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← Hanging out in Anchorage and Talkeetna
Denali Prep on the Kahiltna Glacier →

Denali Prep Grounded at AMS HQ

Posted on June 4, 2024June 9, 2025 by Backcountry Fever

DAY 1 – Arrive at AMS HQ

After a few days hanging out in Talkeetna, it was time to meet up at the AMS Headquarters to begin our Denali Prep Course.  Participants arrived at 8am sharp with the anticipation of a big day, starting with a short tour, introductions and overall course orientation.  I had already stopped in and got to met our instructors yesterday to ease my concerns about being truly “ready” for this next-level adventure.

A few of us were then split off to start organizing our food.  While AMS pre-packed all our main meals the day before, our responsibility was to organize what we wanted for lunches and snacks.  Let me tell you, there is no shortage of choices from the AMS Food Pantry!  From soups to cereals, couscous, quinoa, rice, beans, lentils, biscuits, cookies, snack bars, freeze dried meals, stuffing, ramen, granola, grits, pasta, potatoes… you name it!

Another wall had all kinds of candy, snack mix, trail mix, pub mix, nut mix, nut bars, dehydrated fruits, pork jerky, beef jerkey, salami, peanut butter, pretzels, animal crackers.  I think you get the idea.

And finally a wide variety of coffee, tea, hot cocoa, sauces, spices.  It is impressive.  This is another aspect of AMS when I say they have this Denali stuff dialed in.

Next came a thorough check of our gear.  What we were missing could be rented from the AMS Equipment Room or purchased from their store, which was equally impressive as their pantry.

AMS stocks a wide range of options and sizes for most of your mountaineering needs.

If you need something more specific, there is no other place to get gear in Talkeetna.  You would’ve had to swing into REI or AMH in Anchorage for any last minute purchases.

Unexpected Weather Change

At this point, we noticed the weather starting to change and a few clouds were slowly rolling in.

There was still plenty to do, so we moved in to their Climbing Gym for fixed line ascension and crevasse rescue practice.  There was a bit of a learning curve for most, which definitely caught me by surprise.

When it was time to load gear and head to the airport, we received word that all flights were grounded due to bad weather.  That meant no one coming in from or going out to the glacier until further notice.

DAY 2 – Grounded at AMS HQ

We made the best of Day 2 at AMS HQ after rearranging the course schedule a bit.  Our instructors decided to cover stove use and fuel handling, which made sense to do off-glacier.  When I saw people struggling with how these backpack-style stoves worked, I really started to worry about skill level here.

They also made us set up our tents to make sure we knew how (ah, ok)…

…and then moved right into rope work for glacier travel, that was not all too familiar with this group either (oh, sh*t!).  This is a DENALI PREP course, right?  What’s going on?!

We then walked over to the airfield to see if TAT had any good news about the weather.

Unfortunately, conditions did not improve and we remained grounded.

However, excitement was in the air with a better looking forecast to fly out first thing in the morning.

← Hanging out in Anchorage and Talkeetna
Denali Prep on the Kahiltna Glacier →

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My 13th time on this summit, but 1st to enjoy some watermelon at the top 🍉 Thanks to Jocelyn, the "Watermelon Girl", who lugged that all the way up and was gracious enough to share it 😁

#mounttimpanogos #mttimpanogos #mounttimp #timpanogos #timp #11er #goatchallenge #hikethewasatch #summitshot #peakbagger #summervibes #watermelon #watermelongirl #goodvibrations

30 2
Open post by backcountryfever with ID 18494366443068269
My 13th time on this summit, but 1st to enjoy some watermelon at the top 🍉 Thanks to Jocelyn, the "Watermelon Girl", who lugged that all the way up and was gracious enough to share it 😁

#mounttimpanogos #mttimpanogos #mounttimp #timpanogos #timp #11er #goatchallenge #hikethewasatch #summitshot #peakbagger #summervibes #watermelon #watermelongirl #goodvibrations

Summit Shack in Sight!

