Entries from Expedition Dispatches

Mt. McKinley: Dave Hahn & Team Arrive in Talkeetna

June 24, 2015

Posted by: Dave Hahn, Steve Gately, JM Gorum

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley

Elevation: 348'

June 24, 2015 12:35 am PST The final RMI Denali team of 2015 came together today. Six climbers and three guides met up in Anchorage this afternoon, some having come in one or two days previously and some just arriving today after exceedingly long airline extravaganzas. Luckily, the all-important mountain of baggage that will allow us to safely challenge the real mountain made it onto the Anchorage carousels intact. We didn't waste much time at all before boarding our Denali Overland shuttle for Talkeetna. It was a warm and dry day, as has apparently been the pattern in these parts this season. Haze obscured the views we might otherwise have enjoyed of the Alaska Range. Our journey to Talkeetna was broken up by a stop at the big supermarkets of Wasilla to put finishing touches on group and personal food supplies for the trip. We made good time up through the fresh forest fire scars of Willow, AK that have been making national news in recent weeks and rolled into Talkeetna around 8 PM. It didn't take long before we were settled into our comfortable hotel and venturing out together for a relaxing beverage while basking in the strong evening sunshine. Tomorrow we'll get down to the business of climbing North America's highest mountain. Best Regards, RMI Guide Dave Hahn & Team

Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

I will be following the blog every step of the way…good climbing to the group

Posted by: kathie grengs on 6/26/2015 at 10:05 am

Hi Dave -

Just read on your Facebook page about the earthquake up there. Unbelievable. Hope you and the crew have safe climbing days ahead of you. Good Luck !

-Larry Seaton

Posted by: Larry Seaton on 6/24/2015 at 8:25 pm

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Mt. Rainier: June 24th Summit!

June 24, 2015

Posted by: Peter Whittaker, Ed Viesturs, Tyler Jones, Walter Hailes

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier

Elevation: 14,410'

Our Four Day Summit Climb Teams led by RMI Guides Peter Whittaker, Ed Viesturs and Tyler Jones reached the summit of Mt. Rainier early this morning. The Teams reported a beautiful day with light winds and great views. The teams have started their descent and are en route back to Camp Muir. RMI Guide Walter Hailes and the Expedition Skills Seminar - Emmons team reached the Summit of Mt. Rainier in the early morning via the Emmons Route. The team returned to Camp Schurman and will spend the remainder of their time on perfecting their mountaineering skills. They will return to Rainier Basecamp on Thursday afternoon. Congratulations to Today's teams!

Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

I was so lucky to have great guides and awesome teammates, as well as blessed by good weather on Mount Rainier. Biggest peak of my life so far, and thanks to Tyler, Jess and Josh!

Posted by: Phil Knight on 7/2/2015 at 8:15 am

Wow, so impressed, so relieved, so proud of you Chris, my amazing Daughter in Law. You keep on meeting challenges with determination, grace and grit! Love you very much, Mama Carol

Posted by: Carol Waring on 6/25/2015 at 9:11 am

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Mt. McKinley: Haugen and Team Move to 14,000’ Ready For Summit Attempt

June 24, 2015

Posted by: Mike Haugen, Mike Uchal, Pepper Dee

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley

Elevation: 17,000'

June 23, 2015 9:51 pm PST We had a successful move up to 17,000 foot camp on Mt. McKinley. The weather was perfect for traveling on the fixed lines and above. Climbing on the amazing ridge that crests the West Buttress of Denali is always one of my favorite parts of the climb because of the beautiful rock an the exposure. I think all of the El Siete boys had a good time weaving through the rocks and snow that provide the natural protection on the ridge. As of now, we are planning to try to summit tomorrow. The forecast looks good and the crew is ready. Wish us luck! RMI Guide Mike Haugen

On The Map

Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

Craig,
Will be in Talkeetna to play at the Fairview Inn on Wednesday. Hope to see you then if you have not flown out already.
Bom sucesso!!!
Nick

