Entries By calvin jiricko
Posted by: Ben Luedtke, Calvin Jiricko, Bailey Servais
Categories: Expedition Dispatches North Cascades
Sometimes, climbing is about a new experience. Sometimes, climbing is about the people. Sometimes, climbing is about the experience you get to enjoy with the people you are with while doing something epic, unexpected, and downright enjoyable. That is what we had. We may not have achieved the objectives we signed up for, but we got to experience something we never have before; an incredible four days with an incredible team on objectives that very few people ever get to be a part of. After an incredibly incredible yet long day that we'd rather not discuss, we then still got to go ice climbing (in August) on the lower Coleman Glacier of Mount Baker. Outside of that, we'll keep the jokes we shared, the sandals we made, and the amount of caffeine we consume amongst ourselves. Thanks to all our loved ones for supporting us on these crazy left field objectives. We are back where it all started at Chair 9 with limited service and celebrating.
RMI Guides Ben Luedtke, Calvin Jiricko, Bailey Servais, and team
Posted by: Ben Luedtke, Calvin Jiricko, Bailey Servais
Categories: Expedition Dispatches North Cascades
Summit Success!
Our entire team reached the top of South Twin Sister with big smiles and perfect weather. It was a stunning day of climbing, and everyone crushed it! We made it back late last night, safe and sound, and spirits are high.
Now we’re gearing up for our next adventure: ice climbing on the lower Coleman Deming Glacier. Conditions look promising, and we’re excited to get back out there.
— RMI Guide Ben Luedtke & Team
Posted by: Ben Luedtke, Bailey Servais, Calvin Jiricko
Categories: Expedition Dispatches North Cascades
Elevation: South Twin Sister
Today, we sauntered into the wilderness of Washington for our first objective: South Twin Sister.
“What are we doing?” you might ask. “Where the heck is that?” you may wonder. Spoiler alert: it’s a hidden gem of a climb just south of Mt. Baker.
After crossing a downed tree over a raging creek and bushwhacking through a sea of berries, we arrived at camp nestled in a field of boulders. The question kept coming: “Have y’all done this climb before?” Sure have.
We spent the afternoon refreshing our skills in preparation for what’s to come. Hiding from the sun and heat, we’re hoping to get some sleep tonight.
Tomorrow, we climb.
— RMI Guide Ben & Team
Posted by: Casey Grom, Sam Hoffman, Calvin Jiricko, Nina Bridges, Brendan Oates, CJ Rogers
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Four Day Climb August 9-12 led by RMI Guides Casey Grom and Sam Hoffman reached the summit of Mt. Rainier today with all of their climbers. It's a beautiful bluebird day and the teams climbed strong. They started their descent from the crater rim around 7 am. Once back at Camp Muir they will take a quick break before continuing the remaining 4.5 miles to Paradise.
Congratulations to today's climbers!
Posted by: Sam Hoffman, Tom Skoog, Ben Thorneycroft, Calvin Jiricko, Miles Watson, Rosie Hust, CJ Rogers, Brooks Ordway Smith
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Four Day Climb July 31 - 3 August led by RMI Guides Sam Hoffman and Tom Skoog reached the summit of Mt. Rainier early this morning. The teams reported nice day and a smooth climb. The teams were at 13,800' on their descent en route to Camp Muir. Once back at camp the teams will repack and continue the final 4,500' to Paradise and then continue to Ashford to conclude their program.
Congratulations to today's climbers.
PC: Tom Skoog
Posted by: Dominic Cifelli, Ben Luedtke, Lael Butler, Felipe Guarderas, Calvin Jiricko, Erika Barrett, Kat Porter, Julian Kral
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Five Day Climb July 26 - 30 reached the summit of Mt. Rainier today! Led by RMI Guides Dominic Cifelli and Ben Luedtke, the team reached the crater under blue skies and excellent conditions. They enjoyed some time in the crater before starting their descent. The teams will return to Camp Muir for a well-deserved night's rest before contining the remaining 4.5 miles to Paradise tomorrow.
Congratulations to today's climbers!
PC: Ben Luedtke
Amazing trip! Thanks to all ... Cheers, Barry
Posted by: Barry French on 7/30/2025 at 5:01 pm
Congrats to my amazing wife Hsiaolei Miller! What an accomplishment! Thank you RMI team for taking such amazing care of her - and everyone who participated!
Posted by: Jaclyn Miller on 7/29/2025 at 6:17 pm
Posted by: Dave Hahn, Sam Hoffman, Calvin Jiricko, Bailey Servais
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Alaska Mt. McKinley
Elevation: 348'
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Friday, July 4, 2025 - 1:33 AM PT
After we got in the tents at 11k last night, there was a violent thunderstorm passing over with inches of hailstones. We awoke at 2:00 AM to fire the stoves, choke down some oatmeal and get ready for a big day. It was party cloudy but mostly clear, which led to easy walking conditions. We were walking by 4:00 AM and and fairly soon, we’d reached the upper regions of Ski Hill and then our old camp at 8k. It only took us a further three hours to reach base camp. For late season, conditions were amazing. We never had to cross an open crevasse. We stayed busy at base camp sorting our own gear and helping others to load planes. Our flights came in around 1:00 PM and then we were headed to Talkeetna. Our team had donated pizzas in their mouths within 5 minutes of landing in Talkeetna. K2 Aviation did an excellent job bringing us home. In checking out with the National Park Service, we learned that we had been the absolute last team on the mountain and that the success rate for the season had only been 36%.
