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Utah
High point
blog

Trip details, planning, and discussion for the USAF 50 Summits Challenge climb of King's Peak.

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Peak achieved!

7/24/2017

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The 2017 Kings Peak expedition was a success!  At 1000 hrs on 24 July, we achieved the 13,534' summit.  Special thanks to our charity supporters, who, in the name of this trip, donated to the That Others May Live Foundation (http://www.thatothersmaylive.org/), the Special Operations Warrior Foundation (http://specialops.org/), or any other of the many veterans charities.  Here's a timeline of the trip:

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​Friday, 21 July
0730: Departed Hill AFB
1030: Arrived at Henry's Fork Trailhead, in time for a torrential hail and lightning storm!  People coming down the mountain were soaked.
1200: Departed up the trail, ~7.5 miles to Dollar lake.  Ongoing rain showers ensured the trail was muddy, and the river was high.
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Henry's Fork Trailhead
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Tim, Kelly, and Otter. Staying dry-ish!
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Our first view of Kings Peak! In the far background, through the vertigo-inducing Anderson Pass.
​1700: Arrived at Dollar Lake base camp.  I wouldn't say "crowded," which is often used to describe this popular camping area, but I would definitely call it "popular!"  The sun peeked through the clouds at the end of the day, treating us to a spectacular, high Uinta sunset.
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Dollar Lake
​Saturday, 22 July
0300: Alarm clock rings for an alpine start!
0415: After a breakfast of oatmeal and fruit, we departed base camp for Kings Peak via Gunsight Pass.  Clear, starry, moon-less skies were our reward for getting up so early.
0630: Gained Gunsight Pass.  Great views into the upper Uinta River basin on the far side!  We headed westward on the Gunsight Cutoff "trail" toward Anderson Pass, on the southern flank of the unnamed (?) 13,103-foot mountain between the passes.  Unfortunately, a member of the group had come to experience intolerable altitude symptoms.  Turning back is a hard choice, but in this case it was the correct action.  Kudos for making the right call, before getting into a bad spot.  We kept in radio communication, and the rest of the team continued on.
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Malcolm, Kelly, and Otter at Gunsight Pass
​0800: More fantastic views from Anderson Pass, looking down upon Henry's Fork Lake, Dollar Lake, and the upper valley  The final push up the north ridge of Kings Peak was tough!  It's steep, rocky, poorly marked, and punctuated by false summits.  Yet we were overwhelmed by amazing views of Mt. Wilson and the western Uintas in the distance.  A few marmots chirped at us as we passed.
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Traversing the Gunsight Cutoff trail toward the backside of Anderson Pass. Kings Peak just out of sight to the right.
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The broad, west face of Kings Peak! "Utah's Highest Ski Slope"
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Dashes mark our trail up the north ridge.
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"We're climbing what?! This hike looks ruff!"
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Henry's Fork, seen from the precipitous top of Anderson Pass
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On the north ridge
​1000: Summit achieved!  And, a well-deserved rest.  Our early start ensured that the trail was uncrowded.  We shared the summit with one other party, though we passed several others on the way down.  Despite a few patches of snow here and there, the crampons and axes that we were advised to carry were utterly unnecessary.  Some hikers wore sneakers, and Otter met many doggy friends along the way.  On the way down, we passed some fast-movers who left the parking lot trailhead at 0530 that morning!
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Due to an unfortunate situation, we ended up without any of our big flags for the summit pic... but we did have a water-logged printout of the Air Force Flag, and a patch as a back-up. We better go back and do it again properly!!
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1545: The scree and rough terrain ensured the descent was no easy stroll, but everyone appreciated descending into thicker oxygen, and we made it back to base camp by mid-afternoon.  The forecast rain never materialized-- we totally lucked out with the weather!  Tim was feeling much better after his descent and quality rest at camp.  We enjoyed a hearty dinner of frying-pan pepperoni pizzas made from scratch, and collapsed into our sleeping bags before sunset.

​Sunday, 23 July

After a leisurely sleep-in, and breakfast of hash browns and eggs, we cleaned up camp and headed back down the Fork.  We spotted a large herd of mountain goats, and a moose, on the way down.  Some light rainshowers reaffirmed our fantastic luck with the weather yesterday.  After a round trip of 28 miles, the car was a welcome sight, by mid-afternoon.  Thunder had been following us all the way down, and we were glad to beat the worst of it!  The rain didn't diminish the great experience in the slightest.  Hard to believe how fast this trip had gone!

​-Malcolm
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Final preparations

7/20/2017

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14 hours until we're on the road, and we're down to the final preparations for the climb!  Food shopping, cooking prep, gear organizing, checking the weather "one more time," etc...

NOAA Saturday forecast: "A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after noon. 
Mostly sunny, with a high near 61. East southeast wind 6 to 11 mph becoming 
north northwest in the afternoon."

The latest trail reports say that the upper mountain is still snowy.  Ice axe and crampons are mandatory.  Our team is ready for the challenge... here we go!

-Malcolm

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Planning update

7/8/2017

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Good morning, climbers!  The Kings Peak climb is just around the corner: July 21-23, 2017.  We had a great planning meeting last night, and shared some helpful ideas.  There's still plenty of time to join the expedition if you are reading this for the first time.  Use the contact button on this website, or email usaf50summits-utah #at# googlegroups.com.  Looking forward to having you!
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Dates confirmed

5/29/2017

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The votes are in ... The climb is scheduled for July 21-23, 2017.  The following weekend will be the weather backup date.

Expect an opportunity for an official reconnaissance trip to the Henry's Fork trail head in mid-June.  All are welcome, and feel free to suggest a date for that!

-Malcolm
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2017 expedition update

5/18/2017

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Hi everybody-

The 2017 attempt is a "go!"  It's still pretty wintery in the high Uintas--  The date is tentatively set for mid-to-late July.  Stand by for a final confirmation, soon.  We've set up a Google group, "usaf50summits-utah" and an additional dedicated webpage resource for weather, trail info, and other links.

Check it out, at: https://sites.google.com/view/usaf50summits-utah/home

Let me just say: I'm super excited to be a part of this climb!  After years of following the USAF 7 & 50 projects move forward, it's great to be involved once again.  I feel so lucky, to have a chance to use an activity I love, to raise support for causes I believe in.

We're looking for additional climbers, and help spreading the word locally.  If you're just discovering this project, fill out the "UTAH SIGN UP" form on this website, or email usaf50summits-utah "at" googlegroups.com.  Even if you're just discovering this at the last minute-- don't be shy, come join us and have a great time!

​-Malcolm
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UT Test Post

1/20/2014

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    Author

    Updates from the organizers of the climb.
    Rob Marshall - Founder of the USAF 50 Summits and USAF 7 Summits projects.
    Malcolm Schongalla - Organizer of the 2017 Kings Peak Expedition.

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