RMI Expeditions Blog
Antisana was a challenging, but rewarding experience for the entire team. In contrast to multiple other parties of the previous peaks, we had the mountain to ourselves. A midnight start allowed us to climb the route in only six hours, summitting right at sunrise. The route on Antisana is a great mixture of rocky moraines, glacial ice, big crevasses and steep pitches. We felt fortunate to have it on the itinerary for this trip.
Today, we are at an eco lodge several hours from Antisana recovering from our efforts and preparing for the next mountain. We had a lazy breakfast with lots of coffee and group yoga. This afternoon we plan to nap, read books, check email and catch up with friends and family.
RMI Guide Eric Frank & Team
New Post Alerts:
Ecuador Expedition June 5 - 15, 2026
Five-day Kautz climb led by RMI Gudie Sam Marjerison turned around shortly after heading up into the ice chute after snow and ice conditions proved to be inadequate to climb. The recent snow and wind has continued to affect the Ingraham Direct route, and the Kautz is seeing a similar result, as well. The team will return to Ashford this afternoon.
Nice work team!
Posted by: Dominic Cifelli, Lael Butler, Jess Wedel, Dylan Anderson, Matt Kelly, CJ Rogers, Simon Kearns, Ben Stimson
Categories: Mount Rainier
Elevation: 11,200'
The four-day climb turned around at Ingraham Flats on their summit attempt this morning due to avalanche conditions. They enjoyed a beautiful sunrise! They will be descending back to Paradise later this morning.
Posted by: Jackson Breen, Lacie Smith, Raymond Holt
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Alaska
Elevation: 7,300'
Friday, June 12th @ 4AM PST
Today we undid all of the work we spent the last 14 days doing in just 14 hours. We woke up to a clear cold morning at 17k camp. We descended the West Buttress in chilly conditions but were treated to nice weather and familiar faces when we saw our RMI family at 14k camp! Best of luck to Dan May and his strong team of climbers! Down we continued to 11k camp where we dug up our cache and enjoyed some relatively warm temps and sunshine after having been at over 20,000’ less than 24 hours ago. Still further down the mountain we went to camp one to pick up another cache where we saw Ben Luedtke and another RMI team. Finally we retraced the very first day of our trip and walked our way back to the airstrip on a tranquil Alaska range night. The day was truly unbelievable. We were treated to views of Hunter, Foraker, Denali, and the rest of the central Alaska range. Days like today stir up a great deal of gratitude for the privilege this life is and an overwhelming reminder of how small we are. We arrived at camp under the midnight sun and treated ourselves to refreshments, charcuterie, and friendly conversation before finally turning in for the night. Morning? The sun doesn’t set. Who knows? More importantly, who cares?! We achieved so much more than our goals and with any luck we will be flying back to Talkeetna and returning to the “real” world tomorrow. We can’t wait to see you all and tell you about the wild journey we had together!
Best,
Jackson
New Post Alerts:
Mt. McKinley Expedition May 26, 2026
Posted by: Ben Luedtke, Mike Bennett, Avery Stolte
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Alaska
Elevation: 7,800'
Friday, June 12th - 12:20AM PST
Woweewow! What a day. As planned, we made it onto the glacier this morning. The views flying in? Epic. The mountain? Stunning. The plane flying away and leaving us here? Welcomed. We are ready. And in fact, we already moved. We arrived at Camp 1 just in time for dinner and "sunset." After a long hard day carrying ALL of our gear, we feel ecstatic. But the work to climb the tallest mountain in North America doesn't stop. Tomorrow we will carry and cache just below our next camp. Sweet dreams y'all, update you tomorrow!
-RMI Guide Ben Luedtke & Team
New Post Alerts:
McKinley Expedition, June 9, 2026
Wow. Just epic blue bird skies and awesome conditions for flying to the glacier. You are all going to do big things on this beast of a mountain. Not easy pulling those massively packed pulks so impressive work. Hope you all get some good recovery and rest where you can.
Posted by: Ed DaPra on 6/12/2026 at 10:50 am
Jimmy, Allison, Amanda and Devin!
Sounds like an amazing day so far. Sweet dreams rest up tomorrow. The adventure continues!
