From Dan Hopkins & Simone to everyone

Hello everyone,

I really wanted to send out a quick hello to everyone to let you know how our post climb journey unfolded.

Simone and I are back in Ottawa. We arrived on Monday, July 7th, and have been on a hectic pace since. I am sure everyone can relate. To add to it all we have brought home our new puppy, a nine week old Akita, and we are getting her used to our lifestyle. During our travels through Alaska we agreed on naming her Denali. It was said on our journey that the mountain represented a very powerful and enthusiastic female energy spirit. A perfect fit for a big female mountain dog.

After leaving Brenton and Geri in Anchorage I picked up Simone and headed back to Talkeetna for the night. We stayed at the Fireweed then packed up all our camping gear and headed out on what we were calling ‘a mission from god!’, our journey to uncover more about Hudson Stuck and the first expedition to the top. Little did Simone know that I had a side task in trying to get her into Denali National Park to show her the mountain and pop the question. Stuck wrote that the nicest view was from the north-west and that meant a few backpacks, a camping permit, and prayers for nice weather. I asked the universe for two things before I left Ottawa. The first was for a clear day high on the mountain so we would have a shot at the top. The second was to have a clear day in the park so I could show her the mountain and ask her to marry me. Well we got both. We trucked into the park and found a nice hill to climb (1000’ single carry) and sat there for a good part of the day with the most fantastic view of Denali that we had ever witnessed. We talked about life and our love for one another. Everything around us was so green and alive. We could see the mountain in such good detail that I took her through Stuck’s journey to where the north route meets the south at Denali Pass. I showed her the Archdeacons Tower and how we cut across the summit ridge to the top. It was incredible. I popped the question and we both teared up in joy for 10 minutes, then for some reason we fell asleep for an hour in the grass. We woke up looking at each other like we had dreamt it all. On our way back to camp we watched two grizzlies wrestling for a good 15-20min’s. We saw caribou, wolves, and moose. It was like being in the jungle book.

We then proceeded north in an attempt to get as far up as Fort Yukon, where we believed Stuck was buried. I had a photo from the family and questions for everyone we met. When you get north on the dirt roads people are few and far between and they really want to know what you are up too. Very friendly and always up for a beverage or two. We finally got a guy from Quebec named ‘Frenchie’ (go figure) in Circle Hot Springs to fly us in. The Fort is not like it once was, but woth the trip out there. Upon our arrival families caught wind that I was a distant nephew and that I had just been on the mountain. We visited a few homes and heard wonderful stories of his passion to help. One family had and original copy of ‘Ascent of Denali’ and they got me to sign it. Apparently upon arriving he immediately set up a home for orphaned kids then went to work with a nurse on eliminating influenza in the village. We were taken to his gravesite by an elder and I buried a necklace that I had brought to the summit. I was going to leave my ice axe but it would not have lasted long. The elder spoke of a film crew that had been to the village recently in search of some information. They were from the BBC and were filming a documentary about mountaineering. Before we left we talked about Walter Harper and how the kids could benefit from knowing that he was of native descent, and the first to step on top of such a prized mountain. Not many people know this and we all felt the story needs to be told. If there is ever a time the kids are in need of someone to look up to it is now. We flew out that evening only because we had negotiated a round trip price. We said our goodbyes and promised we’d keep in touch.

On our way back south we visited people that were connected to Stuck and/or the heritage of the park lands. We visited the archives at the University of Alaska; we actually had gloves on reading the original hand written pages of his books. We met park rangers, guides, doctors, all sorts and each had their views. Each would say you have to meet this guy…and we would, even if we had to drive miles in the opposite direction.

The last person that we were told to visit used to guide for Todd at Alpine Ascents, Brian Mccullough. He’s worked with Discovery Channel and NGS on Denali projects. We met him back in Talkeetna over dinner with Tom and Hobb’s at the Fireweed. They just happened to be great friends, funny that. The King salmon were running when we were there so we borrowed some rods, got a 24hr permit, and hit the hot spot with a liter of wine. It was a good old fashioned shit show, great fun. We did not catch anything but everyone around us did so we got some nice pics. The wine was great.

We both flew out of there with big smiles and changed lives. I want to thank all of you for being such a big part of making our dreams come true. When life reaches out and grabs you like that it leaves an imprint in your soul forever. While cutting the grass yesterday I could not believe how wonderful it smelt.

One Love,

Dan Hopkins

From Dan Hopkins

Hello everyone,

I am safe and sound down off the mountain with all my fingers and toes!

