Hello,
So I'd like to climb Denali in 2018 and am looking for recommendations on good training peaks to climb in 2017.

A few climbs I've done:
Rainier 2016 - Kautz Route
Rainier 2014 - Emmons (no summit)
20+ Colorado 14er
Snow Couloirs in colorado every season
regular Ice climbing up to WI4
regular Rock climbing up to 5.10

I'm just looking for similar peaks to climb to get ready, I have a tentative plan to climb Liberty Ridge on Rainier summer 2017. Any other recommendations? In colorado, canada, or even alaska? Would Mexican volcanoes be valuable, or a waste of time? Should I just climb colorado 14ers in crappy weather conditions?

Thanks!

I would say that technically, very little of what you have climbed is similar to what you will experience on Denali, with the exception of Rainier. Technical waterfall ice climbing and rock climbing is of very limited value for the West Buttress, but would be necessary for technical routes like the West Rib, Cassin Ridge, etc.

As far as peak bagging in Colorado or Mexico, there is value in training on higher altitude peaks in that you learn how your body responds to altitude and it trains your body to acclimate faster.

You will need to be absolutely proficient in certain skills that climbing in Colorado would not normally train:

Glacier travel and crevasse rescue, including with a sled.
Z and/or Z x C hauling systems.
Anchor building.
Crampon/ice axe use.
Ascending fixed lines, including passing anchors.
Building walls with snow blocks.

Many climbers feel that climbing Rainier in winter is a necessary precursor to climbing Denali. If nothing else, Denali will feel like a summer vacation after trying Rainier in winter.

IF you're doing the West Buttress, everything Excitable Boy mentions is applicable; the terrain on the 'West Butt' is pretty tame except for the crevasses and the 'headwall' just about the 14,000 ft camp. Since you're in Colorado you should probably concentrate on developing winter skills (outdoor backcountry camping, snowshoe travel, and getting to altitude as much as possible) and good aerobic conditioning. Some regular workouts in the gym (weights) wouldn't hurt either, as jumaring out of a crevasse with a pack and snowshoes is exhaustingly difficult. You might also look into one of the week-long climbing schools on Rainier or Mt. Baker where you can get some controlled instruction in glacier techniques.


Many climbers feel that climbing Rainier in winter is a necessary precursor to climbing Denali. If nothing else, Denali will feel like a summer vacation after trying Rainier in winter.

I'm going to say that this statement is backwards. Barring a trip to the Himalyas or Antarctica, when the weather craps out on Denali its got to be the worst you'll ever experience, even in the spring/early summer climbing season. Its an absolute 'batten-down-the-hatches-as-best-as-possible-and-ride-it-out" scenario. I've never been on Rainier in winter, but I'll never forget those three days stuck in a tent at 17,000 ft on Denali in June. It made midwinter Sierra Nevada (California) storms feel like a 'minor inconvenience'.

phydeux wrote:Many climbers feel that climbing Rainier in winter is a necessary precursor to climbing Denali. If nothing else, Denali will feel like a summer vacation after trying Rainier in winter.

I'm going to say that this statement is backwards. I've never been on Rainier in winter,

I have climbed Rainier many times in the winter and done three extended trips to the Alaska Range in early May, mid May and early June. I feel that the climate in Alaska is generally much drier and the day light much longer. It is true that the storms in AK can be violent, I've ridden out storms high on AK peaks that destroyed our tent, but you build walls in AK for that reason. As cold as AK is, at least it is a dry cold. The storms on Rainier in winter track out of the SW, picking up moisture from the Pacific Ocean and slam into Rainier, sticking 9,000 feet above the surrounding landscape. The weather is wet, the winds can be brutal, and occasionally the cold dips down in the Denali range. But it is a wet cold, which makes a huge difference. -30F on Denali is more comfortable than 0 degrees on Rainier in my experience.

All, thanks for the comments!

I should have been more clear on my knowledge, I feel confident on my snow/ glacier skills. I actually teach couloir climbing here in CO and thouroghly practiced crevasse rescue for my previous Rainer trips. I plan on refreshing throughout the season to keep the techniques fresh. So the only thing on exciteboy's list that I don't know is building snow blocks as we can't do that with Colorado snow.

I'm more looking for ways to prep the physical hauling day and day and day. The severe weather, and the mental aspect of denali. If it is possible?

Seems like I may be good with lots of alpine days in Colorado? I'm running a half marathon in a month and plan to focus hard on cardio as that is my weakness right now.

[quote="buckie06"]
I'm more looking for ways to prep the physical hauling day and day and day. The severe weather, and the mental aspect of denali. If it is possible?

