Entries from North Cascades

Hi Everyone -

Our Baker Ski team is back at camp after a successful ski descent of the summit with everyone!!!

Beautiful day up there with great snow.

RMI Guide Grayson Swingle

The Mt. Baker Summit and Ski Descent team led by RMI Guide Pete Van Deventer wrapped up their time on Mt. Baker today. The team took advantage of short periods of sun breaks to ski around Sandy Camp. Low clouds, snow, and poor visibility prevented the team from ascending too far out of camp. Pete reports great skiing and a happy team, making the most of their time on the mountain.

This weekend our Backcountry Ski and Ride course had an excellent time learning the fundamentals of backcountry skiing.  Saturday gave us a light dusting of fresh snow as we practiced our rescue skills and learned how to move as a group in the backcountry. 

The next day, we practiced making terrain decisions and students navigated the group through the ascents and descents of our long tour.  We ended up having beautiful weather for most of the course and had the whole mountain to ourselves on Sunday. 

Our students are excited to use their new skills for upcoming ski descents of local Washington mountains as well as skiing corn with their friends.  

RMI Guide James Bealer & Team

RMI Guides Dominic Cifelli and Jack Delaney led the entire Mt. Baker - Easton Glacier team to the summit of Mt. Baker today! Dominic reports it was a super nice day on the summit and  that "things are going great!" The team is spending one more night at camp before making the rest of their descent tomorrow.

This climb wraps up our 2021 North Cascades climbing season. We loved climbing with all of you this year and are excited for the climbs to come in 2022!

Congratulations climbers!

The Mt. Shuksan - Sulphide Glacier Climb led by RMI Guide James Bealer were unable to make a summit attempt on Mt. Shuskan due to rain and wind. While not the mountain experience the team hoped for, the team's time on the mountain was a true mountain experience. The team is back in town and preparing to warm up over burgers and beers.

Tuesday, September 14, 2021

At around 10am today a team led by RMI Guide Matias Francis reached the summit of Mt. Shuksan. The climbable weather was short lived, as they raced the impending rain back to camp. The weather won this round as they made it back to camp soaked, but happy. The team will spend the night at high camp, before descending down during the day tomorrow (hopefully in the sun). 

Congratulations to the team!

We had a great day at Mt. Erie on Tuesday for the first day of our Expedition Skills Seminar - Shuksan.  We went through gear, learned knots, anchors, belaying, and rappelling. We also did a bit of top rope climbing in boots to get ready for Shuksan. We then prepped and got ready to head onto the mountain for the next few days.  We had a great day with a bit of cloud cover to keep it cool. We then moved into camp at the toe of the Sulphide Glacier with some incredible views for the next several days! 

On Friday, we made our summit attempt with 100% of the group reaching the summit at 9,131'.  It was a long day and we arrived back in camp late.  Everybody is happy. We'll train on Saturday and check in then. 

RMI Guide Pete Van Deventer

Hey there! 

Our Mt. Baker - Easton Glacier team is on the summit. It has been a chilly day but all is good. Clouds are rolling in and it was quite smokey. We are heading down now and will return to Camp for a final night on the mountain.  Tomorrow morning after packing up camp, we will head down to the trail head.

RMI Guide Hannah Smith

RMI Guide James Bealer led his team to the summit of Mt. Baker this morning!  The route was steep and icy making for a challenging day but everyone was up to the task.  They are four days into their six-day program where they are also receiving their credentials for the Leave No Trace Master Educator Course.

The Expedition Skills Seminar, led by RMI Guide Andy Bond, spent six days in the North Cascades.  They had a tremendous time learning mountaineering skills and to top it off, reached the summits of Mt. Shuksan and Mt. Baker!  The team is currently on their descent to the trailhead where they will celebrate together before departing for home.