The whole experience has been earth moving. As you know we reached the summit a few days ago. The last two miles of the ascent were exhausting and at times we almost had to turn around.

There were a few things that kept us going. One was the view of the 'Archdeacon's Tower' named after Stuck. As we passed it the weather settled enough for a final push to the top. It was incredible as we all thought we were done. Another was the flush of emotion that grounds you when faced with such a beautiful and challenging part of nature. All the love and positive energy that i have experienced in my life seemed to hit me in a wave. During the hardest part of the climb i honestly felt like i was out for a seaside walk on a sunny day. At one point i could not see a thing because my eyes were frozen with tears. Not good when you are balancing yourself on a summit ridge only a foot wide. I am so in love with life...thank you all for being a part of this...yah mon!

Simone and i will meet up tomorrow for a week of down time in Alaska. We will make a push up north to visit Fort Yukon and Stuck's gravesite. Then down south for a short glacial cruise off the coast.

Thank you to everyone who has reached inside themselves to join us in this journey to support life. When we truly give into ourselves and each other to help other people, amazing things can happen.

Many people have tried to make it to the top of Denali this year and have not made it for so many different reasons. Our team was one of the fortunate ones and i truly feel that it was not just because of the eight climbers on the mountain, but rather the hearts of many that sent us positive energy from a far.

I can't wait to see you all soon,

One Love,

daniel OXOX

From Simone

Just want to take this opportunity to say thanks to everyone that has supported me (and Dan) on this jorney... it was indeed a challenge for both of us but to know that we are loved, cared and admired by so many people has made an incredible differece to us. We are very touched by everyone's positive energy! The Alpine Ascents guides were saying that this was a dream trip considering the energy of the people, the weather, the conditions, the life experiences and the team work they all had... and we believe from the bottom of our hearts that a lot of that strength came from everyone here in Ottawa and all over the world that were cheering for Dan to be able to get to the top of Denali and stand on the same spot where his great uncle once stood nearly 100 years ago!

From the bottom of our hearts... thanks everyone!!

Love, peace, be safe and laugh lots!

From Simone to everyone!!

Great news everyone... Dan called last night at around 12:15am and is back at the Fireweed Station hotel in Talkeetna. They were going out to dinner and a beer last night and going Salmon fishing today!! I (Simone) am flying out to Alaska on Tuesday to meet Dan and we will be back together on July 8th.

From Alpine Ascents guide

Hi this is Brian Sheedy calling in from Alp 7, Team Jell-O and this is the last cybercast because we are all off the mountain now. We summitted and then took two days to get out and we are lucky to fly out just before the weather closed in this morning. We had a great big breakfast at the Road House Café and then dropped everyone off at the Fireweed Inn after cleaning up our gear. It was a great expedition and that is the conclusion of the 2008 Alpine Ascents Team 7 Denali Expedition. Thanks for checking in and following our forecast. Bye.

From Alpine Ascents guide

Hi this is Jonathan Spitzer with Alp 7. Yesterday we descended from 17,200 ft camp down to 14,200 ft and had are relaxing day here, recovered from our big summit day, ate a lot of healthy food we had some pizza, this morning we ate some big breakfast burritos with bacon. We are going to move all the way down to 7,800 ft picking up our caches at 11,000 ft and 7,800 ft. Tomorrow (Saturday), early morning we plan on crossing the lower Kahiltna and then heading to the air strip, base camp at 7,200 ft to fly back to Talkeetna. This will probably be our last dispatch for awhile, we can’t wait to have all our climbers contact their loved ones and families and friends. Jonathan signing out.

From Alpine Ascents guide

Hello this is Jonathan Spitzer with Team Jell-O, Alp 7. I am proud to say that 100% of our climbers reached the summit of Denali today. We left at around 9:00 am and hit the summit just before 5:00 this evening under very clear skies and light wind. We strolled on back down to camp and got back around 9:00pm here so 12 hours round trip. We had some hot soup, a good meal and a lot of water and hydration, we have got some tired climbers. Tomorrow we are going to head on down back towards 14 (…transmission break…) and make our way back down to the airstrip. A lot of the climbers would like to thank their loved ones, family and friends for their support and are very excited to show them pictures of them standing on the summit. This is Jonathan signing out.

