International Mount McKinley Expedition. Our ascent of Mount McKinley, except for one variation, followed the West Buttress route pioneered by Bradford Washburn in 1951. (A.A.J., 1952, 8:2). Our party, made up of Bob Elliott, Fergus O’Connor, Bruce Gilbert, Martin Mushkin, Clarence LaBell, and F. Edward Cooper (leader), was landed by the very competent Don Sheldon at 7500 feet up a minor fork of the Kahiltna Glacier immediately beneath Mount Crosson. After a slight descent and backtrack to regain the main fork of the Kahiltna, we followed this glacier, establishing camps at 8300, 9800, and 13,200 feet. The one variation in the route occurred between 15,400 and 16,000 feet, which Washburn described as 600 feet of 60° slopes, measured with a clinometer. In the original ascent, apparently only the 200 feet near the top were hard ice. We found the entire slope hard, blue-green ice and chose to climb the rocks to the left of the ice wall instead, using ice pitons on the ice before gaining the rocks. Higher, we encountered a very peculiar 200-foot ice ridge and again used ice pitons. We regained the ridge by the upper rocks and pitched a ridge- camp at 16,100 feet. When the entire slope is bare ice, as this year, our variation is probably easier. (Dingman’s party climbed the ice wall, not seeing our fixed rope, and took 11 hours for the 600 feet.) The only rock scrambling took place on the ridge above 16,100 feet. Very early on July 1 we started for the summit from our 17,200-foot plateau camp. Above Denali Pass (18,200 feet) the weather worsened and became a raging blizzard with low visibility. We proceeded only by using wands spaced very closely. Finding a point from which everything else led down, we were content to call this the summit. It was, in fact, as we found out the next day, 700 feet below and a mile away from the true summit.

While returning to our 17,200-foot camp that afternoon, Clarence LaBell had the misfortune to run a crampon through his boot and into his foot. We found Dingman’s party in camp. Upon talking to Bill Hackett, who had been to the South Peak three times previously, it became evident that we had not reached the true summit, so the next morning, closely behind Dingman’s party, four of us set out for the summit. Marty Mushkin stayed behind with the injured LaBell. In all it was a record-breaking day with ten climbers standing on the summit of Mount McKinley. I roped with a member of their team, Ross Kennedy, and made a small side trip up Archdeacon’s Tower while Dave Dingman and Dave Dornan did their record- breaking feat of climbing both summits on the same day. Also Fergus O’Connor became the first Englishman to reach the summit and Captain Hackett reached the summit for his record-breaking fourth time. It was an extremely clear day, so different from the day before. The summit temperature was —8° F., with no wind. The bamboo pole placed there in 1947 was still prominent.

After the descent, Dave Dornan and I made the third ascent of Peak Z (12,525 feet), although an attempt on unclimbed Mt. Crosson (12,800 feet) by the connecting ridge with Peak Z was foiled by an oncoming storm. (The second ascent was apparently made by Breitenbach, Blanchard, Dingman, and Hackett on June 27. Editor.)

As previously planned, we made use of snow caves at our 9800- and 16,100-foot camps and igloos at 13,200 and 17,200 feet. The snow caves were very satisfactory in the two-day blizzard at 9800 feet and in the three-day storm at 16,100 feet. Gas stoves can be a danger since several of us felt ill from them.

F. Edward Cooper, Mountaineers