Half Way Mark on the 2026 Season!

June 8, 2026

We’re officially past the halfway point!

With our Team 3 back in Talkeetna, folks are headed home now, and looking back on the once-in-a-lifetime experience that is any climb on the High One. Only three teams to go before the season’s done!

Team 4, led by Max Bond, is resting at 14K Camp and waiting for their chance at 17K Camp. They’ve cached and prepped, so they’re ready to go at a moment’s notice.

Team 5, led by Alex Lombardo, is headed to Ski Hill Camp. The team seems strong, and we have high hopes for their journey on the mountain!

After arriving in Talkeetna yesterday, Team 6, our least team of the season, led by Peter Dale, is ready to roll as soon as the weather permits. They’re waiting for the chance to fly on, and we hope to see them on the glacier this afternoon.

We look forward to posting more progress in the coming days, so keep an eye on the blog!

Team 5 dragging their gear through the lobby of the Anchorage Embassy Suits Hotel.

Team 5 headed to their rooms at the Anchorage Embassy Suits Hotel with their gear for the next several weeks! (James Nash)

Team Three on Top!

June 6, 2026

We’re back again today with exciting news!

IMG Denali Team 3, led by Timm Phillips, summited last night and is now on their way back down to 14K Camp. They’ll meet Team 4 there, where they’re taking a rest day, and be able to celebrate their achievement in style!

Team 2 is back down at the airstrip and waiting for their chance to fly off the mountain, so they’ll be back to Talkeetna, then Anchorage, and then home to their families very soon!

Team 5, led by Alex Lombardo, made it up to Talkeetna last night. They’re doing a final pack of their gear, and then they’ll be ready to move as soon as there’s a flight available to take them up onto the glacier.

Team 6, led by Peter Dale, is meeting up in Anchorage today! They’ll head to Talkeetna tomorrow, and then set their sights on the Kahiltna Glacier.

A huge congratulations to our summiting teams so far, and we look forward to reporting back on more progress in the coming weeks!

The view from the plane flying on to the Kahiltna Glacier in 2023 (Tomah Whitney)

Team 2 to the Summit!

June 5, 2026

We’re starting off with a bang today, folks!

A big congratulations to Team 2, who summited the High One last night! They’re on their way down to 14K Camp now, and will be returning to Base Camp tomorrow.

Team 3 is also summiting today! They’re making good progress and we expect to hear good news from them soon.

Team 4 is getting higher and higher on the mountain, and spending today caching at 16,500 feet. The plan is to rest tomorrow, and climb to 17K Camp the following day.

We’re also excited to welcome Team 5 to Alaska! Our guides flew out of Sea-Tac Airport this morning, and arrived in Anchorage in good time. Today the team is getting to know each other and grabbing any last items they need to purchase before heading to Talkeetna tomorrow. It should be a busy day and a fun evening before tomorrow’s drive.

An IMG Denali team arrives on the summit

Three Teams on the Mountain

June 3, 2026

One team down, five to go! With only three teams on the mountain currently, we’re looking forward to a busy couple days before Team 5 arrives in Alaska.

Team 2 is resting at 17K Camp today, with their sights set on the summit tomorrow! We’re sending them good luck and thoughts of good weather, and can’t wait to report back.

Team 3 is resting at 14K Camp today, and moving to 17K tomorrow. The same weather window that Team 2 is hoping to hit to the summit will open up a path to High Camp for Team 3.

Team 4 has joined the 14K Camp crew, and is taking a day to recover before their last caching climb. Rest days with other IMG teams are always a fun opportunity to see old friends, meet new people, and build some high alpine connections between the hard work of climbing. It sounds like this rest day has been a good one!

Check back in tomorrow for more news from the top!

Yellow tents scattered across snow with Mt. Foraker in the background

14 Camp looking gorgeous in the 2025 season! (Phunuru Sherpa)

First Team Back to Sea Level

June 2, 2026

Welcome back for another peek into progress with IMG Denali!

Team 1 is officially back in Talkeetna, and headed for Anchorage. They’re working on getting flights booked and should be back with friends and family very soon.

We’ve got our next summit attempt lined up, with Team 2 progressing to 17K today. They’ll be ready to go starting tomorrow for the first opening to the top!

Team 3 is carrying to 16,500 feet, right below Washburn’s Thumb. They’re caching today, and by tomorrow they’re going to be ready to climb to 17K Camp in Team 2’s footsteps.

Team 4 is moving to 14K Camp today, and will likely rest tomorrow. From there, they’ll start making their last caching trip to 16,500, and then start thinking about the summit!

A team walks along a ridge up to the Summit of Denali

A team walks along the ridge descending from the summit in 2024 (Peter Dale)

IMG Denali Updates – Team 1 Summits

June 1, 2026

IMG Denali 2024 Teams Arriving to the Summit (Riley Gilson)

Here’s the updates from the climbing teams on the mountain:

IMG Denali Team 1 reached the summit over the weekend and is back at 14K Camp. The team is eating breakfast and will be starting their descent to Kahiltna Base this morning. We’re excited to greet this team back in town!

