Entries By billy nugent

We woke this morning to a quiet refugio but that didn't last long... The weekend hordes of locals would soon overwhelm the small refugio and unfortunately for us, the weather wasn't really cooperating for our planned day of training up on the glacier. Despite gusts to 50 mph and sideways drizzle we geared up and tried to make our way up towards the glacier. We didn't last long. After making our way up some 600 or 700 feet we were getting blasted by even stronger winds and getting wet to boot. We pulled the plug and headed back for cover, ultimately using a rock ridge for some protection. It was barely enough for us to get the training in we'll need for tonight's attempt at the Cayambe summit. Luckily, the wind is backing off a bit along with the crowds of day visitors and we are hoping both trends continue and allow us to make an honest crack at the summit. I'll check in tomorrow evening and let ya'll know how it went, RMI Guide Billy Nugent

On The Map

Saturday, February 6, 2016 After a light breakfast at the Casa del Sol we headed down to find a bustling Otavalo Saturday market. We cruised around town shopping for souvenirs, avoiding kids hellbent on silly string annihilation, and finished up our Otavalo experience with a nice lunch in the main square. After that we left town and headed for the hills under the guidance of Victor, our fearless driver. The road to Cayambe isn't in the best shape these days and despite massive potholes and some pretty steep switchbacks for a bus Victor was able to deposit us about 30 minutes shy of the refugio. After our short walk, we settled into our accommodations in the refugio and enjoyed a hot drink. The evening brought us to dinner (pork chops!) and knot session to lay the foundations for more skill training to come. Cozy above 15,000', RMI Guide Billy Nugent

On The Map

Chillin' at Casa del Sol... Well, we enjoyed another great day down here in Ecuador with a nice hike, good weather and good company. After meeting our local alpine guide David and an early departure from Quito we made our way to the north towards our acclimatization objective Cerro Fuya Fuya, but also Otavalo, and most notably Cayambe. While the clouds prevented us from peeping Cayambe while on Fuya Fuya, we were still able to enjoy views from the summit of the surrounding volcanic caldera and the large lake below. The whole team moved well and enjoyed the day out and about. We're now posted up at a beautiful guesthouse up above the city of Otavalo called Casa del Sol, enjoying a beer and waiting for dinner. Tomorrow, however, the real adventure begins as we make our way up towards Cayambe... More to come! RMI Guide Billy Nugent

On The Map

February 3, 2016 Welcome to a series of dispatches from our most recent expedition seminar in Ecuador! This morning we officially met for the first time as a team and enjoyed a nice breakfast at our hotel before heading out on a cultural tour of Quito, Ecuador's capital city. We started off our sightseeing with a visit to the geographic equator and an interesting sort of a natural history museum at the same site. We saw all sorts of cool stuff like enormous anaconda skins, crazy spiders, a spiny Amazonian fish that will swim up your urethra, and even a real human shrunken head from the jungles of eastern Ecuador. Crazy stuff. We spent the afternoon visiting the old town of Quito which is a Unesco World Heritage site with many buildings dating back to the 1500's. Lots of cool churches were visited and we learned about Ecuador's tumultuous political history as we saw the sights with our local cultural guide Angel. We've got a great group of guys and we are all excited to get out tomorrow and feel a little altitude. Although, it could be said we're starting out acclimation process right here in Quito, hanging out at just over 9,000'. Talk tomorrow... February 4, 2016 We woke today to broken clouds and another lovely morning here in Quito. Jaime, our local man with a plan (he's our coordinator for nearly everything we'll do) decided to join us on our climb of Rucu Pichincha just for fun. After a quick taxi ride over to the Teleférico and a scenic ride up the gondola we began our approach towards Pichincha's rocky summit through gentler, but beautiful green mountains. Our team moved well for the most part despite feeling the acute burn of our first serious dose of altitude. The summit block involved a bit of easy scrambling but before long the team found themselves on the summit, albeit in a sea of clouds. Still, we were able to catch a few glimpses of the active part of Pichincha's caldera, la Pichincha Guagua and down to the buildings of Quito filling the valley far below. We celebrated our last night in Quito with a great pizza dinner and are all looking forward to getting outta town tomorrow on our way eventually to Cayambe in the north. Later! RMI Guide Billy Nugent

