Entries from Expedition Dispatches

Alright, we are rested and have pressed the reset button. A rest day in Puebla is always well deserved for a group that has been tromping around in the mountains and enduring long bus rides. Rest day activities included all the standard stuff: museums, sampling local coffees, the bouldering gym, walking around the historic city center and a nice team dinner.

We are now on the bus, headed for Tlachichuca and it's a nice morning. Everyone is hopeful that the weather will be better than on Ixta, where we were slammed by rain and wind associated with the category 2 Hurricane Lidia, the eye of which passed just to our north. That was certainly an experience. We're looking for something less dramatic on Orizaba. Stay tuned for an update tomorrow afternoon!

RMI Guide Dustin Wittmier

We got a lot done today. Things started out crystal clear at 15,600 ft in Gokyo this morning. We started walking at our customary 8:00 am. At first we strolled along one glowing turquoise lake after another, then we got moving down steeper descents along a charging, churning river. It got really big when we reached the terminus of the Ngozumpa Glacier. The steep sided valley got bigger and bigger. We had “new” mountains to look at on all sides. Despite the rugged and confining valley, we’d occasionally come across hidden side valleys with vivid green yak pastures and a few tea houses. We took advantage of one of those houses to simply sit outside and sip tea for a relaxing 45 minutes. Then it was back to work, dropping altitude. We rolled into 13,200 ft Dhole and settled into the welcoming Alpine Lodge after about four hours travel. High altitude was wonderful and exciting…but none of us mind being a little lower. Eating is easier, sleeping is easier…almost everything is easier. The afternoon clouded up--again--and so it wasn’t hard to just take it easy after our big walk. 

Best Regards,

RMI Guide Dave Hahn

The team survived sleeping at 15,600 ft   In fact there were still smiles all around and everybody was into going for a hike.  It didn’t hurt that daybreak in Gokyo was beautiful… Cho Oyu, the sixth highest mountain in the world, was just up the valley and glowing magically.  We headed toward it after breakfast.  We walked for three hours along the massive Ngozumpa Glacier to a place called Fifth Lake (by those of us unable to pronounce the local name).  There, from 16,500 ft, we had a few minutes of unimpeded views of Everest and Lhotse as well as the nearby and spectacular Gyangchungkang.   Then the clouds came in and we headed back toward our comfy digs in Gokyo.  We were back before the snow flurries flew.  The day was made more enjoyable by the fact that we saw a total of two other people in the giant valley we chose to explore.

We’ve got a final night in Gokyo now before we point downhill in the morning.

Best Regards

RMI Guide Dave Hahn

Wednesday, October 11, 2023 - 6:10 pm PT

Well, that was a thorough soaking. On night one of Ixta we camped at the trailhead. It rained all night without a break. In the morning it was still raining, but showing signs of clearing so we packed up and headed towards high camp. About an hour in to our hike, the sun came out, revealing our surroundings. We were treated to views of Ixta proper and Popo with a dusting of snow. However, around 5pm the clouds rolled back in and it rained hard again.

It rained throughout the night, a very cold rain. When I woke up to check the weather on a few occasions I was pelted by sideways sleet. Oh right, it was quite windy as well. Sustained moderate winds and precipitation throughout the night thwarted any chance of making a summit attempt. But we can chalk the whole experience up to more acclimatization and for some members of the team, 15400' was a new altitude record or sleeping altitude record.

This morning we descended from high camp, following the direction of a new dog friend. If not already soaked from the night prior, this hike ensured everyone was completely wet. Needless to say, we are all looking forward to some good meals and rest in Puebla tonight and tomorrow. We are keeping our optimism alive for Orizaba and are honestly feeling prepared. Hopefully this weather pattern clears out before Saturday.