Posted by: Nick Kantar on 6/24/2015 at 3:59 pm

Proud of you Mr. Chowdry….to the top my friend

Posted by: Tony on 6/24/2015 at 3:51 pm

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Mt. McKinley: Nugent & Team Cache Gear Higher on the Mountain

June 23, 2015

Posted by: Billy Nugent, Mike King, Sean Collon

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley

Elevation: 11,200'

Tuesday June 23rd 6:48 pm PT Greetings from another partly cloudy day here on Denali. Great weather and calm winds enabled us to push a cache up the mountain today around Windy Corner just shy of Camp 4. We were afforded glimpses of blue skies and the upper mountain through the clouds while we were preparing and covering up our supplies. We actually stumbled upon a perfectly sized cache hole abandoned by another party so little digging was necessary. Between that and the weather we've been making out pretty easy thus far. No matter, our team is gelling well and ready for the challenges that lie ahead. Sitting pretty back at 11... RMI Guide Billy Nugent

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I am glad to hear that about a father and son team climbing together. As we climb mountains we get stronger physically, but as we face mountains in our faith we must climb over them and as we do we get stronger in our faith. Remember that God is with you on every step and that He will never leave you so all of us are always with our Heavenly Father as we climb

Posted by: Kevin Stone on 6/25/2015 at 8:12 am

Doug, been thinking about your trek back to Denali often, and wish you good weather and good companionship as you reach this next goal. Best of luck and stay safe!

Posted by: William on 6/24/2015 at 8:31 pm

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Mt. Baker: Davis and Team Reach Summit

June 23, 2015

Posted by: Leon Davis, Chase Nelson

Categories: Expedition Dispatches North Cascades

Elevation: 10,781'

In the North Cascades, RMI Guides Leon Davis and Chase Nelson led their team to the summit of Mt. Baker via the North Ridge today. Leon reported a great day of "full on climbing" with beautiful weather. This marks RMI's first Mt. Baker summit of the season. Congratulations climbers!

Mt. Rainier: June 23rd Teams Summit!

June 23, 2015

Posted by: Brent Okita, Pete Van Deventer

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier

Elevation: 14,410'

The Four Day Summit Climb team led by RMI Guide Brent Okita and the Five Day Summit Climb led by RMI Guide Pete Van Deventer reached the summit of Mt. Rainier around 6:45 am. Brent reported good weather with 25 mph winds. The teams spent about an hour on the summit before beginning their descent at 7:45 am.

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Woohoo! Can’t wait to hear all about it! What an adventure.

Posted by: Barb & Mark on 6/23/2015 at 12:01 pm

Yeah!! I am so excited for the entire team, I can’t wait to see more photos. AWESOME!!! I am so proud of you Miki!!!!

Posted by: Christine on 6/23/2015 at 9:33 am

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Ecuador Seminar: Walter & Team Head to the Illiniza Climber’s Hut

June 23, 2015

Posted by: Mike Walter

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Ecuador

June 23, 2015 6:31 am PST We enjoyed a relaxing evening at the Papallacta hot springs last night. After a leisurely breakfast this morning, we are packing up and heading off to the Illiniza climbers' hut. To get there we have a 3 hour hike ahead of us, carrying our sleeping bags and climbing gear to get to an altitude of about 15,400'. It will be hard work, and a stark contrast to leisurely soaking in the hot springs. But our team is up for the task, and it will be worth it; the hut sits at the saddle between the south (17,267') and north (16,818') Iliniza peaks, the 6th and 8th highest peaks in Ecuador, respectively. If weather and conditions allow us, we are prepared to climb both peaks over the next two days. We'll keep you posted on our progress. RMI Guide Mike Walter

Mt. McKinley: Haugen & Team Gear Up for Move to High Camp

June 23, 2015

Posted by: Mike Haugen, Mike Uchal, Pepper Dee

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley

Elevation: 14,000'

