Kiliak-Korohusk Traverse (7450', 7030')
by Willy Hersman, Scree 9/90

"There's no way I'm going to be able to make such a long climb today. It was too hot last night and I didn't get any sleep.  None.  There's no way."

So said Tom Choate at 5:00 a.m. on August 15th.  But Ken Zafren and I knew better.  Tom loves Chugach scrambles, even if it means two nights in a row without sleep.  And that's what it would mean for the three of us before this traverse was over, not planned that way of course.  We sort of talked ourselves into such a long day.  It really had been an unusual evening for warmth, but I guess it goes along with this unusual summer for weather.

Our campsite, 300 feet above Eagle River near Dishwater Creek, would not really seem to make sense except that camping along the trail is illegal (for the second year in a row) for several miles in the vicinity.  A pesky black bear had reminded us of the reason as we sat at The Perch the day before, checking out the brushy approach.  Clouds came by to help with the temperature on Wednesday, as we hiked just west of Dishwater.  We spooked several legal rams from the waterless trough astride Kiliak Glacier's moraine when we popped out of the brush.  It was a pleasant hike up to the wide scree gully on Korohusk's south face.  We also found an old broken ski, resting there at least 7 years.  (It's former owner took a fatal fall during the 2nd winter ascent of Denali.)

We reached the summit of Korohusk Peak (7030') about 6-1/2 hours from camp and ate lunch.  There was only a small register left by Brian Okonek and John Mucha's ascent of the
same route in October 1975, the peak's second ascent.  Art Davidson had soloed Korohusk ten years before (see Scree, September 1965, p. 6).  The peak has been climbed many times since.  After leaving a new register and cairn, we continued along the ridge towards Mt. Kiliak (7450'), two miles away.  The ridge down to the col at 6450 took about an hour, being but a pleasant scramble.  About 50 yards from the summit is a perfect campsite with good water.

From the col we connected with the original ascent route of Kiliak, expecting that we might come back and bail out via Kiliak Glacier.  The narrow ridge took three hours and one belay. It was probably easier than most other times of the year.  All snow was gone and we had trusted this year's dryness enough to leave crampons and ice axes at home.  Kiliak's first ascent (Scree, November 1968, p. 3) by Vin and Grace Hoeman and Dave Johnston was still represented by its original jar and entry.  The mountain has had several ascents, of course, but only one other entry was written, Phil Fortner's party (Peters Creek-SE ridge) earlier this year.  One of the routes popular is from Icicle Creek valley, the Western Chugach's gift to masochists.

Like the Hoemans we did not wish to descend the rock we'd come up, and made the same mistake of going into Icicle's valley.  There was plenty of day left, the MCA meeting hadn't even started yet, but now our lack of sleep and unfamiliarity with the route did us in.  After rapping below most of the cliffs we had to feel our way down scree and boulders in the dark and got little comfort laying on rocks next to the creek.  At first light we finished the traverse by thrashing our way to Eagle River and hiking back to camp.  The weather and bear had been kind to us.