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The Four Day Climb, led by RMI guide Dan May, reached the summit of Mt. Rainier early this morning. Dan and his team reported a great route, cool temperatures, and some cloud cover. The team is now descending and en route to Camp Muir.

Congratulations, team!

Today was the day, the official start of the trek. After a quaint and much-needed rest day spent packing, recouping, and doing our best to actually rest, we were ready to get rolling. We did just that, bright and early at 5:30 a.m., scarfing down breakfast and hitting the road before the sun had fully risen. 

Day one does not ease you in. Instead, it opens with one of the hardest efforts of the entire trek: the park’s namesake, Las Torres. Three striking granite spires rise abruptly from the landscape, as if carefully carved by a patient but dramatic hand. They are awe-inspiring to behold, but getting to them is not for the faint of heart. The hike takes roughly five hours on the way up, followed by a long and careful four-hour descent down a narrow, well-traveled trail. It is a big day by any measure, and the team met it with equal parts grit, good humor, and quiet determination.

Tomorrow we officially begin the O Circuit and make our way to our first camp. For now, we rest, refuel, and celebrate a job well done, along with a very Happy Birthday to our teammate Kathy. ��

Rmi Guide Dominic Cifelli 

Our McKinley Prep Course wrapped up a highly successful few days of training in the Edith Creek Basin. The team practiced sled pulling, camp craft, crevasse rescue, and a range of essential alpine skills they’ll rely on this upcoming season during their climb of the West Buttress of Mount McKinley.

A big thanks to experienced lead guides Mike King and Dan May for sharing their knowledge and helping the team sharpen their skills. With a mix of sunny skies and periods of low visibility, conditions provided a realistic preview of what life can be like on the slopes of McKinley—making the training both challenging and invaluable.

After a windy but restful night, we woke to grand views and the realization that we were truly doing the thing. We were on the trip we had imagined for so long. A delicious breakfast and a strong cup of coffee later, we were ready to hit the trail.

Today began with another traverse along the Paine River, winding through the trees while doing our best to avoid the ever-present branches aimed directly at our eyes, courtesy of that bastard walking just ahead. Eventually, an uphill stretch appeared to wake up the lungs and legs. We welcomed it, even if no one was quite ready to admit that out loud. That’s part of why we do this. Yes, the views are incredible, but earning them through effort makes them that much sweeter.

That climb marks one of the best moments of the day. Somewhere along the way, we cross an invisible threshold, leaving behind the savannah-like terrain and stepping into the Patagonia we all pictured. Sharp peaks rise above us, glaciers cascade down their flanks, and lakes glow with that unmistakable milky blue. The scene is made even better by the outstanding weather we’ve been lucky enough to enjoy so far.

Tonight, we rest at Dickson, my personal favorite camp of the trip. It sits beside a glacial lake fed by the meltwater of the Dickson Glacier. With a bit of luck tomorrow morning, everyone will get to see the glacier in its full grandeur as we walk along the lakeshore after breakfast. It should be quite the treat.

RMI Guide Dominic Cifelli

5/14 - Day one, done and dusted! We woke up to the call that we could fly, so we got our last fancy coffee drinks for a long while and shuffled over to the hangar to get our soft shells on, and ready to fly. We loaded the planes and by 10AM - planes were in the air!

Once we landed, it was a mad dash to reorganize, leave a cache of goodies for later, and rig up to start to move to Camp One.

A little bit after noon, the teams was tied in and ready to roll. Down Heart Break Hill, and across the Kahiltna Glacier we went. Many hours later we were pulling into Camp One, a welcome home for the night. We quickly began the work of building camp, melting water, and getting a quick dinner of broccoli cheddar soup and chicken sausage rolling. It was a long day, and a late night, but by 11P everyone was tucked into their sleeping bags. Tomorrow we aim to carry somewhere between 9.5-10k, and then make our way back to camp.

Here's to hoping for another day of good weather!

RMI Guide Nikki Champion

Hello!

Today we had our best weather day yet. Oh my goodness, was it needed. A reprieve. None of us slept much last night because the wind was relentless but just as the sun came over the horizon it began to soften. As we were cooking breakfast both Leandro and I went outside just to look to see if it really had dissipated. It had! Happy dance. Happy dance.

So we packed up camp calmly and we put on our backpacks and we began the move to Camp 2. It was so pleasant, the views remarkable. Mountains beyond mountains. Everyone moved well, steady. It felt good to climb in silence and sunshine.

