Entries By sam hoffman

Cotopaxi Express Daily Blog 

The team woke up this morning in a packed climbers hut at the ripe hour of 4am to climb Illiniza. Snow and sleet covered the ground and word came from the top to go back to bed. After a brief breakfast The team set off at 7 am towards Illiniza Norte with a windy snow still coming down but daylight on our side. Teams split into smaller groups to tackle the snowy scramble up the knife edge ridge of the mountain. Conditions remained poor, and we turned around 16,300’ to head down to the familiarity of the climbers hut. Repacked and trekking down to the bus, snow turned to rain and the bus was a warm bumpy welcome down the cobblestone roads. Lunch at a VERY FAMOUS pizza dive. Now the team is relaxing in front of wood stove fires, gazing over pastures towards the cloudy abyss—looking to catch a glimpse of the pinnacle objective hidden in the mist.

RMI Climbers, Dan and Joe Hayden 

Today the team left the comfort of Quito to begin our journey south to Illiniza Norte (because Illiniza Sur is apparently hard so we’re going to skip it). Unfortunately, we had to make an early morning start to get from our rooms to the hotel lobby by 9am.

With everyone safely on the bus we began the drive south to a famous gas station to buy critical snacks, meet our local guides Gustavo, Felipe (one of RMI’s finest) and Jaime, and sign paperwork. After saying goodbye to the gas station (and the last real toilet) we continued our drive to the trail head where we met horses and mules to carry our gear to the refuge.

We are now furiously chomping down popcorn and hoping for a good climb tomorrow.

- RMI Climber, Joe Maguire & Team

Elevation - 15,413 feet

Team Summits Ruca Pinchinca! 

This morning we started early for our first acclimatization hike of the trip. We opted to skip the Teleferico (Gondola) ride in order to get ahead of some afternoon thunderstorms. Thanks to Hector for driving us up to 12,800’ feet! 

It took us 5 hours to reach the summit and return. The hike gradually picks up with grade and we were feeling it towards the top. Today was hard work and the team did great. We got a glimpse of our main goal - Cotopaxi - which built excitement for the days to come. 

We will rest for the afternoon and enjoy a team dinner in Quito before moving to Illiniza Norte tomorrow! Wish us luck. 

RMI Guide, 

Sam Hoffman & Team

Sunday, October 26, 2026 - 6:05 pm PT

Welcome to Ecuador! 

The team made their arrival and assembled this morning for their first time as an expedition. After morning introductions, the team talked through trip details before heading out to explore the lovely city of Quito. The team explored the city and visited the equator, getting our first taste of the beautiful South American culture that is Ecuador. 

The afternoon lead into a team gear check before heading off to dinner and resting for the evening. Tomorrow's day will be an early start for our first acclimatization hike, Rucu Pichincha. 

RMI Guide,

Mike Bennett 

The Four Day Climbs led by RMI Guides Seth Burns and Joe Hoch walked into the summit crater of Mt. Rainier this morning around 6:45 am. The teams enjoyed calm and warm weather on the summit. They are currently on their descent and will return to Ashford later this afternoon.

Congratulations climbers!

6:30 pm August 18th 

Around 12:30 today, our entire team stood on top of Mt. Shuksan. Today the weather was mostly cloudy, but we were rewarded with a break in the clouds on our descent. Tomorrow morning we will pack up camp and head into town to celebrate. Congrats to the team! 

RMI guide Sam Hoffman, Hannah Blum, and Brooks Ordway-Smith 

The Four Day Climb August 9-12 led by RMI Guides Casey Grom and Sam Hoffman reached the summit of Mt. Rainier today with all of their climbers.  It's a beautiful bluebird day and the teams climbed strong. They started their descent from the crater rim around 7 am.  Once back at Camp Muir they will take a quick break before continuing the remaining 4.5 miles to Paradise.

Congratulations to today's climbers!

The Four Day Climb July 31 - 3 August led by RMI Guides Sam Hoffman and Tom Skoog reached the summit of Mt. Rainier early this morning. The teams reported nice day and a smooth climb. The teams were at 13,800' on their descent en route to Camp Muir.  Once back at camp the teams will repack and continue the final 4,500' to Paradise and then continue to Ashford to conclude their program.

Congratulations to today's climbers.

PC: Tom Skoog

Friday, July 4, 2025 - 1:33 AM PT

After we got in the tents at 11k last night, there was a violent thunderstorm passing over with inches of hailstones. We awoke at 2:00 AM to fire the stoves, choke down some oatmeal and get ready for a big day. It was party cloudy but mostly clear, which led to easy  walking conditions. We were walking by 4:00 AM and and fairly soon, we’d reached the upper regions of Ski Hill and then our old camp at 8k. It only took us a further three hours to reach base camp. For late season, conditions were amazing. We never had to cross an open crevasse. We stayed busy at base camp sorting our own gear and helping others to load planes. Our flights came in around 1:00 PM and then we were headed to Talkeetna. Our team had donated pizzas in their mouths within 5 minutes of landing in Talkeetna. K2 Aviation did an excellent job bringing us home. In checking out with the National Park Service, we learned that we had been the absolute last team on the mountain and that the success rate for the season had only been 36%.

We sorted gear for the afternoon and then celebrated with a dinner at the brew pub. We celebrated a safe and enjoyable climb that didn’t reach the summit. That seemed appropriate given how much we enjoyed the effort of simply trying to get up the mountain.

RMI Guide Dave Hahn and Team   

PC: Dave Hahn

Wednesday, July 2, 2025 - 10:43 pm PT

There are amazing views every step of the way from the crest of the ridge, but with heavy packs and steep terrain to negotiate, we didn't take so many pictures. Sure enough, the wind was still blowing and the slope was still loaded when we woke at 17,000' this morning. We packed up and started down the West Buttress at 11AM. The fixed rope section went smoothly and we were digging up our 14,000' cache by 2PM and continuing our descent by 3:30. Much snow had fallen on Windy Corner since we'd last been there and the walking and sled pulling was a little challenging as a result. We persevered on down the Polo Field, Squirrel Hill and finally down the reflecting oven that Motorcycle Hill tends to be in late afternoon. At 11,000' we got right to work building a hasty camp and running the stoves. We'd been in blazing hot sun but as soon as we sat down to an outdoor dinner, a spectacular hailstorm hit. But we were hungry and sat through it. 

Folks are getting a few hours rest now. We'll get up in the night and make a push for the airstrip in the early morning hours.

RMI Guide Dave Hahn