Mt. Dickey, Northeast Face, Blue Collar Beatdown

Alaska, Central Alaska Range
Author: John Frieh. Climb Year: 2015. Publication Year: 2016.

From March 20–22, Chad Diesinger, Jason Stuckey, and I made the first ascent of Blue Collar Beatdown (V WI4 M4 65°) on the northeast face (right shoulder) of Mt. Dickey. The route is located to the left of the Byrch-McNeill ice flow (AAJ 2004).

With a record warm winter in Alaska, I looked for weather windows as soon as March rolled around. Having successfully climbing Mt. Huntington twice in the month of March (2011 and 2014), I knew a viable weather window would allow us to climb. After much deliberation over where a dominant low-pressure system would settle in the Gulf of Alaska and what that would mean for weather in the central range, I finally grabbed a last-minute ticket to Fairbanks. I landed early on March 19, and Jason, Chad, and I immediately departed for Talkeetna. We rolled into town just as the Roadhouse opened, and we each pounded the traditional Rudy and Razzy breakfast before heading to TAT and into the Ruth Gorge. Paul Roderick “flew slow” on our way in so we could scope objectives, and we decided on the northeast face of Mt. Dickey

After establishing camp, we skied over to glass the face in not exactly confidence-inspiring conditions. The following morning we departed camp at 4:45 a.m. and made the short ski to Dickey. We cached the skis and reached the face proper around 7 a.m. To start we climbed two full pitches of steep sn’ice with solid climbing but little protection. This put us on the prominent snow ramp that slashes up and right across the face. We immediately started leading in blocks, simul-climbing when the terrain allowed for it. We encountered bottomless sugar snow, mixed climbing, and everything in between. I led the final block, which started at dusk and ended well past dark.

Our hope had been to exit the face before sunset and descend in the darkness, or worst case sit it out on the summit plateau until first light. However, when we encountered complex route-finding up the shoulder, well below the summit, we resigned ourselves to digging a snow cave. Without bivy gear, we kept the stove lit and none of us slept for fear of losing fingers or toes. At first light, after four hours of sitting and suffering, we continued upward by two dead-end routes, and finally reached the summit around 5 p.m.

We descended to 747 Pass, reaching that around 8 p.m. Here we consumed coffee, Perpetuem, and what little we had left to eat before our final eight-hour trudge to the tent. All told we were awake for about 48 hours.

– John Frieh 



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