Archives for June 2009

Radio 1Xtra's Ronnie Herel had a chat with Mark in the early hours of this morning to find out about the progress of his freezing cold cycle across Alaska.

Mark will catch up with Greg James later in the week, keep an eye on his blog for more details.

Mark found some time on the road to send back a video diary as he battled against some harsh and unseasonable Alaskan weather.

Mark called to update his progress as he approaches the end of his time in Alaska.

For the last couple of days I have been crossing the Talkeetna Mountains in an area called the Matanuska Valley. Apart from a huge glacier this is mainly vast scrubby forest surrounded by mountains.

Needless to say there has been a lot of climbing, which I was prepared for. What I wasn't prepared for was the freezing rain. It rained on my tent all last night and I kept waking hoping it would ease. Today a headwind made the hills even slower going than expected and by mile twenty had to stop, frozen through with the torrential rain.

Later today I heard that there had been a severe weather warning out for the area. Sure enough as I came off the high ground at the end of the day the rain eventually stopped but I have never ridden in such cold, wintery conditions at the end of June. It was pretty miserable and I will be glad to not do more of that!

Physically feeling good and starting to get my cycling legs back.

The first couple of days back on the bike have been interesting. I have just finished cycling and pushing the bike over the 3886 foot (1184m) Hatchers Pass, a closed road from the Alaskan town of Willow to Palmer. The legs feel pretty tight as they have been climbing for three weeks and lost a lot of their pedal power!

Summit Lake at Hatcher Pass (3886ft) after pushing the bike for the last three miles

Day one started very late after a lot of last minute sorting and so finished late into the evening. Not a problem as we have almost 24 hour sunlight in Alaska but less kind to recovering legs. The plan was to take it really easy for the first few days to avoid injury but... a local man called Jim suggested, in the sort of way to suggest I was a big wimp if I didn't, that the old road to Palmer was far more interesting and not to be missed.

So rather than taking the busy highway I soon found myself on a dirt track over Hatcher Pass which mainly accesses 'Lucky Shot Gold Mine'. The final part of the road was shut, as they had heavy snow last week (in June!) so I walked around the gate and carried on. What had been smooth gravel was now unridable so I had to push the bike for the final miles up the switchbacks, past deep snowdrifts (and an awesome lake) to the pass.

The far side was equally loose and even steeper so I sat on the brakes for a very cold descent until I finally found tarmac. Putting on all the clothes I had I screamed the final 21 miles to Palmer where I feel I have just eaten my own bodyweight for diner.

The tarmac runs out as I follow Willow Creek through gold mine country - Hatcher Pass is on the horizon

If I was to try and cycle to Argentina at that pace it might take a couple of years at least and so my off-road, gold-country adventures might be limited, but it was an awesome day and my legs are whimpering in aggreement. If all goes well I will be in Canada in a week's time.

Thanks for all the great comments (and the few not so great ones, which you are equally justified to make!) Keep up the support as it is really appreciated.

Summit pics! See Mark's final set of pictures from Mount McKinley.

See more pictures at flickr.com/photos/cyclingtheamericas.

Greg James caught up with Mark this morning to find out how he was recovering after his freezing cold climb on Denali.

Mark will be back on Greg's big show next week, keep an eye on his blog for more details.

A strong earthquake jolted southern Alaska on Monday, 40 miles from Mark's current base in Talkeetna. The quake caused minimal damage but measured a huge 5.4 on the scale.

BBC Radio Scotland's Newsdrive checked the latest with Mark.

Mark reached the summit of one of the coldest mountains on the planet at the end of last week. Before he left for the climb he took some time to talk about what lay ahead, and received some helpful information from AMS mountain guide, Melis Coady.

This is the second set of photos to illustrate my recent climb of Mt McKinley (Denali) in Alaska. During this period we were moving up the main body of the mountain to high camp, slowly acclimatising and getting ready for the final push.

See more pictures at flickr.com/photos/cyclingtheamericas.

With over 1000 photos to choose from it has been a tough task to choose a selection to illustrate my recent summit of Mt McKinley (Denali) in Alaska. This set of 25 shows the first week of the expedition as we fly onto the Kahiltna glacier and start moving up the mountain.

See more pictures at flickr.com/photos/cyclingtheamericas.

It is strange getting used to the colours, smells, crowds, tastes and variety of the real world after the glacial existance that has been the last three weeks. Whilst out there mind and body dealt very well with the rigours of life in the freezer and at altitude, now I am back I cannot stop sleeping and eating. In 20 days I lost nearly 7kg, which is just over a stone in weight. There was no chance to change clothes at all in this time so it wasn't until I had my first shower yesterday that I saw how much I had lost (and realised how much I stank!)

