Entries from Expedition Dispatches
The
Kautz Seminar, led by
Steve Gately, was on top of Mt. Rainier at 9:45 a.m. The team is working their way back to their camp where they will stay another night and descend from the mountain tomorrow.
Congratulations to our Seminar team!
After a relaxing stay at the hacienda Chilcabamba, we are all packed up and heading for
Cotopaxi, the stunning 19,347’ stratovolcano that is our main climbing objective. We will drive a dirt road that winds through Cotopaxi National Park to an altitude above 15,000’. A 45-minute hike will lead to the climbers’ hut, which sits near the toe of the glacier just shy of 16,000’. The goal of today is to arrive at such high altitude accommodations feeling good, resting, and adjusting to the altitude. Tomorrow we will hike to the Glacier and review the climbing techniques we will employ on the climb the following morning.
RMI Guide Mike Walter
Monday, June 25, 2018 - 10:31 PM PT
We woke up early to clear, cold skies. Our mission was to carry a load of gear up to our next camp at
17,200 feet. We chose to leave early to avoid the heat wave that can occur on the fixes lines when the sun is hitting them. It seems weird that we are avoiding heat while climbing a giant mountain in Alaska, but the solar radiation bouncing off of all the white snow and other light color surfaces can heat you up something fierce!
Although the conditions were sometimes less than ideal with some deep snow and some blowing wind on the ridge, the Super Crew did fantastically! We are all pretty worn out after such a big day and deserve the rest day we are taking tomorrow. Send us some sunshine vibes so we can rest in warmth!
RMI Guide Mike Haugen & the Super Crew
On The Map
Monday, June 25, 2018 - 10:52 PM PT
At six AM, things were looking positive... not much sign of wind and the upper portions of
Denali’s West Buttress were in the clear. We got up and got going slowly in order to keep an eye out for changes... and to enjoy a leisurely breakfast of bacon and eggs. We set out from camp at 9:30 in our crampons and carrying ice axes, feeling a little more like climbers. Nice to take a break from snowshoes and from sled hauling. We carried food and fuel for caching, but each of us elected to put it all on our backs and to give the sleds the day off. First up was Motorcycle Hill, a steep but short (40 minute) glacial slope, next we got on squirrel hill, which brought us to the Polo Field -the glacial basin at the foot of the West Buttress. By then we were watching dramatic clouds beginning to form atop the high mountains. Another hour brought us to Windy Corner, which was just starting to get a little breezy when we turned the corner and reached our destination at 13,500 ft. By the time we were digging a raven-proof pit in the snow to bury our supplies, things had whited out and the snow was starting to fall. We’d taken a respectable 4 hours to reach the intended cache, we spent 45 minutes there getting everything squared away and then took just a further 90 minutes to walk back down through the snowstorm to camp at 11,000. There were plenty of other guided parties from different companies on the route today but we all worked well together and there were no traffic jams. Back at camp by 3:45 we snoozed until dinner time. Several of us admitted to being a little tired after this fine day of climbing... but that is not such a bad thing. We’ve planned a rest day for tomorrow and we’ll hope the snow takes a holiday as well.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
On The Map
Good evening from Icchi Coccha "Small Lake", where we have pitched camp for the night on our way to
base camp, at 3800m. We had a very pleasant day, perhaps the best this guide remembers, as it is usually a pretty hot day climbing up the valley in the lower elevations. But the cloud cover provided the best temps to do the hike, so we're happy we didn't bake! We shared the trail with a few dogs, cows and of course, our donkeys. But the highlight was the curious fox that ventured into our camp. We're now about to enjoy the first of our meals from our cook, Emilo, in our dining tent. That's all for now, stay tuned for more!
RMI Guide Elias de Andres Martos
This morning we checked out of our hotel and left the urban confines of Quito, headed south toward
Cotopaxi. Our first stop today was another acclimatization hike, this time to the climbers' hut that sits in the saddle between Illinizas Norte and Sur. Our hike today took us up to ~15,400' where we enjoyed a delicious cup of coffee in the climbers' hut. The weather was pleasant for climbing today, although clouds up high obscured our views of the Illiniza peaks.
