Mountaineering & Hike Out
This course is an excellent opportunity to build a solid foundation of essential skills while pursuing mountaineering responsibly within a challenging and remote glaciated environment. Fourteen days provides enough time to apply these skills in a real wilderness environment. The first 12 days cover a full mountaineering curriculum: climbing, camping, traveling, avalanche, first aid/rescue, expeditionary, and environmental. Instead of catching a flight at the end of the mountaineering segment, however, the group will make its way to the road under its own power.
The course provides students with the confidence to live comfortably on a glacier, travel roped, climb moderate peaks, and put their skills to the test with the rigorous technical hike back to the road system. This is an intermediate climbing course with the prerequisites that participants arrive in excellent physical condition, have positive attitudes and a desire to learn, have open minds, and to be willing to work hard as team members. Our goal is to provide a solid foundation to pursue mountaineering, and to provide students the knowledge of how to put it all together during the technical traverse during the backcountry travel section.
FEATURES
- Mountaineering ground school, rock and ice climbing, rappelling
- Crevasse rescue: 2, 3, 4 person rope teams
- Avalanche curriculum: mechanics, hazard evaluation, transceiver searches, snow morphology
- Multiple peak ascent opportunities
- Snow walls, snow caves, igloos
- Route-finding from glacier to sub-arctic tundra and river valley
- River-crossing techniques
- Traveling and camping in bear country
- Expedition skills: leadership, expedition behavior, trip planning, climbing styles
Schedule
Contact us about custom options for your Mountaineering & Hike Out course.
What's Included
- Professional mountain guide(s)
- Round trip glacier flight
- NPS entrance and climber registration fees
- Base camp fee
- All meals and snack foods on the mountain and team lunch at AMS HQ on day 2
- All group camping and climbing equipment: ropes, tents, pickets, technical climbing gear, snow saws, wands
- Sled for each climber, pre-rigged for roped glacier travel for use during the climb
- Snow kitchen equipment: community kitchen tent, cooking stoves, utensils, and fuel
- Mountain communications: Emergency use satellite phone, FRS on-mountain radios, Delorme In-Reach
- Maps, GPS with pre-loaded route coordinates
- Medical Protocols, pulse oximiter, first aid, medication and repair kits
- Fully equipped staging area at AMS HQ and AMS Mountain Gear Shop in Talkeetna.
- 24/7 support from staff at AMS in Talkeetna during your climb
- Regular social media updates during your climb
- Pre-expedition assistance with travel planning and training advice
- Post-expedition lodging and shuttle logistics
- Luggage Storage during your expedition
- Camping at AMS HQ
- 15% discount at the AMS Mountain Gear Shop in Talkeetna
- Welcome back table with fresh foods and drinks after your climb
- Knowledgeable staff to assist with lodging and shuttle logistics
- Denali’s West Buttress: A Climbers Guide by Colby Coombs
This is an example of a 15-day course; activities vary depending on course location, weather, and snow conditions.
Day 1
Meet with your instructors at 8 am at AMS (Muffins/tea/coffee provided). Course orientation, individual gear check, lunch at AMS, register with NPS, climb fixed lines, final pack up and dress for the mountains, fly, build camp. Classes in Talkeetna: harnesses, basic knots, fixed line ascension, what to wear and how to pack for the plane; classes on glacier: scene safety, hygiene and sanitation, campsite selection, probing, perimeter camping, shovel use and care, tent platforms and walls, group outdoor kitchen, food id, stove use, basic cooking, evening class on “bomb proofing” camp, sleeping warm.
Day 2
Group breakfast, set up kitchen megamids, climbing ground school, basic crevasse fall scenarios, glacier tour/scout tomorrow’s crevasse. Classes: Rope id and care, climbing protection, anchors, belaying, roping up for glacier travel, self-arrest with ski poles, crevasse fall scenarios, transferring the load to an anchor, snow shoeing, glacier travel techniques; evening discussion: altitude-related injuries, what to bring in a day pack, weather observations.
Day 3
Rope up and head to crevasse for the day, probe out and establish crevasse rescue training area, build anchors, lower and raise each other out of crevasse, ascend climbing rope out of crevasse, student-led rope teams. Classes: Lowering, tying off, transferring the load, raising systems, what to do with pack and sled; evening discussion on avalanche mechanics & classification, weather observations.
Day 4
Break down camp, pack sleds, travel to new location and build camp, prepare for peak ascent. Classes: Packing packs and sleds, caching, roping up with sleds, navigation & route finding, transceiver searches; evening discussion on cold injuries, weather observations.
Day 5
Summit day. Classes: Snow climbing techniques, running protection/belays, crampon use, snow stability tests, route finding; evening discussion on expedition behavior and leadership.
Day 6
Ice climbing, rappelling. Classes: Choosing a climb, setting up top ropes, moderate and steep ice climbing techniques, placing screws and threads, mock leads, rappelling ground school; evening discussion mid-course check-in, goals and expectations.
Day 7
Break down camp and move to snow shelter camp, student led rope teams, simulated crevasse fall. Classes: Snow shelters; evening discussion on difficulty ratings, climbing style, climbing history.
Day 8
Summit day, more challenging than first peak ascent. Classes: Geology, weather; evening discussion on snow shelter maintenance, emergency procedures.
Day 9
Move camp to rock climbing area. Classes: Rock climbing techniques-face and crack, placing rock protection, mock leads; evening discussion on altitude related illnesses.
Day 10
Summit day; route objective based on success of previous peak ascents, more student involvement in decision making and snow pack evaluation.
Day 11
Pack up and move back to landing zone, establish camp, student leaders of the day, write evaluations. Sort equipment and create a cache to leave behind. Classes: Packing a pack for maximum comfort and balance, evening discussion on the hiking route to come and creating a time control plan.
Day 12
Pack up camp and begin travel towards Talkeetna. Practice your new skill set by route-finding through crevassed terrain and protecting a steep pass down off the glacier. Classes: Travel and camping in bear country, leave no trace skills for the tundra.
Day 13
Hike up and over two more small passes as you continue making your way towards the road. Watch the landscape change as you make your way from the snowy glacier into full Alaska summertime. Classes: map and compass navigation.
Day 14
Pack up and resume your hiking, begin to see more signs of civilization as you travel through a recreational mining district. Classes: evening discussion on wilderness ethics and land management issues.
Day 15
Load the packs up one more time and make your way through the woods to meet the AMS van. return to AMS, return rental equipment, clean and organize group gear, exchange evaluations, group dinner at a local restaurant.
This is an introductory wilderness course with the following prerequisites for each participant: arrive in good physical condition; possess a positive attitude and a desire to learn; be willing to work hard, have an open mind, and be a team member.
You guys were all great. Your company really has a family feel to it… you really put the competition to shame. My last climb was with another (highly regarded) company, and trust me, there is no comparison. Hands down you guys were superior. Keep doing what you are doing. When I climb Denali in a year, you guys will get my call… I have you on speed dial. — Tony Robles
I was very impressed with the professionalism and attention to detail of the entire organization, from start to finish. — Gary Davis
