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Women Conquer Cassin Ridge
Sue Nott and Karen McNeil make a historic ascent of Cassin Ridge
January 05, 2005

Karen & Sue at the summit
Photo by Karen McNeill
On June 2, 2004, Sue Nott and Karen McNeill were the first women to reach the summit of Denali after climbing the Cassin Ridge. The 9,000 foot route they had selected is the only route on Denali that climbs a direct line to the summit. The weather was less than perfect for most of their climb. In addition to being the first women to make the ascent, they were the only ascent of the spring climbing season.

The Cassin Ridge was first climbed 43 years ago by Italian Riccardo Cassin and a team of Italians. Since then it hadn’t been attempted until 2003 when a team of two women, one a girlfriend of Karen’s, made the attempt but were unsuccessful due to the weight of their packs.

They arrived in the Alaska Range in early May. From the Kahiltna, they started acclimatizing on the West Buttress for the summit attempt via the Cassin Ridge. "The weather was now dreadful, and as we found out later, would stay that way for much of the season," commented Sue. "With a small weather window forecasted, we packed light and set off from 14,000 feet in less than ideal conditions. Our progress was slowed from the beginning so we had to mini-bivy twice due to zero visibility."

Sue and Karen battled wind, snow and freezing temperatures on the final approach. Their time on the route was beginning to cause the park rangers some concern. Nevertheless, they continued to creep slowly towards the summit and bivy when the wind chilled them to tears.

After summiting and taking a few photos they were ready to descend. However, the wind picked up and remained sustained for the next 15 hours. They were now forced to remain overnight on the 20,300 ft summit of Denali. Luckily they were able to set up their tent for shelter. The morning brought clear skies and brutally cold temps. Concerned, the rangers did a helicopter fly by. In reassurance Sue gave them a ‘thumbs up’, even so, the pilot returned for a second time. "After all we had been gone ten days and slept on the summit, and no one believed him that we were OK," continued Sue.

On the final descent, both women wore all of their clothes and big grins as they waddled down the West Buttress in search of hot chocolate. According to Karen, "It was an intense trip and we spent three days without food. However, we came away successful with all pinkies and toes and a little skinnier for the experience!"

Karen took time out from her hectic traveling schedule to talk to MountainZone about their historic climb...

MZ: Why the Cassin Ridge? What made you attempt this route?

Karen: This is difficult to answer. For sure, part of the attraction was that we believed that it hadn't had an all-women's ascent. This may not be accurate. We're looking into it. I LOVE Alaska and could climb there every year. The Cassin is a long, challenging climb and initially, I thought it was too difficult for me.

MZ: You slept on the summit - what was that like? And how were the conditions up there?

Karen: We slept on the summit because it was a whiteout and the winds were really strong. The wind constantly battered our tent walls all night long. But having said that, the spot where we pitched our tent was almost perfect. In the morning it was clear and very cold. You couldn't stand still for more than a few seconds.

MZ: The weather wasn’t so great during the climb. Describe what the conditions were like?

Karen: Each evening the winds would pick up and force us into our tent. We didn't want to get frostbite. We also had a lot of whiteouts. This made navigation a challenge.

MZ: What was the toughest part of the climb and why?

Karen: Hmm that's difficult. I guess two things come to mind - I got my period early and didn't have any protection. I bled into my pants for three days. I felt very dirty. Sorry for the details. The other difficult part was being patient and "going with" the weather. You can't do anything about it so you have to work with it.

MZ: What plans do you have now? Any other firsts in the works?

Karen: This year I'd love to climb in Myanmar or China. I'd like to make first ascents. I live for the whole idea of exploration.

MZ: What other notable ascents (if any) have you made?

Karen: This is a difficult question. My idea of a notable ascent may vary from someone else’s. But a couple of years ago I organized a trip to Greenland. We made three first ascents. I also climbed a new route on the south face of Illimani in Bolivia.

In 2002 I made a fast ascent of the Colton/ Leech route on Mt Huntington in Alaska. We may have been the first women to climb it. Last year I climbed a new route on Mt Dickey in Alaska.

-- Mountainzone.com Staff