RMI Expeditions Blog

Aconcagua: King & Team Checking In from Los Penitentes

December 21, 2015

Posted by: Mike King, Caleb Ladue

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua

Elevation: 9,000'

This is Mike and team checking in from the Andean ski resort of Los Penitentes. We enjoyed a scenic drive through the vineyards of Mendoza and the twisty highway that brings our team into the Andes. There is a lot of snow in the hills and we are looking forward to starting our trek to base camp tomorrow. All the gear is sorted and packed to survive the mule ride to Plaza Argentina. If you are wondering what our gear will encounter just picture your duffel bag in an industrial paint shaker going for 12 hours straight. The team is in high spirits and we will check in from Las Lenas tomorrow evening! RMI Guide Mike King

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Aconcagua: Mike King & Team Meet in Mendoza

December 21, 2015

Posted by: Caleb Ladue, Mike King

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua

Hi everyone, This is Mike and Caleb from Mendoza. The entire team is in Mendoza safely with all bags accounted for. We enjoyed a nice dinner of Argentinian style grilled meat and pastas. Tomorrow once our permits are secured we will head to Los Penitentes so we can sort our gear for the trek to Aconcagua Base Camp. Expeditions are comprised of a series of small goals that hopefully culminate in standing on the summit. Having everyone arrive healthy and with all their gear in tow, was the first goal. We are looking forward to starting the approach to Aconcagua in a few days. Thanks for checking in and stay tuned for more updates. RMI Guide Mike King

Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

Glad to know everyone is safe, fuelled with good food and ready for their journey! We will be with you along the way providing strength and prayers.

Posted by: Joanne on 12/21/2015 at 4:15 pm

Hey Mike—-glad to see you leading the way. Be strong and safe and have fun!

Posted by: Randy Christofferson on 12/21/2015 at 7:21 am

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Aconcagua: Justman & Team Make Tough Decision

December 20, 2015

Posted by: Christina Dale, JJ Justman

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua

Elevation: 13,800'

The hardest thing to do in the mountains is to know when to leave the summit for another day. Our group had to make a very difficult decision today and based on a very poor weather forecast we have decided to head back to Base Camp. Our first priority in the mountains is always safety and we all agree the best choice in these super cold temps and high winds is to take care of ourselves and head down the mountain. Juan said that the birthday celebration with beers and pizza at Base Camp made up for skipping the summit. Tibor said he felt like fighting the dragons on the upper mountain was enough for him. Steph said we are all in good spirits now but the decision was a hard one. Ongun's sun burnt nose has spoken for him. Doug called, full porter. It has been an amazing journey and we've recognized that learning more about ourselves is far superior than reaching the summit. The ultimate destination is to be home safely. RMI Guides JJ Justman and Christina von Mertens

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Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

So proud of the team & making the smart decisions! Safety is always first! Looking forward to hearing about the journey.
Happy New Year!
John

Posted by: John Arnold on 12/21/2015 at 6:51 am

Safe. Admire you so much. Decisions are really hard sometimes, I am sure this was one of those times. Rejoicing with you at your good judgment and inner growth. Love to all.

Blythe and Larry

Posted by: Blythe Lasley on 12/20/2015 at 9:30 pm

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Aconcagua: Justman & Team Carry to High Camp

December 19, 2015

Posted by: Christina Dale, JJ Justman

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua

Elevation: 18,000'

For some, it's a hard thing to understand, that which we do not have control over. Today our team did a carry/acclimatization day in relatively calm, however, freezing temperatures to High Camp at 19,600 feet. Everyone did well despite me not knowing who anyone was all bundled up. All I could see of Stephanie was her nose. The team is now safely back at Camp 2 and we just made an afternoon snack, which warmed everyone up! The weather is changing again as the clouds build and the winds are slowly picking up. Tomorrow is a rest day here at 18,000 feet. Regardless of the weather we are having fun and enjoying the alpine views at Camp 2 on Aconcagua. RMI Guides JJ and Christina

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Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

Juane, Feliz Cumpleanos! Que mejor manera para celebrar que haciendo lo que te apasiona. Espero que las condiciones mejoren! Disfruta, espero verte pronto! Un beso.