#mounttimpanogos #mttimpanogos #mttimp #timp #wasatchfront #wasatchmountains #11er #summitshack #mountainlife #hikemore #hikerlife

19 0
Open post by backcountryfever with ID 18350512492156368
Summit Shack in Sight!

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#mounttimpanogos #mttimpanogos #mttimp #timp #timpanogos #mountaineering

31 1
Open post by backcountryfever with ID 18083925961775519
Veered right a bit of the South saddle (red line) for a more adventurous route up to Timp... but once we got up on the ridge, we saw we could have done an even more interesting way (yellow line) cutting into that cliff band and zigzagging along the shelves as seen in the 4th picture (taken from South Timp).

#mounttimpanogos #mttimpanogos #mttimp #timp #timpanogos #mountaineering

Only a few patches of snow remain between Aspen Grove and Emerald Lake.

#mounttimpanogos #mttimpanogos #timpanogos #timp #aspengrove #emeraldlake #snowfun #springhiking #wasatchmountains #goatworthy

37 1
Open post by backcountryfever with ID 18330819139163410
Only a few patches of snow remain between Aspen Grove and Emerald Lake.

#mounttimpanogos #mttimpanogos #timpanogos #timp #aspengrove #emeraldlake #snowfun #springhiking #wasatchmountains #goatworthy

For those interested in doing Deseret Peak... the snow is still in the couloirs, but only for a little while longer!

#deseretpeak #twincouloirs #mountaineering

27 1
Open post by backcountryfever with ID 18047137721625663
For those interested in doing Deseret Peak... the snow is still in the couloirs, but only for a little while longer!

#deseretpeak #twincouloirs #mountaineering

The best way to slide down a snowy slope in Spring conditions is like this...

#glissade #glissading #springtimefun #mountaineering #slipperywhenwet #letsgooo

17 1
Open post by backcountryfever with ID 17851034010437154
The best way to slide down a snowy slope in Spring conditions is like this...

#glissade #glissading #springtimefun #mountaineering #slipperywhenwet #letsgooo

Didn`t get much mountaineering in this Spring, so trying to catch the last bit of something before the snow`s all gone.

#mountaineering #snowhike #wolverinecirque #abovebrighton #brighton #springadventures #springhike #westillhavesnow #utahhiking #mtmillicent #mtwolverine #patsymarley #ridgehike

25 0
Open post by backcountryfever with ID 18071868488494094
Didn't get much mountaineering in this Spring, so trying to catch the last bit of something before the snow's all gone.

#mountaineering #snowhike #wolverinecirque #abovebrighton #brighton #springadventures #springhike #westillhavesnow #utahhiking #mtmillicent #mtwolverine #patsymarley #ridgehike

Not too many cold weather weekends left to go winter camping!

#coldweathercamping #wintercamping #wintercamp #uintas #sledsintow #stillwinterhere #winterfun

16 0
Open post by backcountryfever with ID 18363244447130614
Not too many cold weather weekends left to go winter camping!

#coldweathercamping #wintercamping #wintercamp #uintas #sledsintow #stillwinterhere #winterfun

Bagged Bierstadt today! Thought I could get Evans too, but took one look at The Sawtooth and went "nope"! I was also by myself... either way, that stretch looked intense even without the snow.

Get the full trip report at BackcountryFever.com/CO

#bierstadt #mountbierstadt #mtbierstadt #mtbierstadtsummit #winterroute #snowshoeing #snowshoeadventures #hikecolorado #hikeco #colorado14ers #colorado14er #14er #14ers #14ersummit #peakbagging #summitchaser

28 1
Open post by backcountryfever with ID 17901033000080878
Bagged Bierstadt today!  Thought I could get Evans too, but took one look at The Sawtooth and went "nope"! I was also by myself... either way, that stretch looked intense even without the snow.

Get the full trip report at BackcountryFever.com/CO

#bierstadt #mountbierstadt #mtbierstadt #mtbierstadtsummit #winterroute #snowshoeing #snowshoeadventures #hikecolorado #hikeco #colorado14ers #colorado14er #14er #14ers #14ersummit #peakbagging #summitchaser
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