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IMG Denali Climbing Expedition Itinerary
| Day | Itinerary |
| Fly to Anchorage, group will meet after 2:00 p.m. in the Anchorage airport baggage terminal and will be transported to Talkeetna. Group will spend the night in Talkeetna. IMG will arrange the shuttle pickup and the group lodging in Talkeetna in advance to be paid by each member upon arrival. | |
| Day in Talkeetna. We will meet with the NPS for a briefing, go over each individual's personal equipment, familiarize ourselves with the group equipment and divide it. Second night in Talkeetna. | |
| Our scheduled "Expedition Departure Date." Bush pilot will fly us in to Base Camp on the SE Fork of the Kahiltna Glacier at 7,200 feet. A 45 minute flight. It is possible to move this day, or we may sit and wait until the cooler temperatures of evening. | |
| Load sleds and drag them several miles on the low-angle Kahiltna Glacier to Camp 1 at 8,000'. | |
| Continue dragging sleds and all equipment up "Ski Hill" to Camp 2 at 9,500'. Camp is just below Kahiltna Pass. | |
| As group energy permits, we will move up to Camp 3 at 11,000' or do a carry of gear. | |
| Likely time for first rest day. | |
| Carry extra gear to 13,500' up around "Windy Corner". Sleds go no higher than 14,000', and are light above 11,000' if used at all. Return to Camp 3. | |
| Move up to Camp 4 at 14,000'. This is the location of the manned ranger post with medical supplies. | |
| Drop down to 13,500' to pick up cache. Second night at 14,000'. | |
| Possible rest day, Third night at 14,000'. | |
| Carry one week supply of food and fuel to high camp at 17,200'. Return to 14,000' for fourth night. | |
| Fifth and final acclimatization day if needed at 14,000'. | |
| Group moves camp to high camp at 17,200'. | |
| Possible rest day at high camp or first summit option. | |
| Likely summit day. | |
| Descend to 11,000', Camp 3. | |
| Descend to Base with pickup by our bush pilot if we are lucky. | |
| Likely pickup by bush pilot. Return to Talkeetna with option of spending night in Talkeetna or return to Anchorage. |
This itinerary is approximate. Our rate of ascent will be dictated by the weather, the strength of the group, and our rate of acclimatization. All climbing decisions will be made by the guides, with the best interest of the group as a whole in mind. There will be a cache of food at Base Camp and we will carry 20 days of food with supplements to stretch it to 25 days if necessary. Allow an average of 21 total days for the entire trip, but be flexible enough to extend the trip another 4 or more days if necessary. A perfect weather expedition can take 15 days on the mountain; more normal is 22-25 days. Average time is perhaps 18 days.
The professionalism demonstrated by IMG's guides as well as the high standards that they hold their clients up to maximized our chances of reaching the summit...
