Entries from Expedition Dispatches
Skiing in Antarctica is not something I ever really thought I would do. I'm not sure anyone on our team thought they would get the opportunity for that matter.
But, this morning, the sun popped out from behind Vinson, bringing the temps to a reasonable level (perhaps zero?) and dropping the wind. A quick breakfast, some coffee, and we geared up to begin the day.
Our first foray was onto a small slope just above basecamp with some big crevasses and seracs. The team made some great turns in marginal snow, and had a lot of fun. By late afternoon, the sun had moved around, casting great shadows on some nice, big terrain across the valley from us. Splitting up, Peter, Caroline, and Seth went down to skin up a nice rib on the shoulder of the Branscomb, while Kent and I cruised up another hill to get in position to shoot.
Having shot only a little skiing before, I turned to Kent to help choose the right place to shoot. A veteran of many big ski shoots, he's quite the expert...the only difference being here in Antarctica there are no helicopters or Ski-Doo's to move us from place to place - only our own power.
So, we set up on a beautiful ridge, looking across an enormous valley with long shadows of the team skinning into position. Eventually, on cue, they dropped down some 1,000 feet, kicking up beautiful snow into the low, evening light. By then, it was 8:00 PM, and time to skin an hour back to camp and make dinner.
Only a couple of runs for the day, but the scenery, conditions, locale, and team couldn't be beat. We're all excited for tomorrow.
Hello everybody, this is Peter checking in with First Ascent/RMI ski team here at Vinson basecamp. And we just finished a fantastic day of skiing. We transitioned yesterday from the climb into skiing today and we went out and skied some shoulders and glacial areas right on the side of the runway here at Vinson base. And in the morning had a nice session and kinda got our ski legs under us and testing the snow and the slopes. This afternoon we went over, down valley a couple miles and off to some shoulders and planks, to the south and the snow was unbelievable. Two – three inches of some of the most beautiful, most sparkling snow that I've ever seen and we had just a great afternoon/ evening. We got back to camp at about 9 PM. Once again, Jake’s going to try and push out some images to show you what I'm talking about, but it was surreal and just an amazing ski day today, a beautiful snow in the most beautiful place in the world. And almost spiritual really, really, nice and so we're all stoked. We're back in camp and finishing dinner and then gonna hit the rack. Tomorrow will be one more day of skiing here and then we've got the maps out and we are plotting to find a piece between here and Union Glacier and we'll take the twin otter probably day after tomorrow to get up in the air and look around for just the perfect mountain that is unclimbed and unskied. So that's our plan. All is well here. Everyone’s healthy, happy, and really stoked about the turns we got today. We will check in with you tomorrow. And everybody have a good evening and we'll talk soon.
Peter describes the team's first day of skiing
The group woke for the third morning under the shadows of Ameghino and our objective, Cerro Aconcagua. The skies were a brilliant blue, and excitement ran high in the group over breakfast as everyone prepared for the day's carry to Camp 1 (16,350'). Group loads of food were doled out, and the group took up the slow, but steady pace that will be our mantra for the rest of the climb.
It took us 4 1/2 hours to reach Camp 1. We took a nice 45 minute rest there and then we headed down to basecamp arriving by 5:00 pm. The descent took us less than half of our ascent time. Route conditions between basecamp and Camp 1 were very nice compared with what I have experienced in the last 10 years.
Tomorrow we will take one more rest day with the relative comforts of basecamp, before our move to Camp 1. We've received some of the posts left on the blog, and we are all grateful for your well-wishes.
Signing off,
Gabriel Barral and the RMI Aconcagua expedition
Tomorrow we will take one more rest day with the relative comforts of basecamp, before our move to Camp 1. We've received some of the posts left on the blog, and we are all grateful for your well-wishes.
Signing off,
Gabriel Barral and the RMI Aconcagua expedition
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After many days of going without much of a stop, we took a good rest day today.
It started off wonderfully, with Caroline cooking up a good batch of bacon and powdered eggs - darn good down here in Antarctica.
After that, there was much gear sorting, drying gloves and socks and other items in tents under the warm sun. And, for Ed, Cindy, David, and Ben, packing in
anticipation of a Twin Otter coming to ferry them down to Union Glacier this afternoon.
At 5:00, we finally heard the low-pitch whine of propellers coming over Vinson, and caught sight of the Otter flying in after picking up two scientists on the other
side of the peak. A powdery landing on the glacier, and two Ski-Doo's were offloaded to make room for our team. Before long, the Otter was in flight again; Ed, Cindy,
David, and Ben are back now at Union Glacier, awaiting an Ilyushin flight on to Punta Arenas.