RMI Guide Dustin Wittmier

Our big day began at about 5:45 AM… which was when the sun started hitting the high peaks.  There was a little more cloud -again- for the start of the day but it didn’t really seem like it would affect us.  We got walking at 7 AM in the cool shadows.  The trail turned uphill immediately and we got busy gaining altitude.  We enjoyed pretty much having it all to ourselves.  We took short breaks every hour or so.  There was great variety to the climb.  We reached an area of high alpine lakes and ultimately a grand stone staircase to the Renjo La -the pass at 17,800 ft.  We reached it at 12:30 after 4.5 hrs.  Everest was visible in the distance but there were lots of clouds about, meaning we just got some quick glimpses of Lhotse and Makalu and Cho Oyu.  It was a thrilling spot to be in and so we spent nearly a half hour enjoying it.  We made good progress down the other side, reaching Gokyo in just two more hours… at three PM.  Gokyo Lake was mesmerizing.  Quite large and quite turquoise in color.  It was wonderful to walk along the shore as a finish to the day.  And then we were in a comfortable tea house, sipping tea again. 

Best Regards

RMI Guide Dave Hahn

Tuesday, October 10, 2023 3:17pm

This is Dustin and Team checking in from high camp on Ixta. It rained constantly last night and we almost pulled the plug on climbing Ixta. However, we started uphill into the rain this morning and eventually ended up in the sun. We're now at high camp and the weather still looks iffy in the distance, but if we can thread the needle again we at least have some chance!

Wish us luck! 

Our easiest day, by far. We still got up with the sun and enjoyed our coffee…but then we tapered off.  Actually, we went for a fine stroll after breakfast.  North, toward Tibet and the Nangpa La -the ancient trade route. But we only went 90 minutes in that direction. Just enough to stretch our legs, enhance our acclimatization and count the yaks. The clouds came in early today and so we picked up the pace a bit for the walk back to our tea house. 

As planned, the rest of the day was just kicking back. We snacked, we read, we rehydrated, we knitted and we napped. Tomorrow is a big day, up and over the Renjo La. 

Best Regards

RMI Guide Dave Hahn & Team

Yesterday we hiked almost all the way up La Malinche. At 14,440 feet, just a few minutes from the top, the park security emerged from the cloud to inform us that the mountain was closed due to the threat of lightning. My own assessment of the lightning risk was lower than his, but this guy didn’t seem in the mood to discuss and I wasn’t going to bring my rudimentary Spanish skills and a trekking pole to a gun fight. Oh well.

On the way down, we got thoroughly soaked and were happy to hop in the showers at the La Malintzi Resort before eating a hot meal and getting to bed early.

At the moment, we are in route to La Joyita, the trailhead for Ixtaccihuatl. We will spend the night there and head to high camp tomorrow.

RMI Guide Dustin Wittmier

Daybreak in Thame was stunning. Since it clouded up yesterday before we came into town, we didn’t get a chance to see our surroundings until today. There was a lot to see, as it turned out. Gigantic rock walls and hanging glaciers and fluted, delicate ridges. We managed to swallow our coffee while watching the light come up and we got walking by 8:00 am as usual. We worked our way up the Bhote Koshi River in a broad but steep sided valley. The walking was pretty easy for the early going but as the hours wore on thing got tougher due to altitude and steadier climbing. We stopped for tea along the way and rested, of course, but it all made for a good workout. Basically five hours of tracking up through rock walled yak pastures. We gained 2000 feet of vertical as the clouds did their usual thing, rolling in at midday. It was a relief to get in to Lungdhen (just over 14,300 ft) before the thick and cool fog took over. We’ll spend two nights here at the Kongde View Lodge for acclimatization.  

Best Regards, 
RMI Guide Dave Hahn

¡Hola!

Yesterday the entire team arrived for the first RMI trip to the Mexico Volcanoes for this season. We have all bags in tow and are now on our way to La Malinche for some acclimatization. Today is mostly cloudy, so we will see what the mountain gives us, but more importantly we are getting out to move the legs and exercise the lungs. Check back tomorrow for details on how our day went!

RMI Guide Dustin Wittmier