A photo posted by Billy Nugent (@carlhungus23) on Feb 4, 2016 at 6:00pm PST

Wow... All I can say is that it's been a crazy ride. Two days ago we were sitting tight up at Camp 2 waiting for the weather to open up and now we are down in Penitentes celebrating our escape from the wrath Aconcagua. We had decided to hold on a day or two longer and see if maybe the forecasts were wrong but alas, they were not. We made the decision to pull the plug and head down when the lowest wind speed predicted over the next 7 days was over 50 mph with several pulses up in the 70's. We woke on the morning we intended to descend to clear skies but moderate winds blowing snow and by the time we were able to pick up camp it had clouded over and the wind had intensified significantly. As we descended around and down the mountain the storm chased us all the way to Basecamp... There was no respite despite our descent into a portion of the mountain that is historically more protected. Our team was able to stick together and move well despite the challenging conditions. We were greeted warmly by the Basecamp staff upon our arrival back at Plaza Argentina. We enjoyed real chairs and a real meal (chicken Vesuvius) for the first time in over a week and then crashed hard. The next couple days we made our way down the Relinchos and Vacas Valleys and spent our last night out on the trail after devouring an amazing asado prepared by our mule drivers. We ate (beef, beef, beef!) and drank (vino, and even a little wild turkey) and went to bed happy and tired after a long couple of days. This morning we rose and walked the last of the Vacas to the road where we checked out with the park rangers and were greeted by our shuttle driver with beer and Fanta. Not a bad way to finish a long and tough expedition. Next stop, Mendoza! RMI Guides Billy Nugent, Katrina Bloemsma and Team

The RMI Aconcagua Team led by RMI Guides Billy Nugent and Katrina Bloemsma were unable to make a summit attempt and are en route to Mendoza. The team left Base Camp today and is camped at Pampa de Las Lenas where they will spend the night. They will finish their trek to the trail head tomorrow and return to Mendoza.

Well, we are currently pinned down by high winds at Camp 2 and despite the sunny weather we are stuck alternating between chilling outside in camp or baking in the tents. Last night a pretty hefty storm thrashed camp with strong winds, new snow, and repeated thunder and lightning. Skies began to clear this morning and the wind began to abate in camp as it shifted more to the southwest putting us a bit more in the lee of the mountain. Unfortunately, it is still howling up at Camp 3 and the entire flank of Aconcagua is adorned with swirling clouds of spin drift and the summit is sporting a sizable contrail. Today is officially our first weather day as we have been knocked off our planned itinerary for the first time. Still, two days stuck in the tent feels like a lot and we are trying not to get saddled with cabin fever. The team is doing a great job staying positive despite the fact that nearly every other expedition on the mountain has bailed for Mendoza and we are eagerly awaiting the latest weather forecast for a potential summit window... Wish us luck! Stuck in the tent for now anyway, RMI Guide Billy Nugent

We woke this morning to our first bit of precipitation. When I stuck my head out of the tent around 5 am, we were essentially in a cloud with some light flurries coming down but now the clouds have parted a bit and we're enjoying views towards Mercedario again. It's calm and more or less pleasant but we are waiting for a system to hit this afternoon with wind and precipitation. We are on a scheduled rest day and will hopefully see what this storm brings before we try and figure out our next move. When a window presents itself we'll make a move for high camp at Plaza Cólera and hopefully take a crack at the summit the following day. But for now... We're about to be stuck in a holding pattern. On a brighter note, we are celebrating a teammate's birthday today complete with a cake and balloons courtesy of Katrina. Hoping everyone at home wishes John a happy one! Signing off for now, RMI Guide Billy Nugent

Checking in from Guanacos Campo 3, or Camp 2 for us at well over 18,000'. We are moved and settled in, enjoying yet another perfect afternoon with coffee, cribbage, prosciutto, and of course, siestas. We felt the altitude before but with this most recent move higher we are all moving a bit slower and scratching our heads a bit longer when trying to figure out where that one stuff sack with our snacks went. The team is staying positive despite a tough looking weather forecast and we are hoping that Mother Nature will give us an opportunity to sneak in a trip to the top. Not much else cooking up here besides our broccoli and rice dinner... RMI Guide Billy Nugent

On The Map

Well, we are enjoying a pleasant, if a bit breezy, rest day here at Aconcagua Camp 1. People are passing the time watching movies, playing cribbage, reading, and taking Spanish lessons from Pato, our newest addition to the guide team. Not much else to report, we're hoping to move up to Camp 2 tomorrow where we plan on waiting out the coming weather before making our move to Plaza Cólera (Camp 3) and subsequent summit push. Morale is high and we are all looking forward to being reunited with our best snack food up in the cache at Camp 2. More to come as the story develops, RMI Guide Billy Nugent