a rock headwall about two thirds of the way up the rock buttress.

Below: Me happy for the temporary clearing, heading across easy mixed ramps to access the final icefield. Photo: Ryan Hokanson

Below: Following the above pitch, we headed up the final icefield and snow rib to the summit ridge in increasing cloud, and started tromping toward the summit. Sadly, lightning and thunder which had been hearing from a distance began to get closer and we began to experience the electrical phenomenon known as St. Elmo's Fire. As our metal objects and bodies begain to emanate electrical squealing noises, we called off the summit bid within spitting distance at 11,000+ feet and headed down as fast as we possibly could to decrease our risk of being struck by lightning. Here is Ryan rigging our first v-thread rappel down the East face while sheltered in a nook below the summit ridge. We ended up getting around 6 inches of new snow in two hours and experiencing a lot of slough avalanches while on rappel/at anchors descending late into the evening.

Below: A brief clearing in the could soup during our descent.

Beasts of Burden

Following a day of rest, we began the trudge down to the Hayes moraine airstrip bearing 100 pound loads.

Below: Ryan with his beautiful load on the Hayes Glacier.

Thanks so much to the Copp-Dash Award, the American Alpine Club for supporting our expedition, and Black Diamond Equipment for supporting me in my climbing efforts over the last 3 years. Thanks also to my other company support- PROBAR and GU Energy Labs.

Granite Tors Trail Run

2010-08-12T15:39:00.002-08:00

So much fun, an afternoon trail run of the 15 mile Granite Tors trail loop...

Hayes Range Heli Ride

2010-08-16T17:42:00.000-08:00

A few photos from a weekend heli ride through the Hayes Range with neighbor and heli pilot Alex Shapiro in his helicopter.

Mount Shand (12, 660) featuring the monstrous mile high South Face

Alex's R22 2 seater heli with building lenticulars

L to R: Mt. 10,910, Mt. 10,990, and Mount Hayes (13,886)

Expedition Art #1

2010-08-10T22:57:00.005-08:00

Mount Deborah Day and Night 9 x 12 - Ink

Expedition Art #2

2010-08-10T23:27:00.000-08:00

Mount Balchen 9 x 12 - Ink

Commercial Fishing in Kasilof

2010-07-13T17:08:00.000-08:00

I am currently commercial fishing in Kasilof, and am slowly working away at pulling together the video footage from Ryan and my trip. I look forward to sharing it with you all when I return...until then wish us good luck catching some salmon!

Giri-Giri Crush South Face of Logan

2010-05-15T08:11:00.005-08:00

The Japanese climbers who call themselves the Giri-Giri Boys have completed a long standing North America climbing project, the Southeast face of Mount Logan. Rising over 9,000 feet from the glacier below, this is where Ryan and I had planned to go last year before Ryan's injury. They did a nice job, spent three days on the face, and descended the East Ridge. They ended up climbing the single relatively safe line splitting the middle of the South face, the same line we had hoped to try. Scooped! Here is a link to Climbing's Hot Flashes report.

Best Line of the Trip

2010-06-14T12:57:00.000-08:00

Me: "Ryan, I was reading on Kelly's blog the other day that the Jumbo of the Giri-Giri boys says that to really be successful in the mountains, he imagines his body lying broken in a ditch. What do you think?"

Ryan: "OK, I'm imagining his body lying broken in a ditch. Is it working?"

For background information on the Shi-Shi philosophy and the context of the original quote, visit Kelly's post on Jumbo.

Back from the Hayes

2010-06-07T08:18:00.006-08:00

Ryan and I flew out of the Hayes Range yesterday following time on the Gillam and Hayes glaciers. Due to issues with our initial flight, we were unable to land anywhere near Mount Shand's South face, which we had hoped to attempt. As an alternative, we landed on the Gillam in the hopes of attempting new lines on Deborah or Hess. We found Hess quite melted out and chossier than we had hoped, and were unable to negotiate the icefall and serac threatened approach to Deborah.

Our intended plan B routes extinguished, and our favorite pilot now available, we flew with Rob Wing over to the Hayes basin. There, we spent some time examining an enormous ridge traverse we hoped to attempt, eventually deciding that the traverse would likely be much safer as a threesome and with some more snow protection. We then shifted our focus to other unclimbed lines in the Hayes basin, completing the first ascents of two routes: The Direct West Face of Mount Hayes, and the Northeast Buttress of Mount Balchen (though prevented from summiting by active lightning and St. Elmo's Fire 100 feet away from the tippytop), both in single push alpine style. I will update with more information and photos as we sort through the media from the trip. I have quite a bit of video also, which needs sorting, converting, and some serious truncating. Thanks to the Copp-Dash Inspire Award, Black Diamond Equipment, and my other company support for all your help! Thanks for checking in!

