Entries By mike walter

RMI Guides Mike Walter & Abby Westling led the Four Day Climb August 26 - 29 to the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning with all climbers in both groups.  Mike reported a beautiful day on the mountain as the teams were approaching the crater rim around 7:10 am.  Climbers will spend time in the summit crater before starting their descent, dropping 4,500' back to Camp Muir.  After a quick stop they will continue the remaining 4,500' to Paradise.  Once back at Rainier BaseCamp later this afternoon the program will conclude with a small celebration for the teams.

Nice work today everyone!

The Four Day Climb August 17 - 20 led by RMI Guides Mike Walter and Nikki Champion reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning.  Mike reported moderate winds and a busy route.  Camp Muir sandwiched between two layers of clouds, dense clouds above Camp Muir and a light marine layer above Paradise currently.  The climbers will take a short break at Camp Muir to repack and re-hydrate before starting down to Paradise.  Once at Paradise the shuttle will return the climbers to Rainier BaseCamp where they will conclude their program with a short ceremony.

Nice work today everyone!

Hi Everyone,

We all summited Sahale Peak and Sharkfin Tower on August 8th in beautiful sunny weather and great climbing conditions. It took our team of five 11 hours round trip from camp. We all summited Forbidden Peak via the West Ridge in cloudy weather with a few moments of light drizzle and some moderate winds on the summit, but overall great conditions. Our summit push was 12 hours round trip from camp.

We had a strong team, and four days of great climbing!

RMI Guides Mike Walter, Henry Coppolillo & Team

RMI Guide Mike Walter and Team opted to climb Mt. Baker via the Coleman-Deming route after they had discovered rain deteriorated conditions on the North Ridge. The team climbed strong and were 100% to the top, making the best of their days on the mountain.

Congratulations Team! 

The Expedition Skills Seminar - Kautz July 22 - 27 led by RMI Guide Mike Walter reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. The team reached the crater rim at 6 am and tagged Point Success.  They will return to their high camp for their final night on the mountain and descend tomorrow to the trailhead.

Nice work team!

Led by RMI Guides Mike Walter and Matias Francis the Mt. Baker - North Ridge team reached the summit of Mt. Baker yesterday. The team enjoyed a variety of weather on the climb, including rain once they got back to Hogsback Camp after their summit attempt.

Mike Walter checked in from camp this afternoon. Mike reported avalanche conditions and decided to turn due to unstable snow conditions, rain on snow, some natural avalanche conditions and 30 - 60cm postholing.

They hope to climb thru Coleman-Deming and then hike out tomorrow. 

After several days of training and ascending to Camp Schurman, the Expedition Skills Seminar June 17 - 22 led by RMI Guide Mike Walter reached the summit of Mt. Rainier on Tuesday.  The team enjoyed good weather and route conditions.  After reaching the summit they returned to Camp Schurman for their final night on the mountain.  The team will descend to the trail head and return to Rainier BaseCamp on Wednesday afternoon.

Congratulations to the Emmons Seminar team!

Tuesday, May 31, 2022 - 7:31 pm PT

The morning after our summit push saw a speedy descent from 17,000' Camp as winds increased along with our desire to reach warmer, thicker air. We left our home-away-from-home of 14,000' Camp early in the afternoon and were soon making our way around Windy Corner and down towards 11,000'. Every step brought us ever so slightly closer to the airstrip and the end of our expedition. We rolled into 11,000' Camp in time for one last tortellini dinner and a quick cat nap. By midnight the sun had dipped below the tundra and we knew it was time to “rip the band aid off” and get to the airstrip. Despite heavy packs and tired legs, an all-night stroll down the lower Kahiltna provided a beautiful and fitting end to what has been an unforgettable 21 days in one of the greatest ranges on Earth. By 8:30 am the whole team was assembled at Kahiltna International Airport and by 10 am we found ourselves back on the tarmac in Talkeetna. It’s been about 36 hours since I last slept so I need to wrap up this rambling summary and get some sleep, but suffice to say we are all happy to be back in the land of green plants, hot showers and cold beverages, and will be remembering the experiences of the past three weeks for years to come.

RMI Guide Henry Coppolillo

Sunday, May 29, 2022 - 11:20 pm PT

Everything came together for us today and we made a successful summit bid of Denali and, more importantly, we returned to High Camp safely. Clear skies and moderate temperatures made for an enjoyable day of climbing. Light west winds kept a nip to the air all day. The route was in great condition and we got out ahead of everyone so we didn't experience any traffic jams. Our team climbed strong and efficiently, with a round trip time of 9 1/2 hours. Back at camp we ate dinner and worked on rehydrating. Everyone crawled into their tents pretty early for some well-earned and much-needed rest. Tomorrow we'll begin our descent. Our itinerary is up in the air, and first we'll focus on climbing safely back down to 14k. The weather looks good for traveling; we'll keep you posted on our progress. Now it's time for some zzz's.

RMI Guide Mike Walter