Entries from Locations
Hello again everyone!
The team has finally made it off of the mountain and we are safely back in Cheget. We sadly had our last meal from Dasha this morning before saying our goodbyes and hitching a ride downhill. She and her amazing mountain food will certainly be missed.
Hot showers were had by all, and its safe to say we are smelling good again.
We mostly relaxed the rest of the day and are just heading out to our celebration dinner where our wonderful local guides will no doubt "introduce" us to a little Russian vodka.
That's all for today.
на здоровье!
RMI Guide Casey Grom
The RMI Expedition Skills Seminar - Paradise Glacier, led by RMI Guide Pepper Dee, has had a spectacular week of training. With the many skills they learned, the team topped off their week with a bluebird summit day. Warm temperatures and a light breeze have followed them all week and continues as they descend from the Mt. Rainier summit.
Congratulations to the Seminar Team!
RMI Guide Robby Young led his team to the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. The forecasted freezing level of 14,500' rang true and the team topped out with warm temperatures, no clouds and endless views. Their descent began about 7:00 a.m. and we look forward to congratulating them this afternoon.
It was a short and uneventful move from Karanga Camp to Barafu Camp,which is our launching point for the summit. The team did great and we arrived in right around three hours. Perfect weather, in fact a bit hot with how intense the sun is here at around 15,000ft. Not much atmosphere above us to filter the sun. We've had our summit talk where we discussed our plan and the team's strategy for tomorrow. Final packing is taking place. Relaxing and of course eating is the job for the rest of the day, then early dinner, off to bed for more rest. Weather permitting, we'll be up at 11pm, have breakfast and hit the trail around midnight. As per usual I'm expecting the ascent to take around eight hours, breaks included, to the Roof of Africa.
My goal will to give a call from the top of conditions allow.
The team is in great shape and high spirits.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
On The Map
What a way to start a new day! Cheers to all of you.
Posted by: Anna Marie McCormick on 7/29/2017 at 11:22 am
Today the team did a fantastic job climbing the intimidating looking Barranco Wall. It is the technical hurdle of this expedition and everyone did great. Everybody enjoyed the challenge; of course, the porters made it look easy as they climbed the wall with their loads carefully balanced on their heads.
Once above the wall we took a well-deserved break to enjoy the valleys below and the peak above. Yet another day of great hiking conditions. We are now at about 13,000ft at the Karanga Camp. High camp tomorrow and the team is looking good.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
On The Map
The Four Day Summit Climb teams, led by Dave Hahn and Mike Uchal, were on top of Mt. Rainier by 7:30 AM this morning. The team had clear skies and moderate winds, a perfect day to be on the highest point in Washington.
Congratulations to today's summit climbers!
To infinity and beyond. Way to go Mick and Matt!
Posted by: Brett on 7/28/2017 at 2:33 pm
We did it! 100% on top!!! The entire team stood on the highest point in Europe.
We were pretty lucky with the weather, as it was near perfect, so the decision to climb early and avoid the forecasted weather paid off. We started at 3:30am with a snowcat ride up to 15,000' then hit the trail in a decent breeze that thankfully mellowed out a few hours later. It was a beautiful and welcomed sunrise as the sun helped warm us up.
The team did a fantastic job of taking care of themselves and climbed strong. We summited in clear skies with a wonderful view of the entire Caucasus Mountain Range, which is something I haven't had often here on Elbrus.
After descending a short ways back to the saddle between the two summits that Elbrus has, a few of us decided to climb the second summit while the rest of the team descended safely back to camp. I've been pretty lucky the last few climbs and have pulled off the double summit a few times. It was a bonus for sure.
After everyone returned to camp, we had a quick lunch and are currently relaxing with smiles on our faces.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and a happy crew
On The Map
What an accomplishment! Congrats!!!
Posted by: Brinkley Pound on 7/28/2017 at 11:17 am
It was clear and cool last night with temperatures right around freezing. Our team kept warm with hot water bottles and warm sleeping bags. We left Shira Camp and slowly climbed uphill before we started our traverse over to Barranco Valley across the volcanic plateau and just below the remaining glaciers that cling to Kilimanjaro's slopes. As we approached camp we were all amazed to see the giant groundsels and famous senecio trees that look like something out of a Dr Suess book. Once again we pulled into camp and our stellar crew had camp all set up and were ready with hot drinks and snacks after a solid six hour day. The team is in good shape and ready for the Barranco wall which sits just above camp and will be our first objective as we continue up hill tomorrow.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
On The Map
Enjoy this special time together!! Looks so exciting. Be Safe and send pics!! xxoo
Posted by: Aunt ME & Uncle Gene on 7/28/2017 at 5:44 pm
Way to go Annie, Philip, and team! It is warm here in Minnesota.
Posted by: Kay Weaver on 7/28/2017 at 10:43 am
Hello again from 12,000' in Russia!
Things are good here and the team is excited for tonight! Today we had our last acclimatization hike before tonight's climb. Normally we take an extra rest day before climbing, but the forecast doesn't look too good the next few days so we are making our bid tonight. We started early today to maximize our rest today and have been relaxing since noon.
Our cook Dasha has done an amazing job of keeping our bellies full with plenty of good home cooked Russian food.
This evening we had a thorough discussion about tonight's upcoming climb and everyone is packed and ready. Hopefully the weather continues to hold and we'll be up shortly after 2am and after a quick breakfast hop on the snowcat to give us a bump a little further up the mountain. This will shorten our climb a little and increase our chance of reaching the highest point in Europe.
We had a trivia challenge today and one lucky winner will get to make a satellite phone call from the summit. So everyone following along, keep your phones handy, you just might receive a call.
I'm expecting us to reach the summit somewhere around 10-11am here, same time zone as Moscow.
Keep your fingers crossed for us!
RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew
On The Map
Way to go! Very much of a team effort. Can’t wait to hear all of the details. Safe travels on the return.
Posted by: Jim Pound on 7/28/2017 at 2:25 pm
So happy for you all. Sorry to miss Seth’s call but will treasure the voice mail!!!! Absorb the moment!
Posted by: Brinkley Pound on 7/28/2017 at 6:29 am
Posted by: Solveig Waterfall, Steve Gately
Categories: Expedition Dispatches North Cascades
Elevation: 10,781'
The Wilderness Adventures Team reached the summit of Mt. Baker via the Coleman - Deming route in the early hours Wednesday, July 26th lead by RMI Guide Solveig Waterfall and Steve Gately. The team had a great climb and beautiful weather.
During this program, the teens learned various techniques which meet the challenges set forth by Mt. Baker. Including basic mountaineering skills; efficient mountain travel (rest-stepping and pressure breathing), various safety practices including use of helmets, harnesses, and avalanche transceivers, climbing in balance, proper use of our ice axe, self and team arrest, and moderate cramponing.
Congratulations Team!
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David, and team - what a fantastic accomplishment! Keep climbing safely.
Posted by: Jay McCampbell on 8/7/2017 at 7:42 am
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