Entries By jake beren
Update: November 11th, 2:00 pm PT
Buenas Tardes! Our team has safely returned down to Tlachichuca after our climb of Orizaba this morning. It was a beautiful day and a great climb, made even more so by the fact that we were the only people on the entire mountain! What a treat.
Now back in the valley below, we are doing the old duffle shuffle and getting ready to celebrate with a hard earned dinner. Tomorrow we will part ways, but our time in Mexico has been a fantastic adventure.
Transcription of call from the Orizaba summit:
Hello. This is Jake on top of Pico de Orizaba with the crew. We are doing great. We had a beautiful, could not ask for a better style day, today. The winds are light, the sun is out, and we’re going to reverse our path and start heading down soon. It was a great climb, everybody did well, and we’ll be in touch from the lowlands. Alright everybody take care.
RMI Guide Jake Beren calls in from the Pico de Orizaba summit.
On The Map
Our travels so far have been action packed and the team enjoyed a relaxing rest/exploration day yesterday. The colonial city of Puebla is a beautiful place to see the sights and we did a little sleeping in before taking it to the streets. Puebla is a city that certainly felt the effects of the recent earthquake and as you walk around town, you can see folks tending to the damage, repairing walls and buildings. It is remarkable that the damage was not more widespread, but we are all happy to see that the beautiful town of Puebla has survived.
Now we are off to Orizaba! Tonight we will stay in the Piedra Grande hut and begin our climb early tomorrow morning. Wish us luck!
Despite a very blustery morning, we had a great time climbing on Ixta today. We moved through the night under a waning gibbous moon and caught the sunrise from 17,000’ above sea level! The team climbed well, making wise decisions, on a windy day to the cumbre (summit) of Ixta! Now we are relaxing in a hotel in Puebla, enjoying significantly less wind, before heading out to celebrate over dinner. Tomorrow we will rest and relax, getting ready for the big one -Pico de Orizaba on Friday.
On The Map
This morning we pulled stakes after a great night’s sleep in La Malintzi and made our way toward Ixta. Along the way we explored the little town of Amecameca, registered with the park and double checked our equipment for the climb. Tomorrow we will head uphill, establishing our high camp on Ixta. The team is doing great and after our afternoon walk, we plan to feast and do our best to duplicate last nights slumber in our new home at 13k!
Tomorrow we ride…
RMI Jake Beren and Team
On our drive from Mexico City we were treated to views of La Malinche, Ixta and Pico de Orizaba. Today’s clarity was one for the books and we made the most of it on our first acclimatization hike. One of the advantages of this style of trip is that you can pretty quickly get in position to be at altitude AND get a good night’s rest indoors. After a beautiful hike through the “arboles ponderosicas” we made it to some lounging at our cabana before dinner.
Hope everyone up North is doing great!
On The Map
Buenos dias everyone.
Our team has all safely arrived in Mexico City and after a team meeting and dinner last night, we are about to head out for our first scramble at altitude. Today we will leave the big city for an acclimatization mission to La Malinche, an extinct volcano a few hours from Mexico City. Thanks of following along and we will check in from down the road!
RMI Guide Jake Beren
July 20, 2017
Posted by: Tyler Jones, Jake Beren
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
RMI Guides Tyler Jones and Jake Beren led their Four Day Summit Climb July 17 - 20 to the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. Tyler reported windy and cold temperatures but good climbing conditions. The teams were starting their descent from the crater rim just before 9 am.
Congratulations to today’ Summit Climb team!
July 13, 2017
Posted by: Jake Beren, Caleb Ladue, Jordan Cargill, Ben Markhart
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Expedition Skills Seminar - Kautz July 9 - 14, 2017 led by RMI Guide Jake Beren reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning shortly before 7:30 am. The team has spent the last two days training on the route and will do some additional training this afternoon. After a bit more training tomorrow, they will pack up their camp and descend to Paradise to conclude their program.
Congratulations to today’s Kautz Climbers!
July 4, 2017
Posted by: Jake Beren, Caleb Ladue, Chris Ebeling, Ben Markhart
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
Our Expedition Skills Seminar - Kautz June 30 - 5 July has enjoyed sunshine and clear skies during their time on Mt. Rainier. Today they made their summit attempt via the Kautz Glacier and stood on the summit of Mt. Rainier around 7:30 am. RMI Guide Jake Beren reported good conditions and light winds. The team will return to their High Camp today and spend a final night on the mountain. Tomorrow they will pack up camp and descend to Paradise.
Congratulations to today’s Kautz Seminar Team!
June 17, 2017
Posted by: Jake Beren, Steve Gately, Megan Budge
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Denali
Elevation: 14,200'
June 16, 2017 11:35 pm PST
Well everyone, we hung on as long as we could at 17 Camp. We woke to high winds and blowing snow and waited patiently for them to dissipate. They did not. After dragging our feet in vain, still hoping for some workable weather, we finally began our descent back to 14 Camp. Arriving around dinner time, the team wolfed down what could (hopefully!) be our last Mac and Cheese meal for a while and racked out for what will be a few short hours before we head downhill for this season.
While we did not stand on top of Denali this year, we are lucky to have tried and happy to be heading home none the worse for wear. It has been a real treat to all climb together and we will be checking in from further down this beautiful mountain. Wish us good luck and fair winds on the last legs of our adventure, it ain’t over yet…
On The Map
Waiting to hear you all arrived safely at base camp and are flying back to hot showers and a good meal! Praying for you Steve!
Mike and Pat
Posted by: Mike and Pat Lurakis on 6/19/2017 at 9:48 pm
Steve. A disappointment for sure. What do they say about mountains - getting to the top is optional but getting down is mandatory. Denali denied you the top so be safe getting back down. Safe travels .
Posted by: Keith h on 6/19/2017 at 9:15 am
So very wonderful! What an incredible achievement. All your training paid off! Congratulations!
Posted by: Angie Modelski on 7/4/2017 at 4:08 pm
Awesome job, Andrew! What an accomplishment. Now you can start your own company called Summit Construction or Rainier Construction.
Posted by: Andrew Modelski on 7/4/2017 at 11:11 am
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