SL native climbing to new heights

Mon, Mar 3, 2008    to del.icio.us

Matt Walsh remembers hunkering down inside his childhood home after trudging through the snow to complete a paper route in Spring Lake.

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His reaction to snow since then has changed dramatically. Now when a big storm hits, he thinks, "I've got to get out there."

Walsh, who moved to the Denver area in 2001, has climbed 56 of Colorado's highest 58 peaks. But now his sights are set even higher.

In June, the 37-year-old school assistant principal will attempt to climb Mount McKinley, the highest peak in North America at more than 20,000 feet above sea level.

"I love climbing," he said. "There's a lot of suffering involved, but you really feel like you accomplished something. And there's something about mountain views — every second the mountain can look different."

Walsh and two friends have engaged in a vast array of training exercises in preparation for the almost 13,000-foot assent. They've been building igloos, lifting weights, running — and, of course, climbing most weekends.

Walsh also plans to peak two more Colorado mountains taller than 14,000 feet before June.

The best training, however, comes out of unexpected circumstances, he said.

During his trip up Mount Rainier in Washington in June 2005, Walsh said he fell down a 30-foot glacier crevasse and had to be rescued by his teammates.

"Any accident you walk away from is a good learning experience," he said.

The group has scheduled four weeks for the trip up Mount McKinley (also known as Denali), starting with a flight to Anchorage, Alaska, on June 2. On June 4, they'll board a single-engine plane for a ride to base camp, which sits on a glacier at 7,200 feet.

From there the team will begin the 16-mile trek to the summit loaded down with 70-pound packs and 50-pound sleds filled with food and supplies.

Walsh hopes to allow two days to make it between each camp — which sit at heights of 9,000, 11,000, 14,000 and 17,000 feet. The extra time will help the group grow accustomed to the altitude — although they have the advantage of living in Denver, which is 8,500 feet above sea level.

"We have a lot of benefit living at high altitude," Walsh said.

Walsh said two of the hardest parts of the journey are during the hike between the highest two camps. They will have to climb the West Buttress, which is on a 55-degree angle and could be shear ice, and then they'll traverse an exposed ridge with 1,000-foot drops on either side, Walsh said.

Once Walsh and his team reach 17,000 feet, the group will watch the sky, waiting for a gap in the typically harsh weather before starting for the summit.

He said the final leg of the journey from 17,000 to 20,000 feet and back will take about 12 hours.

"The biggest challenge of Denali is the weather," Walsh said. "We want to get to 17,000 feet with eight days of food."

Needless to say, his wife, Erin, and parents, who retired to Florida, will be on edge during the three weeks Walsh will likely be out of cell phone range.

"I will worry about him, but yet I know that he's very careful," said his mother, Joan. "He's training as hard as he can, and I believe that he'll make it."

Joan has climbed a few Colorado mountains with her son — but Matt's father, Mike, takes the easy way up.

"I'll tell you, the drive up there is bad enough," Mike said.

Walsh said mountain climbing will take a back seat after June, partially because he will start work as the principal of Evergreen High School beginning in July.

One of his fellow climbers will be an assistant principal under Walsh.

"I joke that he's going to have to call me Mr. Walsh on the trip," Walsh said of his teammate.

On the Net:

http://www.denaliin2008.info/