Alaska's Wrangell-St. Elias National Park is America's largest and most rugged parkland, and it contains one of the world's least explored preserves of mountain terrain. Bordering Canada's Yukon, this vast area is filled with immense glaciers and ice fields, hundreds of unclimbed mountains, and North America's second and fourth highest summits, Mt. Logan and Mt. St. Elias.

Each year AAI leads programs in the Wrangell-St. Elias Range that combine technical and leadership training with an expeditionary experience and a very unusual First Ascents Program. The skills training makes the program suitable for backpackers with no technical experience and for mountaineers who want to review and advance their glacier climbing skills. If you have never been on a true expedition before, this is an excellent choice for your first one. Join us if you would like the experience of climbing in one of the world's most pristine wildernesses and of attempting summits never before climbed — a rare opportunity in modern climbing.

An unnamed peak explored during the St. Elias Expedition in June 2008. Ben Traxler.

The Matanuska Glacier near Palmer, Alaska, as seen from camp. This area is offers great accessibility and friendly ice cliffs. Ben Traxler.

After an orientation in Anchorage, we drive east to the Matanuska Glacier where we spend two days working on snow and ice climbing skills, glacier travel technique, and individual and team crevasse rescue skills. We spend these two days helping you develop or advance your technical skills for moderate and steeper terrain, understand and be able to interpret the hazards that glaciers pose, and prepare for skillful and successful glacier travel and scents in the Wrangell-St.Elias.

The curriculum is similar to that of the 12 Day Alpine Mountaineering Course. However, in place of the rock climbing component that is included in the Cascades, the St. Elias course devotes additional time to the development of skills for route finding, evaluation of alpine terrain, and leadership on moderate and intermediate glaciated routes. Later in the program, while enjoying the excitement of making first ascents, participants continue to advance their climbing and protective systems skills and, at the same time, course instructors introduce them to specific procedures for rope team leadership.

The program takes on its true expeditionary quality after we drive to the end of the range's paved-road-access and meet our pilot for the flight into the heart of the range. We may fly directly onto the ice or make an intermediate stop for the night, but in either case we enjoy expansive views of the St. Elias Range as we pass over scores of beautiful alpine peaks on our way to the 1000-square-mile Bagley Icefield. Our plan is to land on the Bagley or one of the hundreds of glaciers in the area in a location from which we can make a series of climbs. From our base camp we make a series of first ascents on the beautiful, glaciated peaks that rise above the ice plateau. Depending on the peaks we choose, the routes may also involve the establishment of a high camp to put us in position for a summit bid.

Exploring untouched terrain in the vastness of the Saint
Elias Range. Angela Hawse

As a participant in this program you should come away with a refined alpine technique for large scale glacier terrain and for moderately steep alpine ascents. You will also have significant expeditionary experience that will be an excellent foundation for climbs such as McKinley and Aconcagua as well as ability in terrain analysis, hazard evaluation, and route finding. By the end of your expedition you will probably also find that equal to the importance of all those things will be the beauty, excitement, and personal reward of climbing to summits where no one has ever gone.

Inclusions: Ski plane flights to and from the glacier; guide fees and instruction; meals while in the mountains; tentage and group cooking equipment; group climbing equipment; mechanical ascenders; custom mountain sleds.

Exclusions: Airfare to and from Anchorage; food and lodging except on the glacier; rescue and evacuation costs; national park fees; baggage, accident, rescue, and trip cancellation insurances; gratuities to guides; personal equipment.

"The guides were excellent throughout the course. I felt challenged and safe on the mountain, relaxed and entertained at camp." Christophe Coudray, United Kingdom

"Both guides were very keen to see us learn and gain independence. They were always available for questions and to give a lesson on a different aspect of climbing." Eric Gish, Delray Beach, FL

The feeling of reaching an unclimbed summit is one that few are able to experience
in modern climbing. Paul Valulis

1. AAI's Guide Ben Traxler's Trip Report from our 2008 Expedition.