It is summer solstice this weekend and, as it never really gets dark in Alaska at this time of year, this is celebrated in a big way. So, I'm heading out to join the town party in Talkeetna with Heather, my sister, who just arrived in town. She'll be with me for a few days to help take all the mountaineering kit back to Scotland for me and see me off on the cycling stage. It's great to see a familiar face after such a tough climb.

I have loads of great photos and more stories from the climb to post in the next few days. If all goes well I'll just take three days to recover and then start cycling by mid week.

More news tomorrow...

Update from Mark at 8.30am, Alaska time:

Just finished an 11 hour trek down from 14,000 camp to make it here to Base Camp. We walked through the night pulling our sleds over the crevasses which were covered in snow. All back safely waiting for the plane to pick us up and take us back to Talkeetna.

Experienced mountain guide Jim Kerr, who helped Mark train in Chamonix earlier this year, talks about Mark's mental toughness and what it takes it scale a mountain like Denali.

Greg James called Mark on the sat phone to find out about the long trek to the summit of Mount McKinley.

Greg will check in with Mark again next week, when he will be back on board the bike. Keep an eye on his blog for more details.

Mark sent us this update as he started out on the night march across the glacier.

Listen to Mark's first report for the media after making it to the summit of Mount Mckinley and back to the safety of his camp after 15 hours of high-altitude climbing.

Audio update by Mark from camp at 14,200 feet.

You can also keep an eye out for further information from Melis on the mountaineering school blog.

Listen to Mark on this morning's MacAulay and Co on Radio Scotland

Mark has made it to the top of Mount Mckinley/Denali! The highest point in the United States of America. Following is the story of the near 16 hour trip from High Camp to the summit and back.

Tuesday 16th, Mark called 2.15pm Alaska time. They were an hour beyond Denali Pass at Zebra Rock. It's fantastic, weather good and he had his first sight of the summit. It's been slow and tough going and they are all feeling the affects of the altitude. They now head for Archdeacons Tower then across 0.25mile plateau called Football Field. After that its up Kahiltna Horn to the summit ridge at 20,100ft. The final summit ridge takes them to Denali South summit at 20.320ft.

Report followed on the mountaineering school blog from group leader Melis.

Melis just called in, she is up above the Zebra Rocks, 18,600 +- right now, GOING FOR IT! Her whole group is doing well and they are plodding along, slowly and steadily. It was warmed up a bit and the wind has died off. Sounds like a good summit day to me. Both groups still have a long way to go, but they are steadily on their way.

Then in a later report from the blog.

Kirby called at about 6:30 pm Alaska Time from the summit of Denali! Melis is not far behind them. When we talked to her earlier she said that if it is cold and/or windy they would wait to call us until they get back to camp, and if it was "sunny & warm" they would call from the top. From what Kirby said, I don't expect to hear from Melis until they get back to camp later tonight. We should be able to make an update by morning.

Wednesday 17th, 11pm Alaska time. Phone call from Mark confirmed that they had summited! Sounded exhausted after 13 and half hours on the go at high altitude in the thin air. On the approach ridge to the summit the weather suddenly deteriorated into a blizzard and white-out with zero visibility. Mark's idea of hell, with huge exposure and flat light. Lots of concentration needed to walk with his crampons on the narrow ridge. Only spent two minutes on the summit and had to make a retreat.

They are now back at the top of Denali Pass with 2 hours still to go to reach High Camp at 17,200ft. One member of the team did not make the summit but they are all back together again. Mark feeling a few blisters and needs more food but the descent is going well.

Mark just called 1.20pm Alaska time. Back at High Camp, 17,200ft, after 15hrs 45mins to the summit and back. Only 5 made it to the summit as one member nearly collapsed on the summit ridge and the descent then took much longer getting him down carefully. Back in the tent, very cold - getting some food and then sleep.

Tune into Greg James on Radio 1 tomorrow morning between 4.00 and 6.30am to find out from Mark how bid for the summit of Denali has gone.

Mark called at 8am, Alaska time from his tent at High Camp, 17,200 feet (5,200 metres).

They're just having breakfast and will then leave for their summit bid. There's a bit of a wind but Mark was making sure he had his hand warmers ready for the 6 - 8 hour trek ahead with a real threat of frostbite.

They will be roped up in two teams and everyone is feeling well and is ready for the top!

Mark and the climbing team are poised to make a bid for the summit of Denali / Mount Mckinley.

