Entries from North Cascades

RMI Guides Nick Sinapius and Avery Stolte led their team of three climbers to the summit of Mt. Shuksan via the Fisher Chimneys route on July 27th.  From camp, they ascended Winnie's Slide and the Upper Curtis Glacier eventually gaining the south side of the mountain. From the Sulphide Glacier they continued up to the route's final crux, Mt. Shuksan's summit pyramid. The 600 feet of climbing on the summit pyramid constitutes some of the best climbing on the route. Moving up steep snow and making some belay moves on the 4th and 5th class rock. After enjoying time on the summit, they started their descent, which involves rappels and belayed down-climbing to gain the glacier. The team returned to their high camp for overnight. Today they will descend the remaining four miles to the trailhead and conclude their program.

Congratulations team!

PC: Avery Stolte

Wednesday, July 23, 2025

Move to high camp

Today, we moved camp from White Pass up to a beautiful spot amongst alpine lakes in Foam Basin right next to the White Chuck glacier. Getting up early, we said good morning to our fellow marmot friends, took in our first official view of Glacier peak, and set up high camp while enjoying lunch. After a short nap, we refreshed our glacier climbing skills, ate some tasty freeze dried meals, and called it an early night. Tomorrow is summit day. We will wake shortly after the sun disappears, but we are filled with excitement and we look forward to all the challenges tomorrow has to bring. Wish us luck!

RMI Guide Ben Luedtke and Team

Thursday, July 24, 2025

The Glacier Peak Team led by RMI Guide Ben Luedtke reached the summit this morning a little after 8:00 am! With what little reception they had, the guides were able to call the RMI office from the summit and share the fantastic news that the entire team had made it to the top. They are now back at camp celebrating their accomplishment, they will spend one more night on the mountain getting some well-deserved rest before they descend back to the trailhead for the conclusion of their trip tomorrow morning.

Friday July 25, 2025

Summit day and walk out

Mountaineering is more than just a sport, a hobby, a vacation, or a summit. Mountaineering is about friendship, comraderie, beautiful views, unforgettable adventures, new experiences, and so much more. Yesterday, and for the entirety of this trip, we accomplished all of that which mountaineering offers. We encouraged each other with heavy packs, pushed one another with words of affirmation, and bonded over the stories of who we are. (And dad jokes). In the end, we summited Glacier Peak, together, as a team on Thursday, July 24, 2025. Some of us walk away with the success of another mountain complete, some of us with the completion of all 5 volcanoes, and some of us completing just 1 of many more objectives yet to come, but we all walk away with the memory of the people we shared it with, the laughs we had, the pains we felt, and the smile of what it truly means to be a mountaineer. Today, we walked out from high camp. Enjoying many a wild berry along the way, we are now basking in the sun that we are glad wasn't there on the twenty some odd switchbacks coming down. Cheers to all for tuning in. 

RMI Guides and Team

Monday, July 21, 2025

Hiya everybody!

Welcome to Glacier Peak, follow along at your own risk. Today was day 1, but we kept it simple. The day consisted of wrapping up our travel, arriving in the small town of Darrington, WA and completing our gear check and orientation for the beginning of our grand adventure. For some of us, this will just be the next major volcano in WA, and for others, this will be our 5th and final WA volcano! Woot woot! Tonight, we pack, unpack, and pack again making sure we have all the essentials. Tomorrow, we start our hike to Camp 1 at White Pass. Hold on to your seats as we venture into the deep wilderness of WA to attempt our hand at one of the coolest volcanoes around. 

RMI Guide Ben Luedtke and Team

Tuesday July 22, 2025

Camp at White Pass

Our first day on the trail and we hit the ground running. Just kidding; we walked delicately through beautiful, lush forest, over rough, rugged terrain, and pranced among the wildflowers. It's all true, but today was a hot, long, and difficult journey to reach camp at white pass. Donned with heavy packs and all the snacks, we enjoyed a less dusty trail than usual thanks to the peaceful rain from last night. After our long day of friendly conversation, Marmot sightings, the fresh smells of mountain air, and beautiful views of the surrounding area, we enjoyed our first camp dinner huddled around our stoves and were very happy that we packed our head nets for the bugs. As we crawl into our sleeping bags for some well-earned rest, we can't help but glimmer with excitement for what comes next. Tomorrow, we head for high camp and training for the big summit day. Stay tuned in case the marmots attack...or become our cuddle buddies in the night... they're hard to read.

RMI Guide Ben Luedtke and Team 

With a forecast of thunderstorms and heavy rain by afternoon, we set alarms for a 12am start. Under a starry sky and with perfect climbing conditions we made great time!

The weather started to come in just as we summited around 7am, but we snapped a few photos just as the clouds closed in.

Heavy rain on the tents last night was the perfect white noise for some solid rest. 

RMI Guide Joe Hoch & Team! 

Monday, July 21, 2025 4:37pm PDT

100% summits on the Coleman-Deming route. We summitted just after 9am and got back to camp before the rain! 

It's been a chill afternoon waiting out rain showers in the tent and intermittently napping.

We plan to descend in the morning.

RMI Guide Dustin Wittmier & Team

RMI Guide Jess Wedel and custom climbing team reached the summit of Glacier Peak yesterday evening just in time to watch the sunset from the top.

With the forecast for the next couple of days looking rather grim, the team took advantage of the good weather and made their summit bid on the second night of their trip, after a successful climb the team returned to camp in the early morning for some much needed sleep. They will spend today at Glacier Gap camp and descend to the trailhead for the conclusion of their trip tomorrow morning.

Nice work team!

On July 18th, the RMI team, led by guide Henry Coppolillo, successfully reached the summit of Forbidden Peak, completing the climb via the renowned West Ridge route.

The journey began with a picturesque trek through the North Cascades’ alpine meadows, immersing them in the region's rugged beauty. To prepare for the challenging summit push, they trained on the iconic Sharkfin Tower, sharpening their skills and refining their techniques. With an early alpine start on the 18th, the team navigated glaciers and rocky terrain to reach the top of this stunning peak.

Nice Work Climbers!

On July 18th the Mt. Baker Easton Climb summited all climbers and guides on a sunny, windy morning around 9:30 am. We had been climbing with a forecast of possible rain in the afternoon, but the building clouds cleared for us at the top of the mountain for some great views.

Just as we returned to the tents around 2 pm, the sky opened up. Nowhere better than a dry tent after a summit to watch the rain pour down. 

- RMI Guide Joe Hoch

Congratulations Climbers!

The Mt. Baker North Ridge team, led by RMI Guide Sam Marjerison, reached the summit of Mt. Baker this morning. The team ascended via the North Ridge route, a classic climb in the North Cascades. Strong work by all, as everyone reached the top — a 100% success rate!

Congratulations, Team!

Friday, July 11, 2025 12:53pm PDT

After waiting for the weather to clear for a few hours, we completed our climbing school. With spirits high and a clearing trend in the forecast, we decided to go for a sunset climb. We were rewarded with stunning views of the north cascades and evening light over the Pacific Ocean. All climbers reached the summit climbing in great style. We arrived back at camp just before midnight and got in bed.

This morning we sipped coffee and enjoyed the views before breaking down camp and heading downhill.

RMI Guide Tom Skoog & Team