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Mt. Everest: Dave Hahn Checks in from ABC

Posted by: Dave Hahn, Seth Waterfall | May 21, 2013
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Everest
Elevation: 21,300'

This is Dave Hahn calling form Mt. Everest, and again tonight we are at Advance Base Camp.  Our Plan had been to move up to the Lhotse Face and we tired we went out this morning with that as the goal, but unfortunately with Dan’s cough has not gone away and it has turned out to be debilitating as far as preventing us from going higher.  It is not a danger to him, but going higher with it would be a problem. So, quick change of plans Dan is going to head down to Base Camp in the morning with Lama Babu, and Seth and I are going to try and keep up Tshering, Gyaljen and Kaji and our plan is to go all the way to high camp tomorrow and attempt the summit on the 23rd.  The complication is that the weather forecast is kind of breaking down for those days and might be kind of dicey weather – We will have to see. We figure that will be our one chance and so it is up or down for all. Things should be moving around a fair amount for these next couple of days…we will see what happens. We are going to miss Dan as he heads back down to Base Camp, Lama Babu is happy to guide him down and we are expecting they will have a smooth descent and will be in Base Camp about the middle of tomorrow morning. That’s what’s going on here at Everest. 

We watched a lot of people tired people coming down from the Summit and from the Lhotse Face again today but it has starting to get though crowd a little bit, we have noticed traffic slacking a bit and that works in our favor.

That’s all for now, Bye!

RMI Guide Dave Hahn

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Mt. Everest: Dave Hahn Sends an Update from Camp 2

Posted by: Dave Hahn, Seth Waterfall, Mark Tucker | May 20, 2013
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Everest
Elevation: 21,300'

This is Dave Hahn calling down again from Camp 2, ABC, on Mount Everest, 21,300’. We took a rest of day here today as plan, tried to catch up on our hydration and rest obviously. We were pretty much observers today watching a lot going on, watching a lot of climbers coming down from the top and a lot going up. Easy to look out at any time today and see over 100 climbers on the Lhotse Face. We were particularly interested in the efforts of Lam Babu, our Sirdar, who went up in the middle of the night last night and led a team of Sherpas that were determined to help a man high on Lhotse who had been in distress for a couple of days. They did a great job getting up there. They were up there at Lhotse Camp 4 by out about 4 in the morning, or I’m sorry by about 6 in the morning. But sadly it was just a little too late for the man who’d been through too much. But very proud of Lam Babu and the team that he led up there. He’s back safely at camp now. And we’re getting ready for our efforts at moving up tomorrow, moving to Camp 3 tomorrow on the Lhotse Face. So that’s certainly occupying all our thoughts as we go to bed. Hoping everything’s in order and that we have a good day tomorrow. Bye for now.

RMI Guide Dave Hahn

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Mt. Rainier: Expedition Skills Seminar Moves into Camp Muir

Posted by: Casey Grom, Adam Knoff | May 20, 2013
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Mount Rainier
Elevation: 10,000'

RMI Guides Casey Grom, Adam Knoff and their teams headed up to Camp Muir today.  The weather was magnificent!  Now they have settled in at 10,000’, they will spend the next four days learning mountaineering skills and as well as a summit bid on Mt. Rainier.

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Mt. McKinley: Walter & Team Move to 14K Camp!

Posted by: Mike Walter, Solveig Waterfall, Ben Liken | May 20, 2013
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Mount McKinley
Elevation: 14,200'

Hello All!

We awoke this morning to calm winds and relatively warm temperatures; a welcome change from the last week of stormy living at 11,000’.  We had a quick breakfast and broke down tents just as the sun began to thaw out camp.  Eager to make our move, we started our ascent at 10 am and arrived at our camp in the Genet Basin at 14,200’ at 3:30pm.  Everyone did great and we enjoyed the warm sunshine and lack of chilly breeze getting around Windy Corner.

We spent the rest of the day working hard building walls and getting our camp in order.

Looking forward to getting a good nights rest and getting our cache tomorrow!

