Entries from Expedition Dispatches
Happy Valentine's Day!
Greetings from La Malinche. We checked out of the hotel this morning just before a huge crowd descended on the Zocalo to celebrate the holiday. The city center has been transformed into a huge tribute to the holiday, with a sound stage and fifty foot tall heart. Getting our bags out to the vans was quite a project as many of the streets are closed.
Traffic was light getting out of the city though and Ixta was in full view. There is much more snow than I've ever seen on it so the climbing conditions should be great.
Once we arrived at La Malinche we hiked for about 4 hours. There were clouds building and distant thunder but we were still able to get to above 13,000 feet. Now we're settled into our cabanas and ready for dinner and a good night's sleep.
I'll check in tomorrow from the Altzimoni Hut on Ixta.
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Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mexico
This is Seth checking in from Mexico City. Seven of our nine climbers have arrived safely. The other two have fallen victim to flight cancellations, but we have arranged special transportation for them. They will meet up with us the day after they arrive in Mexico.
Everything else is going well. We enjoyed a fantastic dinner at Cafe Tacuba complete with mariachi band. Now we're settling in for the night. Tomorrow we'll have breakfast overlooking the Presidential Palace and then head for La Malinche, the former training site for the Mexican olympic team.
Summit success... Now back at basecamp. We had the unfortunate opportunity to see what real wind was all about both on our summit bid and our descent back to basecamp. But now, sitting in real chairs with a hot meal and a successful summit under our belts, everyone knows the hard work was worth it. The crew is elated at the prospect of a hot shower and a real bed on the horizon. Just 1.5 more days of walking til the road, then Mendoza!
100% Summit!
Billy called from the summit this morning. Everyone did well and they are starting their descent back to high camp.
Congratulations Team!
Billy called from their high camp this morning. The weather is beautiful and they are ready to make their summit attempt on Aconcagua in the morning. He will call us from the summit, weather permitting, tomorrow.
Wish them luck!
Today we spent our last rest day of the trip laying around Helicopter Camp (our camp 2). There are actually pieces of a crashed helicopter lying all over camp! Bundles of electronics, sheet metal, etc. can be found scattered about and some creative climbers have even incorporated the debris into rock walls that serve as windbreaks for tents.
Our plan is to head up to Camp Cholera tomorrow morning and make a summit attempt on Friday morning, weather permitting. There is some concern about the wind but we'll see what kind of conditions we wake up to.
Dan would like to send his love to his family; Kristin, Britta, & Anson.
Thanks for following along everyone, we'll try and check in one last time before our summit bid.
A little wind today was no match for our crew as we made short work of our move up to Camp 2 @ 18,000'. Tomorrow will bring our last rest day before we make a concerted push for the summit. Thursday will see us move up to Camp 3, a.k.a. Camp Cholera at just under 20,000' - such a cheerful name. If the weather cooperates we will be making our summit attempt on Friday morning. We'll continue to keep you posted on our progress. Much love to everyone back home!
Well, after a rest day yesterday with crappy weather we awoke this morning to blue skies and very little wind for our carry up to camp 2. The team climbed strongly and it seems after our move uphill tomorrow we should be in a good position to launch our assault on the upper mountain!
Hopefully this high pressure will hold.
We made it to Camp 1! All is well, we're a little tired from battling the wind but our camp is now fortified with rock walls and we're settling in. Tomorrow's forecast calls for a LOT of wind so the plan for now is to rest. Then we hope to carry and move to Camp 2 on Monday and Tuesday when the winds should be a little more calm.
Until tomorrow,
RMI team Alpha 9,000 signing off.
Today saw a lot of wind on our carry up to Camp 1 at just over 16,000'. Lots of difficult walking in loose rock, scree, and icy penitentes brought us up to our first cache where we dropped food, fuel, and gear that will be needed on the upper mountain. Tomorrow calls for another rest and acclimitization day before our move up the mountain the following day. We'll check in again tomorrow.
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