Mountaineering Club of Alaska

Publication Year: 1964.

Mountaineering Club of Alaska. No other club is so favorably situated with respect to the mountains as are we, with the Chugach Range right in our back yard and the Aleutian, Alaska, Talkeetna, and Kenai Ranges all within sight. While our weather is notorious, we have time to wait it out or can return to climb another day. For the second year in a row members led successful ascents of Mount McKinley, and this year the party made the second ascent of Mount Hunter and firsts on its middle and south peaks as well. Another member led the first ascent of Wedge Peak (10,239 feet) near Mount Mather. Earlier in the year Mount Gerdine (11,258 feet) was twice assaulted and finally climbed, but it was later found not to be the high point of the range after all. The re-survey of this northern end of the Aleutian Range dropped Gerdine’s elevation by over 1300 feet to the present figure, while it raised that of unclimbed Mount Torbert to 11,413 feet. Twice-attempted Montana Peak (6950 feet) was finally climbed by three members, taking the place of last year’s 6729-foot Granite Peak as the highest climbed so far in the Talkeetna Range. A fifth ascent was made of “Bold Peak” (7522 feet) and a first ascent of "Bellicose Peak” (7640 feet) in the Eklutna area. Several 5000- and 6000-foot peaks in the Chugach and Kenai Ranges were climbed, including some first ascents. For the second year in a row we entered a team in the Seward Mountain Marathon Race on July 4, but the atmosphere was marred this year by the death of Dennis Hitt, an applicant for M.C.A. membership, in a climbing accident three days earlier on nearby “Mount Alice.” Rock and glacier climbing schools were held, and preparation was begun for the second of a string of huts to follow our successful "Crows Nest” in Crow Pass.

Yin Hoeman, Secretary