Two Japanese Climbers Missing On Denali

Two Japanese climbers have went missing on Denali. Bear with me here, I am having to piece this one together from two different sources.

From ABC-of-Mountaineering:

Denali National Park and Preserve spokeswoman Maureen McLaughlin refused to name the missing climbers but said both are in their mid-20s, experienced climbers, and that one of them even spent time in the Alaska Range in 2006 and 2007. The two men, who were last seen on May 9 when preparing for their climb, were expected to return on Thursday, May 22.

Obviously, the climbers never returned. This article is pretty short, but gives us a synopsis of what has taken place. It also mentions that bad weather has plagued the SAR (Search and Rescue) efforts. The two men were known to be climbing near the Cassin Ridge.

Jumping over to the Alpinist Newswire today, we learn that three Japanese climbers have recently linked up two of Denali’s hardest routes. From May 11-May 18, climbers Katsutaka Yokoyama, Yusuke Sato, and Fumitaka Ichimura linked up the Isis Face, the Stutzman-Tackle and the Slovak Direct routes in one continuous 8 day push. This, in and of itself, is a pretty amazing feat. A little bit further into the article, we get this small snippet:

From The Alpinist Newswire:

The success was tempered by apparent tragedy, however, as two of their friends remain missing on Denali.

Further, in the same article, while speaking of the missing climbers:

They had planned to climb the Cassin after first traversing Kahiltna Peak, but for unknown reasons gave up the traverse and repositioned themselves on the Northeast Fork of the Kahiltna. They are believed to have begun climbing sometime around May 14 or 15, but while Yokoyama sighted tracks on the upper part of the Cassin, he was unsure if they had been made by his friends.

It is also noted that in recent days the NPS (National Park Service) had been able to do aerial searches of the region, but thus far, have still not found any signs of the missing climbers.  The missing climbers’ names have not been released at this time, pending their families arrival to the area.

I am not trying to jump out on a limb here, but if the climbers failed to return on May 22, and no signs of them have been found, up to this point–it’s just not looking very good.  On the upside, all five of the Japanese climbers are experienced Alpinists and members of a group of climbers known as the Giri-Giri Boys.

The Giri-Giri Boys have been climbing “in the shadows” a bit and knocking off some of the toughest problems in the world, in relation to mountaineering.  Last year they set up a few new routes in the Ruth Gorge, and recently topped that off with their success on Denali.  The new link-up on Denali covered 16,000 vertical feet.  For the Isis Face, it was the third ascent of this route, and likewise, with the Slovak Direct, they put up the fourth ascent.  For the combo route of the two, the Giri-Giri Boys are the only and the first ones in history to complete this very difficult climb.

Many times in Mountaineering we find that Success and Tragedy walk hand in hand.  Let’s keep our thoughts on the two missing climbers on Denali and pray for their family, friends, and associates.  I will update you when I learn more.