President Doti gearing up for McKinley climb

Hey, Everybody: Jim checking in here.

We’re in Talkeetna, Alaska. It’s a free day, so we’re just roaming around this bustling town with bunches of tourists who have been bused in from the cruise ships.  The AMS climbing team ahead of us couldn’t fly out to base camp because the weather has prevented any fly-outs.  That’s worrisome since we are scheduled to fly out tomorrow.  If we’re delayed, we’ll just have to wait it out here in Talkeetna with all the tourists.

Not much to do here but eat and drink.  The food, though, is really good.  I had a fresh halibut sandwich with sweet potato fries to die for last night.  Had pancakes this morning at the Roadhouse Inn that were made with a starter yeast that supposedly dates back to 1912.

Adam and I are rooming at the Roadhouse Inn. Our room is on the second floor of a main cabin that was built in 1915.  I guess the starter started somewhere else.  It’s pretty rustic, with a bathroom down the hall.  But I guess compared to what we’ll be dealing with the next three weeks, it’s like the Four Seasons. For those of you who remember the brothel in the HBO series
Deadwood
, that’s pretty much the Roadhouse Inn.  As a matter of fact, from what I have seen so far, Talkeetna is kind of reminiscent of
Deadwood
– without the bad guys and prostitutes.

Sorry for this boring blog post, but the real excitement doesn’t happen until we get up on the mountain.  Until then, I hope you all will stay interested in our daily meals.  That’s it for now.  Follow our progress on Adam’s blog or Adventure Zone.

— Climber Jim

Chapman President Jim Doti and his son, Adam, are preparing to scale 20,320-foot Mount McKinley, the highest peak in North America. The two previously have climbed four of the Seven Summits.