Entries from Expedition Dispatches

Jambo everyone, 

Today we visited Ngorongoro Crater, considered by some to be the 8th Natural wonder of the world. The crater is roughly 100 square miles and is home for more than 25,000 animals that have taken up residence. We hit the road early with hopes of catching a few more animals before the heat of the day sent them in search of shade. 

There were many sightings today of hyenas, jackles, ostrich, and countless other birds. We manage to see a few Lions, although not as close as we would have hoped for, but it was truly amazing to so many animals in one place.  

We have just finished another wonderful meal here at the Plantation Lodge and the team is off to bed after a long, but very rewarding day on safari. 

RMI Guide Casey Grom and the Safari Crew

Jambo again everyone!

Today was our first day of safari and we headed west to visit the beautiful Lake Manyara National Park. The lake is known for its many migratory animals and home to more than 300 different birds.

Everyone enjoyed our first day cruising around in our safari vehicles with cold beverages in hand while seeing the animals up close, and I do mean close! I have to report that we got “crop dusted”

by one of the big elephants from about 8 ft away. That wasn’t on our bucket list.

We also manage to see a lots of baboons, a few impalas, warthogs, lots of birds, but unfortunately no big cats.

All in all it was a really nice introduction to the incredible diversity of wildlife that Africa has and the team is looking forward to seeing more tomorrow.

We wrapped up the evening with a few cocktails and a wonderful meal at our new lodge https://nam11.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.plantation-lodge.com%2F&data=05%7C02%7Clacey%40rmiguides.com%7C844ba615f8c544a7d1b608ddf2254931%7C5ec23eb0d7634906bc868c9089e10b92%7C0%7C0%7C638932964140148354%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=vgySL3HZ4UsZ%2F0BB%2FaJDvr%2FjhmwB9Q88d6hRRTG113o%3D&reserved=0 see for yourself!

Casey and the Safari crew

Our final day on the mountain!

Today the team got up at 6:30 mostly refreshed after a much needed nights sleep, we had breakfast, then hit the trail one last time. It took just around 3 hours to reach the park gate where the team had lunch and said our final goodbyes to our amazing Tanzanian crew of 51 that took such great care of us on the mountain. 

We finished with a little celebration singing from our crew and by handing out their well deserved tips, then hopped aboard our awaiting bus for the ride back to the lodge. 

Finally we are all safe and sound, cleaner, and smelling fresh after an exciting 7 day journey up and down Kilimanjaro. 

Stayed tuned, Safari starts tomorrow!

Casey and Crew

We did it! 

100% on top!!!

The team has safely descended back to high camp after an 11:30 hour round trip to the “Roof of Africa”.

It was a cold but thankfully calm night into day here in Kilimanjaro. The team did an incredible job of taking care of themselves even when times got tough. I’m so proud of how this team did! 

We are exhausted as you might imagine and are just now sitting down to lunch and then we’ll head further down the mountain to our last camp at 10,000ft. 

So I’m going to keep this brief. 

We’ll share more when we get off the mountain! 

RMI Guide Casey Grom and the Kili Summiteers!

Jambo everyone back home. 

Well we’ve finally arrived at our high camp, after a good nights rest and a short hike up to 15,000ft. It has been mostly sunny all day with great views of Kilimanjaro and our route for tomorrow. 
Everyone is doing well and feeling good at this new altitude which is a good sign for things ahead. 

The team just wrapped up another fantastic lunch and discussed in great detail the plan for tomorrow’s climb. The team knows what we’ll be wearing, the packing list, as well as the schedule. 
Our game plan will be to wake at 10:30 pm and have a quick breakfast at 11 pm, then hopefully hit the trail right around 11:30 pm. Normally we try to leave a touch later, but there are quite a few climbers here tonight so we’re going to try and get a jumpstart on most of them. 

I’m expecting the team to reach the summit in 7 to 8 hours if things go according to plan. 

There have been several rounds of trivia with the winner getting a chance to make a satellite phone call from the summit. So everyone back home please keep your phones handy and if you receive a call from a strange number please answer. 

That’s all for now. And keep your fingers crossed for us!

