Entries from Expedition Dispatches
After a big day of work getting half our kit to the 14,200ft camp, the team is enjoying a much deserved rest day in our plush camp at 11,000'. Our breakfast of bagels, cream cheese and bacon was a wonderful way to start the day, and the mostly clear skies and lots of sun are making the day quite pleasant for swapping jokes and stories around camp. The agenda for the day is more eating, drinking and resting, with an eye towards packing up and moving higher tomorrow.
Days like today are the reason many of us come to the mountains: to spend quality time with friends old and new, be present in the moment, and have an unforgettable experience in one of the most incredible places on the planet. Even though thoughts tend to trend towards the summit on beautiful days, we're happy to just be here, soaking in all the glory that Alaska has to offer. Thanks for following our progress and cheers for now!
RMI Guide Tyler Jones
The Four Day Summit Climbs lead by Win Whittaker and Jason Thompson reached the summit of Mt. Rainier today. It was a clear and cold morning with light winds at about 10mph. Congratulations to the teams!
RMI Guide Adam Knoff called on June 10 at 5:50 pm (PST) to report the team was on the summit of Mt. McKinley!
They made a great push starting at 9:00 am this morning and were celebrating at the top. The weather was warm and beautiful and it was the best day ever for their team. They were going to head down to 17,000' camp to spend the night. On Saturday they plan to head to 14,000' camp and spend another night.
The whole crew made it to the top and were very excited that their second push paid off!
Congratulations to the team!
Seth Waterfall and the Expedition Skills Seminar – Muir were on the summit early this morning. After a week of hard work they were awarded with clear views and light winds.
The teams are back at Camp Muir and packing up for their descent to Paradise.
We flew onto the Kahiltna Glacier this morning! Our packs are rigged and we are ready to walk up hill to their 7,800' camp. Everyone is healthy, happy and ready to go!
We'll check in again when we are settled in at camp.
RMI Guide Jake Beren
On The Map
We are at the base of Washburn Thumb, heading to high camp. We will rest at high camp this evening and attempt the summit early tomorrow morning. Everyone is feeling great and excited for their summit push! Weather is sunny and warm. It's almost too warm as we were climbing with the sun radiating off of the glacier.
We'll check in again soon.
Wish us luck!
RMI Guide Adam Knoff
On The Map
It's a little soupy here at 11,000' camp this afternoon, but we're sitting pretty after retrieving our cache from 10k earlier today. A frosty morning greeted us when we woke, but a hearty round of hot drinks & breakfast burritos (eggs, cheese, salsa and hot sauce all wrapped in warm tortillas) soon chased the chill away and fueled us up for the quick trip downhill to our gear buried in the snow. Within minutes after arriving at the cache, we were packing all the food and personal luggage into our backpacks and sleds for the short uphill stretch to camp. The team moved smoothly back up and is now settled in for another afternoon of rest. We're hopeful that the weather holds for a carry to 14k tomorrow, which will be the biggest test of strength and stamina so far. But the crew continues to impress with the collective performance so we're confident about what lies ahead.
Last night at dinner, we shared some of your comments with the group. Everyone says thank you very much for keeping the team in your thoughts, and they appreciate your interest in our trip. Keep the positivity flowing as we continue our adventure!
Cheers,
RMI Guides Tyler Jones, Erik Endert & Garrett Stevens
Congratulations to Casey Grom and our Liberty Ridge Climb!
Nine and 1/2 hour ascent from high camp and they will descend to Camp Schurman tonight. The team is pretty tired, but great climb and beautiful weather on top!
The Expedition Skill Seminar - Muir has had a great week of training at Camp Muir thus far. They have experienced every kind of weather Mt. Rainier has to offer from blizzard conditions to warm and sunny. They have done a lot of training and have climbed above Ingraham Flats twice this week. They made a summit attempt this morning but were turned back at 11,200' due to high avalanche conditions. The climbers are doing great and they will continue their training this afternoon. The team is considering making another summit attempt tonight weather permitting. They will descend to Paradise tomorrow afternoon and complete their program.
We have been busy on the mountain. With our summit attempt thwarted because of weather and the next projected weather window this Sunday the team has decided to head home to our families.
Last night we slept at 14,000 feet and after a leisurely start to the day we have descended to about 9,500 ft. We will sleep here for a few hours tonight, awake around 4 a.m. so that we can take advantage of the frozen snow bridges, and push on to the Kahiltna air strip. Unless we get stuck on the glacier because of bad weather this will be our last message from the mountain. We will talk to you all very soon.
RMI Guide Walter Hailes
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Larry, Glad to read that all is well and the weather is good. Enjoy!
Posted by: Debbie on 6/12/2011 at 11:26 pm
@ J. Y. Jones: So happy things are progressing well. Praying daily for you and each of your team members.
Love you,
Sis
Posted by: Ellen Jones Mathias on 6/12/2011 at 6:35 pm
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