Entries from Expedition Dispatches

Good evening from Taullipampa, the meadows where our Base Camp sits. We had a beautiful hike up Punta Union Pass, 4,700m, and then down to Artesonraju Base Camp at 4,000m. The journey, while long, will sure help with acclimatizing. Upon arrival, we enjoyed another incredible meal from our cook and had time to relax, listen to some music at the dining tent and share some stories of High School prom. We are looking forward to a full day at BC tomorrow before the action starts.

RMI Guide Elias de Andres Martos and team

We woke to light snow and strong winds, but after a leisurely breakfast and a few hours of relaxing it cleared up. We took advantage of the clearing and hiked to the glacier to practice climbing with ice ax and crampons. Now, back at the hut, we’ll rest after lunch in preparation for our summit bid tonight.

RMI Guide Mike Walter

The Expedition Skills Seminar - Emmons team, led by Zeb Blais, radioed from Columbia Crest on the summit of Mt. Rainier.  They are starting their descent and will stay at Camp Schurman tonight.  Tomorrow morning the team will pack up and head back to the White River Campground.  We look forward to congratulating them back at Rainier Basecamp tomorrow afternoon.

The Four Day Summit Climb Teams for June 25 - 28, 2017 reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning just after 7 am.  RMI Guides Kel Rossiter and Robby Young reported winds higher than expected but clear skies and an excellent route.  The teams spent almost an hour enjoying the views from the summit crater.  They will return to Camp Muir for a short break and then continue to Paradise.

Congratulations to today’s Summit Climb teams!

June 27, 2017
Things looked good at 6 AM today, so we rolled out, fired the stoves, rousted the team, breakfasted and got walking.  All of this was in the cold shadow before the sun came around.  Our pals on Mike Haugen’s team were two hours ahead of us, already starting the fixed ropes at 15,000 as we left 14K.  We made steady progress up the initial hills with perfectly packed snow to walk on.  The sun caught us as we neared the ropes ourselves, making it a little easier to keep hands and faces warm.  We launched up the steep headwall, getting into the rhythms of mechanical ascenders on rope, and moving crampons and ice axes on firm snow and ice.  We hit the 16,200 ft top to the lines and continued up the spectacular West Buttress to 16,400 ft.  Only Denali, Foraker and Mount Hunter were above the Alaskan sea of clouds today.  We cached supplies and enjoyed the views from our lofty perch.  Interestingly, this height wasn’t a new record for any of our well traveled climbers.  Our descent to 14,000 was relatively easy and fun with light packs.  We hope our friends at 17,000 have a nice night and a good summit tomorrow while we rest. 

Best Regards
RMI Guide Dave Hahn

On The Map

June 27, 2017
We are in position for a summit day. We made our move from camp at 14,000’ to our camp at 17,000’. The crew did a great job ascending the fixed lines and climbing the spectacular ridge past Washburn’s Thumb, a huge chunk of rock that towers above the route. It was a little windy on the ridge, but it is hard to complain about wind on a huge mountain like Denali.
We made a fortified camp before the clouds came up and gave us some wind and snow. The sun is starting to peak through and we are hoping for good weather tomorrow so we can get a shot at the summit!

RMI Guide Mike Haugen

On The Map

Today we toured the beautiful city of St. Petersburg including St. Isaac’s Cathedral and the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood. In the evening we had a nice canal tour, although the rivers being close to flood stage meant our boat couldn’t pass under certain bridges. We had a nice final dinner as a team at our favorite restaurant - this trip has just flown by, which is always a sign of a great trip. Till next time…

RMI Guide Tyler Reid

Buenas noches from our camp at Quebrada Paria. We started our approach trek today towards Artesonraju Base Camp. The long drive from the hotel was rewarded by incredible views of Huascaran and Huandoy, the towering Andean giants that oversaw our incursion into the range. After meeting our arrieros (donkey drivers) we continued with the first leg of our journey. A nice vegetable soup followed by rice and chicken on a potato cream made by our cook Emilio, all with ingredients from his own home farm, was the dinner that put us to bed. That’s it for the first day of our expedition out in the field!

RMI Guide Elias de Andres Martos and team.

Our Five Day Summit Climb team led by RMI Guide Andy Bond reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning.  They enjoyed calm winds and clear skies during their climb.  The team will descend to Camp Muir, rest and pack their bags, before continuing their descent to Paradise.  Once at BaseCamp they will gather for a presentation of certificates before concluding their program.

Congratulations to today’s Five Day Summit Climb team!

RMI Guide Mike King led his Four Day Summit Climb June 24 - 27, 2017 team to the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning.  The teams reported clear skies and low winds on the summit.  They will return to Camp Muir and then continue their descent to Paradise this afternoon.

Congratulations to today’s Summit Climb team!