RMI Guide Casey Grom and the Kili crew

Hello again everyone, 

Right out of camp the team was faced with the only significant technical obstacle for this climb. This hurdle is the great Barranco Wall, which rises about 1,000ft and looks as intimidating as it sounds. Thankfully there is a nice narrow trail that weaves its way up and through the wall and all the way to the top. Most of it feels more like steep hiking, but there are a few places that require the use of our hands to help us ascend. Everyone enjoyed the challenge and were breathing hard climbing here at 13,000ft. 

The team did a good job of moving steady and allowing a few porters through with their loads precariously balanced on their heads. Which was astonishing to see!

After reaching the top we took a nice break and enjoyed the amazing views of the ice ladened south face and valleys below. The team continued our hike for a few more hours up and down through a few valleys before reaching today’s endpoint. 

All in all, it took a little over hours for us to reach our next camp called Karanga, named for the big and beautiful valley which it overlooks. 

We’ve just wrapped up an amazing lunch and are relaxing in our tents before dinner. 

RMI Guide Casey Grom and the Kili crew!

Howdy everyone back home.

All is well in Tanzania. We’ve had great weather and the team is humming along really well.

We hit the trail just after 8 am and hiked for an hour before taking our usual 15 minute break, then back on the trail for another hour and so on. In total today we hiked for just over 7 hours before reaching Barranco camp. Our gracious Kilimanjaro porters and staff have been working very hard and we arrived once again to a camp set up and ready for us.

Along the way we passed around the famous Lava Tower reaching just over 15,000ft setting new altitude records for many. We also passed by many of the giant groundsels and towering Senecio trees that made us feel as if we were in some crazy Dr. Zuess story.

The team is in good spirits and doing great.

RMI Guide Casey and the Kili crew

Friday, September 4, 2025 - 10:11 pm PT

Hello again everyone 

The team had a really nice day here on Kilimanjaro today, waking to clear skies and a beautiful view of Kili right above camp. We had a light cloud layer which helped keep us cool while on the trail, which was nice as the sun can be quite intense here near the equator.

We started the day waking at 6:30 to start packing up before moving into our dining tent for a nice breakfast with porridge, fried eggs, toast, avocado and even some fresh fruit, and most importantly plenty of hot Tanzanian coffee. 

We hit the trail shortly after 8 am and slowly made our way up the rocky trail with occasional views of Kili above, while sharing the trail with all the porters. 

The trail climbed up a blunted ridge and eventually out of the trees and allowed for some truly spectacular views of the valley below. The team hiked for a little more than four hours before reaching out next camp that sits on the Shira plateau, which is the remnant of an ancient lava flow. 

Everyone is doing very well and we are currently relaxing in camp. 

RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew

Today the team had an early start and left behind our incredibly comfortable lodge as we have headed to the mountain towards the start of the climb. We left around 8am and drove along the rural country side passing small villages for 1.5 hours before reaching the park entrance called Machame. We also had great views on the drive of Kilimanjaro looming high in the distance, intimidating and exciting at the same time. 

Once we arrived at the park gate we had all of our gear weighed and divided into loads for our 51 porters and other staff to carry before hitting the trail. With everything in order we’ll start our climb slowly make our way up the winding trail that ascends continuously through the thick forest. Thankfully the overhead canopy of the surrounding forest will provide a huge relief from the hot sun overhead. 

We are about to start our six hour hike to camp that sits around 10,000ft and most likely won’t have reception so I’m sending this from the entrance. 

Everyone is doing well and looking forward to starting this adventure. 

RMI Guide Casey Grom and the Kili crew

100% Summit Success on Mt. Baker! 

Our climbing team had originally set out to ascend Mt. Rainier, but due to unsafe route conditions above Ingraham Flats, they made the smart decision to pivot with us to Mt. Baker.

Led by RMI Guides Ray Holt and Annie Chapman, the team took on the Easton Glacier route—and it was absolutely worth it!

Every climber stood on the summit, rewarded with stunning views and the satisfaction of perseverance and adaptability. The team is now back at camp, resting, rehydrating, and preparing for tomorrow’s descent to the trailhead.

Huge congratulations to the entire team for their flexibility, determination, and summit success!