Entries By mike king

Today was our first real day of climbing and the first real test for the group. We carried loads from Basecamp up to Camp 1 at 16,400', an altitude record for some of the group. This day was used to help the group acclimatize and help split up the weight we carry up to our first camp. The weather was ideal, with beautiful clear skies and a light breeze. We made good time uphill and even more efficient on the downhill. We’ll spend the rest of the afternoon rehydrating and replenishing calories. 

Tomorrow is a rest day for the team and we are anticipating some unsettled weather over the next few days.

Thanks for following along.

RMI Guides Dom, Jack & Mike

Monday, January 2, 2023

Aside from the to be expected issues from sleepy at 14,000' feet for the first night of the trip we are all enjoying a rest day at Plaza Argentina. 

Lots of packing and sorting on the guides end and the climbers too. 

The meals continue to impress here at Grajales’ basecamp. The remainder of the day will have to team taking a short hike and enjoying the hours of sun on camp. Apologies for some of the delays in these, had a mistyped email address for yesterday’s post. Thanks for following along. 

RMI Guide Mike King

Sunday, January 1, 2023

It was clear cold night, the stars shone like diamonds in the Andean sky. We awoke early in order to beat the heat of the day that was surely on its way with the rising of the sun. The days trek began with an icy cold crossing of a glacially cold stream. It was a painful but effective way to remove any last trace of sleepiness from the group. 

Today is our greatest elevation gain of the trek to reach Plaza Argentina Basecamp.  Gaining 3,600' of elevation is no joke when you’re starting from 10,000', but the team was well fed and ready to start the New Year right. We styled it. We enjoyed sunny skies, cool temps, and stunning vistas as we made our way up the Ralincos Valley and into Basecamp by midday. 

We are playing dice & eating pizza. Some are napping and journaling. Regardless it’s been a good afternoon in the sun to dry out gear and tomorrow morning is a rest day.

Thanks for following along.

RMI Guides Jack, Dom & Mike

Aconcagua team reaches Casa de Piedra. Yesterday we had a nice overcast four hour day into Pampa las Lena's. This has been a windy and rainy trip so far. We had a nice asado last night and to celebrate New Years. We'll enjoy a quiet/unstaffed camp. We are hopeful that the rain holds off for tomorrow as we head to Plaza Argentina basecamp.

RMI Guide Mike King

We had a calm night to begin our climb of Pico de Orizaba. The climb begins with a steep switch backing trail through an old moraine. After a few hours, we entered the labyrinth which was once covered by glacial ice about 25 years ago. Now, a polished slab rock that can be difficult to find your way through, hence its name. Once at the base of the Jamapa glacier, we put on our boots and crampons - 3.5 hours later and we were on top with a beautiful sunrise, summit pyramid shadow, and calm weather.

The whole group stood on top this morning, couldn’t have asked for more. It’s been a great week climbing here with an amazing group. Our local guide Alan and Servimont’s assistance always make these trips special for us. 

We are back in town getting cleaned up, listening to rockets explode, drinking cold drinks and sorting gear for flights home tomorrow morning.

Thanks,

Mike

We enjoyed a fun and relaxing day in Puebla’s historic colonial area. We are headed for Piedra Grande hut on Orizaba this afternoon. Our first stop is at Sr. Reyes’ historic soap factory turned climber’s hostel. We will get our gear sorted and have a meal before jumping in the trucks for a bumpy, slow and often dusty ride to the alpine zone where we’ll camp for the night.

Tonight we’ll get started for this trip’s main event, the 18,491’ third tallest peak in North America. The group is rested and eager to get going.

Thanks for following along. 

RMI Guides Mike King, Henry Coppolillo, and Team

We had a warm and clear night at high camp that would turn into sustained 20 mph wind along the seemingly endless summit ridge that makes up the main route on Ixta. We summited in the dark but with a near full moon the views of the surrounding area were spectacular. We caught the sunrise and Orizaba on our return.

The team is headed to Puebla for the evening and our day off tomorrow.

Thanks for following along. 

RMI Guides Mike King, Henry Coppolillo and Team

We hiked to 15,400' on Ixtacchuatl to put our camp in for the evening. The team did great and we got some clear skies and a nice view of Orizaba. Our plan is to wake up around midnight and head for the summit of Ixta. We'll check in tomorrow regardless of our high point or weather. Thanks for following along and fingers crossed for clear weather and calm winds.

RMI Guide Mike King

The weather cooperated yesterday and let us get to the top of La Malinche, 14,636’. The thunder rolled in as we got to the cabins. 

Today we are in transit to Ixta. A few stops to get provisions and register with park at Paso de Cortez puts us between Popo and Ixta. We’ll have a nice hike to our camp to continue acclimating. Once in camp we’ll get our gear sorted for our move to high camp tomorrow and our summit attempt on Wednesday. The team is doing great, lots of laughs and camaraderie. We have clear skies as we drive and got our first views of Ixta and Popo. We’ll check in tomorrow from our high camp.

Thanks,

RMI Guide Mike King

Our Team arrived in Mexico City over the last two days. We met and enjoyed a quick dinner last night after a nice meet & greet. This morning we’ll head for an acclimatization hike on the extinct volcanic remnants of La Malinche. It’s a long day to the top and electric storms sometimes thwart our efforts. Regardless of our high point it’s a nice hike to stretch the legs after a long flight and wake the lungs up in preparation for the high altitudes on Ixta & Orizaba. We’ll stay in some small cabins to sleep around 10,000’ for the night and check in once we get back into cell coverage tomorrow morning. Until then, we’ll enjoy the rolling corn planted countryside and dense pine trees surrounding our hike and cabins. Thanks for checking in. 

RMI Guide Mike King