Hayes 2010 Photo Topos

2010-06-09T16:53:00.005-08:00

Here are the photo topos for the routes Ryan Hokanson and I climbed on our 2010 Hayes Range trip.

Below: The routeline for the Direct West Face of Mount Hayes, which we climbed in 12 hours in single push alpine style from the bergschrund to the summit. The route gains about 6500 feet from the Hayes basin at an average angle of about 55 degrees with steeper steps and smears here and there for a total of about 9000 feet of climbing. More photos to come soon...

Photo: Received from Jeff Benowitz

Below: The routeline for the Northeast Buttress of Mount Balchen, which we climbed in 10.5 hours in single push alpine style from the bergschrund to 100 feet short of the summit, where we turned around due to nearby lightning strikes :(. Again, more photos to come soon...

Copp-Dash Inspire Award

2010-05-03T15:04:00.002-08:00

Jonny Copp and Micah Dash were super talented alpinists and activists who devoted a large part of their time, effort, and energy to establishing world class alpine routes in many different places as well as being advocates for important causes. Last summer, they were caught in an avalanche on their way to another big alpine project in China. It was a huge loss.

I met Micah in the Trango Towers in 2005 when he and his friends Nick Renan were going for a single push ascent (in a day) of Eternal Flame on Trango Tower and we were warming up for our ascent of Severance Ridge on Trango II. I met Jonny in Talkeetna with his friend Kelly around the time they established Going Monk on a peak Kelly named after their lost friend, Bruce Andrews.

Recently I was informed that Ryan and I won an inaugural Copp-Dash Inspire Award, an award dedicated to the pursuit of hard alpine first ascents and the sharing of experiences with others in the age old format of storytelling. These were two areas Jonny and Micah excelled in. It is odd to have that tangible connection to them a year later. It feels like we are bound to do our best to carry their spirit into the mountains with us and do our best to share our experiences and vision for the alpine in new ways. Click here for the 2011 application.

Trip Report: Yukla West Ridge Solo

2009-08-06T10:30:00.029-08:00

Above: Visible as the skyline, the complete West Ridge of Mount Yukla starts further down than is visible in this photo. The ridge gains 6735 vertical feet (2050 meters) from its beginning near the beautiful Eagle River to Mount Yukla's 7535 foot summit. Photo retrieved from rockclimbing.com. Please view the source for more information.

Trip Report

Rain, rain, rain! That was all the forecast offered as I considered heading south to Anchorage for 10 days to try and climb and pick up some work. Speaking with climbing buddies, it also seemed that no one had the time to be able to go climbing. Then a glimmer appeared as the forecast showed a three day hole of sunshine in the middle of a month of rain. I packed up and headed down to Anchorage. After reconnecting with family and arranging work plans, I threw my pack together and headed out to Eagle River drainage, eager to make a solo attempt on Yukla's Complete West Ridge (IV 5.7), first climbed in 2004 by Rod Hancock and Stuart Parks in 11.5 hours. As far as I can tell after a lot of digging, they made the first and only ascent of the complete ridge prior to my climb. While the ridge had been attempted by several local parties prior to their successful ascent, it is by no means a 'difficult' climb. It is, however, a very long and relatively committing route, gaining 6735 vertical feet (2050 meters) from base to summit. The ridge also has extensive horizontal sections and several areas where one loses elevation. So, it makes for a long day on route. I climbed the ridge in 11 hours, self-belaying one pitch, climbing carefully and thoughtfully the rest of the time, and loving the views! I was pleasantly surprised both at the commitment factor on route, and the presence of a lot of fun mid 5th class climbing interspersed with scrambling and walking. The exposure on route was the most defining factor, as one is traversing along 5000 feet above the Icicle Creek drainage. One would not want to have to descend that way in an emergency. It would be better to descend into the Twin Falls drainage.

Right: A exposed, clean traverse along the crack in the center of the photo.

Left: A fine section of au cheval (straddle) ridge.

Below Right: Some big exposure on clean rock.

Below Left: Getting ready to haul up the pack on a steeper section that I self-belayed.

Right: Self-portrait high on route.

Below: The view from the tippy top.

The descent down to Twin Falls was kind of a pain in the ass. Since I hadn't ascended that way before, I missed the small trail that apparently wends down through the brush to the Crow Pass trail. So, I did a lot of bushwhacking instead, making for a fitting southcentral Alaska finish.