RMI Guide Mike Walter

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Mt. McKinley: Nugent & Team Establish Camp 2

Posted by: Billy Nugent, Kel Rossiter, Levi Kepsel | May 20, 2013
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Mount McKinley
Elevation: 9,600'

Another beautiful day and another strong effort from our crew! We took advantage of more amazing weather and single-carried all of our gear and supplies up Ski Hill to set up shop at Camp 2, which sits at about 9,600’ on the upper reaches of the Kahiltna Glacier. Our guys clearly trained hard and the long hours on the stairmaster paid dividends today hauling massive loads. We rolled into camp around 4:30 which made for a leisurely afternoon getting situated and taking in the amazing views. After a hot dinner of tortellini alfredo, we all crawled into the tents and are currently waiting for the bitter cold to set in once the sun dips behind Kahiltna Dome.

That’s all for now, we’ll check in again tomorrow!

RMI Guide Billy Nugent

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Mt. Rainier: May 20th Update

Posted by: J.J. Justman, Jake Beren | May 20, 2013
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'

At 7:57 a.m. RMI Guides JJ Justman and Jake Beren were standing on Columbia Crest, the highest point on Mt. Rainier, enjoying the views.  There was a gentle 5 mph breeze on the “prettiest day in May that [JJ and Jake] have ever seen.”

The teams began their descent about 8:30 and we look forward to seeing them at Rainier Basecamp this afternoon.

Congratulations Summit Climbers!

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Mt. McKinley: Walter & Team - The Winds Win Out

Posted by: Mike Walter, Solveig Waterfall, Ben Liken | May 20, 2013
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Mount McKinley
Elevation: 11,200'

We woke early this morning, had breakfast, and packed up camp, ready to move to 14,200’ before the sun had hit our tents. But the winds up high were too strong for my liking. We repitched our tents to seek shelter from the wind and waited for a few hours for the winds to abate. Unfortunately, the winds up high continued and a mean looking lenticular cloud had formed over Windy Corner, where we were headed. By noon we made the decision to stay in camp another day and avoid the risks of getting caught in a windstorm high in the mountains of Alaska.

So we wait another day. Such is expedition climbing. The weather forecast looks good for the next few days, and we’re confident that tomorrow will be the day to move camp. We’ll let you know how it goes.

RMI Guide Mike Walter

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Alaska Expedition Seminar: Marin & Team Practice Ice Climbing

Posted by: Andres Marin, Garrett Stevens, Katie Bono | May 20, 2013
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Mount McKinley
Elevation: 7,300'

There is something about ice climbing in a crevasse that is just mind blowing.  Today the group got to experience ice climbing and how much fun it is.

We headed for the foot hills of Mt. Francis to find a deep crevasse suitable for great climbing.  Big smiles all day long.  Tomorrow we are getting ready to go climbing Radio Tower.  The team is excited to climb higher tomorrow and are doing well!

RMI Guide Andres Marin

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Mountaineering Training | Fit To Climb: Week 16

Posted by: | May 20, 2013
Categories: *Mountaineering Fitness & Training

Fit to Climb: Week 16 Schedule

DAY	WORKOUT	TOTAL TIME	DIFFICULTY
1	Rainier Dozen / Easy Hiking ( 30 min)	42 min.	Medium
2	Rainier Dozen / Stair Interval Training (30 min)	42 min.	Hard
3	Rest / Travel Day	-	Recovery
4	The Climb Begins!	-	-
	Total	1 hr 24 mins.

BRIEFING

To be honest, there is no way you can improve your fitness this week. Instead, the purpose of this week’s workouts is to simply allow your body to move, feel the benefit of some light exercise, and manage the stress of the upcoming climb. If any day this week you would rather not exercise at all, you should make that choice. Your top priority is being well rested and prepared by the end of the week!

