Entries By david rathbun
Posted by: Dustin Wittmier, Mike Bennett, Avery Stolte, Layne Peters, Tate Hughes, Nina Bridges, Julian Kral, David Rathbun
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Four Day Climb August 17 - 20 led by RMI Guides Dustin Wittmier and Mike Bennett reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. The teams delayed their departure from Camp Muir a bit due to the colder tempertures, with a 2 am departure, they reached the summit around 8 am. They enjoyed some time on the summit before turning around and retracing their steps. Once back at Camp Muir the team will repack and continue their descent to Paradise.
Nice work team!
Posted by: Tom Skoog, David Rathbun
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Expedition Skills Seminar - Paradise team led by RMI Guides Tom Skoog and David Rathbun put their week of training to the test this morning and climbed to the summit of Mt. Rainier. The team has spent the last several days climbing and training. They pushed up to Camp Muir yesterday and with an alpine start this morning enjoyed the sunrise from the upper slopes of the mountain. The team started their descent from the crater rim around 7 am. Once back at Camp Muir they will take a quick break and continue down to Paradise to conclude their climb. They will celebrate their accomplishments later today in Ashford.
Nice work team!
PC: Tom Skoog
Posted by: Dominic Cifelli, Joe Crawford, Hannah Blum, Hannah Billings, David Rathbun, Matt Tucker
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Four Day Climb August 2 - 5, 2025 led by RMI Guides Dominic Cifelli and Joe Crawford reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. The teams reported a beautiful day on the mountain with a little wind a little precipatation while they were on the summit. They enjoyed a bit of time in the crater before starting their descent. The teams are heading back to Camp Muir, and after a quick break will continue the remaining 4.5 miles to Paradise to complete their climb. Once back at BaseCamp they will enjoy a bit of celebration to conclude their adventure.
Nice work today team!
PC: Dominic Cifelli
Inspiring experience (yes, a 1997 reboot, well sort of!), and lots of gratitude to be a part of this RMI team!
A great big thank you to all the guides - you shine!
Posted by: Catherine Nelson on 8/21/2025 at 5:50 pm
Posted by: Avery Stolte, Mike Bennett, Dominic Cifelli, Dylan Anderson, Nina Bridges, Leif Bergstrom, David Rathbun, Ben Porter
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
This morning at 5:30 AM PDT, the Four Day Climbs led by RMI Guides Avery Stolte and Mike Bennett reached the summit of Mt. Rainier. Avery reported beautiful weather with no wind. With the early morning summit, the teams are currently descending back to Camp Muir where they will pack their bags before descending the Muir Snowfield to Paradise. We look forward to seeing them in Ashford later this afternoon.
Congratulations climbers!
Posted by: Tatum Whatford, Joe Crawford, Raymond Holt, Dylan Anderson, Julian Kral, Ben Porter, David Rathbun, Nina Bridges
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Five-Day Climb teams, led by RMI Guides Tatum Whatford and Joe Crawford, reached the summit of Mt. Rainier early this morning! After taking in a beautiful sunrise above the clouds, the climbers began their descent from the crater rim around 7:00 a.m. They'll pause for a well-earned break at Camp Muir before continuing down to Paradise, with plans to return to basecamp later this afternoon.
Congratulations to today’s climbers on a successful summit!
Congratulations everyone (especially Trishita)! Great job and you continue to inspire us!
Posted by: Sanjay Banerjee on 7/7/2025 at 7:20 pm
Great job, everyone (especially Trishita)! So glad you got to summit
Posted by: Connor Boyle on 7/7/2025 at 4:27 pm
Posted by: Seth Burns, Joe Crawford, Bryan Mazaika, Jackson Breen, Ben Thorneycroft, David Rathbun, Erika Barrett, Nina Bridges
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
RMI Guides Seth Burns and Joe Crawford led their Five Day climb teams to the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. Seth radioed from the crater rim at 8:47 am. Its a goregous day on the mountain with clear skies and cool temperatures. After spending some time in the crater the team will descend to Camp Muir and spend their second night on the mountain. Tomorrow they will continue down to Paradise.
Nice work today team!
Posted by: Brent Okita, Jess Wedel, Raymond Holt, Brooks Ordway-Smith, Josh Geiser, David Rathbun, Miles Watson, Tate Hughes
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
Yes, it's official—Brent Okita has reached his 600th summit of Mt. Rainier, setting a world record for the most successful ascents of the iconic 14,410-foot peak! This incredible milestone was achieved during a Four-Day Climb led by Okita and fellow guide Jess Wedel. The team reached the summit early this morning, and they’re expected to return to basecamp this afternoon for a well-deserved celebration.
To put this into perspective, 600 summits equates to approximately 5.4 million feet of elevation gain—and that’s only counting successful climbs. It doesn’t include the countless additional feet from training, attempted climbs, or even biking from Ashford to Paradise. Brent’s dedication, endurance, and passion for mountaineering are truly legendary.
Congratulations also to the RMI Clients that were able to climb and share the rope with Brent and Jess today. It was very important to Brent that he accomplish this record while guiding RMI Clients to the top.
That is Incredible Brent!! Congrats!!! I was lucky to have climbed with you a few years ago.
You Rock!!
Farmer Dave
Posted by: Dave Kestel on 6/14/2025 at 3:29 am
Holy smokes. That is a lot of Rainier summits. Congrats to Brent! (I probably will have to drink a Rainier beer on his behalf.)
Posted by: Some guy from Puyallup on 6/13/2025 at 2:04 pm
Posted by: Dave Hahn, Lael Butler, Jack Ritterson, David Rathbun
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Five Day climb June 5 - 9 led by RMI Guide Dave Hahn reached the summit at 5 am today. It's a beatiful blue-bird day. They enjoyed an hour in the summit crater before starting their descent from the crater rim at 6 am. The team is currently on their descent to Camp Muir. Once back at camp they will take a short break to repack their gear and then continue the final 4,500' descent to Paradise.
Nice work team!
Way to go!! Great job to the whole team! What an accomplishment
Posted by: Kathy Walls on 6/9/2025 at 8:19 pm
Awesome Dustin!!!
Very Cool Pictures!!!
Farmer Dave
Posted by: Dave Kestel on 8/21/2025 at 3:45 am
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