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Antisana was a challenging, but rewarding experience for the entire team. In contrast to multiple other parties of the previous peaks, we had the mountain to ourselves. A midnight start allowed us to climb the route in only six hours, summitting right at sunrise. The route on Antisana is a great mixture of rocky moraines, glacial ice, big crevasses and steep pitches. We felt fortunate to have it on the itinerary for this trip. 

Today, we are at an eco lodge several hours from Antisana recovering from our efforts and preparing for the next mountain. We had a lazy breakfast with lots of coffee and group yoga. This afternoon we plan to nap, read books, check email and catch up with friends and family. 

RMI Guide Eric Frank & Team

RMI's Four Day Climb led by Leif Bergstrom summited Mt. Rainier in high winds this morning around 7:30 a.m.

They're currently on their way back to Camp Muir where they'll pack up the rest of their gear and continue downhill to Paradise.

They'll return to Ashford later this afternoon. 

Great job team!

The Four Day climb led by RMI guides Eric Frank and Sam Hoffman made it to the summit of Mt Rainier around 6:15am this morning. They were leaving the crater around 7am on their descent back to Camp Muir. They will return to Ashford this afternoon. 

Great work up there!

Monday, June 1st - 11PM PST

Good fortune rewards the bold.

We woke craving the sun. Shivering, yet still smiling, our breakfast of grits and pop tarts fueled our warm laughs and usual morning camaraderie. When finished, we all knew what we needed to do. Today was our acclimatization climb. Now strong worriers against our ever present enemy, the cold, we roped up and left camp just as the rest of the 14k village began to rise. We had the buttress to ourselves and our temperatures rose back to normal, the unimaginable views ripened as we climbed higher into the thin air. For much of our crew, every step up was a new personal record in either elevation or latitude north. The awe of where we are and what we are doing had started to truly sink in. The once daunting fixed lines were a breeze for our well prepared and efficient team. With ease we reached the saddle. Just over 16,000 feet, the deep breaths were welcome. The thin air seemed to render nothing but gratitude. Appreciation for the raw beauty that surrounds us. Happiness for this experience we get to share together. Gratitude for each others efforts and pride in being part of this team. With the same efficiency we made it back to camp with enough afternoon to relax and watch the swarms of climbers conga line up and down the fixed lines. We reflected on the simplicity of life up here, the simple joys and the few frustrations and just how lucky we are to be here. But maybe what we’ve been calling luck, the luck of our awesome teammates, luck of the weather, the luck of feeling good and our strength, the luck seeing the surrounding, jaw-dropping views, is actually the reward for our valiant efforts. Burns and team knows they’ve earned a rest day.

Monday, June 22, 2026 - 9:48 pm PT

Our crampons were crunching snow just after 8 this morning as we got going up Motorcycle Hill.  An hour of climbing got us to the middle of Squirrel Hill, where we had great (and new) views of the Peters Glacier and the NW Buttress of Denali.  We had some steep hills to muscle up before reaching the relatively flat terrain at the start of the Polo Field below the end of the West Buttress.  An hour of gradually steepening climbing then got us to the relatively flat terrain at the start of the Polo Field below the end of the West Buttress.  An hour of gradually steepening climbing then got us to the pass at Windy Corner.  There, at about 13,300 ft we chose to cache our food and fuel.  The weather stayed more or less stable -there was no wind at windy corner- but clouds were increasing and we were getting intermittent snow showers. The team had a smooth descent to 11k with lighter packs and sleds.  The afternoon and evening were mostly cloudy back at camp, but we enjoyed a few sun breaks too.  We hope to move up to 14k tomorrow ahead of a forecasted storm. Fingers crossed.

RMI Guide Dave Hahn

Frank & Team reached the summit of Antisana, fourth highest volcano in Ecuador, this morning. They summitted at 6:50 am GMT in 6.5 hours. Nice work team!

RMI Guide Eric Frank left a voicemail from the summit, scroll below the next photo to listen!

Photos by Local Ecuadorian Guides, Reynaldo Camacho and Jaime Avila

Wednesday, June 10, 2026 - 12:07 am PT

Another lovely day of near perfect weather. We awoke to cold temps and clear skies with our sights set on caching just below 14,000' Camp 

After a long day in the sun, we made it back to camp just in time to lounge and view the splendors of 11,000' Camp before our move tomorrow!

RMI Guides Dan May, Drew O’Brien, Mac Nolde and the team

RMI's five-day climb led by guide Dominic Cifelli made it to the summit of Mt Rainier this morning around 6:30am! They reported high winds but blue skies. They left the crater around 7:15am and are currently on their descent back to Camp Muir. They will return to Ashford this afternoon. 

Great work team!

RMI Guide Nick Sinapius led his team to the summit of Mt. Baker via the North Ridge early this afternoon. After a successful summit day, the team will spend one more night on the mountain to rest and recuperate before descending to the trailhead tomorrow morning, where they will conclude their trip.

The Expedition Skills Seminar summited Mt Rainier yesterday, July 16th, via the Emmons Glacier. They descend back to Camp Schurman and will continue their descent to the trailhead today. THey will return to Ashford this afternoon. 

Nice work team!