Chickaloon River and Canwell Glacier

2010-04-02T12:23:00.020-08:00

It was sad to spend the first part of Spring break ill rather than climing ice and mixed up at Eklutna Glacier with Jon Cobb as I had planned. However, later on in the break Ryan Hokanson and I got together to try and get an adventure in. We started by heading to Chickaloon, and Ryan's cabin, and climbed a little on the Chickaloon River. This was also my first snowmachine-borne backcountry adventure.

Above: Ryan and the machines about 10 miles up the Chickaloon River just short of the narrows.

Above: Dune Creek Pillar and friends.

Above: Ryan enjoying some mixed near the Dune Creek Pillar.

Above: Gorgeous peaks on our way North through the Majestic Valley.

Following a night in Chickaloon, we then moved on North to Black Rapids to attempt a ski descent of Mt. Gakona in a day from the road. Here is a link to Ryan's post on our Canwell Glacier trip. We wanted to go ski Mt. Gakona in a day from the road, but were shut down by a gnarly icefall for Gakona, and bailed on our consolation prize due to unsafe avalanche conditions (top 10 cm release on pit preparation), on a large (enough) open slope. There was also a secondary weak layer presenting the possibility of additional propagation at about the 2 1/2 foot mark.

Above: Mount Shand and Moffit as seen from about 10 miles up the Canwell. This is where Ryan and I intend to head for our May-June Hayes Range expedition, getting psyched and fit and hoping for good weather!

Above: Ryan in the pit of despair. No turns for us. We did have a super fun day out though, and got to take a look at a lot of different terrain. It was a bit of a time warp to be 20 miles off the road with minimal effort, looking at a lot of good ski terrain, albeit without a ton of snow this year. Following this trip, Ryan headed off to Valdez to get a week plus of skiing amidst some large snowfall.

Panorama Quickie, Heading North with Big R

2010-03-10T22:22:00.003-09:00

I haven't posted in a while because I have been sick, which is a bit of a bummer but it has allowed me time to catch up with family and distract myself with doggie good times. Tomorrow morning I will crawl out of the sick bed and see if Ryan Hokanson (Big R) and I can't go bag ourselves a few nice ski and/or ice lines up north around Chickaloon and Black Rapids. I will update with pics when I get back to Fairbanks next week.

Right: One of the ice pitches.

A couple weeks ago, I had the chance to go run up a fun, easy ice route on Panorama Peak off the Parks Highway in tropically warm conditions. This was on the way back to Fairbanks after picking up the newest addition to the family, 101 pound black lab Jenny (aka Thumper). She made some whimpering sounds as I left the vehicle and made sure to let me know she was unhappy that she had been left behind. Here are a couple pics from that. The climb was a nice basic gully with 4 or 5 short pitches of grade 2+ ice, not the most exciting but the setting was really nice and it felt good to get the lungs pumping in the midst of the 7 hour drive. I was able to traverse right and descend an upper fork of this couloir so that I only had to downclimb one of these steps on the way back to the truck. Skiing conditions in this and neighboring couloirs were in very good shape at the time.

The Burden of Proof: Documentation of Climbing Ventures

2010-02-23T11:17:00.001-09:00

Throughout climbing's history, there have been great ascents, and there have been hoaxes. This post by Martin Gutmann (a climber I do not know) sheds some light on possible standards of documentation for climbers pursuing bold climbs around the world. Per his viewpoint, it seems that if one expects to climb in the limelight, that one bears the burden of proof for documentation of climbing ventures. Interesting, and timely, in light of the current discussion, a la stalker, that has most recently spilled onto Alpinist.com.

BD Spinner Leashes Usage Info

2010-02-04T12:36:00.004-09:00

For all those folks out there who use tether systems for their leashless tools, here is the official word from Black Diamond about the strength and potential for injury when using leashes such as the Spinner or the Grivel Double Spring. I really like the illustration so I am pasting it in here for everyone's information and as sort of a quickie safety briefing so you don't end up looking like that guy at the bottom!

An Unfeasibility Study: Method and Madness in Alpine Style Climbing

2010-02-03T16:03:00.007-09:00

Thursday, February 11th at 6pm I will be providing the entertainment for the first day of the Beaver Sports Birthday Bash with a themed slideshow titled: An Unfeasibility Study: Method and Madness in Alpine Style Climbing.