DESCRIPTIONS OF WORKOUTS

Day 1: Rainier Dozen + Easy Hiking (30 Minutes)
Today’s hike is a recovery workout and you can always substitute it with a different activity, such as running, biking or swimming. The important thing is to move at a moderate pace for 30 to 45 minutes. The pace can be conversational and you do not need to be dripping with sweat at the end of the workout.

Day 2: Rainier Dozen +  Stair Interval Training (60 Minutes)
You are cutting the volume of this workout by 50%. You should also cut the intensity by the same amount. You’ve been training for 16 weeks and will be working hard on the mountain. You do not want to feel your legs burning in this workout and you certainly don’t want to deplete your energy stores. Just get out, have fun, celebrate your last stair workout, and maybe head to a nice restaurant with friends and savor the opportunity to eat with a knife and fork off a real plate.

Warm up for about 10 minutes, and then climb up and down a set of stairs, at a consistent pace, for about 20 to 25 minutes. Cool down with some stretching. 

Day 3: Rest / Travel Day
Today may be a long travel day for you. If you’re traveling by air, be sure to plan ahead to maintain your nutrition intake, paying attention especially to your hydration. If you don’t have to travel, consider today a bonus rest day.

Day 4: The Climb Begins!

SUMMARY

Mt. Rainier is a tough climb no matter what amount of preparation you have managed to put in. Remember that all of the training you’ve put in up to this point is just getting you to the trailhead. From here, it’s all about managing the challenges of the mountain as best you can in order to preserve your strength and energy through the entire climb. In the mountains the little things add up: keeping yourself at a comfortable temperature and eating and drinking continuously throughout the day will help you arrive into camp feeling good and with energy to spare. Conversely, ignoring that hot spot on your foot and not taking the time to pull out a snack at a break can mean that by the end of the day you’re dealing with blisters and running out of energy. You know how to manage all of these little things after the training hikes you’ve already completed - carry these habits through to the climb!

And most of all: have fun! Mt. Rainier is a beautiful climb and an unforgettable adventure - enjoy the experience!

Good luck and safe climbing!

Next week we will recap the Fit to Climb Program, discussing various things you can do to maintain - and continue to build - your fitness if your climb is still some weeks away.

- John Colver

John Colver is a longtime climber, former mountain guide, and certified personal trainer with the American Council of Exercise. Colver introduced outdoor fitness classes to athletic clubs throughout the greater Puget Sound region before creating his adventX brand. Currently, adventX leads training programs in Seattle and Colver presents clinics on outdoor fitness at companies such as Microsoft, Boeing, the American Lung Association, and REI. Colver lives in Seattle, and is working on his second book, Fit to Climb - a 16 week Mount Rainier Fitness Program.

Questions? Comments? Share your thoughts with John and other readers on the RMI Blog!

You can read the past Weekly Mountaineering Training Series on the RMI Blog.

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Mt. Everest: Dave Hahn Calls With an Update from C2

Posted by: Dave Hahn, Seth Waterfall, Mark Tucker | May 19, 2013
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Everest
Elevation: 21,300'

Hello, this is Dave Hahn calling from Camp 2 on Mount Everest, 21,300’.  All is well.  We moved up this morning from Camp 1 in perfect weather conditions, actually a little bit hot in the Western Cwm.  Very much aware of the dramas playing out above us on the mountain.  A number of our friends went to the summit safely and returned in these last couple of days. But, there’s also been some problems up high and much of the mountain was pre-occupied these last couple of days, especially today with trying to help a climber, incapacitated high on Lhotse.  And the drama is still playing out.  Lam Babu, our Sirdar, is putting together a team of Sherpas who will go up tonight and try to get that individual down the Lhotse Face.  So we’re certainly concerned and going to be tuning in to try and back up Lam; meanwhile, trying to continue our own climb.  We’re all doing fine here at Advanced Basecamp.  Our intention is to stage out of here tomorrow to rest and recuperate from our climb up and get ready for a climb higher.  Anyway, lots of exciting times now on Mount Everest as everybody is in motion going for the top and coming down.  All good for us and stay tuned.  Bye for now.

RMI Guide Dave Hahn

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