From Alpine Ascents guide

Hi this is Brian Sheedy calling in for Alp 7, Team Jell-O and we are at the 17,200 ft camp. This will be our third night here we haven’t had good enough weather here to try for the summit. The weather forecast looks a little unsettled for the next couple of days but hopefully we will get a more favorable weather forecast here in a little bit. As soon as we get a good weather window we will try for the summit but for right now we are in holding mode. Everyone seems to be doing fairly well for the most part, a little sickness but hopefully that will clear up soon here. It is not as windy now as it is was in the morning. That’s it for now, people are playing a lot of cards and making the best of our down time as soon as the weather is good we are going to hopefully go for it.

Rest day. Getting ready to summit attempt tomorrow! Weather permitting!

From Alpine Ascents guide

This is Brian Sheedy here calling in from Alp 7, Team Jell-O. We moved up to the 17,200 camp today and people were pretty tired, we left at 9:00 am this morning, we got in a 5:30. It is snowing now, a little breezy, we cooked out in the open and everyone got soup and macaroni and cheese and a lot of hot drinks and then went to bed. Tomorrow is going to be a rest day. Everyone from Team Jell-O would like to wish their fathers a Happy Father’s Day and then all the fathers on Team Jell-O would just want to say hi to all of their kids. That’s all for now, tomorrow is a rest day and we are happy to be up here.

From Alpine Ascents guide

Hi this is Jonathan Spitzer with Team Jell-O we are taking a rest day. Here it is 2:30 in the afternoon and we just had a wonderful breakfast with pancakes with blueberries and bacon. Tomorrow we are planning on moving up to 17,200 ft camp, high camp. We are waiting to see how the weather is but we are hoping to get a shot at the summit in the next day or two. The Team sends wishes to friends, family, Silvia and Marcus. This is Jonathan signing out.

From Alpine Ascents guide

This is Brian Sheedy calling in from Alp 7, Team Jell-O, it is Friday and it is 11:00pm. We carried up to the West Buttress and carried loads as far as the base of Washburn’s Thumb so that was a very good push for people today. People were tired but did well and we are going to take a rest day tomorrow and hopefully the day after that move up to 17,200 ft camp. Things are going well, everyone is in good spirits, they are a little tired but everyone is doing pretty well. That’s it for now, signing off.

From Alpine Ascents guide

This is Brian Sheedy calling in from Alp 7, Team Jell-O. It is Thursday night at 9:30 pm and we are a the 14,000 ft camp. Today we headed down to just before Windy Corner to do a back carry, we picked up all the rest of fuel and food and carried it back to camp here. In the morning we sort of slept in a little bit and then we had a leisurely breakfast of hash browns and eggs with bacon. We headed down to the cache around 12 noon and we were back in camp around 2:30 pm. We then did a bunch of skills in the afternoon to learn about the fixed lines and tomorrow we are going to head up to the top of the fixed lines to put in a cache in up on the ridge. The group sends greetings to Simone, Family and Friends. That’s it for now, signing off.

From Alpine Ascents guide

This is Brian Sheedy calling in from Alp 7, Team Jell-O. We are at the 14,200 ft camp and we left the 11,000 ft camp this morning at 9:00 am and got here are 2:45, we made excellent time day. Everyone seems to be dong pretty well the team sends greetings to; Karen, Aly, Ryan, Kyle, the Lilly Folks, Andy, Ms Right, Kathyrn, Bolivia, Ellie and friends and family. Tomorrow we are going to do a back carry and pick up our food that is down near Windy Corner and it will be a much easier day tomorrow, signing off for now.

From Alpine Ascents guide

This is Alp VII Team Jell-O we are just around Windy Corner putting in a cache at 13,400 ft and it has been a pretty windy day but the sun warmed things up a little bit so we were actually to continue in the wind. All skin is covered so it is a good test for people to see how well they can cover up all their skin. People are a little tired but this is a good hike up for us today, help us acclimatize some, move this load here and we are going to drop back down and camp at 11,000 ft tonight. Hopefully if the weather permits we will be able to move to the 14,200 camp tomorrow but we will just have to see what the weather does. That is it for now talk to you later.

From Alpine Ascents guide

Hi this is Alpine Ascents Team VII also known Team Jell-O, today we did a back carry down to 10,000 ft in pretty nice weather, clear skies and low clouds below us. We are going to head back up to 11,000 ft camp in a little bit and tomorrow we plan on making a cache to 13,400 just around windy corner. Over all the team is great we are have a wonderful time eating healthy big meals every night and lots of hot drinks. We will give you update in a couple of days, thanks.

