Entries By mac nolde

Friday, June 5th - 12:15AM PST

Guest dispatcher Joe reporting in from Denali.

The DDM Expedition (Daniel/Drew/Mac) departed Talkeetna this morning in good order. Blue skies and calm  air made for an easy flight for our daredevil K2 Aviation bush pilots so everyone enjoyed a little extra sightseeing swooping through the peaks along with a couple barrel rolls just for a little spice. Deposited safely on Kahiltna Glacier early, the group repacked yet again for foot travel and proceeded directly to Skill Hill Camp. The exceptional weather persisted throughout the day, with just a few chill winds interleaved with atypically hot sections. Arriving with plenty of energy, the team stomped out a camp area and got down to the real business of the day: Mac's Mac & Cheese.

On a more tragic note though, departing Talkeetna also meant departing Zach's lunch meats and cheeses abandoned in the hangar fridge. Although he'll survive just fine having apparently packed at least 50lbs of other snacks, this was an emotional blow for his and your reporter's Rope Team Hoarding Marmots, and honestly an affront to our venerable mascots. Tomoki also left a few things in that refrigerator but him and his companions Chris and Paxton on Rope Team World Best #1 Rope Team weren't as loud about it so our guides still don't know and they villainously avoided their fair share of judgement and demerits.

Meanwhile under Sarah's strong leadership and Erik's silent execution, Rope Team Erik and the Squatters continues to be all Rope Team We're So Perfect We Show Up Two Minutes Before Every Meetup And Had All the Gear We Were Supposed To Have And Didn't Leave Anything In The Refrigerator. Some people your faithful chronicler just doesn't understand. Tomorrow the expedition will make an outing to cache supplies and gear uphill in preparation for a hoped-for move to 11 Camp ahead of an expected downturn in the weather.

-RMI Climber Joe
 

Wednesday, June 3, 2026 - 11:38 pm

Today was another beautiful day in Talkeetna. We felt the buzz of excitement and anticipation as we spent the whole day packing, weighing, and organizing all our gear to prepare for an early flight onto the south east fork of the Kahiltna glacier!

RMI Guide Dan May

Tuesday, June 2, 2026 - 10:27 pm PT

The team met up today in Anchorage in glorious spring weather. We made the drive to Talkeetna with views of Denali, Foraker, and Hunter lurking in the foreground. Upon arrival we quickly dropped our gear off at the K2 hangar and met up for a nice meal and some desserts, get the calories in while we can! The team walked down to the Talkeetna river to watch the fast-moving waters while staring up with clear skies at the immense Alaska range. Early to bed tonight to prep for a long day of packing and organizing before waiting our turn to fly onto the glacier and begin our climb. Stay tuned.

RMI Guides Dan May, Drew O'Brien, Mac Nolde 

The Four Day Climb May 24 - 27 led by RMI Guide Mike King reached the summit of Mt. Rainier via the the Ingraham Direct route this morning just before 8 am.  Mike reported windy conditions and a lot of hard work by the team.  They are currently on their descent to Camp Muir. Once back at Muir, they will take a short break before continuing to Paradise. Their program will conclude later this afternoon at Rainier BaseCamp.

Nice work team!

The Expedition Skills Seminar - Muir May 2 - 7 led by RMI Guides Mike King and Sam Hoffman met for a day of training and gear checks at Rainier BaseCamp and then headed onto the mountain.  The team ascended to Camp Muir on Sunday and has enjoyed sunshine and blue skies during their training. Climbers practiced ice arrest, crevasse rescue and glacier travel before making their summit attempt.  Today the team launched from Camp Muir with an alpine start, reaching the summit of Mt. Rainier at sunrise via the Ingraham Direct route. RMI Guide Sam Hoffman reported sunshine and moderate winds during their summit climb. The team has returned to Camp Muir where they will spend their final night on the mountain. Tomorrow they will descend to Paradise and return to BaseCamp to conclude their program.

Nice work team!

PC: Sam Hoffman and Layne Peters

The Four Day Climb August 16 - 19 led by RMI Guides Leif Bergstrom and Ben Luedtke reached 12,800' today before high winds and a descending cloud cap forced them to turn around.  The teams returned safely to Camp Muir around 8 am. They will repack and continue the remaining 4,500' to Paradise later this morning.

RMI’s Four Day Climb, Aug 11-14 successfully reached the summit of Mt. Rainier today.

They reported 100% of the team was on top enjoying the calm weather and beautiful views this morning.

They are currently descending and will take a short but much needed break at Camp Muir before heading down to Paradise later this afternoon.

Congratulations to all of them!

The Four Day Climb August 7 - 10 led by RMI Guides Dustin Wittmier & Tatumn Whatford reached the summit of Mt. Rainier around 6:30 am today.  Tatum reported that it was a little windy and a little cold but it was turning into a beautiful morning on the mountain. The teams spent about an hour in the summit crater before starting their descent.  Once back at Camp Muir they will take a quick break and repack their gear before contining the final 4.5 miles to Paradise.

Congratulations to today's teams!

PC: Tatum Whatford

We had high hopes as we left Camp Muir for our summit attempt. But as we crossed the Cowlitz Glacier, a misty rain started, which turned into a stout blizzard at Ingraham Flats. 

The team climbed well through the weather, but we started losing the fight to stay dry. We returned to Camp Muir safely.

We will be leaving Camp Muir around 9:30 am for our final walk down to Paradise.

RMI Guide Joe Hoch

PC: Joe Hoch

RMI Guides Nikki Champion, Mac Nolde, Celeste Wilson and Annie Chapman led the Four Day Women's Climb July 28 - 31 to the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning.  Reports are clear skies, light breeze and overall beautiful day. The climbers reached the summit early this morning and after spending a bit of time at the summit, started their descent from the crater rim around 7 am.  Once back at Camp Muir the teams will pack their gear and continue the last 4.5 miles down to Paradise. They will end the day with a celebration of their adventure.

Nice work team!