We had a wonderful afternoon at Camp 2 and ate chicken burritos for dinner. The whole team had seconds which may mean nothing to you at home but to me that means everyone is doing so well here at 18,000ft and appetites are staying strong.

We expect high winds tonight and into tomorrow but you just never know. Time will tell. No matter what, we feel stoked to have made it to Camp 2.    

And with that, goodnight! 

RMI Guide Jess Wedel and the Aconcagua team.

P.S. don’t be alarmed if you aren’t hearing from your loved one all of a sudden - no wifi here at Camp 2 for the moment. All is well.    

Greetings and Hello (Hola) from Chile everyone!

The gang is all here, everyone has safely arrived and it’s great to have the team back together again.

Today was technically a down or rest day for us after all the long fights, but this team isn’t known for sitting around much. So after a nice breakfast and plenty of coffee and catching up, the group headed out to take in a few sights and make the most of our time here.

First up was an impromptu visit to a local natural Museum, filled with countless skeletons of what seemed like every mammal and bird from Chile.
It was remarkable and the highlight was a massive whale skeleton.

Up next we visited a ship museum with replicas of the Nao Victoria (Magellan’s ship), the HMS Beagle (Darwin’s) and the James Caird (Shackleton’s life raft) that he sailed to South Georgia island on.

It was a beautiful day and the crew throughly enjoyed spending time together once again. We’ve just wrapped up a wonderful dinner and celebrated a team members birthday!

RMI Guide Casey Grom and the 8 amigos!

Monday, May 18, 2026 - 11:48 pm PT

The first alarm went off at 5AM. The sound of snow falling on the tent was there, but lighter than the last few days. We spent the next hour paying attention to the weather to see how the winds and snow progressed, and they seemed to stay the same. By 7AM the stoves were rolling and the plan was to move uphill if weather didn't get much worse. The light snowfall and dense clouds lingered, but winds remained calm at camp. By 10:30 we had torn down camp and began our way up Ski Hill in the light snow and clouds. As we made our way through the first few stretches the sun would occasionally try to peak out, but sooner rather than later the clouds rolled in, snowfall picked up, and visibility was reduced to a whiteout. This continued all the way past our cache before the skies broke again. After a tough day, we finally rolled into 11 camp where we found our RMI cohorts, and set up camp right below them. The long day was wrapped up with some ramen, and a little bit of wall building to prep for the next incoming storm. 

We are hunkered down and now set to face the storm, or back carry, whatever weather brings.

RMI Guide Nikki Champion

Today was a shorter day. We woke to the sun painting the sky pink and the wind once again turning our hair into something resembling Gene Wilder on a bad day. The views made up for it, though, and the same wind did us a favor by keeping the mosquitoes away everywhere except inside our tents. These damn things know where we sleep. 

Before hitting the trail we headed down to the beach to get another look at the glacier we had been gawking at the day before. A few splash zone experiences from the waves and a few group pics later, we were on our way. A steady climb brought us to a vantage point with two competing views: the Dickson Glacier behind us and the valley ahead that leads to tomorrow’s crux, John Garner Pass.

Tomorrow we will be up dark and early for our final day before transitioning from the O portion to the W portion of the trek. For now, we eat some cake and drink some wine to celebrate yet another birthday!! Happy Birthday, Catherine!! Wish us luck.

RMI Guide Dominic Cifelli 

PC: Dominic Cifelli

Friday, February 6, 2026

Rest days at base camp have a funny way of being both quiet and full. Today was about taking care of the little things before we head higher — the kind of things that feel oddly important when you’re about to trade comfort for commitment.

There were showers. Likely the last real ones for a while. Sun hoodies were washed — the one that will be worn for the next nine days. Morale improved accordingly.

Some of us still worked (yes, even on the side of a mountain… thank you, Starlink). We all took a slow walk out into the surrounding landscape, which looks less like Argentina and more like Mars. Red rock, wide silence, and that sense that you’re very far from anywhere else.

We were reminded that taking steps is easy, standing still is hard. Base camp life does that to you.

As the evening settled in, it was the usual mix: friends, a little wine, a lot of laughter, and a growing mental shift toward what comes next. We’re getting ready to climb.

Tomorrow, we head up.

RMI Guide Jess Wedel

P.S. Erika - we are loving the song suggestions! Today we kept it chill and the song of the day was “Against the Wind” by Bob Seger. Felt appropriate.