Entries from Expedition Dispatches
June 26, 2017
Well we didn't go for our carry after all. Even though we were up early and the day was beautiful. Over breakfast the decision was made to take a rest day instead. All are well, but we've been climbing hard and we are still relatively new to
14,000 ft... we'll bide our time. We did rope up and go for an enjoyable stroll to the "Edge of The World" to look straight down to the NE Fork of the Kahiltna Glacier and across to the West Rib of Denali. We posed for pictures and enjoyed the sunshine. The afternoon in camp was pretty peaceful -as we'd hoped would be the case. We chatted with teams descending the mountain and read our books and took our naps. At dinner, it was story night with each team member recounting some adventure, or misadventure for the group. Tomorrow we'll get back to climbing.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
On The Map
June 26, 2017
Today was a well deserved rest day! Yesterday was quite the endeavor and I think everyone was happy to not have an alarm clock to answer to. We stayed cozied in our sleeping bags until the sun hit our tents and the warmth beckoned us out around 9:45 am. Emerging from our tents we wet straight into a leisurely Quesadilla breakfast, a special request by Pepper Dee, who turned 26 today! Later in the day we took a walk to the
Edge of the World and everyone got to strike a pose while peering out over the vast expanse of glaciers and mountain peaks. I may be bias but I think the best picture involved a blow up couch that the birthday boy had hauled up all the way from base camp! We finished the day off with a quick dinner and chat about plans for tomorrow. If the weather cooperates we will be headed to 17,000' camp in order to be in position for our summit bid! Yeehaw!
Good night from 14!
RMI Guide Mike Haugen
On The Map
Good evening from
Huaraz! We're ready to launch our adventure into the mountains tomorrow. We're all packed up and ready after a nice day of acclimatizing and resting around here. We hiked to Churup lake, at 14,200ft in the morning, to then come down for a good late lunch as a team. We caught up on our sleep with a well earned nap in between packing, that help with recovering from international traveling and driving across Perú the last couple days.
Our next check in will be from the mountains! Stay tuned.
RMI Guide Elías de Andres Martos
We left Quito early this morning and headed north towards our main objective, Cayambe. Today’s agenda, though, was our second acclimatization climb up Fuya Fuya, an extinct volcano that rises up above 14,000’. Fuya Fuya rises up from the beautiful crater lake, Mojanda. The climb started with a hike up a trail through high altitude grassland that got steeper with every step. Just shy of the summit, the climb got even steeper and involved some fun rock scrambling to get to the top. The weather was good, but cloudy, with intermittent views of the surrounding peaks and valleys. After a steep descent we were back at our vehicle and headed to Guachala, our hacienda for tonight. Tomorrow we will visit the market in Otavalo and then head up to the climbing hut on Cayambe where we’ll spend two nights and hopefully grab a summit.
R
MI Guide Mike Walter
On The Map
Just a quick one to say we made it to
St. Petersburg safe and sound this afternoon despite a few thunderstorms on arrival. A little bit of culture shock being back in the city after our time in the mountains but we're looking forward to a city dining experience this evening...
RMI Guide Tyler Reid
June 25, 2017
We must be doing something right to deserve this many days in a row with good weather! The team had a great day working our way up to cache gear, food, and fuel at
17,000 ft Camp. The ridge that leads up to high camp provides some incredible climbing and amazing views. A few of our climbers commented that it was the best climbing that they have ever done. The team did so great that we earned a rest day tomorrow before we position ourselves up at high camp the day after. Superstitiously, we all agreed not to take a shower as long as this good weather holds. This shouldn't be too tough to abide by as the nearest shower is a weeks walk away!
RMI Guide Mike Haugen
On The Map
The Four Day Summit Climb June 23 - 26, 2017 reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning with cold temperatures and slight winds. RMI Guide Tyler Jones and team were on their descent by 7:15 am and returning to Camp Muir. The team will take a short break to eat and re-pack before continuing their descent to Paradise.
Congratulations to today's Summit Climb team!
Greetings from Huaraz!
Do you like movies? Recognize the Paramount Pictures' logo? Well... that mountain exists, and we're off to climb it!!!
After a day of international traveling, and a night in Peru's capital, Lima, we drove north through the Pacific coastal desert, then through a section of Peruvian farmland where chili peppers are getting dried in the sun and finally, over the 14,000-foot pass of Conococha to arrive in Huaraz, the gateway of the "Callejon de Huaylas" Valley. This is where the
Cordillera Blanca Range extends for nearly 100 miles. We checked in to our hotel, and a clear evening provided a great view of the mountains to the Northeast form the terraces of our rooms in the Hotel Andino, an incredible facility, where after four years, we're part of the family now.
We're off to bed, excited for our acclimatization hike tomorrow. Stay tuned as we start our expedition.
RMI Guide Elias de Andres Martos and team
We set out early this morning for our first acclimatization climb. The day started with a gondola ride from Quito to ~13,500’. Then the fun began. We headed west on a well-defined trail that followed a ridge on the shoulder of
Rucu Pichincha. As the hiking continued, the trail got steeper and the air didn’t get any thicker. After a couple hundred feet of rock scrambling we arrived at the summit of Rucu Pichincha (~15,700’). Views were sporadic as clouds moved in and out. When the views were there, though, they were stunning, looking down on Quito almost 7,000’ below. The weather was pleasant and we spent a decent amount of time relaxing up top. Then we retraced our steps and rode the gondola back to town. Now, back at our hotel, we’re cleaning up, resting, and packing for an early departure tomorrow to head north towards the town of Otovalo where we’ll tackle our second acclimatization hike, this time to an ancient volcano called Fuya Fuya.
RMI Guide Mike Walter
On The Map
Everyone slept great last night after a big day yesterday. Today's activities included a beautiful morning walk from the village of
Cheget to Azau, where we enjoyed a leisurely lunch at the Freeride Cafe. Afternoon horseback riding included an exciting river ford and a visit to the valley's mineral springs. This evening we celebrated our successful climb with Yuriy, our local Russian guide who's climbed
Mt. Elbrus "maybe 200 times...maybe 300. I've stopped counting many years ago." BBQ lamb, potato pancakes, Russian salads, and of course, vodka... tomorrow it's another alpine start as we head for St. Petersburg. All is great in Russia.
RMI Guide Tyler Reid
On The Map
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Jim, You be the MAN! Onward and upward indeed. I’ll be toasting you- and missing you- at the Casino cocktail party this weekend. Meanwhile, a stiff Kraken rum drink awaits at the Martin Box. Your pal at sea level, Peter
Posted by: Peter Krogh on 6/28/2017 at 6:49 am
My jaw hit the ground when I looked up where you are my friend! Incredible to see the pictures and progress you and your team are making. Be safe and I’ll see ya back in Ohio!!!
Posted by: Gary O'Donnell on 6/27/2017 at 8:13 pm
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