Peter, Seth, Caroline, Kent, and I are settling in, eager to begin the next phase of our Antarctic journey: ski. Tomorrow, we'll sniff around VBC a bit, ski some
lines, get a feel for the snow, and scour our maps for less-tracked terrain for the days to come.
Much fun awaits...
-Jake Norton
Hey everyone, this is Peter Whittaker calling in from Vinson Base Camp. It's about 7 PM and I'm on the runway here. We have a Twin Otter just touching down right now behind me, you're going to hear it. It just flew from Union Glacier and is coming in to pick up Ed and Cindy and Dave and Ben to take them from Vinson Base Camp back to Union Glacier. The rest of us are going to stay here and start the ski portion of our trip. [It's] beautiful today, it actually warmed up a little bit, probably somewhere around 0. This plane is a Twin Otter, we'll see if Jake can push a picture out of it. It's just taxiing in right now and is going to pull up next to us. These guys are going to load on get back to Union Glacier and, hopefully, get back to Punta Arenas with the Ilyushin this evening as well. I'm going to keep talking here, just a little bit longer as this thing taxis in. The Twin Otter is capable of holding twenty people and a bunch of bags. It's pretty impressive to watch these things land on the glacier here. [Pause] And he is just starting pull around over here. We will probably end this call and maybe try again right when he takes off to get you guys a little bit of the experience of standing on a glacier with a Twin Otter on skis revving up to take off.
[Break]
Hello, it's Peter again and I'm next to the Twin Otter and it's just about ready to fire up. We're going to listen to a little bit of the audio from Vinson Base Camp here at 7,000'. Four team members, Ed and Cindy and Dave and Ben are loaded on the plane and waving out the windows at me right now as this Twin Otter fires up to fly from Vinson Base back to Union Glacier. The rest of the team, myself and Jake, Kent, Seth, and Caroline are going to stay here and ski. The plan is to ski for a couple of days here on the glacier and then head back about a hundred miles to Union Glacier looking for a peak that hasn't been climbed or skied before. We're going to be dropped there and spend three or four days doing first ascents and first ski descents. Okay, I'm going to shut up here and we'll listen to this Twin Otter here as it powers up as it heads off the glacier here back to Union Glacier where hopefully these guys can be picked up by the Ilyushin very soon.
[Break]
Okay, one more try, the Twin Otter taking off. Here it comes. [Engine Noise] Bye bye plane.
Peter Whittaker calls in as the plane lands at Base Camp
After yesterday's trip up to Basecamp, the team is enjoying a much-deserved rest day today. While most of us were woken by the 'whop whop whop' of a helicopter as it flew in with a load of supplies, others had already been up due to the cacophony of snores throughout camp. Warm, sunny skies greeted us for our breakfast of eggs with cheese, coffee and juice. The next order of business was a trip to the medical shelter for a quick check with the doctors to make sure everyone was acclimatizing well for our push further up the mountain. Everyone passed with flying colors. The afternoon ahead looks to be filled with eating, drinking, and rounds of backgammon. We will be making our first carry to Camp 1 tomorrow and are hoping for the forecasted weather of sun and light winds. Until tomorrow,
The RMI Aconcagua Expedition
Back to Base
The great climber and author Greg Child once wrote: "Somewhere between the bottom of the climb and the top is the answer to the question of why we climb."
Climbing, and the reason we do it, is an elusive thing. There is no straightforward, definitive answer, and I've struggled with it since I began climbing in 1986. I guess to some extent it's relative to each person. For some, it may be the overall challenge. Others are motivated perhaps by a specific summit or group thereof. To each his or her own.
For me, as I labored under a heavy pack today, dragging a laden sled behind me, the question arose as it often does: Why am I doing this? Why am I thousands of miles from my children, my wife, my home and my friends, struggling in tough conditions with aching feet and a sunburned nose? Why?
It was as if the mountain heard my query. As I moved, a gentle breeze brought a layer of Antarctic ice fog up the glacial valley. The sun above was muted, and a giant, iridescent sun-dog formed above me. The frigid snow crunched beneath my feet, and massive walls of rock, snow, and ice rose in every direction. It was absolutely silent, and yet deafening in its majesty.
Yes, this is why I climb. These moments of solitude that are wholly grounding, humbling, and innately inspiring. They rarely come to me on top of a mountain, and are never predictable. But, they always come, they always inspire, and they never cease to make all the pain, cold, suffering, and challenge worth it.
I now sit in my tent at Vinson Basecamp, the sun peeking through a thick fog above. The team is all happy and fulfilled, laughter and conversation filtering around.
It's been a great handful of days on Mount Vinson. Tomorrow, or the next day, Ed, Cindy, David, and Ben will fly off on a Twin Otter, and the rest of us - Peter Seth, Caroline, Kent, and I - will stay on to do some skiing and climbing.
