Entries By casey grom
Hello again Everyone
All is well here in Ecuador.
Yesterday we had a nice leisurely start to our day. We packed up for the move up onto the mountain and left the comfortable Lodge around 11am.
We first stopped by the massive market in Otavalo to take in the culture and we did our best at bartering for some local goods.
It was a little intimidating as Saturday is the big market day and it was jam packed with people and their goods. The team snaked our way through never ending streets of goods chatting with locals and then had a nice lunch overlooking the main square.
After lunch, we headed directly to the mountain with help from a few 4x4 vehicles to make it up the very rugged road that goes all the way to the mountain hut at 15,000ft. The team chose to hike the last hour to help with acclimatization, and allowed our vehicles to deliver the gear at the hut. It was extremely windy so we didn’t venture outdoors too much. We finished the evening with a nice warm meal then turned in early for a good night's rest.
Today the team got up around 6:30am to have breakfast and get ready for our hike up to the glacier that’s about an hour uphill. We spent a few hours refreshing our mountaineering skills on the glacier and taking in the views when the clouds allowed.
Everyone is doing very well and the whole team is in good spirits up here since the weather has mellowed out.
Our plan is to have an early dinner then head to bed as tomorrow we’ll be making our first summit attempt. We’ll shoot for getting up around 11:30pm and hopefully be out the door in an hour's time. If things go well I expect it will take somewhere around 6-8 hours to reach the summit. Then we’ll descend via the route back to the hut.
Keep your fingers crossed and wish us luck.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and the mountain crew!
On The Map
Hola Amigos!
We had an early departure today leaving behind the busy and celebrating city of Quito. The team drove north, passing by the Equator and made our way to another acclimatization hike. Just outside Quito the landscape quickly turned from a giant valley into rolling hills with farms pitched on steep slopes, and small forest of eucalyptus trees as far as the eye could see.
We visited a smaller mountain called Fuya Fuya where we got to stretch our legs on the steepest grassy hillside I’ve ever seen. Thankfully the weather was decent which allowed us to see some amazing views of the surrounding landscape that included a beautiful lake in the background.
We are just on the outskirts of a town call Otavalo, which is known for its massive market and we are currently relaxing at the wonderful Hacienda called "La Casa Sol Lodge” [url=http://www.lacasasol.com]http://www.lacasasol.com[/url]
The team is doing great after hot showers, a wonderful meal, and celebrating an Anniversary of some of our teammates.
Everyone is in good spirits and looking forward to a nice tranquil night.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and the Ecuadorian crew
On The Map
Dave looks like you are carrying Jim, always the mentor. Looks like you all are having a blast. Hope it is 1/2 the fun as it looks. Sure is beautiful. Take lots of pictures but no wooden nickels. Safe travels.
Posted by: Pete Palmgren on 12/10/2018 at 2:26 pm
After a fun filled day touring around Quito yesterday, today was our first acclimatization hike. Our target Rucu Pichincha, a 15,696' extinct volcano. With sun breaks and patchy clouds the hike was a success, getting back to the hotel by 3 in the afternoon.
There was plenty of time for more exploring and shopping around Quito before the team had a good dinner at a local brewery.
RMI Guide Chad Gaffigan
On The Map
Hola from Ecuador!
The team arrived late last night after some very long flights. Today we started our day with a team meeting where we did our usual round of introductions to get to know each other and then discussed the game plan for our upcoming 11 day adventure here in Ecuador.
After the meeting we headed out on the town to explore this beautiful historical city with our local and very knowledgeable tour guide Angel. We first headed north to visit the Equator from which Ecuador gets its name, stopping by a museum that had a pretty interesting collection as well as some unique test that attempt to prove it’s the actual middle of the world.
Then we headed to the southern part of Quito to a big hill called La Panacia that over looks this beautiful city. Normally we get to visit the oldest part of Quito, but today is the Holiday celebrating the founding of Quito and many of the street were closed for the festival. So we opted for a visit to the Basilica, built in gothic style, and managed to climb nearly to the top, via the steepest stairs any of us had ever been on. Pretty cool to say the least!
We wrapped up the day with a quick gear check to make sure everyone has all the gear needed for our climbs. Then it was off to dinner at a nice restaurant where we were enjoyed getting to know each other better.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and the Ecuador crew
Posted by: Casey Grom
Categories:
Hello everyone
We spent yesterday touring Tarangire National Park which is known for its abundant elephants, in fact, it has more per square kilometer than any place on earth and it didn’t disappoint. There were plenty of other animals as usual, and we got close to a few big Giraffe, which was amazing plus a leopard sighting too.
We ended our day at a remote and off grid camp within the National Park and surrounded by wildlife. The camp has screened in rooms that allow the night sounds of Africa in. There pretty nice rooms to be honest, so maybe “glamping” is a better description.
It's been a memorable experience for everyone and great friendships forged. But finally it's time to return home to our families.
Thanks for following!
RMI Guide Casey Grom and the Safari crew!