[quote]

FWIW, Denali was physically the easiest mountain I've climbed in AK. The longest day was only 5 hours, that was a carry from 11k to 14k and back. Except for summit day which we went from 17k to the summit and then out to the landing strip in 17 hours, but by Cascade standards that was a normal, if even easy, day.

Only 5 hour days? Hummm, interesting. Well that makes me feel much better about my chances!

Seems like I may be good with lots of alpine days in Colorado?

20+ Colorado 14er

Doing them in winter would give a much better preparation than doing them in summer. Just watch those avalanches!

I feel that the climate in Alaska is generally much drier

In interior Alaska it is. Southeast Alaska though is much wetter than anything in Washington (I'm from Washington), including the Cascades. The Fairweather Range of Alaska has an estimate average annual precipitation of 450 inches per year, making it far wetter than anything in the Cascades. That's a bit off topic for Denali though.

Very helpful Puma, thanks!

ExcitableBoy wrote:FWIW, Denali was physically the easiest mountain I've climbed in AK. The longest day was only 5 hours, that was a carry from 11k to 14k and back. Except for summit day which we went from 17k to the summit and then out to the landing strip in 17 hours, but by Cascade standards that was a normal, if even easy, day.

+3k/-13?k in 17 hours is a "normal, if even easy Cascades day?" What's with the chest-beating? I haven't climbed Denali (and probably never will), but I have spent time in both CO and WA, and I call BS. The Cascades can be unfriendly, but math still applies.

ExcitableBoy wrote:

buckie06 wrote:I'm more looking for ways to prep the physical hauling day and day and day. The severe weather, and the mental aspect of denali. If it is possible?

FWIW, Denali was physically the easiest mountain I've climbed in AK. The longest day was only 5 hours, that was a carry from 11k to 14k and back. Except for summit day which we went from 17k to the summit and then out to the landing strip in 17 hours, but by Cascade standards that was a normal, if even easy, day.

17 hours to go from upper camp to the summit, then all the way down to the 7,000 ft base camp?!?!? that's insane! We witnessed three Spaniards go round trip from 14K to the summit and back in about 15 hours and thought that was incredible. Took us 6 hours from the high camp to the summit, maybe 1 hr on top, then 4 hours back to camp with the breeze picking up as we descended. After three days in the storm at 17,000 ft we dropped to the camp below Motorcycle hill, spent the rest of the day there eating and drinking and napping, then traveled the rest of the way down the Kahiltna Galcier at 'night' (hoping the crevasse bridges would be a little more solid). We got to the K.I.A. base camp at about 9AM, so about 48 hours to go down from high camp at 17,000 ft. We MIGHT have been able to do 17,000 to 7000 in 24Hrs, but definitely not the 17 hour 'jog' you did!

We get the wet winter storms here in California, too. I've never thought those were as bad as what I experienced on Denali in terms of how ferocious it was on the 'West Butt' route. It might also be due to the extreme exposure of Denali - there's really nothing as high around it to help deflect incoming storms. I've been to the PNW a few times ( 3X on Rainier, 2X on Baker, 2xon Hood, 1 on Adams, plus backpacking in Olympic Natl Park and the Wonderland Trail in Rainier Natl Park), and never though the few storms I experienced on those peaks were that bad either (granted, those were in the early spring or late fall).

So long as we're chest-beating and posting times on this thread....10 hours roundtrip from 14k camp to summit and back for me, and I was the slowest of my team...my partners were more in the 9 hr 15 min range.

But more relevant to the OP's message, get out and break trail on a bunch of 14ers and 13ers in the winter, either on snowshoes or x country skis. That, along with road biking and pulling large oversize tires behind you for 30 min every other day is what got me prepared for that epic slog.

I think my main point was lost. The West Buttress has several camps, so each day is very manageable. We did a combination of pulling sleds for the first two days to 11k, then double carries to 14K and 17k, so we never carried huge packs. Because the camps are so close, most days were short, the reason the last day was long was we were running from an incoming storm and wanted off before getting stranded.

As far as typical days in the Cascades, 16 - 19 hour days are pretty common for what I climb, so 17 hours, most of it down hill, felt easy by comparison. As an aside, when I first got married I went on a climbing trip. My new bride asked how long I would be and I responded "We are just doing an easy half day trip". 12 hours later I come home to a very worried woman. She said I was only going for a half day climb and I responded yes, I did exactly a half day climb - 12 hours.

As far as the mental aspect of Denali, that is certainly something to consider. All the stories of frostbite and death hang over one's head. Even though Denali was my third AK range trip, and easiest peak by Alaska Grade definitions, the historical weight of the mountain was palpable. I think this was mentioned, but do lots of winter camping, snowshoeing, skiing, sleeping in the cold.

thanks everyone, great responses and discussion!