Mark was in touch yesterday evening to let us know he was feeling good. He had a further test with the pulse oximeter that confirmed his blood oxygen level was still good and that he was continuing to acclimatise.

The team planned to rest for a further day and then asses the possibility of going for the summit on the next day. That means he could make it to 20,320 feet / 6,194 metres in the wee small hours of Wednesday 17 Jun, UK time.

This is the latest update from the climbing school blog:

Melis called in from HIGH CAMP this morning. Her group is all in good spirits and doing well. They are going to take a rest day today. It is hard sometimes to want to take a rest day when the weather is splitter like it is right now. It is worth it though. One days rest can make all the difference in the world. Two really difficult days in a row with only 8 hours rest is tough for anyone.

We hope to get audio from Mark as soon as he summits so keep checking back for further updates.

All fingers and toes are crossed!

Sat phone message from Mark on Sunday at 9pm Alaska time (-9 GMT).

Hi, It's Mark. We made it to High Camp so we're at 17,200 feet (5,423 metres) and you can certainly notice it! We've got half the amount of Oxygen you would get at sea level. To get here from 14,000 camp took the best part of nine and a half hours. It was pretty good weather there was some light winds but nothing really to shout about. Because it had snowed for much of yesterday and last night there wasn't a trail for us to see from the tracks of previous climbers, up the Head Wall which was a little bit trickier than the first time we did it because with crampons on hard pack it's easy but in fresh snow you are skidding all over the place. The team all made it up there fine and we picked up our cache which we'd left from our last climb...

The signal dropped off at the end and some of the message was lost. Such is the way with technology in these extremes.

Saturday 13th, Mark called at 9am Alaska time from their camp at 14,200ft. Two of his team are unable to go higher today, so they are all staying there for another rest day.

There's a medic based at this camp. When they arrived a few days ago, they were all tested with a fingertip pulse oximeter to gauge their oxygen saturation levels. Mark's resting heart rate was 90 beats per minute and his blood saturation level was 70% at that point - 89% is normal. When retested yesterday, his heart rate was 64 bpm and blood saturation up to 84% which shows Mark is acclimatizing.

One member of the group still has a low oxygen saturation reading and their pulse is not normalizing so it is not safe for them to go higher today. The other member has an upper respiratory infection and is on antibiotics. Everyone is coughing a little as the air is so dry.

Other people in the camp from different groups are suffering from altitude sickness and are unable to go higher.

Ice had formed on the inside of the tents overnight, so this morning you got a shower of melted breath when you moved around! The weather has clouded over and is snowing a little, but the sun was still trying to get through.

Keep checking for the next update from Mark on the blog and check the AMS blog for updates from Melis the group leader.

Friday 12th, Mark called at 1.30pm Alaska time, from Basin Camp at 14,200ft. Yesterday they cached some gear at 16,200ft after negotiating the 800ft snow and ice face of Headwall. It is the steepest climbing of the whole route and they found it tough, but managed to complete it in a good time, returning to 14,200ft for a rest and acclimatization day. There is a fixed line on Headwall and they weren't fully laden for their first climb up it, but tomorrow they will need all their skills negotiating the pitch with a full pack that can easily unbalance you.

The weather is still good with just a few clouds that they are keeping an eye on. The plan at the moment is to move to High Camp at 17,200ft tomorrow, a distance of 1.75 miles from where they are at Basin Camp. Then on Monday they will make a round trip back to 16,200ft to collect their cache - 0.75 miles from 16,200ft to 17,200ft. Bids for the summit can be made from either 16,200ft or 17,200ft and it very much depends on the weather and how everyone is managing to acclimatise. Mark is feeling fit and strong but definitely felt the thinner air at 16,200ft.

The expedition to climb Denali is pushing Mark in new directions as an adventurer. He is used to making his own decisions, being active and constantly on the move on the bike. This kind of mountaineering is a slow sport and he has had to change down a few gears. To have joined this mountain expedition after all the months of being so busy with training, expedition preparations and public engagements, he is finding it very strange to stop every day and need to take so much time to rest and acclimatise at altitude.

For success and safety the guides operate the group with discipline and hard work, and whilst everyone is getting on really well, living in close proximity with perfect strangers does present another set of unique challenges as does living in the same clothes for weeks!

Earlier today Mark called in an update into Greg James on Radio 1. At 14,000 feet and well below zero the sat phone is starting to get a little cranky. A few communication problems weren't going to stop Mark and Greg having a good chat though.

You can get all Mark's interviews here on the blog.

