Entries from Expedition Dispatches
RMI Guide Nick Scott and the Five Day Climb July 9 - 12 reached the summit of Mt. Rainier with their entire team this morning. Based on the forecast the team opted to climb this morning rather than the last day of their program. They will spend tonight at Camp Muir and enjoy more time on the mountain before descending to Paradise tomorrow.
Congratulations to all the climbers!
Four Day Climb July 6 - 9 led by RMI Guide Brent Okita reached the summit of Mt. Rainier with their entire team this morning. Brent reported a beautiful day on the mountain and a great route.
Congratulations to today's climbers!
RMI Guide Andy Bond and the Expedition Skills Seminar - Kautz July 5 - 10 reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. Andy reported great weather and route conditions and the team enjoyed an hour on the summit. They will return to High Camp for additional training and their final night on the mountain.
Congratulations to the entire team for reaching the summit!
Great job team!!!
Go daddy says Lily and Jax!!!
Have fun and be safe
Posted by: Ginny Gathright on 7/9/2019 at 9:22 am
Posted by: Dave Hahn, Hannah Smith, Chad Gaffigan, Luke Wilhelm
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley
Elevation: 348'
Tuesday, July 9, 2019 - 1:11 AM PT
The longest day. The weather remained stable and perfect... to a scary extent. Some of us lay awake last night at 14,000 just listening to the violent detonations of rock hitting ice and snow at terminal velocity. The high temps were to blame and those high temperatures were part and parcel of the prolonged good weather that allowed us to summit. For those monitoring the rockfall, it was a relief that wake-up time was at 11 PM. Best to be up and busy eating and packing then to be hearing rock and imagining worst case scenarios for a team passing Windy Corner ridiculously close up under the cliffs. We were walking at 12:30 AM and soon got to see the battlefields where car-sized chunks of granite had left deep tracks and impact craters on either side of the “trail”. Sure enough, in the zone where rockfall danger demanded our fullest attention, the track began to go over crevasse after crevasse and crappy bridge after crappy bridge. We struggled (as every one does) the then, surprisingly, the route got better. We were pleased to find things frozen up and easy travel far below the point where we’d been told to expect freezing.
Once at 11,000' the nature of travel changed. We traded crampons for snowshoes and ice axes for ski poles. The morning/evening light was brilliant on Denali. Conditions on the lower glacier were way better than we expected. We just kept trudging as the light changed and found ourselves walking up Heartbreak Hill starting at 9:30 AM. It was 11:30 before we were at the “upper strip” on the SE Fork with all of our Basecamp caches relocated from the lower strip. Our pickup arrived just after 3 PM. We loaded and lifted off and flew into smoke as the pilots pointed their Otters toward Talkeetna. We got out of the planes in down jackets... immediately appreciating that the ambient temp at TKA was over 90 degrees F. Afternoon was then spent drying gear and reconnecting to the world. We met for a celebratory dinner at the West Rib and discussed our good fortune. Day 19 was a long one, but also a very good one.
Best Regards
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Sounds like a scary end to your trip! Glad everyone is safe. Hope you all are enjoying a Great dinner, hot shower, and comfy bed!
Posted by: Shannon Smith on 7/9/2019 at 7:11 pm
Posted by: Mike Haugen, Jenny Konway, Grayson Swingle
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley
Elevation: 348'
Monday, July 8, 2019 - 7:36 PM PT
We woke up yesterday to a fabulous day to fly back to Talkeetna. Our monumental effort to get back to basecamp and the airstrip paid off as we barely had time to make coffee in the morning before the Otter ski planes came to pick us up.
We returned to shocking 90 degree temperatures. Having been on an icy mountain for the better part of the month, our sweat glands definitely got a workout.
The crew exploded their packs and duffel bags, dried out and sorted gear, and then repacked for our travels home.
After a dinner to celebrate our amazing adventure together, everyone needed the sleep we were deprived of for the last few days.
Thank you RMI Siete for the great adventure and the amazing efforts and attitude that lead to a very successful expedition.
RMI Guide Mike Haugen
Good evening again, this time from Yanapacha Moraine camp. After a good rest/acclimatizing rest day yesterday, we moved uphill today, and established our home for the next couple of nights in the vecinity of the glacier at 4800m. The hike was one the most beautiful ones that this guide remembers, with giants like Huandoy, Chacraraju and Huascarán North guarding our ascent over the steep grassy slopes on the foothills of Yanapacha.
Everyone did a good job, arriving ahead of schedule and we enjoyed an incredible meal pre-cooked by our chef Emilio. French fries with a beef stir fry was a hit at this elevation. We waved good bye to our porters, and as the sun went down, we crawled into our sleeping bags to remain warm and keep the psych for tomorrow's endeavor on Yanapacha. Stay tuned for more,
Guides Peter, JT, Elias & team.
Sounds amazing! Have a great experience Ryan and Sheena. Yuca is doing well.
Posted by: Terry Wisler on 7/9/2019 at 4:05 am
Hi Aunt Kim! Sounds like another amazing adventure!! Tell Emilio to save some fries for me…love, @luckysuperstarcat, Sophia, Lora & Michael
Posted by: Lucky Superstar on 7/8/2019 at 9:16 pm
An early start, a few van rides, and a quick flight have landed us in Cheget, at the foot of the Caucasus Mountains. It ends up being a pretty full travel day getting here, but we had enough time to walk around town, sample some local beverages, and gawk at our high elevation surroundings. The pace here is much slower than in Moscow.
Tomorrow we’ll hop on a chairlift in town and do some walking around at altitude...should be pretty nice.
RMI Guide JM Gorum
On The Map
Hope you have a great climb and beautiful weather! Can’t wait to see the pictures. Love you Tyler!
Posted by: donna shearburn on 7/9/2019 at 3:33 pm
Saint Petersburg!!!
We traveled all day and have finally arrived in one of the most beautiful cities of Europe. Things went relatively smooth considering we had two van rides and one flight. We got checked into the hotel and then ran out for a quick dinner followed by a short but scenic stroll.
Everyone is very excited to explore and see this city tomorrow.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and team
With perfect weather conditions, the Four Day Climb led by RMI Guide Steve Gately reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. Steve reported warm temperatures and zero wind on the summit. After taking some celebratory photos and enjoying the views, the Four Day Climb began their descent from the summit shortly after 9:00 AM. The team will return to Rainier BaseCamp in Ashford this afternoon.
Way to go, climbers!
Congratulations we are so happy for everyone and Bob wishes he could have been there again
Posted by: Bob & Karen Mullen on 7/9/2019 at 9:13 am
Way to go! Especially proud of you Matt Jelinske! Can’t wait to hear all about it!
Posted by: Lisa Jelinske on 7/8/2019 at 5:36 pm
RMI Guide Jess Matthews and the Five Day Climb reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning with perfect weather conditions. The team reported warm temperatures and zero wind. After spending some time celebrating on the summit the team began their descent to Camp Muir shortly after 9:00 AM. The team will be back in Ashford this afternoon.
Congratulations climbers!
Congrats! We left some beer in Ashford for you guys to celebrate with. :)
Posted by: Derek Hertel on 7/8/2019 at 9:29 pm
Congratulations team!!! So excited for you!
Posted by: Kris Ramilo on 7/8/2019 at 7:38 pm
Thank you guides and team.
What a great experience!
Posted by: Helen COUNTRYMAN on 7/10/2019 at 1:36 pm
CONGRATULATIONS & thanks for taking care of my son
Karen
Posted by: KAREN MULLEN on 7/9/2019 at 6:22 pm
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