Been there, haven't done that

No, I haven't climbed Denali before...... yet. But I have been in the neighborhood, twice before.

The first time was shortly after my 19th birthday in 1973. In January. I spent two weeks living in the bush in a log cabin in the dead of winter a few miles from Talkeetna. Talkeetna is to Denali what Los Angeles is to Hollywood. It is your last destination before the real attraction. It is a small town with little more than a general store, a saloon, a post office and an airstrip. It is from that airstrip that the bush planes take off to ferry climbers to Denali. The town slogan is, "Talkeetna: A small drinking town with a climbing problem."

In the dead of winter we averaged 40 below zero F. on that trip.

The second time was in 2000 on an adventure travel trip with my family. We got close to Denali, but never actually saw it.

It isn't much to claim, but I have experienced that latitude and the temperature. Altitude will be next.