Entries from Expedition Dispatches

We reached Mweka Camp at 2:50 PM to finish our 16-hour climbing day. 

The “day” began last night at 11 PM when we woke for our summit bid.  After a little breakfast, at 12:05 AM we hit the trail behind Naiman - our lead guide. 

Our team made rapid progress, passing several other teams on the dirt and rock switchbacks.  It was a fairly cold night, and that was before the winds started up.  By our second rest break, a few hours into the climb we were adding clothing layers and putting on bigger gloves.  By our fourth break, most of the team had all available clothing on.  We hit the crater rim at Stella Point by 5:40 AM and took just a brief pause there for food and water before pushing on toward Uhuru - Kilimanjaro’s summit.  The light of day came slowly and beautifully on as we walked on the rim at 19,000 ft.  Sunrise was most welcome at 6:30 but by then our attention was on the phenomenal shadow cast by Kilimanjaro in the skies to the west… exactly over the summit of 15,000 ft Mt Meru.  

We hit Uhuru at 6:40 AM and shed a few tears, shook hands, hugged, and snapped photos.  It was an amazingly beautiful time of day.  But it was also bitterly cold and windy, so we got out of there at 6:55 and headed back to Stella without delay.  Winds were really picking up at Stella then and putting a lot of dirt and dust in the air, so we cruised right on over the edge and started dropping altitude.  The descent was a combination of careful steps and full-on boot skiing through steep gravel and pumice. 

We were back to camp at a respectable hour 9:40 AM, rubbing our eyes and wiping dirt and dust off our faces.  Our fabulous staff treated the team to a full brunch/lunch of 15,000 ft pizza and coffee, after which we left camp bound for Mweka - 5000 ft lower.  The trail down is direct and rough, we certainly were cautious and ready to be done for much of it. 

Now it is a relief to be camped in the forest for one more night.  The air has moisture again… and oxygen in abundance. 

Best Regards

RMI Guide Dave Hahn & team

The Four-Day teams reached the summit this morning at 5 am! RMI Guides Brent Okita and Christina Dale reported great route conditions and no winds on the summit. They are currently finishing their descent to Camp Muir for a quick break before packing up camp and starting their descent to Paradise in the summer sunshine.

Congrats team!

Yet another perfect weather day, calm and sunny… clear above and cloudy below. We ate breakfast in Karanga Camp and then said a temporary goodbye to two of our climbers.  John Bobbitt aggravated an old knee injury and Erika Bobbitt wanted to make sure he got down safely.  They set off for the Mweka Gate of the park as we set off for high camp at 8:30 AM. In an easy three hours, we had climbed the 2000’ vertical feet up to Barafu and begun to settle in.  From 15,100 ft, we now had unobstructed views of our climbing route to the top.

The afternoon was taken up with resting and getting our gear and clothing ready for our planned alpine start. Chef Benson’s fine spaghetti dinner was served early so that we could get to bed just before sunset. We want as much rest as we can get before our 11:15 PM wake-up time.

Best Regards,

RMI Guide Dave Hahn & Team

RMI Guide Mike Walter and Team opted to climb Mt. Baker via the Coleman-Deming route after they had discovered rain deteriorated conditions on the North Ridge. The team climbed strong and were 100% to the top, making the best of their days on the mountain.

Congratulations Team! 

The Four Day Climb led by RMI Guides Casey Grom and Ben Ammon reached the summit of Mt. Rainier early this morning. It was a cool morning until the sun came up. Ben reported a cloudless sky with very light winds. The team is in route back to Camp Muir and will return to Paradise in the early afternoon. 

Congratulations Team! 

RMI Guide James Bealer and Henry Coppolillo checked in from camp after their successful summit of Forbidden Peak. Despite rain early on in the program, the team persevered and made it to the top. The team will enjoy some much-needed rest before their walk back to the trailhead and back to cell service.

Congrats to the team for being our first summit on Forbidden this season! 

Greetings from 13,150 ft in Karanga Camp on Kilimanjaro.  The team started the day in the garden-like Barranco Camp below the great rock wall of the same name.  It was a perfect weather day right from the outset.  There were no winds and no upper level clouds although the lower sea of clouds continued to hide the rest of the world from our view.  We got moving toward the Barranco Wall just aft 8:30 AM.  The lower third of the lava wall is a set of ledges that tend to get one’s attention.  Both hands are needed on the rock holds and the feet need to be carefully placed as we move from ledge to ledge.  It all gets a little more exciting as several hundred porters (from our own team as well as from the numerous surrounding teams) attempt to politely squeeze by with awkward and heavy loads balanced on their heads.  The wall relents in its middle sections and turns into steep switchbacks with occasional odd steps.  At the top, we were back to hands on rock to get over the final escarpments.  All told it took us about two hours to get on top of the wall.  It was a great feeling to pull onto the flat and have unimpeded views of Kibo’s cliffs and ice fields above.  We then moved down and East across several shallow valleys before we crossed a deep and steep sided one -the Karanga Valley- to reach our camp on the opposite rim.  It took roughly four hours to reach Karanga.  We were just in time for lunch and an afternoon snooze.  After dinner we stared up at the Milky Way and the southern cross and Kibo glowing in the moonlight. 

Best Regards

RMI Guide Dave Hahn

Friday, August 5, 2022 7:15 am PDT

Baker Easton Glacier100% summit! Great day of climbing with a Strong Team! 

Thursday, Augsut 4, 2022 6:31 pm PDT

We woke up this morning to some light rain that started sometime during the night. We remained in our tents most of the day taking advantage of the time to nap, rest, and enjoy some of our snacks. Before dinner we freshened up on some more skills in preparation for our climb. We are now cozied up in our sleeping bags and will try for the summit early in the morning. All is well and everyone is excited!

RMI Guides: Ben Luedtke and Augi Fleer

The Four Day Climb led by RMI Guides Steve Gately, and Tatum Whatford reached the summit of Mt. Rainier early this morning. The teams climb under clear windless skies and enjoyed a beautiful sunrise. They are on the descent and will be back at Camp Muir by mid-morning.

Congratulations team! 

When 6:30 rolled around this morning, the clouds were all gone at Shira Camp.  Kibo stood out clear as a bell and so did Meru, the 15,000 ft volcano to our west.  There was still a sea of clouds down below, but they were well below our lofty 12,500 ft camp.  We were walking uphill by 8:30, straight toward Kibo.  It was an easy day for climbing with gentle breezes to keep us cool.  The trail was easier than those we’ve experienced so far and we made good and steady progress.  We reached the Lava Tower at around 12:30 PM and sat down at 15,200 ft for a leisurely lunch in the sun.  Our nine climbers had each broken their personal altitude records.  It was amazing to be so close under Kibo’s gigantic rock and ice faces.   Finally we geared up and started walking down.  We came gradually back into the zones where plants live and then it was wonderful to stroll down through the gardens of Barranco with Giant Senecios and lobelias and Heather.   We made it to camp at 3:30 and ducked into the dining tent for coffee and popcorn.  Coming into camp it was hard not to look over at the Barranco wall and wonder about tomorrow’s climb.  But the beauty of Kibo at sunset and the amazing stars that came out a bit later helped to settle our minds on the present.  We’ll worry about the wall tomorrow. 

Best Regards

RMI Guide Dave Hahn