We're now resting at the rustic and peaceful hacienda Chilcabamba, where we have great views of
Cotopaxi as it dances in the clouds.
RMI Guide Mike Walter
On The Map
Monday June 25, 2018 - 2:11 PM PT
We woke at midnight for a 1:35 AM start down from 11K camp. What originally looked like a cloudy day in whiteout navigation mode turned into a beautiful clear morning with alpine glow on Mt Foraker’s Sultanna Ridge. We took some breaks, dug up a cache, and finally walked up ‘heart break hill’ to finish the self propelled portion of our expedition. We waited for 3 hours plus for the weather to clear between the Alaska Range and Talkeetna. Finally, K2 Aviation swooped in with the stunning Turbo Otter ski planes to whisk us back to a rainy Talkeetna. Food, beverages, showers, and sleep are in order... for some of us, in that exact order. Thanks for following along and what a great team to climb
Denali with!
RMI Guide Mike King
On The Map
Monday, June 25, 2018 - 12:14 AM PT
This is Mike, checking in from 11,000' Camp as the team continues their descent to the airstrip. We woke at
17,000' Camp this morning after a long summit day. The team packed up and headed down the West Buttress with spectacular views of the Alaska Range. Once on the fixed lines we baking in the mid day sun and were looking forward to getting our cache sorted and headed to 11,000 Camp for some dinner and rest. We got water and high fives from the other RMI Teams and turned in for some rest, not sleep. We'll plan on hitting the road at 2 am in hopes of getting an early flight to Talkeetna. The weather isn't promising so an extra night or 2 at the airstrip might be in our future.
RMI Guide Mike King
Sunday, June 24, 2018 - 9:45 PM PT
We busted out of camp at 9,500 ft by 7:10 AM. There was still plenty of cloud out and about, but not so much in the direction we wanted to go. Of course things were a little cooler at the lofty heights we were reaching, but not unpleasantly so. We reached the corner at Kahiltna Pass in just over an hour’s time and left the mighty Kahiltna Glacier. A couple of tough uphill pushes then brought us to 11,000. Conditions were sunny, calm and nice as we built camp -we’re starting to get good at this stuff. The afternoon was spent napping and prepping for tomorrow’s carry to 13,500. In the late afternoon and evening we got a heavy and hot snow shower. We dodged it eating burritos in the dining tent. After dinner, things got fun and busy as RMI Guide Mike King’s victorious climbing team came down to share camp for an evening. They’ll head downhill in the early morning and we’ll be looking upward.
Best Regards
Dave Hahn
On The Map
Sunday, June 24, 2018 - 9:13 PM PT
Good evening from Huaraz!
It never gets old... our standard acclimatization hike (in picture here) to Churup Lake at 4,400m is a half day endeavor for virtually every
Alpamayo Expedition in the last five years. A couple thousand feet of elevation gain to an incredible glacial lake below a radical looking peak baring the same name, provided for us the perfect exercise on after all the travels.
A speedy descent brought us to our private van, and we were shuttled to Peruvian delicacies in downtown, before retreating back to the hotel to pack for tomorrow's hike in to the Santa Cruz Valley and start our approach to Alpamayo Base Camp.
The real adventure is about to start! Everyone is excited and motivated. Next post will be from the woods... stay tuned!!!
RMI Guide Elias de Andres Martos and team
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Glo and team! Your lofty goal is now within reach. Hope weather cooperates and you reach summit soon. What an extreme adventure….so proud to know you!
-Mary Ann
Posted by: Mary Ann on 6/27/2018 at 9:39 am
Go Glo and Team! After you rest your weary bones for the next tackle. An arduous journey for sure and so strengthening. Congratulations on all of it. Love and good vibes for the summit.
Mom
Posted by: Michelle on 6/27/2018 at 12:20 am
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