Posted by: Maria Ester on 12/20/2015 at 4:12 pm

Hi All- tough call! But it sounds like the right one for sure. Hope you had a great time tagging 19,600’ and a smooth downclimb to base camp. Pizza & beer… Yeah, things could be worse :-). Have a great hike out over the next couple of days and hope you get to enjoy some time in Mendoza. Best, Chris. PS. Juan- happy birthday!

Posted by: Chris Villar on 12/20/2015 at 11:10 am

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Aconcagua: Justman & Team Settling into Camp 2

December 18, 2015

Posted by: JJ Justman, Christina Dale

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua

Elevation: 18,000'

First, congrats to Casey Grom and his team for making the summit of Chimborazo! As for our Aconcagua team, we made our move to Camp 2 at 18,000 feet. It was a tough day but the team did great! Tents are up, sleeping bags are laid out and the guides are busy making water. The wind was a little more kind to us today and we sure hope it will continue to get better. The forecast is calling for stronger winds and all we can do is hope for calm seas and continue to enjoy this beautiful mountain. Tomorrow we are hoping to do a carry day and an acclimatization day to Camp 3 at 19,600 feet...weather cooperating of course. Stay tuned! RMI Guides JJ Justman and Christina von Mertens

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Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

Happy birthday to Juan. Hope you have better weather. Wish you and your team are enjoying your adventure. God Bless you all.

Mami

Posted by: Ana Maria Suris on 12/20/2015 at 5:29 am

A great big birthday shoutout to my big brother Juan. Keep having fun, we will toast to you with a little chateau Serralles.

Jorge, Noreen, and kids

Posted by: Jorge suris on 12/19/2015 at 4:22 pm

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Ecuador Volcanoes: Grom and Team Summit Chimborazo!

December 17, 2015

Posted by: Casey Grom

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Ecuador

Elevation: 20,703'

Update: 11:30 a.m. PT The team has completed their descent and are headed to Quito. Photos from the Chimborazo climb below. 6:40 a.m. PT Hello everybody this is Casey Grom calling from the summit of Chimborazo. It is a nice day up here although it was pretty blustery this morning when we got up a little after 11 o'clock and started our stoves to have a little quick breakfast and some coffee. Thankfully shortly after we started walking the wind died down and we hiked or climbed in some gravel and dirt for about 2 hours before we got to the start of the glacier. Then it was pretty icy and pretty tough. The team did another fantastic job today. We ended up having to belay quite a few pitches to keep it safe. The team did fantastic and we're up here in the sun everyone is smiling and doing great. Everyone is a little tired, but the game plan is to get a few more photos and then head on back to camp. Then eventually all the way back to Quito, as we make our way back down in the land of Wi-Fi and cell service then we will send you one of our summit photos. Thank you following and look forward to seeing some of our photos. Alright, take care. RMI Guide Casey Grom

RMI Guide Casey Grom checks in from the summit of Chimborazo, Ecuador.

Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

Welcome back down, What an adventure!*

Posted by: Ron Birch on 12/17/2015 at 11:06 pm

FANTASTIC!!!!!!!!!

Posted by: danny on 12/17/2015 at 4:03 pm

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Aconcagua: Justman & Team Experience a Blustery Night at Camp 1

December 17, 2015

Posted by: Christina Dale, JJ Justman

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua

Elevation: 16,400'

We are all ready to head uphill but Aconcagua has other plans for us. Last night freight trains of wind rolled down the mountain rattling our world. This morning there was no sign of the winds letting up so we decided to take another rest day here. This has proved to be a wise decision because moving to a higher camp with these cold temperatures and high winds would not be a safe and productive plan. We are all hunkering down with hot tea and good books for today with hopes of a good move tomorrow. Spending time here is making us all stronger and more acclimatized for our summit bid in a few days. The team is doing well with the variables here on the side of the mountain. Everyone is healthy and happy and sends hellos to all back home. RMI Guides Christina von Mertens and JJ Justman

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Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

Steady as she goes, team! Being well rested and acclimatized will, I feel sure, add to the strength of your summit bid when the time comes. Larry and I are following along, and sending all of you our best. We lived near the ice fall here for a few days, with tons of ice-blocky snow stuck on our metal roof. It warmed up yesterday and crash boom bah, it all came down with no damage. (the dogs were tired of being kept inside out of harm’s way!)

Blythe n Larry

Posted by: Blythe Lasley on 12/18/2015 at 11:41 am

Hey Doug - enjoying following your adventure. I’ve made a sacrifice to the weather gods for you and the group, hopefully it will pay off. Enjoy and best of luck. Push on - very jealous!
Kevin from Nova Scotia.

