4 Days and 162 Degrees to go...

Ah, here in Topanga, California, it is a sweat inducing 81 degrees, where Niki and I (Jason), are doing the final gear packing.  On the summit of Denali at the moment, it is a bit chillier, about 162 degrees chillier than it is here- that's right, NEGATIVE 81 degrees.  No big deal.  We've got seven flocks worth of goose down feathers we're bringing with us.

Here's me out on our deck, testing my maximum cold weather regalia:

"Who am I wearing?"   Here you go:

• Feet
•  Smartwool liner socks
•  Smartwool expedition weight socks
•  Scarpa altitude boot liners
•  Scarpa Inverno double plastic boots
•  Outdoor Research Expedition Crocodile gaiters
•  40 Below K2 Superlight neoprene overboots
• Bottom
•  Ex Officio undies 
•  Patagonia Capilene long underwear
•  Outdoor Research Saturn Suit fleece bibs
•  REI expedition weight fleece long underwear
•  Patagonia Guide pants, softshell
•  Arcteryx Alpha SV hardshell bibs
•  Marmot 8000m down pants
• Top
•  Icebreaker wool t-shirt
•  Patagonia Capilene featherweight long sleeve t-shirt
•  Smartwool long sleeve zip top
•  Patagonia down sweater
•  REI softshell jacket
•  Marmot 8000m down parka
•  Arcteryx Alpha SV hardshell jacket (not wearing)
• Head
•  Smith Optics Spherical goggles
•  Turtle Fur micro balaclava
•  Coolmax neoprene balaclava w/ face mask
•  Mountain Hardwear Gore Windstopper hat
•  Black Diamond Half Dome helmet
• Hands
•  Outdoor Research glove liners
•  Black Diamond fleece gloves
•  Outdoor Research Alti gloves with down insert (not wearing)
•  Outdoor Research Alti mitts with down insert

Yeah, about 25 pounds worth of clothes, but that's only for the worst conditions.

Here's all the rest of the stuff Niki and I are packing.  Somwhere around 140 pounds total- and this doesn't even include the food!!

We've got -25 degree sleeping bags with liners, closed cell and inflatable sleeping pads, giant backpacks (mine is 105 liter), water bottles, pee bottles, thermos, titanium cook wear, white gas stoves, fuel bottles, glacier travel and crevasse rescue climbing gear, crazy first aid supplies and hardcore medicines, down botties, toiletries, rags, duct tape, reading material, oodles of stuff sacks, polar tents and cook tent, snow shoes, crampons, ice axes, lots of cordelette for rigging the sleds, trek poles, snow shovels, cameras, solar charging equipment... all that plus around 50 pounds of food each that we'll be dragging up the frigid West Buttress of Denali starting next week.

Now back to packing...