RMI Expeditions Blog
May 26, 2017
So this dispatch is not coming from the green grass of town but the expansive white glacier of the Kahiltna. We thought the weather might break long enough for a flight in but alas the clouds remain limiting visibility. The team kept busy in the morning though. After breakfast we stomped down a foot of new snow on the runway so planes could land and then we waited for that faint din of turbine engines. Now it is evening and we are turning in as new snow falls. Tomorrow is another day so we will wait and see what it brings.
RMI Guide Leon Davis
May 26, 2017
When I awoke at the frigid hour of 5 am (temp -23F), I was greeted by a beautiful blue sky above
Denali's summit. I layered up, got out of the tent, and fired up the stoves. By the time the stoves came to life, winds picked up and a cap had formed on the summit. It quickly grew in intensity and size, reaching all the way down to ~16,000'. We had hot drinks and breakfast and them retreated to the tents to stay warm as we monitored the situation. The weather continued to deteriorate and now we find ourselves once again at 14,000' Camp waiting for our shot. The forecast still looks favorable, and we have a few more days left to make it happen. We'll stay in touch...
RMI Guide Mike Walter
On The Map
Hey everyone out there in blog land, this is Eric checking in from base camp in the
Condoriri Group. Most of the team is snuggled into their sleeping bags for an afternoon siesta, because we already put in a full day of work by summiting Pequeño Alpamayo!
After a 3am wake up call, we rolled out of camp in the darkness and made short work of the broad, rolling glacier that occupies the basin above our camp. By 7:30 we were at 17,500ft and the morning alpenglow turned all the peaks around us to a fiery orange. Words can't describe the immensity of the range. In every direction snow capped peaks roll out. The remainder of the route took us up steep snow ridges, over rocky towers and to a final summit that was smaller then a dinner table. The team crowded onto the small precipice and snapped a few photos before walking over the ridge to start the first lower. We are happy to report that everyone in the group made it.
All for now. We head to La Paz tomorrow for a well deserved shower and respite before heading on to our next objective.
RMI Guide Eric Frank
May 26, 2017
Welcome to our team's first dispatch!
We had two unsuccessful attempts to fly into Kahiltna Base Camp yesterday. The current weather on the mountain has only left us with short windows to make a landing. With our returned attempts it allowed us to do some more dry land training and re packing to give us a head start when we do land on the glacier. The team is excited and prepared to start our expedition. Our extra night in Talkeetna provided us with another evening of good food, company and playoff hockey!
As we speak the hanger crew is telling us to get our boots on and load up the planes again. We hope the third time will be the one!
Thanks for following our team and we'll keep you posted along the way!
RMI Guides Tyler, JM and Bryan
May 25, 2017
The
Denali Expedition May 23, 2017 led by
RMI Guides Tyler Jones, JM Gorum and Bryan Mazaika has met their team in Alaska. The group transferred from Anchorage to Talkeetna and spent time arranging their gear, meeting with the National Park Service and enjoying some restaurant meals and showers. The team is prepped and ready to fly but the weather has not yet cooperated with them. At one point they loaded the Twin Otter plans and headed out toward the Alaska Range but the weather deteriorated and they were forced to return to Talkeetna. The group is on standby and will jump when the pilots call and tell them to meet at K2 Aviation. We are hoping the weather clears and they can fly onto the Kahiltna Glacier soon.
Best of luck!
RMI Guide Eric Frank called from the summit of
Pequeno Alpamayo this morning at 7 am PT. The entire Bolivia Expedition Team along with Eric and Caleb were enjoying the views from the top! They will return to Base Camp of the Condoriri Group to spend another night and plan to do some additional training from there tomorrow.
Way to go team!
May 25, 2017
We had the sun this morning, but a large cloud
cap over the summit convinced us to wait another day to carry. It was a great day to let the tents bake, dry wet items, and people watch around camp. We capped it with a dinner of quinoa, lentils, kale, and squash in a red wine, bouillon, and Dijon reduction. It was a nice to have some fresher tasting food after 12 days on the mountain. Hopefully we wake to clear skies tomorrow and get our cache on above!
RMI Guides Pete, Jess, Jenny and team
On The Map
Clear skies were a very welcome sight as I peeked out the vestibule on this frigid, frosty morning. Definitely our coldest morning yet! But, we had a cache to put in so the wheels were set in motion for our climb.
Unfortunately, the weather deteriorated to the point where we pulled the plug and took a well deserved rest day instead.
What a treat. Lounging about in the tents, eating, listening to tunes, reading, sleeping, eating some more. Our bodies sucked in the energy from the calories eaten and the warmth provided by the radiation getting through the clouds and snow showers. Tents and sleeping bags dried as our bodies got the recharge we all needed.
The smell of fried onions, red peppers, chicken and chilies greeted us when the dinner bell rang, and no doubt made the rest of camp salivate with envy. Chefs JT and Christina put on yet another fine spread.
It's these simple pleasures that we tend to value so much in the mountains.
After our dress rehearsal this morning and rest day I think we'll be ready to rock tomorrow. The forecast hasn't changed any, but the winds aren't bad. It's just a bit irritating to climb in the occasional snow showers and cloudy weather. But, I guess we've been doing it all week. This team has demonstrated the capacity to climb well, so hopefully we'll get our cache established at 13,500' and be primed to move to
14,200' camp when we can.
Not that I'm a great believer in the weather forecasts around here, but they say high pressure is coming our way by Monday. We're due!
Good night from 11,200', where I'm in our tent at the very reasonable hour of 9:00p after camp chores, and not freezing my fingers in the frigid cold of these Alaskan nights.
Oh, and by the way, your loved ones are all happy and doing exceptionally well. The guides included. If you all have any messages for the team, our office staff will send them our way sometime. Hopefully coinciding with our next rest day where I'll have time to share them with everyone. Just don't get carried away with the heartfelt mushy stuff. I hate choking up in front of the group.
Your messengers of news from above,
RMI Guides Brent Okita, Christina Dale and JT Schmitt
On The Map
This mornings skies were a welcome sight after a few days of white. Clear skies also brought colder temps for us at
Kahiltna Base Camp. It was not long before the clouds rolled back in but that did not stop the team from having some fun. We ventured to a crevasse field and gave folks a chance to see the inside of a the icy maw and climb out. Lots of laughs and pictures today around those cracks. Later in the afternoon we received word from K2 that they were launching the fleet to drop a team off and that we should be ready within the hour. That was a frantic hour indeed but the team got it done in short order. As soon as the dust settled we found out that the planes turned back so we set up a new camp downtown on the airstrip. Forecast is calling for more snow the next few days so we will see what the future holds.
RMI Guide Leon Davis
We awoke to our first real look at the
Condoriri Group and it was absolutely spectacular. Crystal clear skies highlighted a couple climbing groups heading up a rolling glacier on the way toward Pequeno Alpamayo. For our group that path waits for tomorrow, so after a languorous breakfast, the team headed up to 16k to continue our acclimatization and practice the skills for the upcoming day. We managed to refresh everyone's prior knowledge and even add a technique or two to the group's toolbox. Our schooling came to a swift close as the afternoon clouds rolled in and forced us back to camp to lounge away the late afternoon and rest up for the long day ahead. Now the team is wrapped up in our tents watching the night sky clear above us!
RMI Guide Eric Frank
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Hey John
Hope you guys aren’t going stir crazy .. btw the alarm in the house has been going off for 48 hours .. hahaha just kidding wanted to make u laugh .. get back if you can. M
Posted by: Mia Horgan on 5/27/2017 at 1:50 pm
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