Stay safe,
Sandy
Posted by: Sandy on 6/12/2026 at 9:37 am
Frank & Team reached the summit of Antisana, fourth highest volcano in Ecuador, this morning. They summitted at 6:50 am GMT in 6.5 hours. Nice work team!
RMI Guide Eric Frank left a voicemail from the summit, scroll below the next photo to listen!
Photos by Local Ecuadorian Guides, Reynaldo Camacho and Jaime Avila
New Post Alerts:
Ecuador Expedition June 5 - 15, 2026
Posted by: Ben Luedtke, Mike Bennett, Avery Stolte
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Alaska
Elevation: 348'
6.9.26
Hello all and welcome to Talkeetna, Alaska! After being picked up at the airport, we were shuttled through Wasilla for a quick 45 minute food shop and arrived at our K2 hangar for our official start of the west buttress climb. After enjoying an awesome dinner at Denali Brewpub and beginning to mesh as a team, we were treated with a view of Denali herself.
6.10.26
A day of packing. Twas the perfect day to pack with the hangar doors open. Alas, we are ready. With nerves of steel, we shall fly towards our future. And with great manifestation, our team shall succeed. Stay tuned for the trip of a lifetime.
- RMI Guide Ben Luedtke & Team
New Post Alerts:
McKinley Expedition, June 9, 2026
GO TEAM! Hope all is well. Looking forward to updates!
Posted by: John Morrison on 6/12/2026 at 3:45 pm
May Mother Nature work with you! Enjoy every single step!
WOW WOW WOW!
Posted by: Kierstin Decicco on 6/12/2026 at 7:30 am
Posted by: Joe Hoch, Felipe Guarderas, Rosie Hust, Nina Bridges
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 11,300'
We weren't able to summit this morning after multiple days and multiple feet of new snow. But we took advantage of the perfect weather for a classic stunning sunrise at Ingraham Flats!
- RMI Guide Joe Hoch
Posted by: Daniel May, Drew O’Brien, Mac Nolde
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Alaska
Elevation: 14,000'
Wed 6/10/2026 11:09 PM PST
Hot, heavy, and beautiful describes our day today. We awoke with the sun, broke down camp, and began our journey to move our home to 14k camp. The team arrived in style and had a full dinner of burritos. We are going to bed, happy, full and ready to enjoy some beach days in this beautiful place!
- RMI Guide Dan May & Team
New Post Alerts:
McKinley Expedition, June 2, 2026
Hello Chris Roberts!
Posted by: Jim Marsico on 6/11/2026 at 5:29 pm
Posted by: Jackson Breen, Lacie Smith, Raymond Holt
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Alaska Mt. McKinley
Elevation: 20,310'
Wednesday, June 10, 2026 - 10:58pm PDT
Cumbre!
We got up early this morning and were the first team on the autobahn. A chilly start paid dividends throughout the rest of the day. We enjoyed the best weather you could ask for, incredible views, and a virtually empty route. Despite the perfect conditions the team is still pretty spent and has a long day ahead of us tomorrow. Thank you to everyone who helped make this possible.
Peace, Love, Gratitude.
RMI Guide Ray Holt and Team
New Post Alerts:
Mt. McKinley Expedition May 26, 2026
Hurray! Congrats on being officially 50% done with your trip!!!
Posted by: Reusserzales on 6/11/2026 at 6:47 pm
Well done everyone. Super impressed and it is great to hear the weather was in your favor.
Coach K
Posted by: Kurt Madden on 6/11/2026 at 2:19 pm
Congratulations on your safe and successful expedition! You are an incredible group of athletes and survivors! A shower’s going to feel so amazingly wonderful! ☺️
Posted by: Susan on 6/12/2026 at 11:32 am
I was communicating with my friend whom was at 11K on Ben’s team yesterday. He told me that your team had arrived. I was shocked. I said Action Jackson and Team Kuhl. He said yes and cool team. I could not believe how quickly you climbed back down. Impressive up and impressive down. It was fun watching along and congrats on huge accomplishment. TPS reports on Monday are going to look even more boring. Great work!!!
Posted by: Ed DaPra on 6/12/2026 at 10:44 am
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