Posted by: Casey Grom
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Kilimanjaro
Hello again everyone
Today we visited the famous Ngorongoro Crater, one of the seven natural wonders of the world. The crater is roughly 100 square miles and is home for more than 25,000 animals that reside here year round, as its one of the few places that has natural springs. We started early with hopes of catching a few big cats before the heat of the day sent them in search of shade.
We saw many hyenas, jackles, ostrich, plus countless other huge birds, and even managed to get close to a large pride of lions with very full bellies. There was a Black Rhino spotted not to far off of the road also which was a highlight.
We wrapped up the day with a visit to a Maasai village not far from the craters rim. The Maasai people are a semi-nomadic tribe that exist almost entirely off of their cattle. The team spent time asking questions and enjoyed being shown around their small and simple village.
We have just finished another wonderful meal here at the Plantation Lodge and the team is off to bed after a long, but very rewarding day on safari.
RMI Guide Casey Grom
Posted by: Casey Grom
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Kilimanjaro
Today was our first day of safari and we headed northwest to visit the beautiful Lake Manyara. The lake is a brief stopping ground for many migratory animals and home to more than 300 different birds. Everyone enjoyed the day cruising around in our safari vehicles with cold beverages in hand while seeing the animals up close.
We managed to see a few wildebeest, zebras, Cape buffalo, lots of baboons, a few impalas and many hippos, and several elephants pretty close. It was a nice introduction to the incredible diversity of wildlife that Africa has and the team is looking forward to seeing more tomorrow.
We wrapped up the evening with a wonderful meal at our new lodge, The Plantation Lodge, and even celebrated one of our teammate's birthday with a cake and plenty of singing.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and the Safari crew
Posted by: Casey Grom
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Kilimanjaro
Today we woke at 6:30 after a wonderful night of well deserved sleep, had a quick breakfast, then enjoyed a few goodbye songs from our hardworking and kind crew of porters, cooks, and local guides. We finished the little celebration by handing out their well earned tips and then hit the trail one last time descending back into the thick forest surrounding Kilimanjaro. It took about three hours to reach the park gate where the team had lunch then hopped aboard our awaiting bus for the ride back to the lodge.
The team is doing great after relaxing for a few hours and some and well deserved long, hot showers.
Everyone is looking forward to our game viewing safari which starts early tomorrow!
RMI Guide Casey Grom and a happy Kilimanjaro crew
We did it! Summit success!
The team got up at 11pm and were all ready by 11:30 for the ascent. We then had a quick midnight breakfast of porridge, tea and coffee before starting our climb under a mostly full moon.
The weather was very calm and the route wasn’t all that busy allowing us to take our time and enjoy the ascent. The climb took just under seven hours to reach the summit, and thankfully the sun rose shortly before reaching the top to help warm us and boost morale after climbing through the night.
On the summit we hugged each other, enjoyed the views and took plenty of pictures and even made a few phone calls to loved ones back home.
It was a true test of endurance for most of the crew, and I'm really proud of everyone.
We descended back to high camp, where we had a quick lunch, repacked and then continued further down the mountain to our final camp in the thick warm air at 10’000ft, where we just finished another fine meal prepared by our gracious staff. Now it’s off to bed for some well deserved sleep.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and a happy Kilimanjaro summit crew
On The Map
When I looked at the picture of the summit crew I knew it was you Judge Junell!!!! Congrats on another summit. I have another trip for you- The Lofoten Islands, Norway. I’ll send you the info!! Cheers to everyone.
Posted by: Elsie Bemiss on 9/24/2018 at 5:18 pm
kudos to Hans/Alix. You guys overcome all obstacles. Proud parents.
Posted by: Margot badenhausen on 9/23/2018 at 3:44 pm
Hello again everyone:
After a good night's rest and a short hike up to 15,000 feet we’ve finally arrived at our high camp. Today was mostly sunny with great views of Kilimanjaro and our intended route for tomorrow’s climb.
The team has just wrapped up lunch and discussed in great detail the plan for tomorrow’s climb. Everyone knows what what we’ll be wearing, what will be in the pack, as well as the schedule.
Our game plan will be to wake at 11pm and have a quick breakfast at 11:30, then hopefully hit the trail right at midnight. The team has been doing great thus far and I’m expecting us to reach the summit in seven to eight hours if things go according to plan.
Also to note!
There have been several rounds of trivia with the winner getting a chance to make a satellite phone call from the summit. So everyone back home please keep your phones handy and if you receive a call from a strange number please answer. We are seven hours ahead of the east coast time zone, so a 7:00 am arrival at the summit will mean a midnight phone call.
Wish us luck!
RMI Guide Casey Grom and the Kili crew
On The Map
Hey Jess, tried to get your call last night, but no luck for service. Can’t wait until you’re back. K byeeeee
Posted by: Zacharahia Mcclanahan on 9/23/2018 at 7:46 am
Great Job on the Summit! We are continuing to follow your progress.
Posted by: Pete Palmgren on 12/11/2018 at 9:20 am
Good luck Jim & Dave! Hope you summit safely! We’ll be following you two. Can’t wait to hear all about it.
Posted by: Kristi Nottingham on 12/10/2018 at 9:53 am
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