“Hope for the best, expect the worst, some drink champagne, some die of thirst…” or so go the lyrics from Mel Brooks’ film The Twelve Chairs (1970). A similar maxim might be applied in the situation of the alpinist, perhaps something along the lines of “Plan for the best, Expect the Worst.” While careful planning may go into the choice of objective and chosen strategy, alpine first-ascent routes have a way of crushing well-laid plans.

The featured presentation will explore hubris and commitment through coverage of such age-old questions as: “what happens when your food is gone?” “does ‘run-out’ mean that you’ve run out of something, and should you go to the neighbor's to get some more?” and “is it awkward to be tied to another man for several days?” Join me as we explore these and other delicate questions in an interactive community presentation designed to spark your sense of humor and desire to get out on your own adventures.

Vince Anderson's 'Lego' Ouray Comp Route Video

2010-01-23T13:03:00.002-09:00

Vince Anderson was charged with putting together the comp route for this year's Ouray Ice Festival competition and made this 'video' of a fictional conversation between himself and the competition judge where they try to decide what the route should be like, and how they want it to affect the well-being of the competitors. I wouldn't usually share a link like this except that it is hilarious and the bad graphics and sound quality add to the humor. Warning: You will only find this funny if you are a climber AND don't mind a couple of curse words. Follow this link to the video.

Farewell, Tia!

2010-01-22T22:38:00.004-09:00

My faithful adventure companion of over 13 years, 15+ year old Tia died this week. She died beautifully, and peacefully in my arms, amidst the flux of everyday life. She had quite the journey, from instigating unsatisfied young sub-alpha to aged queen alpha of the neighborhood. The above photo was taken on a family float on the Chena River with my wife Wendy and stepdaughter Allie, and Tia's newest companion, the young Sterling. Tia had just found a beaver skull that she carried in her mouth. It was probably her proudest moment of last summer. Goodbye, Tia! Thanks for comforting me and walking with me for all these years...

Hatchery Wall Mini-Topo

2010-01-15T22:47:00.005-09:00

Here are a few photos and topos from the week plus down at the cabin. Enjoy!

Above: Current condition of King's Beard (WI5+).

Above: Topo of Orion area. Photo: Peter Illig

Above: Topo of Altruist's Way area.

Above: Topo of Stray Comet. Tippy Topout needs someone to send it clean on lead, we ran out of time to develop the crag. One can clip the bolt with a double shoulder length runner and still head into the trad (standard) finish. Another interesting variation would be the traditional start which climbs in from the left on a crack (directly above the belayer bolt) at about M7, with reasonable gear.

Shocker: Alpinist Seen Bolting at Kenai Peninsula Crag

2010-01-14T18:41:00.007-09:00

Recently, on the Kenai Peninsula, a triumphant homunculus with a sport-climbing physique was seen wielding a drill upon the twitching carcass of one unkempt Alaskan alpinist, having crawled from within the belly of said beast. Gore aside, the end results were not entirely unpleasant.

I have never sought out reasons for the placement of bolts. But, this December I was down on the peninsula looking at one of my oft peered-at crags and noticed that the dribbles that sometimes form had turned into full fledged mixed and ice climbs.

Over the course of ten days, I cycled through four climbing partners to clean and establish several new mixed lines at the Hatchery Wall near Trail Lake, Kenai Peninsula, Alaska and climb some local ice. None of these lines are very difficult, but they are a lot of fun and the current condition of the crag presents several new options for the excited winter climber burnt out on the meager options offered in this warm yet relatively dry winter season. In addition to cleaning, bolting, and redpointing a couple of steeper mixed gear lines, we also developed a couple easier traditional lines and installed anchors in several places so that the crag should be relatively user friendly for those interested in seeing what it has to offer.

Above right: On the first ascent of Orion (M6+ish WI4). Photo: Sam Herreid.

Many thanks to Todd Helgeson and Ryan Hokanson for the use of their drills. And, many thanks to Peter Illig, Ryan Hokanson, Sam Herreid, and Jon Cobb for their belays, feedback, and help in the development of the crag. Thanks to Clint Helander for offering up his bolts to be placed at the crag! It was a pleasure climbing at the Hatchery Wall, and visiting Victor Creek with Sam Herreid for an ascent of the classic King's Beard, which we found in excellent condition. At some point in the next several days, I will develop a photo topo with basic information about the crag for those interested in heading out to repeat some of the more often formed pure ice lines or the new mixed rigs. For now, enjoy these photos of a couple of climbs that we did while hanging out at my cabin.

The new lines need repeats to determine consensus grades, so please go repeat them and let me know what you think at alpineessence at gmail.com .

Above left: During an ascent of the classic King's Beard in Victor Creek (WI5+). Photo: Sam Herreid.