Alaska - Mount Russell

Most climbers who travel to Alaska do so to climb one of the big peaks; Denali, Hunter or Foraker. But there are countless numbers of lesser peaks dominated by the giants of the Alaska Range that are highly worthwhile climbs in their own right. Many of these are incredibly spectacular and beautiful and probably none are more so than Mt. Russell.

Situated to the west of the main peaks this peak has been overlooked for years and has less than ten ascents to date. There is no reason for this lack of interest other than no one really knows about it. The first ascent was in 1972 and since then the total number of ascents is certainly less than a dozen and only three routes lead to it’s summit. The peak is a spectacular pyramid of snow and ice and we our chosen line follows the North Ridge. The elevation of 11,670 feet means little problem with acclimatization to extreme elevations leaving the climber to simply enjoy a fantastic ascent away from the crowds of Denali, finding the range untouched and unvisited by other parties.

Itinerary
Alaskan mountains are big and subject to the extremes of changeable weather. So we need to be flexible and prepared to adapt plans accordingly. So do not consider this following schedule as set in stone! We will set up a basecamp after flying to the Yentna Glacier via ski plane . Camp will be at about 8,000 and a few yards from where the plane drops us so we can bring in a few luxuries to make basecamp life comfortable and pleasant. The first day will be spent honing glacier travel skills and acclimatizing to the elevation. Once ready we will climb to a high camp at about 10,000 feet via ski or snowshoe. From camp we will climb with light daypacks to the top and return to our high camp the same day. Above camp the route follows 45-50 degree snow and ice slopes with a few steeper ice bulges and working around occasional corniced sections. The biggest technical problem is often crossing the large bergschrund on the east side of the ridgeline. Although the route is safe by Alaskan standards we need to have reasonable snow conditions since large quantities of fresh snow will mean significant avalanche danger and we will have no intention of putting ourselves in harms way from these.

Notes
The best map is Bradford Washburn’s “Mt. McKinley” 1:50,000 scale.
The best guide is Alaska Climbing by Joe Puryear and published by Supertopo