Don't forget to tune into Greg James big show tomorrow morning as Mark will be calling him with the latest from his freezing cold climb on Mount McKinley.

Visit Greg's blog to find out more about his show.

Denali National Park image courtesy of Kent Miller

Standing at 20,320ft/6,194m Mount McKinley is the highest mountain in North America. Commonly known as Denali, or the "Great One" the mountain dominates Alaska, stretching more than 6 million acres with spectacular ice-clad peaks and sub-zero conditions. Located in the central portion of the Alaska Range, it is approximately 130 miles north-northwest of Mark's starting-point, Anchorage.

Perhaps one of the coldest mountains in the world outside of Antarctica, the constant winds that lash the peak make the extreme weather conditions unique. The coldest recorded temperature at Denali National Park & Preserve headquarters is - 48C (-55F).

Weather from the south brings snow storms with strong winds, and limited visibility and coupled with the extreme cold and limited daylight, it's enough to deter all but the most determined climbers.

The mountain is flanked by five giant glaciers and is not technically difficult to climb, but almost half of all attempts to reach the summit end in failure.

Mark's climbing the West Buttress route, a popular choice with climbers and takes around three weeks to complete. The route begins at 7,200 feet on the Southeast Fork of the Kahiltna Glacier. It follows the Kahiltna north before ascending up onto the West Buttress.

• Denali National Park
• West Buttress route
• Mt McKinley weather forecast
• Wikipedia entry on Mt McKinley

It's status as one of the seven summits - highest mountains from each of the seven continents - and reputation as one of the coldest climbs, Mount McKinley is an incredible challenge for anyone.

The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites

Tuesday 9th - Mark called at 2.30pm, Alaska time from Basin Camp, an advance base camp at 14,200ft/4,328m. He and his roped team had taken five hours from their Monday night camp at 11,000ft/3,353m to reach Basin Camp. They are all feeling fit and doing well.

It was a crystal clear and hot day. They've left the sledges behind at the last camp, so back-packs are now seriously heavy and with the steep terrain and elevation gain, they were feeling the thinner air and glad to reach camp to put down their packs. Tomorrow they go back about one and half hours to bring up cached kit then rest and acclimatize at 14,200ft/4,328m.

As he spoke, Mark was looking at the next section - Headwall - and said it looked tougher than anything they have done so far. Headwall is an 800ft/244m, 40 to 55 degree snow and ice face. Some of the time at Basin Camp is spent practising techniques for what's ahead.

Two other groups reached the summit today and everybody is really happy for them and encouraged by this news.

Audio update from Mark as he and the team make preparations to move up to camp three on the mountain.

Expedition leader Melis has made another update on the climbing school blog.

Personal manager, expedition coordinator, concerned mother, these are just some of the titles you can attribute to Una Beaumont. She is behind Mark and supported him in all his adventures. Involving herself in everything from planning routes and handling logistics to making sure Mark is safe and healthy throughout his trip.

Una took some time to talk about her experiences, and her son's passion for adventure, that has been evident from an early age.

Report from Mark over sat phone. Sunday 7th June, 1am Alaska time, Motorcycle Hill. Rest day.

Yesterday, we had a 5 hour round trip to to bring all the gear from Upper Kahiltna Glacier. Weather today is cold, sunny and clear - really beautiful scenery.

The tents are in a fairly small, wanded 'safe area' from crevasses. Everyone is feeling well. The two guides, Melis and her husband Joey are looking after us really well with a balance of hard work and discipline, but also good food and fun.

There's also another update from Mark's expedition leader on their blog.

Friday 5th at 5.30pm Alaska time. At the higher camp of Motorcycle Hill.

It has been a really tough day, the toughest yet. It rained all Thursday night at Ski Hill camp rather than the expected snow. Still raining when we got up at 3.30am and it was a miserable start packing up in the rain. The weather cleared up by 6.30am then it was like being inside a ping pong ball with misty fog making flat light and no differentiation between the ground and sky. We were roped up in two teams of four and as we got higher it started to sleet then turned into proper snow. Could have stopped at the Upper Kahiltna Glacier camp at 3000m after 2.5 miles where kit was cached on Thursday, but all were feeling fine and we decided to go on another 1.5 miles to the Motorcycle Hill camp at 3,400m.

Arrived here about 3.30pm exhausted but fine. It then took 2 hours in the cold, high winds and snow, to build snow walls and put up the tents. Now, inside the tents warming up with some soup, the sun came out and the view of Motorcycle Hill is spectacular!

