Lonnie Dupre l Blog

Lucania: Hard Lessons Learned, Home Bound in the St. Elias Range

Lucania: Hard Lessons Learned, Home Bound in the St. Elias Range

Despite being well-positioned within 4000 ft of the summit stocked with 14 days of food and fuel, having double and triple carried 9 km up and down on a ridge with a total of 8000 ft gain and loss, the team had to call it quits. It became impossible to stay warm at night after their sleeping system progressively iced up, leaving the team dangerously vulnerable to freezing. After a big meal, snow fort creation, clear skies and settled down winds, the biting cold still lingered

Lucania: The Wind Funnel

Lucania: The Wind Funnel

With a wind storm rendering the duo immobile for the last 30 hours, Pascale and Lonnie are feeling frazzled and a bit weary. At their current camp, they are pummeled with winds shifting and funneling from the NE up to 40 mph/64 kph. Last night, they called in to report possible plans to dig a snow cave, due to their vulnerable situation on the ridge. Luckily, the tried & true Hilleberg the Tentmaker hotel has been holding up well as their steadfast shelter at 12000ft/3657m. W

Lucania: New Routes, Deep Snow

Lucania: New Routes, Deep Snow

Through deep snow, the two spent the weekend moving all supplies & camp up to the top of the ridge at the base of the mountain. The super high winds from the days prior had made the cache of food and supplies that they had buried the previous day hardly visible. They passed their cache, having to return to retrieve it the next day. Because of the initial plan to climb Mt. Lucania, the duo was largely unfamiliar with the route up Steele. They unknowingly took the long way arou

Lucania: Rest + Recharge

Lucania: Rest + Recharge

Last night, the two called in to report high spirits and sunny skies, with a touch of gusting winds up to 20mph/32kph. A recipe for a rest day. Beginning week two of the journey, Lonnie and Pascale enjoyed a day to recuperate in their Hilleberg the Tentmaker 'home on the ridge'. Although settled at 12,200ft/3719 m, they carried all of their supplies ahead and are gearing up for a big weekend of climbing. Stay tuned for updates. Listen in to the latest audio message sent from

Lucania: Sights on Steele

Lucania: Sights on Steele

The team took to the ice-sculpted ridge yesterday morning, managing to ferry a cache up before the wind materialized. The southeast mass of overlapping ridges sprawling out of Mt. Steele is a constant up and down flow between elevation, making for a tough journey with unpredictable winds and heavy loads. Expecting lighter winds and clear weather into the weekend, Pascale and Lonnie will set sights for the summit of Steele, which rises meter by meter to an apex of 5073m/16644f

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