June 22, 2015 11:30 pm PST We spent what is hopefully our last day at 14,000 feet resting and getting geared up to move to our High Camp at 17,000 feet. It started out very sunny, but soon the clouds climbed up and whited us out. The clouds gave us a dusting of snow as well as some reprieve from the brutal solar radiation that can come with the sunny skies high on a mountain. The weather is looking good for us to move up and make a push to the top over the next couple of days. Wish us luck and do your good weather jigs for us. RMI Guide Mike Haugen

On The Map

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Doug -Thinking of you Bro and following the progress closely. Sending all our good energy here to you and the team. Go get it! —Don

Posted by: Don Watson on 6/24/2015 at 7:35 am

Good luck to the whole team! Doing the good weather dance and sending good vibes across the miles to all of you. Judi

Posted by: Judi on 6/23/2015 at 2:28 pm

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Mt. McKinley: Nugent & Team Resting at 11,200’ Camp

June 22, 2015

Posted by: Billy Nugent, Mike King, Sean Collon

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley

Elevation: 11,200'

June 22, 2015 - 6:34 pm PT Greetings from day two up here at 11 Camp where our team is resting after a pretty mellow back-carry down to 9,600'. We retrieved the cache of food and fuel we left behind yesterday on our move up and have been enjoying partly cloudy skies and pretty civilized temperatures thus far. The team has been taking advantage of the good weather by staying on the move. Tomorrow we're hoping to put a cache in up around Windy Corner at around 13,900' that will hopefully set us up well for a move up to Camp 4 at just over 14,000' in the next few days. Everyone is moving well and excited to keep on pushing up the mountain bit by bit. Not much else to report other than that the mountain feels quite empty. Not that we're lonely or anything, just enjoying some relatively uncommon solitude up here. All's well thus far! RMI Guide Billy Nugent

On The Map

Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

Hey Doug, You’re in new territory. Keep it going.
Jean & Richard

Posted by: Jean Krohn on 6/23/2015 at 6:30 pm

You are almost there! Miss you lots Charlie!

Posted by: Katelynn on 6/23/2015 at 4:02 pm

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Ecuador Seminar: Walter and Team Thwarted by Winds on Cayambe

June 22, 2015

Posted by: Mike Walter

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Ecuador

Elevation: 17,500'

I woke up to check the weather early this morning (last night, actually) and was pleased to see a clear sky full of stars. The problem was that it was so windy outside I could barely stand up. So, back into the hut I went to wait for the weather to improve. Winds died down a bit (it's all relative) and we began to prepare to climb around 2:00 am. We were on the move by around 3:30 am. Everyone climbed very strong, despite fighting the wind to keep our balance. Clouds were interspersed with stars as we ascended. By the time we reached 17,500 ft. we had walked into a cloud cap with winds gusting into the 50 mph range with about 100 ft. of visibility. It was time to throw in the towel and start our descent. Everything went smoothly and soon we arrived at the climbers' hut. We enjoyed a fun and challenging day of climbing, even though we came up a bit shy of the summit. Now we're headed for the Papallacta Hot Springs where we'll get a good night's rest before heading out tomorrow on another climbing objective. We'll keep you abreast of the latest. RMI Guide Mike Walter

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Entries from Expedition Dispatches

Mt. McKinley: Dave Hahn & Team Arrive in Talkeetna

Mt. Rainier: June 24th Summit!

Mt. McKinley: Haugen and Team Move to 14,000’ Ready For Summit Attempt

On The Map

Mt. McKinley: Nugent & Team Cache Gear Higher on the Mountain

On The Map

Mt. Baker: Davis and Team Reach Summit

Mt. Rainier: June 23rd Teams Summit!

Ecuador Seminar: Walter & Team Head to the Illiniza Climber’s Hut

Mt. McKinley: Haugen & Team Gear Up for Move to High Camp

On The Map

Mt. McKinley: Nugent & Team Resting at 11,200’ Camp

On The Map

Ecuador Seminar: Walter and Team Thwarted by Winds on Cayambe

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