1. •Denali ("the great one") or Mt McKinley is the highest mountain in North America, with a summit of approximately 20,320 feet (6,194 metres).  While Mt Everest is higher at 29,029 feet (8,848 metres), Denali has a much larger vertical gain with its summit standing more than 18,000 feet (5,500 metres) above base camp, compared to only 12,000 feet (3,700 metres) for Mt Everest.
   

1. •Denali is characterised by extremely cold weather, with temperatures as low as -75°F (−60°C) and wind-chills as low as −118°F (−83°C).  Denali also presents a higher risk of altitude sickness for climbers than its height would suggest, since the extreme latitude (60°N) dramatically reduces the amount of oxygen available compared to a similar peak at the equator.
   

1. •Climbers are flown from the town of Talkeetna onto the Kahiltna glacier in 4-seater planes equipped with skis and must then carry/drag loads of over 120lbs (54kg) up the mountain (porters being unavailable). Most parts of Denali are actually climbed twice, with supplies being carried/cached over consecutive days.
   

1. •Denali presents the constant danger of avalanches or falling into a crevasse, so climbers are roped together from the moment they arrive on the Kahiltna glacier.   Only 50% of climbers attempting Denali each year will actually reach the summit, whilst others are defeated by bad weather or bad luck.

1. •May 29 - Fly from San Francisco, California to Talkeetna, Alaska
   

2. •May 30 - Workshop and gear preparation in Talkeetna
   

3. •May 31 - Fly from Talkeetna to Base Camp on Kahiltna glacier at 7,200 feet (2,200 metres)
   

4. •June 1 - Prepare gear and supplies at Base Camp
   

1. •June 2 - Move camp and supplies to Camp 1 (base of Ski Hill) at 7,800 feet (2,400 metres)
   

2. •June 3 - Carry supplies to Camp 2 at 9,700 feet (3,000 metres) before returning to Camp 1
   

3. •June 4 - Move camp and remaining supplies to Camp 2
   

4. •June 5 - Move camp and supplies to Camp 3 at 11,000 feet (3,400 metres)
   

5. •June 6 - Rest day and acclimatisation at Camp 3
   

1. •June 7 - Carry supplies to create a cache at 13,500 feet before returning to Camp 3
   

2. •June 8 - Move camp and remaining supplies to Camp 4 at 14,200 feet (4,300 metres)
   

3. •June 9 - Collect supplies from cache at 13,500 feet before returning to Camp 4
   

4. •June 10 - Carry supplies to 16,200 feet before returning to Camp 4
   

5. •June 11 - Rest day and acclimatisation at Camp 4
   

1. •June 12 - Move camp and remaining supplies to Camp 5 at 16,200 feet (4,900 metres)
   

2. •June 13 - Rest day and acclimatisation at Camp 5
   

1. •June 14 - Reserved for summit attempt (weather permitting) at 20,320 feet (6,194 metres)
   

2. •June 15 - Reserved for summit attempt (weather permitting)
   

3. •June 16 - Reserved for summit attempt (weather permitting)
   

4. •June 17 - Reserved for summit attempt (weather permitting)
   

1. •June 18 - Return to Camp 4 at 14,200 feet or Camp 3 at 11,000 feet
   

2. •June 19 - Return to Base Camp at 7,200 feet
   

3. •June 20 - Fly from Base Camp to Talkeetna (weather permitting)
   

4. •June 21 - Fly from Talkeetna, Alaska to San Francisco, California (weather permitting)
   

5. •June 22 - Start planning next trip, for example.

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AMS expedition blog

Full screen version available here.   Map shows last 7 days of GPS locations from a Spot Satellite GPS Messenger unit (unless it’s turned off or I’ve trodden on it in my crampons). 

All photographs copyright of Alpine Ascents

Camp 3 at 11,000 feet (3,400 metres)

View of Camp 4 from Camp 5

Summit ridge at  20,320 feet (6,194 metres)

En route to the summit

1. That's a question that I'm often asked, that I'm an expert at avoiding and that I wasn't planning to answer publicly.  Then I realised that friends would quite naturally (and probably quite wrongly) provide their own responses to the silence, so perhaps I should start by explaining why I'm not climbing Denali...
   

2. 
   

3. I'm not climbing Denali because I want to check-off another of the Seven Summits.  I'm not climbing Denali because mountains have taken over my life.  I'm not climbing Denali "because it's there".  I'm not climbing Denali because I'm an adrenalin-junkie or extreme-sport freak.  I'm not climbing Denali because I'm having some kind of mid-life crisis (those are just so passé these days).
   

4. 
   

5. I am climbing Denali because it's a beautiful experience in the classical style of unsupported expeditions.  I am climbing Denali because it will be the hardest thing I've ever pushed myself to do.  I am climbing Denali because "in wildest places the heart finds ease".  I am climbing Denali because I feel less alone on a narrow ridge above the clouds than in the company of a million strangers in a strange land.  I am climbing Denali because I'm looking for someone and something that I know I won't actually find there.
   

6. 
   

7. I could say more but it wouldn't make any sense unless you already understood the above, in which case I wouldn't need to say anything else.  Except that happiness is only real when shared...