IMG Denali Team 2 and 3 rested yesterday at 14K Camp. Today the two teams are going to make a carry and cache gear around 16,500′! After their carry, these two teams will likely rest and then look towards a move to 17K Camp in the next couple of days.

IMG Denali Team 4 rested at 11K yesterday and is making a carry around Windy Corner to 13,500′ today. This team will descend back to 11K today and think about moving up to 14K in the next couple of days.

IMG Denali Teams 5 & 6 are putting the final prep on their gear back at IMG HQ and will fly to Anchorage at the end of the week!

IMG Denali Teams Move Up

May 29, 2026

IMGD climbers breaking above Windy Corner (Audrey Simonson)

IMG Denali teams were on the move yesterday!

IMG Denali Team 1 led by Forrest Baldwin made a safe and successful move to 17K camp. Today, the team is resting and will be making their move towards a summit attempt tomorrow. All climbers and guides from Team 1 at 17K camp are safe and enjoying breakfast this morning.

IMG Denali Team 2 led by Brad Swanson made a surprising move late in the day to 14K camp. The skies cleared and the team went for it. All climbers from Team 2 made it to 14K camp in good style. Today, the team will rest and will be looking to back-carry and pick up their 13,500′ cache tomorrow.

IMGD Team 3 led by Timm Phillips cached at 13,500′ yesterday. As the weather starts to clear, this team has their sights set on moving to 14K camp.

IMGD Team 4 led by Max Bond had a successful cache at 10,000′ yesterday. After enjoying an egg breakfast, the team is on the move to 11K Camp and will join Team 3 there.

All is well from the High One!

Ascent to 17K Camp

May 28, 2026

IMG Denali is making progress on the mountain, and things are looking good!

Team 1 is ascending to 17K Camp today, our highest point to date this season! With a strong team and a good weather window in the forecast, things are looking good for a summit soon.

Team 2 is taking another rest day and planning to move to 14K Camp tomorrow, and Team 3 is also preparing for a move to 14K Camp by caching at 13,500 today. Once they’re staged at 14K, it will just be a matter of waiting for the right weather to make an attempt on the summit!

After a rest day yesterday at Ski Hill Camp, Team 4 is caching at 10K today and planning to move to 11K tomorrow.

Check back tomorrow for another update from the High One!

A view of the Alaska Range from the plane

A view of the Alaska range (Brad Swanson)

Taking Care of Business on the High One

May 27, 2026

Today is a maintenance day on the mountain!

Team 1 is resting at 14K Camp, and getting themselves in the best possible position to take advantage of a break in the weather to reach 17K Camp. The hope is that the weather will open up over the next four days, so we’re keeping hope high that we’ll see a path to 17K and then the summit!

Team 2 is caching at 13,500 feet today, which will prepare them to hopefully make the big move to 14K Camp tomorrow. Things are looking promising for that move and a following climb to 17K Camp over the weekend, if weather predictions prove true.

Team 3 is looking strong and in the process of back carrying from 10K Camp. Once they have their full gear loads back up to 11K Camp, they will begin the process of cashing to 13,500.

Team 4 is resting today at Ski Hill Camp. After a long day yesterday attempting to get onto the mountain, they’re taking a day to rest and prepare to take on the next step up the High One.

Things are looking promising on the mountain over the next few days, and IMG Denali is doing the work now to be prepared to take advantage of whatever the mountain throws our way!

The view of Mt. Foraker from 14KCamp

The view of 11K Camp in the 2025 season.

Team 4 to the Mountain!

May 26, 2026

It’s been an eventful day for IMG Denali, and things are looking promising for the weekend!

After caching on the West Buttress yesterday, Team 1 are taking a rest day at 14K Camp before going for 17K Camp tomorrow. 17K Camp is the last stop before the summit, so we’re crossing our fingers for a good weather window and news of a summit soon!

Team 2 is at 11K Camp resting, with their sights set on a move to 14K tomorrow. After a such a long wait to get onto the mountain in Talkeetna, they’ve been rewarded with a relatively consistent climbing schedule.

Team 3 is also resting at 11K Camp today after back carrying from 10K yesterday. They’re planning to cash at 13,500 feet tomorrow, and will hope to stay one day behind Team 2 for the remainder of the expedition. Climbing with the support and company of another team always helps set a positive tone on the mountain!

After several false starts this morning with unreliable visibility, Team 4 have finally landed on the Kahiltna Glacier! They’re headed to Ski Hill Camp tonight, and are looking forward to their turn on the High One. Good luck to all our IMGD teams!

Team 4 take a team photo while they wait for their flight from Talkeetna (Max Bond)

The team get ready to fly! (Tracy Lenard)

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