Mount McKinley, Ski Descent of the Wickersham Wall. Two French skiers, Jean-Noel Urban and Nicolas Bonhomme, made a ski descent down the Wickersham Wall of Mount McKinley (see AAJ, 1995, for first ski descent). They approached the Peters Glacier from the Kahiltna Glacier, hauling their gear in an eight-day walk. They then climbed the 4300-meter face via the Canadian (1963) Route in 13 days, seven of them tent-bound by severe snow storms (four days at Camp III and three days at Camp V). They experienced temperatures down to -35°. On July 2 they reached the top of the North Peak (5934 meters). They skied down to Camp V (5000 meters) in two hours. The next day they continued their descent of the wall. The snow conditions were variable but generally tricky and dangerous. Most of the face was 50°; the average inclination of the whole route was 45°.

Józef nyka, Editor, Taternik, Poland