Denali Update: Base Camp Taxi and Sock System

View of Denali with Base Camp in foreground.
Image courtesy of TAT. 

Up to this point I would have said that Dad and I were 90% positive that we were going to Alaska to attempt Denali this June. Now we're about 95%. We filed for our permits through the Park service and reserved our flight into Base Camp through Talkeetna Air Taxi (TAT). The final committing step will be buying our plane tickets to Anchorage. We're waiting to hear whether are permit application was accepted or not, so during that time we'll be shopping air fare.

 The sock system we plan to use on Denali will consist of a liner sock, a vapor barrier liner sock (VBL), and then a thicker wool hiking sock. The idea behind the system is that the water proof VBL will cause your foot to saturate the air around it with moisture and therefore no longer be able to sweat, decreasing the heat loss out of the feet. It will also keep the outer sock and boot liner cleaner and dryer. I tried out the system while skiing at Big Mountain a couple of weeks ago.

I put it to the test while running around the slackcountry that morning. I don't really have a good grasp of how it did, since I opted to pull them off at lunch and go to a one-sock "system" for the rest of the day. The three layers felt kind of weird while skiing, but didn't hinder performance at all. What we will need to do to improve the set-up will be longer/higher liner socks. The tab to cinch down the VBL rubbed the bare skin of my leg uncomfortably since my liners didn't quite reach over the top of them. I just bought a new liner yesterday so I'll give the system another try while ski touring this coming weekend.