RMI Expeditions Blog

Elevation: 14,410'

The Expedition Skills Seminar - Muir September 16 - 21 met in Ashford on a very rainy Sunday for their Technical Training day. With a gear check completed and their backpacks full they left Paradise on Monday with clear skies and sunshine. The team has been at Camp Muir practicing mountaineering skills and enjoying this great weather. Today they got an early alpine start and made their summit attempt. RMI Guide Brent Okita reported a beautiful morning with no wind as they reached the crater rim of Mt. Rainier around 8:30 AM PT. The team will enjoy some time soaking in the views from the summit before starting their descent to Camp Muir. On mountain training will continue for the group until Friday when they will descend to Paradise and return to Rainier BaseCamp. Congratulations to today's climbers!

Kilimanjaro: Grom & Team Ascent the Shira Plateau

September 19, 2018

Posted by: Casey Grom

Elevation: 12,570'

Hello again everyone The team had a really nice day here on Kilimanjaro today, waking to beautifully clear skies and hiking in sunshine all day. We started the day waking at 6:30 to start packing up before moving into our dinning tent for a nice breakfast with porridge, fried eggs, toast, avocado and even some fresh fruit, and most importantly plenty of hot coffee. We hit the trail shortly after 8am and slowly made our way up the rocky trail with good views of Kili above. The trail climbs up a ridge and eventually out of the trees and allows for some truly spectacular views of the valley below. The team hiked for about four hours before reaching out next camp that sits on Shira plateau, which is an ancient lava flow. Everyone is doing very well and we are currently relaxing in our tents. RMI Guide Casey Grom

On The Map

Kilimanjaro: Grom & Team Gather at the Arumeru Lodge

September 17, 2018

Posted by: Casey Grom

Hello Everyone: Casey Grom here checking in with RMI's Kilimanjaro Climb. All is well here in Tanzania as the team arrived late last night after some very long flights and a very long process getting through immigration. Normally things go pretty smoothly after landing but last night took a little over two hours to get everyone through. Thankfully everyone is accounted for and all of our bags too! It was a short drive to our Lodge that is nestled in between Arusha and Moshi and not so far from the base of Kilimanjaro. The team had a quick but wonderful dinner and headed for bed as the time change has us all feeling just a little off and we were a little tired after all the traveling. We had a nice relaxing morning today and had our first official meeting at 10:00 where we did a round of introductions and then discussed the program for the coming days ahead. The remainder of the day was spent getting our gear packed up, exploring the grounds of our Lodge, which is incredibly peaceful and has monkeys and Dik Dik running around. See for yourself. We wrapped up the evening with another delicious meal and plenty of friendly conversations. Everyone is doing well and excited to hit the trail tomorrow and get a little bit of exercise. RMI Guide Casey Grom and the Kili crew!

Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

Pole, pole Dad! You got this!

Love from Texas! ❤️

Posted by: Keith Elizabeth on 9/18/2018 at 6:34 am

To my wonderful husband Ken and beautiful daughter Jessie, hope your first day was fantastic! I can’t wait to see the pics!!

Posted by: Lisa Williams on 9/18/2018 at 5:58 am

Mt. Rainier: Ascending Teams Abort Summit Climb

September 16, 2018

Posted by: Robby Young, Chase Nelson

Elevation: 7,700'

Today's Mt. Rainier Summit Climb teams, which were headed to Camp Muir for their summit attempt tomorrow morning, aborted their climb at 7,700'. As they were ascending, the weather continued to deteriorate. After climbing several hours in the storm, the guides made the call to turn the climb and descend back to Paradise. This afternoon the teams returned safely back to Rainier Basecamp in Ashford.

Mt. Rainier: Four Day Teams Turned Back by Weather

September 16, 2018

Posted by: Christina Dale, Chris Ebeling

Elevation: 10,800'

The Four Day Summit Climb September 13 - 16 led by RMI Guides Christina Dale and Chris Ebeling were unable to reach the summit today. The teams left Camp Muir around 1 AM but poor visibility along with increasing winds and precipitation forced them to turn around at 10,800'. They returned safely to Camp Muir and will begin their descent to Paradise this morning. Their climb with conclude this after once they return to Rainier BaseCamp.

Mt. Rainier: September 15th Team Summits!

September 15, 2018

Posted by: Brent Okita, JM Gorum

Elevation: 14,410'

The Four Day Summit Climb teams led by RMI Guides Brent Okita and JM Gorum reached the summit of Mt. Rainier today. Brent reported a cold morning, and the team climbed into the a cap, so their time on the summit was brief. The are on the descent and en route to Camp Muir. Congratulations to today's teams!

Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

You guys are awesome,
your advice and firm suggestions where spot on!
Thanks for getting us to the top.

