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Jon Shea, Mexico Volcanoes Lead Guide, December 4 - 12, 2007

December 11, 2007 (8:33 a.m. PT) :
Hello RMI! This is Pete Schoene calling from the top of Pico de Orizaba (18,701’). We had a very successful ascent, and are busy taking summit photos (hero-shots) before starting our descent. From our perch on the rim the sheer walls of the crater descend 2,000’ and plumes of smoke emanate from fissures in the rock; what a sight! The weather is absolutely perfect, but unfortunately a little too hazy to see the Gulf of Mexico. Route conditions were excellent and we anticipate a smooth descent back to the hut. The 4WD trucks will meet us this afternoon and bring us back to Tlachichuca where we’ll enjoy showers and a celebration dinner. We’ll check in again later.

December 10, 2007 (2:36 p.m. PT) :
This is Jon and we’re checking in from the hut on Orizaba. Everyone totally enjoyed our rest day yesterday, and the terrific dinner we had last night. This morning we had breakfast in Puebla, and then drove through the Mexico countryside to the little town of Tlachichuca. There we ran through a personal gear check to make sure everyone is properly outfitted for the climb of Orizaba. This afternoon we drove to the end of the road (elevation 14,000’) in 4WD vehicles. The weather is absolutely perfect and according to reports from descending climbers the route up Orizaba is in great shape. We’re making dinner now and then we’ll hit the rack; big day tomorrow!

December 9, 2007 (1:26 p.m. PT) :
Hi, this is Jon calling from Puebla where we are enjoying a wonderful rest day. We had a great summit day yesterday with a 4 1/2 hour ascent from high camp. We enjoyed views of Puebla and Mexico City on the final ridge climb to the summit and we were standing on top with the sunrise. It really was a perfect day for climbing. We had a good drive to Puebla and after a well deserved shower we met for dinner at a great restaurant and enjoyed a nice Mexican dinner. We are resting today and plan to meet again tonight for dinner. In the morning we will drive to Tlachichuca and start our climb of Pico de Orizaba.

December 8, 2007 (7:12 a.m. PT) :
Hi this is Jon again. I think I got cut off earlier, the sat phone battery was pretty cold. We are now back at high camp. We had five of seven climbers reach the top on this beautiful day. It took us 4 1/2 hours to reach the summit and the climbing was beautiful all the way up. The normally rocky section was filled in with snow and made for great climbing.

December 8, 2007 (5:07 a.m. PT) :
We are calling from the summit of Ixta at 7:00 a.m. local time. We had a wonderful climb this morning. When we started from high camp this morning it was cold and breezy but the wind died down and we had beautiful climbing conditions.

December 7, 2007 (1:53 p.m. PT) :
Hello. We are all at high camp on Ixta. We hiked from the Altzimoni hut to our high camp in five hours. We had good weather and now the typical afternoon clouds have filled the sky. We are in hopes they will have cleared, as is typical weather in this area, when we wake tonight after midnight. We will have an early dinner and get into our sleeping bags early in preparation for our summit attempt.  We are planning to leave camp around 2:00 a.m. to head for the summit.

December 6, 2007 (4:28 p.m. PT) :
Hi this is Jon calling from 12,000' at the base of Ixtaccihuatl at the Altzimoni hut. Today was a nice, relaxing day as we drove from La Malinche and stopped in Amecameca where we enjoyed good food and local flavor with a visit to a busy local market.  We met our guides this afternoon who will accompany us for the next few days.  We did some training this afternoon and are now settling in after a nice dinner.  We are preparing to move early tomorrow morning to the refugio Ayoloco, which will be our high camp on Ixta.  We are all doing well and hope that you are doing the same.  Talk to you soon.

December 5, 2007 (4:00 p.m. PT) :
I’m reporting from the cabañas at La Malinche. This morning we left Mexico City and headed into the countryside. Arriving on the slopes of La Malinche we went for an acclimatization hike this afternoon. It was snowing above 12,500’, which will no doubt help route conditions on our attempt to climb Ixta. Everyone is well and we’ll be having dinner shortly. Tomorrow we’ll shop for various food items in the market at Amecameca, then drive to the Pass of Cortez where we’ll spend the night at the Altzimoni hut. All is well and we’ll check back in tomorrow!

Dave Conlan, Mexico's Volcanoes Expedition   March 2 - 10, 2007 Lead Guide

March 9, 2007 (3:15 p.m. PST) :
Hola. We have completed the descent and are checking in from Tlachichuca. We had a great day and are relaxing and looking forward to an authentic Mexican dinner in celebration of our successful climb. We will be leaving early tomorrow morning for Mexico City to catch our return flights.

March 9, 2007 (message 7:31 a.m. PST) :
Hey this is Jon Shea calling from the summit of Pico de Orizaba. We got up here at 9:15 a.m. this morning. It is a beautiful day. (satellite phone cut out)

March 8, 2007 (2:20 p.m. PST) :
Hola. We are checking in from the Piedra Grande hut, our high camp, on Pico de Orizaba. Everyone is doing well. The weather is warm and partly cloudy with a slight breeze. The upper mountain looks good and we are planning to leave at 1:00 a.m. for our summit attempt. We will check in again after our climb.

March 7, 2007 (Email 5:10 p.m. PST) :
Our team is doing well. We had a lovely rest day in and around Puebla. In the afternoon we ventured to Chalula and toured the largest pyramid in the world engineered by the Olmeca Indians. Tomorrow we have an early departure to Tlachichuca and then up to Piedras Grande for our climb on Orizaba. Talk to you soon.

March 6, 2007 (3:50 p.m. PST) : The group has completed their climb with a successful summit attempt on Ixta and has returned to Puebla where they will spend the night. They will enjoy a rest day tomorrow and will be calling in with more details from their summit attempt.

March 5, 2007 (2:15 p.m. PST) :
This is Dave checking in from high camp on Ixtaccihuatl. The sky has been overcast, the weather has been warm and the mountain above looks beautiful. Our 6 1/2 hour hike to high camp was pretty challenging, but now our tents are up and we are ready to give it a shot tomorrow. It looks like we will get to use ropes and crampons at least for a little while. Our plan is to leave for the summit at 4:00 a.m. We will check in again soon.

March 4, 2007 (message 6:00 p.m. PT):
Hello from Mexico. We are currently at the Altzimoni hut on Ixtaccihuatl. We are preparing to depart for high camp tomorrow (Monday). So far we have had a great time. It is definitely warmer now than when I was here in December. Our group is great. Everyone arrived happy and healthy and ready for a great mountaineering trip. We had a great hike on La Malinche and tomorrow we will work our way to hike camp, set up camp and prepare for an early morning departure for our summit attempt. We just had a great meal of burritos with home-made tortillas. Everyone is in great spirits and we will be in touch in a couple days.

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