28th 1967 Denali history was made #OnThisDay
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#OnThisDay 51 years ago, Denali #mountaineering history was made.
On Feb. 28, 1967, Art Davidson, Ray Genet, and Dave Johnston became the first people to summit Denali in winter. The expedition also included Gregg Blomberg, Farine Batkin, John Edwards, Shiro Nihimae and George Von Wichman.
The first winter ascent garnered national media attention and almost turned deadly during the descent as the climbers were airlifted from the mountain. The Mount McKinley National Park Superintendent’s Reports provided some of the harrowing details:
“It has been reported that 3 of the Mt. McK climbers reached the summit of the south peak on 2/28. They had been pinned down at 17,200 foot level by winds reaching 150 mph and temperatures about 60 below zero . . . The rescue operations began when a distress signal stamed in the snow at the 8,200 foot level on the Kahiltna Glacier was sighted from the air. Five days later, all seven members of the climbing group had been air evacuated from the mountain. Three were hospitalized with frostbite. The climbers stated they recorded temperatures of -72 below zero and encountered winds of over 200 miles an hour.”
The Alaska Sports Hall of Fame recognized the expedition with the following: “By conquering the elements in the face of extreme danger and hardship, the team etched its achievement in the minds of Alaskans forever.”
Photo courtesy of Wayne Merry
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