RMI Expeditions Blog

We enjoyed yet another perfect day of climbing. After a nice four course breakfast at the Shira Camp the team shoulder their packs and ascended to over 14,500’, a high point for all team members.  After a nice break and taking in some great views above and below we then had to descend into our new camp, Barranco. Situated in an amazing valley at just under 13,000’ we are here enjoying more fantastic vistas. As usual our fabulous local outfitter had camp and snacks all set upon arrival. We have had a few intermittent showers of a mixture of snow and rain but overall it’s not too bad. Everyone is doing well and we are enjoying our time on the mountain. 

RMI Guide Mark Tucker

On The Map

June 14, 2017
Greetings from 17 Camp. Today high winds and low temps provided a combo that will keep us from climbing Denali for another day.  But our fingers are crossed that tomorrow may have something better in store for us, so please do the same down in the south land.  Hopefully we will be calling you with a little bit different news. For right now the team is doing 17,000’ Camp, we are hunkered down, being patient, full bellies, happy, healthy and hoping to go for the summit soon. That’s all for now.

RMI Guide Jake Beren

On The Map

Good morning from little Swiss,

We came to an end, but not without reward…Yesterday we had, after a patient wait for blue skies, the most amazing of the climbing days we could hope for. the Middle Troll, reigning over the Pika, towered for hours above us, as its splitter granite cracks discerned a feasible access to its airy summit. The team climbed seamlessly, and all the training of the last week payed for an incredibly well oiled “uphilling” engine. We climbed into the evening, as the morning and early afternoon were still foggy; climbing into the evening light of Alaska’s summer was very special.

We’re now cooking our breakfast and soon we’ll fly back to civilization… wait to see our pictures! 

RMI Guide Elias deAndres Martos & Team

RMI Guides Mike King, Jenny Konway, Jessie Poquerusse and Ben Ammon are leading the Expedition Skills Seminar - Emmons June 11 - 16, 2017.  The team met on Sunday and spent the day discussing logistics of the trip including an equipment check and some technical training.  Their second day was spent on the slopes above Paradise practicing rope travel, ice axe arrest and cramponing techniques.  On Tuesday morning they loaded up in the shuttle and drove to the White River Campground where they met the trail head and started their climb.  Yesterday they moved to Camp Schurman at 9,440’ and have continued their training.  This morning they made their summit attempt but due to low visibility and tough walking the team made the tough decision to turn around 11,400’.  They have returned to Camp Schurman where they will do some additional training.  They will spend their last night on the mountain tonight and start their descent tomorrow.  We look forward to seeing them back at Rainier BaseCamp tomorrow afternoon.

The Four Day Summit Climb June 12 - 15 led by RMI Guides Win Whittaker and Paul Rachele enjoyed a nice hike to Camp Muir yesterday after completing their Climbing School the day prior.  This morning, however, the weather prevented the teams from making a summit attempt on Mt. Rainier.  Win reported high winds and precipitation in the form of snow.  The teams will descend from Camp Muir and return to Ashford this afternoon.

The Four Day Summit Climb led by RMI Guide Tyler Reid tagged the Crater Rim of Mt. Rainier early this morning. Tyler reported blowing snow and strong winds from the west as they climbed into a cap.  The team spent a short time on top before starting their descent to Camp Muir.

Congratulations to today’s team!

The Five Day Summit Climb led by RMI Guide Adam Knoff reached 13,200’ on Mt. Rainier today. The team reported blowing snow and strong winds from the west as they climbed into a cap.  With the deteriorating conditions and slow climbing, the team made the decision to turn before the summit.

Congratulations to today’s team!

June 13, 2017
Hello, this is Jake Beren calling in from 17,000’ Camp on Denali. The team made it up today, it was pretty windy in the morning but the wind tapered down, and we were able to make it up to camp safely.  Now we are snuggled up with full bellies and hot drinks.  We are just going to wake up in the morning and see what the mountain offers us.  Wish us luck!  We need some low winds for our summit bid.  We are prepared to spend a few days up here but we are hoping not to. That’s all from 17 Camp. Hope everybody in the lowlands is doing well.

RMI Guide Jake Beren

On The Map

June 12, 2017
Hello from our new camp at 17,000 ft on Denali! The team had an early start pack up camp and departed around 7 am. The winds picked up on the West Buttress as we neared the first break. The team had some amazing dance moves as we waited an hour or so for the morning winds to subside. The team climbed strong all the way to high camp in optimal weather. We worked for a few more hours to build camp. The climbers crawled in to have a rest as the guides worked to melt snow and tidy camp. We are now eating big bowls of Annie’s Mac and cheese with bacon and soup. The hydration and eating up here never stops. Tomorrow with high hopes of good weather and light wind the team will shoot to stand on top of North America. Send us good vibes! 

RMI Guide Tyler Jones

On The Map

Good morning from the Pika Glacier. The weather and visibility yesterday were not exactly what we hoped for. But we made the most out of our day with more valuable training near camp; crevasse and rock rescue systems took the bigger part of the day, finishing with a few laps of vertical ice climbing out of a big crack, Alaska size. Dinner didn’t disappoint and made up for the lack of the climb we hoped to do, and a veggie-cheese omelette and steak fajitas were on the menu.
This morning we’re in a holding pattern as well, as a super dense fog is reducing our visibility to 30ft.

Stay tuned for more,
RMI Guide Elias de Andres Martos and team.