From Alpine Ascents guide

This is Brian Sheedy calling from Alpine Ascents Group 7, Team Jell-O. Last night we camped at 9,400 feet and we got into that camp at 10:45 in the morning so we really got to kick back and drink a lot and eat a lot and it was sunny and people got to rest so it was almost like a rest day. Today we got up at 6:00 and we were moving by 8:10 and we are at about 10,000 feet right now and we are moving up to the 11,000 foot camp and we are going to be camped there probably three nights. There is no good cell coverage near where the camp is but when we do a cache then we will try to make a call at that time and give an update. Everyone is doing really well, there were some GI problems going in earlier in the trip in terms of some minor stomach stuff but we seem to have gotten over that with a lot of hydration and some good rest at different times. People are feeling pretty strong now and we are moving pretty quickly and things are going good. That is it for now and we will send another message when we can

Hudson Stuck (Dan's great uncle) lead the first expedition to the top of Denali on June 7th, 1913!

Hi this is Alpine Ascents, group 7, Team Jell-O named so because we are so flexible. We haven’t called in for a little while so I will give an update. Our first day we weren’t able to fly in because of bad weather so we were very productive and spent the day the entire day working on skills, learning how to travel in rope teams and other camp skills as well as learning lots of knots. The next day we actually got some good weather and we flew in, we reviewed some more skills and then the Lower Kahiltna Glacier was in such good condition that we decided to move for an hour and forty-five minutes to break up the move to camp 1. The next day (yesterday) we moved to camp 1 and that was a good move, it went pretty fast for us and everyone felt really strong and felt that it was an easy move for them. Then today we carried a lot food and fuel up about 10,000 feet to just below Kahiltna Pass. We are finishing digging a big cache hole here, leaving some food and fuel and then we will be heading back down to camp. Tomorrow we will be moving up to around 9,400 feet. Everyone is doing really well, everyone says hello tot their loved ones and next time we are in range to communicate we will send an update and that is probably going to be in another two days. Signing out for now and we will send you updates as we can. Bye.

Move to Camp I. (This may be a single carry)

From Alpine Ascents guide

This is Brian Sheedy (Main Guide) calling from Alpine Ascents Denali group 7, Team Jell-O and that is because we are so flexible. We weren’t able to fly in yesterday but I just called Talkeetna Air Taxi and it looks like the weather is a little bit better still there is no guarantee. We have a flight at 8:30 and we are about to have breakfast and then we will be heading to the air strip and hopefully we will be on that flight. Everyone had a great day yesterday in terms of getting ready for the trip and we accomplished a lot. People are in good spirits and if we get in today things will be looking really good. Signing off for now and if you don’t hear from us for a few days it is only because we can’t get a signal until we get a little bit higher on the mountain to get the cybercast out. Have a great day, bye.

Itinerary

Carry loads to Camp I (7,900’). Snowshoes may be necessary between camps on the lower part of the mountain. Double carries are sometimes made between most camps to allow for proper acclimatization and lighter load carries. (Conditions may warrant us to single carry to Camp I).

From Alpine Ascents guide

Hi this is Brian Sheedy calling from Alpine Ascents 7 Denali Expedition and I am working with Jonathan Spitzer and we have got a great group of folks. We have been busy all day just getting ready to leave and unfortunately we were not able to leave at 3:45, our designated flight time due to weather and instead we spent several hours just working on basic skills and getting ready to the mountain. Everyone is in good spirits despite the bad weather, tomorrow we are going to come back at 8:00 am and hopefully be able to fly in tomorrow. The weather looks a little bit iffy tomorrow as well so we are just going to be on hold. Our team name is going to be Team Jell-O and that is because everyone in this group is pretty flexible and willing to sort of switch gears and change plans. They have a great attitude and everyone understands that it is all part of the experience and hopefully we will be able to fly in soon. Signing off - bye

Dan has arrived at the Fireweed Station in Talkeetna. Met the team and the guides. Exhausted and jet lagged. Already feeling the Mountain energy...

Dan, the Climb for Life team and myself were very touched by everyone's love and support at yesterday's event at the Royal OAK. He was excited to start his adventure!

His flight is scheduled to arrive in Anchorage at 2:30 AM (Ottawa time). lets keep our fingers crossed for no luggage to be delayed!

Incredible turn out, great positive energy!! a success! thanks everyone for the support, love and contribution to Climb for Life's cause, the children in need and for the good wishes to Dan on his adventure!

The Climb for Life team thanks everyone for the incredible support to our cause!