Entries from Expedition Dispatches
The Four Day Summit Climb July 22 - 25 led by Shawn Sears was forced to turn back today at approximately 13,000' due to poor visibility and high winds. The team will return to Camp Muir to rest and repack before continuing their descent to Camp Muir this afternoon.
The Five Day Summit Climb July 21 - 25 led by Dan Windham reached the summit of Mt. Rainier yesterday evening on a sunset climb. The team departed Camp Muir this morning en route to Paradise.
The weather report from Camp Muir this morning included rain and some thunder and lightening to the South East which was quickly moving out of the area.
Congratulations to today's teams!
Hello everyone,
The entire team has safely arrived here in Quito after our long flights from the states. Our late arrivals didn't allow for much other than checking into the hotel and getting a few hours of shut-eye.
We woke to a beautiful day here in Ecuador and had a wonderful breakfast with a nice variety of eggs, sausages, fried plantains, breads, yogurts, and freshly squeezed juices. After washing everything down with plenty of coffee the group met for some introductions and an overview of what's to come over the next few days. We also discussed how to be a savvy tourist while traveling abroad to help keep us from any unwanted situations.
Our plan for the day was to explore a little of this colonial city and visit the equator for which this country is named for. We started off with a visit to the equator where we saw with our own eyes how water spins counter-clockwise in the northern hemisphere and then just a few feet away spins clockwise in the southern hemisphere. Seeing, truly is believing!
After the equator we headed back to town to visit the Panecillo Hill, which has a 135-foot tall statue of the Virgin Mary made up of over 7,000 pieces of aluminum and a beautiful panoramic view of this city with more than 2 million people living in it. We then headed into the old town of Quito to visit the many churches and cathedrals that have been here since the conquistadors arrived in 1535. We visited the San Francisco de Quito, church of La Campania and even had a brief stop at the Presidential Palace. It was a day rich in history and full of amazing views that was enjoyed by all. We finished the day with a wonderful meal and are now
headed off to bed.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew
Brent Okita and the Four Day Summit Climb made the summit this morning with clear skies and 20 mph winds. With such beautiful weather, the team reached the summit early and were already back to the top of Disappointment Cleaver (12,200') at 7:40 a.m.
Congratulations!
The American Lung Association - Climb for Clean Air led by Win Whittaker and JJ Justman reached the summit of Mt. Rainier early this morning. The team was greeted with crisp clear skies and calm winds.
Congratulations to today's teams!
The American Lung Association - Climb for Clean Air led by Jake Beren and our Four Day Summit Climb led by Andres Marin made it to the summit of Mt. Rainier today. The teams had cool temperatures with wind gusts from 35 – 40 mph. As the teams started their descent to Camp Muir winds started to calm and conditions were quite nice.
Congratulations to today's teams!
Our Four Day Summit Climb Team led by Casey Grom, and the Expedition Skills Seminar – Paradise reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. A cap covered the top of the mountain today making visibility low with wind gusts of 30 – 35mph. The teams started their descent back to Camp Muir at 7:26am PST.
Congratulations Teams!
The Four Day Summit Climb July 17 - 20 led by Mike Haugen and Leon Davis checked in at 7:40 a.m. as they were just reaching the crater rim of Mt. Rainier. The teams reported light winds and clear skies. They will return to Camp Muir and then continue their descent to Paradise later this afternoon.
The Five Day Emmons Glacier Climb July 17 - 21 led by Mike Walter also reached the summit of Mt. Rainier today.
Congratulations to today's Summit Climb teams!
Yesterday morning at 1 AM there were unfamiliar voices outside our tents at 7,800' on the Kahiltna Glacier. Someone was calling my name and so I poked my head out into the gloom and falling snow. I was a little surprised to see several of the guides from the teams we'd assumed were still up high on the mountain. The guides pointed to their combined teams taking a restbreak a few hundred feet away and in the poor light I could make out about 40 climbers. They were making a break for the airstrip and they wanted to know if I'd join in with my team. I looked down-glacier through the snow and murk to see... not a whole lot actually, but I quickly warmed to the idea of joining what would be a very strong effort in the route-finding and crevasse detection department. The other teams very graciously waited the hour-and-a-half that it took for us to fire our stoves, eat breakfast and break camp. And then, just as we were roping up, the super team got their packs on and other guides began the process of breaking trail and finding a way. This was a very sweet deal for our team as we merely hopped in at the back of the line and followed along, neatly sidestepping any holes that those near the front of the column had discovered the hard way. I'd somehow assumed that they'd woken me because they wanted me to find the way, but that wasn't the case at all and several very capable guides took turns themselves over the next six hours of working through cloud and murk and snow. It was quite a procession as fifty climbers on about 14 different ropes wound their way down the glacier. These numbers represented every climber left on the mountain... It would be a clean sweep to end the season. My own team's spirits were lightened considerably as we learned that none of the other climbers had summited either and that in fact the storms we'd largely avoided by dropping lower on the mountain were indeed big and mean and real on the upper mountain. Most of all though, my climbers were just happy to be climbing again after two long days sitting around waiting for conditions to improve. By the time we reached basecamp... Or more correctly, the place where Basecamp had been (since there was now nothing but an empty and beautiful glacier) the weather was getting better and some blue sky was developing. We built our tents though and tried not to get our hopes up for an immediate flight. The super group of fifty had one mission in common remaining as we all got out with our snowshoes on to stomp down a strip of snow to give planes an easier takeoff. Sure enough, we'd barely begun to nap when engines were heard and a mad scramble began. K2 Aviation had two big red DeHaviland Otters on skis in for us in no time at all and we were whisked off the glacier and back to Talkeetna by 5 PM. That left enough time for a quick gear sort and a long shower for each climber before dinner. Over burgers and salads at the West Rib, we had a blast toasting and laughing at ourselves and each other as we replayed the high and low points of a fine adventure in the mountains. The nightcap was at the Fairview Inn and then finally we were each in real beds again and sleeping in comfort and safety back in civilization.
Much thanks to guides Lindsay Mann and Geoff Schellens and Zeb Blais for their hard work and to the entire team for being such good sports. And of course thanks to Denali for keeping it all interesting.
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
very nice pic!
Posted by: michelle on 7/20/2011 at 4:34 am
The Four Day Summit Climbs July 16 - 19 led by Seth Waterfall and Pete Van Deventer reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning just after 7 a.m. PT. The teams reported high and low clouds with blue sky showing above and very little wind. They will enjoy some time on top today and then make their way back to Camp Muir and all the way down to Paradise this afternoon.
Congratulations to today's summit climb teams!
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Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley
RMI Guides Dave Hahn, Geoff Schellens, Lindsay Mann and Zeb Blais along with their great crew of climbers have now made the final walk down to the airstrip. Clouds around the mountain have prevented any planes from getting in today. However, the team is excited to be in position to load those planes as soon as the weather clears enough to fly.
We look forward to hearing from the team once they are back in Talkeetna (hopefully soon)!
Can’t wait to hear from you Wayne, Yippppppeeeeeeeeee, love Dinah and Sue
Posted by: dinah rogers on 7/18/2011 at 4:47 pm
Lucy, Corell, and Elsie…HAVE A GREAT TRIP!!!! Can’t wait to hear about your adventures and fun!
-DM
Posted by: Dana Marie Buchanan on 7/25/2011 at 8:27 am
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