What a day, what a day! We woke early in the AM to a star filled sky and only an occasional light breeze. Hot water was served up for oatmeal and coffee before we packed up our summit packs. Several other teams started uphill before us. You could see their headlights shining on the slope. By time we hit first break, we no longer needed lights. We watched the sunrise, showing off its beauty. Although the sun was up, we wouldn't enjoy its warmth for several more hours. The lack of snow on the route created some challenging walking conditions. Scree, sand, loose rocks were our walking surface. We put one foot in front of the other until there was no where left for us to go. The summit was perfect, barely a breeze, sunny, warm. After taking photos and flying a kite (we are wondering if we broke any records flying a kite at 22,800') we made our way back down. Going up is just half the journey. The other half is getting down safely. Safely back at camp, we filled our bellies with Ramen and tried to catch up on hydration. Tomorrow is a big day as we descend 6,000' back to Basecamp. With a big day ahead, its time to get horizontal and let the body rest.

Thank you for all the support,

RMI Guide Hannah Smith and team