Entries By tyler reid

Greetings again from the Caucasus! Here’s a quick recap of our last couple days on the mountain: Yesterday we ascended to the top of Pastukhova Rocks at over 15,000’ and enjoyed a nice 3,000’ descent. The best snow conditions were up high where the colder temperatures have kept things preserved - smooth and flowy. Everyone got a sense of the reality of high altitude skiing: ski a few turns, stop to pressure breathe, ski a few turns, stop to pressure breathe... on down the mountain. For a little extra acclimatization this morning, our group hopped on a snow cat and enjoyed a free ride up to our high point yesterday, this time arriving in about 25 minutes. With pleasant weather, we took the opportunity for some mountaineering skills training and review. We then skinned up to 16,000’, a new altitude record for a few members of our group. It’s a been a productive couple days of acclimatization and rest here on Mt. Elbrus. If the weather looks good in the morning, we’ll see if we can sneak our way to the top. RMI Guide Tyler Reid

On The Map

Thursday, June 20, 2019 - 5:42 PM PT Yesterday we had a nice hike at the Cheget ski area, reaching 10,000’ and getting some beautiful views of the Caucasus. Today we woke up at 6,800’ and by early afternoon had ski toured up to 14,000’. This was with the help of three gondolas that we shuffled all our gear on and off, en route to our camp here on the mountain. One of my favorite days on these trips is the first day we get to ski - a reminder of why we’ve come all this way with all these heavy bags. Everyone was psyched to ski today. I think we’ll do it again tomorrow... It’s good to finally be in position here on Mt. Elbrus. Acclimatization and rest is the plan for the next couple days. RMI Guide Tyler Reid

On The Map

Today our senses were greeted with cool, fresh, clean mountain air as we stepped out of the van. It was a successful journey today from the big city to the Caucasus Mountains. This morning we had an alpine start followed by numerous airport cappuccinos, a tranquil flight to Mineralnye Vody, and three hours of driving through the Russian countryside. After four days of travel it’s great to finally be here at the base of the mountain. RMI Guide Tyler Reid

Monday, June 17, 2019 - 4:22 AM PT Greetings from Moscow. Most of us awoke at 4am this morning for no reason. The sun rises early here, which doesn’t help with the jetlag. Today we embarked on a city tour of Moscow that included St Basils Cathedral, the Kremlin, and Red Square’s otherworldly shopping mall. We’re working on rounding up some delayed ski bags and delayed teammates, which hopefully will all be in one place by this evening. So far so good here in Russia... RMI Guide Tyler Reid

Yesterday turned out to be a stormy one on Osorno. With hopes of possible clearing we set off from the hut in weather that felt more like winter in Hokkaido than spring on the volcanoes. After 1200’ of climbing, it became apparent that things would not be improving anytime soon. We skied down, and like clockwork, the skies began to clear. But it was just a Northern Patagonia sucker hole, and soon it was pounding snow once again. We had a nice evening on the lake in the beautiful town of Puerto Varas, a great place to wrap up a very successful trip with a fantastic crew. It’s a beautiful morning as I write this, with Osorno looking proud across the water. A good reason to come back.. RMI Guide Tyler Reid

The storm arrived to the region as predicted yesterday and continues out our window here on the lower flanks of Volcan Osorno. We are sipping coffee by the fire in the comfort of our refugio after a chill day of travel to get here. Hard to say if tomorrow will be a summit day, but it looks pretty promising as a powder day! RMI Guide Tyler Reid

Wanting to make the best of our closing weather window, I managed to convince our team to forego our rest day today and go for our third summit in three days, Villarrica. Our alpine start began with a three-hour drive, arriving at a socked-in trailhead. Was this a good idea? It didn’t seem like it until the early afternoon when we popped above the clouds. The mental fatigue of skinning in a whiteout gave way to nice views and general alpine enjoyment, even as the wind increased. We tagged the top, peered into the active crater, and 5,500 feet later were drinking beer in the parking lot. Tomorrow the storm arrives, and we rest. RMI Guide Tyler Reid

Today we returned to Lonquimay for redemption! Our team summited in perfect weather with views of eight volcanoes to the north and south. Skiing conditions off the top were perfection. Now we are getting ready for one of the most important events of this trip: Sergio’s famous asado. RMI Guide Tyler Reid

This morning we awoke to flapping tent fabric and snow blowing all over the place. Not what the forecast predicted. So we dragged our feet and sipped our coffee slowly. Our “alpine start” consisted of skinning out of camp at 10am. It was a battle with the wind for the first couple hours but things got better as we got higher. As the terrain steepened, we put our skis on our backs and cramponed up steep, styrofoam snow. Avoiding the evil ice patches was the name of the game, but as we got higher the permanent ice formations were unavoidable. The summit of Llaima is one of the worst optical illusions I’ve ever experienced, and today was no different. It just doesn’t get any closer, despite seeming close. On top we took some pictures and tripped out on the super young lava rock, some of which is less than 10 years old! The skiing was not good until a couple thousand feet lower - and then, it was really good. Another amazing day in Araucanía. RMI Guide Tyler Reid

Yesterday we had a great ski tour on Lonquimay, climbing above the clouds. We didn’t quite make the summit due to avalanche conditions that had formed overnight with steady wind loading on the face we were hoping to ski. But we might try again later in the week. For now we’re headed out the door for Llaima! Stay tuned, and photos to come... RMI Guide Tyler Reid