Future Stuff (The Plan)
After researching the various possible mountains to conquer, I did the following.
First, I compiled a list of possible mountains which I would like to hike and removed from the list those that weren't significant in terms of a notable accomplishment (Mount Fuji, Half Dome, etc.). Ultimately that just left Mount Rainier (in Washington State) and Mount McKinley (in Alaska), with McKinley being the truly notable accomplishment.
The trip up McKinley takes upwards of 22 days and is best done as part of a guided expedition. However, the one company that I found that does such guided expeditions (RMI Guides) does not allow people who lack serious glacier mountaineering experience to participate. So where do you get glacier experience?
That's where Mount Rainier comes in. RMI Guides offers Winter-time ascents of Mount Rainier, which supposedly amounts to a decent training exercise for a Summer-time McKinley expedition.
The window for hiking Rainier in the Winter is March and April while the window for hiking McKinley is just June.
So, between now and March/April 2008 I'll do some rigorous training and maybe hike Half Dome, Mauna Loa (again) or Mount Whitney. Then, come Winter, do Mount Rainier followed by Mount McKinley three months later. I wonder if I can get that much vacation time? Hmm.
The RMI Guides web site contains a wealth of useful information for preparing. Their page on conditioning for Mount McKinley makes for a particularly good (if not daunting) read. The brief summary goes something like this:
- Be able to carry a 60-pound pack for five to eight hours a day for several successive days.
- Be able to recover from a difficult day of climbing within an eight- to twelve-hour period.
- Be able to perform as an asset on a summit day of fourteen hours (on slopes up to 40 degrees).
While waiting a year isn't exactly my first choice, at least the acquisition of some $1500 worth of additional gear will be somewhat less paniful.
Now I just need to find someone who wants to go with me....