More adventures await.
-Jake Norton
Peter Whittaker calls from Basecamp
Hi All!
The Aconcagua climb is checking in excited to say that we have arrived at our basecamp at Plaza Argentina. The team got an early start so that we could have some help from our mules in crossing the Rio de Vacas, just outside of camp. Over the course of the 3,200' to basecamp, we left tracks for a group of our francophone friends through the rolling hills above the chasm of the Rio Relinchos. The bright white of fresh snow on Ameghino and Aconcagua contrasted with our arid surroundings, and a brilliant blue sky made for spectacular photographs and high spirits.
We arrived in the Plaza Argentina to a bodaciously bountiful reception of salami, cheese, olives, and cake from our outfitter. The crew is resting and beginning to acclimate. On tap for tomorrow: our first rest day of the trip! Everyone is well and sends their best.
Signing off
-The RMI Aconcagua Expedition
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Did I say Antarctica wasn't cold? Well, I was just kidding. Antarctica, especially high up with a stiff wind, is really, really, really cold.
Our day today started reasonably enough, with a bright sun high in the sky and reasonable temperatures for walking. The team moved well out of High Camp along the seemingly endless glacial valley leading toward Vinson's summit.
About 2 hours into the journey, Vinson decided to give us a little test. The wind began to pick up, and suddenly we could all feel the frigid cold biting at any exposed skin and dropping our core temperatures degree by degree. Time to layer up. In moments, we all donned our custom Peak XV Antarctica down jackets and pants, shutting the wind and cold out, at least somewhat.
But, it gets tricky in situations like this. The thick down insulates well, and keeps you warm and toasty. But, you still have to move uphill, and that generates heat. Too much heat, and you start to sweat. Sweat out your baselayers, and you're going to get cold sooner or later. So, climbing in these situations is an exercise in zipper running, hat pulling, and sleeve pushing; it is a constant battle to maintain that thermal equilibrium, right on the line between too cold and too hot.
With that obstacle added to our climb, we kept moving, everyone doing well and chugging right along. Before long, the route made a sharp right-hand turn, and began climbing steeply toward the summit ridge. And, now, Vinson decided to show us what she could do. The temperature had dropped as we ascended, to about -30 degrees C on the summit ridge, and then the wind really picked up. We estimate about 30 miles per hour fairly consistently...In other words, enough wind and cold to make it the coldest day I've ever experienced on any mountain, anywhere. And, Ed Viesturs, who's got a handful of cold mountains under his belt, agreed that it was the coldest summit day in his memory. That's cold.
We were close now, though, and kept pushing onward, trying to check cheeks, noses, ears, etc., for frostnip - which can come on quickly in such conditions. Along with the wind, Vinson's final curveball was the largely-moderate terrain of the lower mountain finally transitioned to a steeper, more exposed ridge for the final push. But, it was manageable, and soon we were all celebrating and shivering on top of Antarctica.
I've been fortunate enough to travel to some unique places and mountains over the years, but must admit that Antarctica, and Mount Vinson, is one of the most spectacular. To gaze out from the summit at the jagged peaks of the Ellsworth Mountains, which eventually yield and give way to a vast sea of glacier, is simply beyond words.
We spent a few minutes on top, taking pictures, congratulating one another, and of course pulling out the 1966 Alaska Flag for it's final foray on the summit of Vinson. And, then, it was time to go. It's too easy to linger on such summits, and in the abusive cold and wind, we needed to get down fast. Everyone moved well downhill, and we're all now in our tents, enjoying the warmth of a sunny tent and a full belly. Sleep will come quickly tonight, and will be well earned by all.
Tomorrow...well, there's still work to be done. All our gear needs to somehow make its way from High Camp down the fixed lines and all the way to Vinson Basecamp. We'll sleep well, and work hard tomorrow.
And, yes, in case I ever forget, Antarctica is COLD!!
-Jake Norton
Hey everyone, Peter here and just checking in. We are back down at high camp. We had a very windy summit. I'm not sure if our call got out. We tried to communicate from on top. It was very cold, very windy. But we had a great successful climb today with everyone reaching the summit and we even took some time to get some great production. There should be some stills heading your way now. Some images from our climb today. Super cold. Super windy. But we're all very happy to be back down at high camp where there's just a slight breeze. And it's about 8:30 right now, the sun is still very high in the sky. Tomorrow we will break camp and see if we can make it back to base camp. We had an awesome summit day. It was beautiful. It definitely pressed us. And we're all going to sleep tonight pretty darn happy. So, that's it for now and we’ll talk soon.
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Peter Whittaker checking in from high camp after summit
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Hi, regards all :)
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Posted by: ShawnSpeed on 2/4/2011 at 5:31 am
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