We sorted gear for the afternoon and then celebrated with a dinner at the brew pub. We celebrated a safe and enjoyable climb that didn’t reach the summit. That seemed appropriate given how much we enjoyed the effort of simply trying to get up the mountain.
RMI Guide Dave Hahn and Team
PC: Dave Hahn
New Post Alerts:
Mt. McKinley Expedition, June 14, 2025
Well done! Did the best you could with the conditions…looking forward to the stories and your safe return to the states. Karl and Diane
Posted by: Karl Ring on 7/8/2025 at 4:34 pm
God reise hjem etter det som må ha vært en fantastisk opplevelse selv om toppen ikke ble nådd.
Posted by: Erik Blaauw Evensen on 7/4/2025 at 12:45 pm
Posted by: Dave Hahn, Sam Hoffman, Calvin Jiricko, Bailey Servais
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Alaska
Elevation: 11,000'
Wednesday, July 2, 2025 - 10:43 pm PT
There are amazing views every step of the way from the crest of the ridge, but with heavy packs and steep terrain to negotiate, we didn't take so many pictures. Sure enough, the wind was still blowing and the slope was still loaded when we woke at 17,000' this morning. We packed up and started down the West Buttress at 11AM. The fixed rope section went smoothly and we were digging up our 14,000' cache by 2PM and continuing our descent by 3:30. Much snow had fallen on Windy Corner since we'd last been there and the walking and sled pulling was a little challenging as a result. We persevered on down the Polo Field, Squirrel Hill and finally down the reflecting oven that Motorcycle Hill tends to be in late afternoon. At 11,000' we got right to work building a hasty camp and running the stoves. We'd been in blazing hot sun but as soon as we sat down to an outdoor dinner, a spectacular hailstorm hit. But we were hungry and sat through it.
Folks are getting a few hours rest now. We'll get up in the night and make a push for the airstrip in the early morning hours.
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
New Post Alerts:
Mt. McKinley Expedition, June 14, 2025
Aww, Jon! Sorry the ever elusive summit just wasn’t in the cards again! But better safe than sorry. Great job to the entire team, I’m sure the views were spectacular all along the way. Get down safely!
Posted by: Sunita Bendale on 7/4/2025 at 2:06 pm
Impressed by the speedy descent! I’ve loved following along over the past few weeks, and hope everyone is healthy & safe. Hope the experience was wonderful, regardless of the outcome! We live to climb another day.
Posted by: Katie Gardner on 7/3/2025 at 10:19 pm
Posted by: Dave Hahn, Sam Hoffman, Calvin Jiricko, Bailey Servais
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Alaska
Elevation: 17,200'
Tuesday, July 1, 2025 - 10:04 pm PT
Today was windy from start to finish, which we weren't quite expecting from the forecasts. There was plenty of sunshine though and so it wasn't uncomfortable. But we mostly hung in the tents, just coming out occasionally to look at the world stretched out below. And to look at the route to Denali Pass, over and over. The avalanche hazard still exists and we can't will it away by staring at the slope. The team is agreed that we'll look at it one more time -tomorrow morning- but then, without some dramatic change, we'll descend, as the teams around us have done. The forecasts are calling for strong winds up high now in any case.
It is a tough situation. Luckily we are climbing with tough people.
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
New Post Alerts:
Mt. McKinley Expedition, June 14, 2025
Hope tomorrow morning brings good news! Best of Luck to All!
Posted by: Mike Baron on 7/2/2025 at 9:29 pm
Holding out hope for a clearing—stay safe!
Posted by: jen ostrich on 7/2/2025 at 9:16 am
Posted by: Dave Hahn, Sam Hoffman, Calvin Jiricko, Bailey Servais
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Alaska
Elevation: 17,200'
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Monday, June 30, 2025 - 11:04 pm PT
Perfect day for moving on up. We took advantage and climbed to 17,200. The team was already roped and moving toward the headwall at 8:30 AM when the cold shadows still covered the entire basin. We got much needed sun at the first rest break. It was a pleasure as always to top out the ropes at 16,200. We broke into our cache for a few essentials... just to make sure the guide packs were heavy enough for climbing the West Buttress. The spectacular walk up the crest went smoothly for us and we rolled into 17,000' Camp at 3:15. As usual, it was tough to build a solid and safe camp at such a high elevation just after arriving. But we got it done and sat down to a nice dinner inside our dining tent. Snow conditions on the route to Denali Pass are still unstable so there is no chance for us to go for the summit tomorrow.
We'll keep evaluating to see whether we get a chance on following days.
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
New Post Alerts:
Mt. McKinley Expedition, June 14, 2025
This is it… best of luck.
Posted by: Tom Leonard on 7/2/2025 at 5:30 am
Spennende å følge dere, men vær forsiktige. Virker likevel som dere er i gode hender.
Posted by: Erik Blaauw Evensen on 7/1/2025 at 11:43 pm
Oh ... man. Ice climbing on the lower Coleman Deming Glacier! Can’t go wrong there!
Posted by: Some guy from Puyallup on 8/28/2025 at 9:01 pm
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