The plan now is more food then off to sleep to be up again at 3.30am and walk back the 1.5 miles to the Upper Kahiltna Glacier to bring up the cache - so a shorter day tomorrow, then Sunday is an acclimatisation and rest day at Motorcycle Hill camp.

Hey, It's Mark calling on the sat phone from halfway up McKinley.

Day three on the mountain and the expedition is going really well, the team are doing great and all seem fit and able. The weather's been really hot on the lower Kahlhitna Glacier.

We flew in two days ago and did a long hike pulling all our gear with sledges and backpacks. These are the longest, heaviest days we have to do along the flatlands and up the glacier, you only gain four or five hundred feet in each day.

Today we took about half our gear and went up quite a height, 1500 to 2000 feet and cached our gear, which meant digging a big whole and burying all our stuff. Then we came back down so we're at the same camp as last night. We've had to take our kit up because it's too steep and heavy too move it all at once. This style of climbing let's us acclimatise gently and we'll be moving steadily up the mountain in the next week or so.

It's clouding over today and there's meant to be about 6 inches of snow coming. It's been pretty clear so far so the trail itself is fairly obvious. There's lots of crevasses around but the path is so clear that there's nothing really to worry about.

I'm feeling great, getting some sunburn down here on the glacier, but I got my first glimpse of the top yesterday!

Wednesday 3rd June. Mark called from the sat phone at 2.10pm local time from Ski Hill Camp (1st camp) - at 2,400m. They had about four hours sleep last night then were up at 3am and climbing by 5.30am.

Today was the heaviest day from Kahiltna Base with a full rucksack and sledge. From Kahiltna Base 2,200m, where they flew into and spent last night, there was a slight descent (called Heartbreak Hill) then a gradual climb for 5.5 miles to Ski Hill Camp. 5.5 miles out of the 16 mile journey is a great start. They have good weather and it's VERY HOT in the glacier.

They now rest for the remainder of today and are up early tomorrow to start moving gear up a steeper section. They will come back down to spend a second night at Ski Hill Camp, then climb higher on Friday. The team are great. They are sleeping three in each four man tent, so plenty of room. Mark is feeling good and is happy with his kit.

Mark is climbing the West Buttress route of Mount Mckinley / Denali. As part of a team of mountaineers with Alaska Mountaineering School who have a blog with reports from each of their climbing teams.

Mark in Chamonix earlier this year.

Mark has finally reached base camp but not without a mountain of drama, the first attempt to fly was cancelled - a familiar feeling for Mark - due to the ferocious conditions.

However, a break in the clouds allowed for take-off and the plane finally touched down at base camp.

On schedule and carrying 80lbs (36kg) he is now geared up to begin his ascent of Mt McKinley.

Did you hear Mark this morning? He joined Greg James earlier for a catch up, all the way from Alaska.

Find more about Greg's big show on his blog and don't forget to tune in as he continues to follow Mark's progress.

Mount McKinley or Denali as it is now known means 'The Great One' and it is the highest mountain in North America. Incredibly it has the longest ascent from base camp to summit of any mountain on earth - even Everest is not as far (although it is higher).

After only a couple of days on the bike I made it to Talkeetna the first transition off the bike and into climbing mode.

The base town of Talkeetna is where I have been preparing all my kit and I am now ready for the three week bid for the summit. To be honest I am a mixture of nerves and excitement at this point and my every want is to get onto the mountain and start. It will be one of the greatest challenges of my life and in terms of mountaineering push me well beyond what I have done before.

On its own, this climb is a major expedition and I met my guide and fellow climbers today for lessons on rope work, crevasse rescue, pulling a sledge and how to move in crevasse fields. These are all skills which I have done before but it was very reassuring to refresh.

Luckily the weather in Alaska has now cleared after a very cloudy and wet week, with good forecasts for at least the first half week on the mountain. To begin we fly in a tiny plane with skis instead of wheels onto the Kahiltna Glacier where we make base camp before starting climbing. On the mountain I will only have a satellite phone to communicate and so the best way to keep track should be through Twitter. When a blog appears then it's because I am able to call back to the UK and dictate some of the stories from the climb.

Thanks for the continued and growing support for the expedition - when I am on the road with the bike at the end of the month I hope to have more time to respond to you.

I hope you are enjoying the journey - do a sun dance for me so I can reach the summit!

Mark

Mark has uploaded photos on the road in Alaska from Anchorage to Talkeetna. Trucks, bears and BBC cameramen - looks to be quite a ride!

See more of Mark's pictures at flickr.com/photos/cyclingtheamericas.