Posted by: Jeff Piccinini on 9/16/2018 at 10:52 pm

Yahoo thanks for a great experience.

Posted by: Adam Kaplan on 9/16/2018 at 7:02 pm

Mt. Rainier: Muir Seminar Teams Reaches Summit

September 13, 2018

Posted by: Robby Young, Andy Bond

Elevation: 14,410'

The Expedition Skills Seminar - Muir September 9 - 14 made their summit attempt today. The teams led by RMI Guides Robby Young and Andy Bond reached the summit around 9:30 AM PT. The teams spent almost an hour in the crater and enjoying the views. Andy reported cold temperatures and new snow on the route. The team arrived at Camp Muir on Monday and has been training and preparing for the climb. Tonight will be their final night on the mountain. Tomorrow they will return to Paradise and continue to Rainier BaseCamp. Congratulations to today's climbers!

Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

Melissa fantastic accomplishment. We look forward to your return.

Posted by: Christopher on 9/13/2018 at 8:45 pm

Go KATE!!!

Posted by: Cindy Arbogast on 9/13/2018 at 2:04 pm

Kilimanjaro: Grom & Team Visit Tarangire National Park

September 13, 2018

Posted by: Casey Grom

Hello everyone, Today we headed to Tarangire National Park know for its abundant elephants, and it didn’t disappoint. There were plenty of elephants around, and we parked on an overlook to watch a large group of them play in the river. There were lots of giraffes, impalas, monkeys, ostriches, and many others. One of the highlights was seeing three cheetah not too far off just relaxing under a tree. We are spending our last night here in Africa at Tarangire Balloon Camp, which has beautiful tented rooms with screened windows to allow the sounds of the wild African night in. Everyone is doing great and we are hoping to see a few more big cats on our way out tomorrow. Then it will be back to our main lodge near Arusha for a brief stop before catching our evening flights home. Thanks for following, RMI Casey Grom and the Safari crew

Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

I hope this is not a duplicate comment, I thought I responded to this last blog post. Thank you again, Casey, RMI and the entire crew!! This last few days, so happy for the continued amazing, enriching experiences…and the w a r m t h :-). Emily and Alysia…you took care of all 3 “summit, safari, and shangri- la”. Way to go. Much love, see you soon xo :-)

Posted by: Shelby Schneider on 9/14/2018 at 1:41 pm

All we can say is “Incredible!” What an incredible guide and team leading an incredible group to a lifetime of memories!! We are grateful to to RMI for such a wonderful blog to share in the experience with our children B&G!! What an adventure it has been! Thank you and wishes to everyone for safe travels back to their home and loved ones!

Posted by: Shelly & Greg Meador on 9/13/2018 at 1:49 pm

Kilimanjaro: Grom & Team Visit Ngorongoro Crater and Maasai Village

September 12, 2018

Posted by: Casey Grom

Jambo everyone, Today we visited Ngorongoro Crater, considered by some to be the eighth wonder of the world. The crater is roughly 100 square miles and is home for more than 25’000 animals that have taken up residence. We hit the road early with hopes of catching a few more animals before the heat of the day sent them in search of shade. There were many sightings today of hyenas, jackles, ostrich, and countless other birds. We manage to see a ton of Lions, 24 to be exact. They seemed to be everywhere and we got really close to a large group of 11 of them. The also managed to see 1 Black Rhino, although not as close as we would have hoped for. We wrapped up the day with a visit to a Maasai village not far from the craters rim. The Maasai people are a semi-nomadic tribe that exist almost entirely off of their cattle. The team spent time asking questions and enjoyed being shown around their small and simple village. We have just finished another wonderful meal here at the plantation lodge and the team is off to bed after a long, but very rewarding day on safari. RMI Guide Casey Grom and the safari crew

Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

Sounds like you really had a great time at the crater, and the pictures tell it too! Lovely post! Thanks for sharing. The Ngorongoro really is a must-visit destination when heading to Tanzania. Just looking at the photos make me want to head to the country at once. Did you seek help from a tour operator for your trip? Would love to hear about it. Anyways! Keep safe and looking forward to reading more of your adventures!

Posted by: Krisan Sablaon on 4/15/2019 at 1:08 am

You guys look you had a blast visiting the crater and the village! I can’t wait to do the same during my trip. I heard visiting the Maasai village is a must if you’re in the area. I am honestly excited to get to know the Maasai people and their way of life which seems so different from what I am used to. I also read that the Maasai people welcome visitors to their village warmly with a song and dance. They even do this traditional dance known as the “adumu” or mostly commonly known as the jumping dance. Did you guys to experience this too when you went for a visit?

Posted by: Ana Katrina Lopez on 3/15/2019 at 7:35 am

Kilimanjaro:Grom & Team Enjoy Great First Day on Safari

September 11, 2018

Posted by: Casey Grom