Posted by: Kevin Walsh on 12/18/2015 at 4:41 am

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Ecuador Volcanoes: Casey Grom Calls In from Chimborazo High Camp

December 16, 2015

Posted by: Casey Grom

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Ecuador

Elevation: 16,564'

Hey everybody, this is Casey Grom checking in from the Ecuador Volcanoes Expedition. We are up here at just over 17,000 feet at our high camp on Chimborazo. We had a pretty nice day to hike up here. Was a little bit of clouds, which was nice to have it cool for our hike. The team had a great time and we hired a couple of porters to help expedite our arrival to camp, which was great. We just wrapped up a nice dinner of hot soup and watched the sun go down up here, which was incredibly beautiful. We're crawling into our tents and do our best for a little bit of sleep until we get up. Similar to our game plan as we had on Cayambe. We are going to try to get up at 11 and try to start climbing around midnight. So that will be our game plan for us. We will do our best tomorrow to give a call once we are back down off the mountain. I'm sure it's going to be a long, busy, hard day for everybody. We'll update you guys tomorrow once we are off the mountain. Thanks. RMI Guide Casey Grom

RMI Guide Casey Grom calls in from Chimborazo High Camp.

Aconcagua: Justman & Team Rest at Camp 1

December 16, 2015

Posted by: Christina Dale, JJ Justman

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua

Elevation: 16,400'

Hello from 16,400 feet on blustery Aconcagua. After a successful carry to Camp 2 yesterday we all took a well deserved rest day today. We slept in, which proved difficult to do because of the winds trying to huff and puff and blow down our houses. Then after hot drinks we took a small walk to a beautiful spot overlooking the valley. There we got the blood flowing by doing some high altitude yoga. Now we're back to the tents for an afternoon nap to prepare for a big move day tomorrow. Everyone says hi and is doing well. RMI Guides Christina von Mertens and JJ Justman

On The Map

Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

Yoga! Awesome :-) keep up the good work team, special hugs to Juan.

Juan, we miss you very much and as always, we are so proud of you! Enjoy this wonderful adventure!

Love,
Lilly & the Suris clan

Posted by: Lilly Suris on 12/16/2015 at 8:50 pm

I totally support the yoga practice on the mountain!!! Hopefully you’re all giving some love and gratitude to the bodies that got you 16,400 ft up a mountain! Take care and rest well!
Namaste :)

Posted by: Karina on 12/16/2015 at 4:23 pm

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Ecuador Volcanoes: Grom & Team Prepare for Next Objective - Chimborazo

December 15, 2015

Posted by: Casey Grom

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Ecuador

Hello Everyone, All is well here in Ecuador especially after a wonderful night of rest. The team did a fantastic job on Cayambe yesterday and really deserved it. We spent last night in the oldest Hacienda in Ecuador called Guachala, which dates back to the 16th century, and isn't too far from the mountain. After a relaxing morning at the Hacienda we loaded up our gear and headed south for five hours to reach our next climbing objective, Chimborazo. We are spending the night in another newer hacienda, not far from Chimborazo, built about 20 years ago by a German mountain guide that's full of climbing memorabilia. Our plan is to have another good night's rest here, then hike up to a high camp tomorrow afternoon to help shorten our climb. If all goes according to plan we'll be settled in camp by 5pm and hopefully get a little more rest before starting our climb around 11-12pm. Everyone enjoyed the drive and the beautiful views we had today. We are all excited for tomorrow. RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew

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RMI Expeditions Blog

Aconcagua: King & Team Checking In from Los Penitentes

On The Map

Aconcagua: Mike King & Team Meet in Mendoza

Aconcagua: Justman & Team Make Tough Decision

On The Map

Aconcagua: Justman & Team Carry to High Camp

On The Map

Aconcagua: Justman & Team Settling into Camp 2

On The Map

Ecuador Volcanoes: Grom and Team Summit Chimborazo!

Aconcagua: Justman & Team Experience a Blustery Night at Camp 1

On The Map

Ecuador Volcanoes: Casey Grom Calls In from Chimborazo High Camp

Aconcagua: Justman & Team Rest at Camp 1

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Ecuador Volcanoes: Grom & Team Prepare for Next Objective - Chimborazo

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