RMI Expeditions Blog

Great news from Mount Baker!

RMI Guide George Hedreen and team have reached the summit of Mount Baker via the North Ridge Route and checked in from the top. George reported good climbing conditions, a bit of smoke in the area, and no thunderstorms despite the forecast calling for possible afternoon activity.The team is now descending via the Coleman-Deming Route and is expected to be back in camp this afternoon.

Congratulations to George and the entire team on a successful summit of Mount Baker!

Hello hello!

We rallied for one more day of hiking. After a night in an actual bed in Aguas Calientes, we woke up early and headed back to Machu Picchu. Some of the group even hiked the trail back up instead of taking the bus — a first for me, but it was so fun. Big stair people on this team.

At the top we regrouped and headed to Huayna Picchu, the peak behind Machu Picchu in every iconic photo you’ve ever seen. Steep steps, but we’re professionals now. Up through some clouds and light rain, and our luck held, the views from the top were incredible. Machu Picchu is the main event, sure, but the tree-covered mountains stretching out in every direction makes it feel mystical. Hard to imagine a better way to close out this trip.

We came down and caught the train back to Ollantaytambo, panoramic windows and winding views the whole way, birds soaring, valleys and passes we’d actually walked through days earlier now passing by from a completely different angle. The train is the only way to Machu Picchu that doesn’t involve your own two feet, and it’s a gorgeous one.

Back in Cusco, the cold hit us the second we stepped out of the van, straight from jungle humidity to 11,000 feet of thin, sharp air. Grabbed our duffels, climbed a few more stairs (of course), and collapsed into a hotel with warm beds and hot showers waiting.

We climbed passes, ate guinea pig, survived a group Scum rivalry, and somehow all still like each other. 10/10 trip. Thank you for following along and to this crew: I’d get chewy cuy with you again anytime.

RMI Guide Jess Wedel and the Machu Picchu team

The Five Day Private Climb led by RMI Guide Dominic Cifelli reached the summit of Mt. Raineir today with 100% of their team.  It's a beauiful day on the mountain with clear skies and cool temperatures.  The team will return to Camp Muir and spend another night on the mountain. They may do a little training or just enjoy the views.  Tomorrow they will descend to Paradise and conclude their program.

Nice work team!

The Four Day Climb led by RMI Guide Joe Hoch reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning with 100% of their team.  Joe reported a very good route, sunshine and cooler temperatures. They enjoyed some time in the crater before starting their descent. Once back at Camp Muir they will pack up and continue downhill to Paradise.

Way to go team!

Monday, August 10, 2026 11:27 pm

Hannah, Daniel, and I sunset climbed on baker this evening. Back at camp. We will be walking out tomorrow and enjoying the blueberries.

RMI Guide Leif Bergstrom & Team

Monday, August 10, 2026 - 8:38 pm PT

We made it to Machu Picchu today! Through the Sun Gate, down into the citadel, six days of trail behind us and somehow it still didn’t feel real once we were standing there.

After the downpour yesterday and all through the night, we figured we were done for, views-wise. We hiked up this morning in intermittent rain and heavy clouds. By the time we reached the Sun Gate, it was fully socked in. Nothing. We played the mind games anyway, telling the clouds they’d never clear, half-hoping that saying it out loud would jinx them into doing exactly that. Eventually we gave up and started the descent into Machu Picchu.

About a minute after we took off, the clouds started opening up. And then there it was, the whole citadel and the mountains around it, in and out of this mystical fog like it was showing off on purpose.

We took a stupid number of photos and celebrated like we’d won something, because we had. This whole trip has been extremes: cloud forests and downpours, dust and dry high altitude, brutal trail days to long quiet nights in a tent. Somehow it all resolved into that one minute of clearing sky.

Tonight we’re in Aguas Calientes, showered, fed, and saving what’s left of our legs for one final hike tomorrow.

RMI Guide Jess Wedel and the Machu Picchu team

The Expedition Skills Seminar – Paradise, led by RMI Guide Joe Crawford, culminated its week of training with a successful summit of Mt. Rainier this morning at 6:30 a.m.

The team spent four nights and five days training on the lower slopes of Mt. Rainier, developing essential mountaineering skills including glacier travel, crevasse rescue, anchor and belay systems, and establishing and living in a mountain camp. Yesterday, they moved up to Camp Muir to prepare for their summit attempt.

They were rewarded with a beautiful day on the mountain and enjoyed some time in the summit crater before beginning their descent. The team is now making its way back to Camp Muir, where they will take a short break to repack and rest before continuing the final 4.5 miles to Paradise later this afternoon, concluding their program.

Congratulations to the entire team on a fantastic week of training and a successful summit of Mt. Rainier!

It's another beautiful day on Mt. Rainier and more teams are reaching the summit.  RMI Guide Dan May and team reached the summit at 6:30 am today.  The route is really nice and the weather is clear.  The team enjoyed an hour in the summit crater before starting their descent to Camp Muir. Once back at Camp they will get a short break before continuing the final 4,000' to Paradise.

Nice work team!

Luedtke and team enjoyed a successful ascent on Mt. Shuksan via the Fisher Chimneys. The team had 100% summit success on a blue bird day, nice work!

Hola!

Today we climbed up to Runkurakay, our third pass of the trip, a smaller ask than yesterday’s monster but still not nothing at this altitude.

The ruins there are round, almost like a watchtower, and it’s wild to think Inca messengers once used spots exactly like this as rest stops while running the length of an empire on foot. Meanwhile we needed a full snack break.

From there, into the cloud forest. Colonies of orchids appearing out of nowhere.  Some so tiny you needed a magnifying glass to see. Hummingbirds doing their impossible physics. The trail itself turns into pure engineering, stone causeways, a tunnel some ancient crew carved straight through solid rock.

Sayacmarca was a highlight: a ruin perched on a cliff edge, reachable only by one narrow staircase, tall rock wall on one side and a straight drop on the other. Edgar walked us through what it might have been, part checkpoint, part ceremonial site, nobody’s entirely sure.

We stopped for lunch at our fourth and final pass of the trip with views looking straight at Machu Picchu mountain and beyond. The clouds began to build (as they have most afternoons) but this time instead of dissipating, they got darker.

So we packed up and started the long descent into our camp for the night. And even though it is “dry season” the rain poured down. By the time we made it to camp it was a full on thunderstorm.

We piled in the dining tent, played our nightly Scum games and enjoyed our final dinner on trail. Tomorrow morning we wake up and hike to the Sun Gate. Cross your fingers these clouds clear so we can see Machu Picchu!

- RMI Guide Jess and the Machu Picchu team