Alex Honnold and Renan Ozturk to Attempt Freeing Big Alaska Route

This summer, Alex Honnold and Renan Ozturk will head to the east face of Mount Dickey to attempt to free a 1,600-metre granite route. Wine Bottle was first climbed in 1988 by Austrians Thomas Bonapace and Andreas Orgler at 5.11+ A3 over 51 pitches.

After the 1988 first ascent, Orgler wrote, “On Day 6, in nine pitches of slabs, cracks and icefield, we got to the tin-foil at the top of the Wine Bottle’s cork. There we left the nicked, damaged haul-bag rope. One of us dragged all the climbing gear and the other tugged the haul-bag, as we climbed another five pitches of IV to V difficulty to the summit. We seemed to float up the last few meters of breaking trail in the snow despite our 75 pounds of gear and weary bones.

“We had climbed a full vertical mile of perpendicular rock, had carried out the dream of a full year and had had an experience that few can ever have.” Read the full story here. Honnold and Ozturk will spend June working on the big route. They first attempted to free the line in 2013 with Freddie Wilkinson, but bailed after the first 10 or so pitches.

In the Canadian Rockies, similar sized routes include The Lowe/Hannibal of Mount Geikie at 5.11 1,500 metres and the North Pillar on North Twin at 5.11+ A2 1,800 metres. On B.C.’s Mount Bute is the 1,900-metre School of Rock 5.12, one of North America’s biggest free climbs.

Since his first attempt at Wine Bottle, Honnold has gained more experience in the alpine. In 2014, Honnold and Caldwell completed the Fitz Roy Traverse 5.11d C1 5,000m and received a Piolet d’Or.