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Sunday, May 29, 2022 - 10:27 pm PT

Unlike two days ago, when we woke up there wasn't a hint of wind in sight. We had word from Mike Walter's team that the weather at 17,000' was perfect to, so we launched out of 14,000' Camp in high spirits. It was one of the most pleasant days I can remember on the West Buttress. Temps were comfortable, no wind, and the views unparalleled. It's also some of the most fun climbing. We were at camp by early afternoon, set up tents, fired an early dinner, and congratulated Mike's team as they came back from the summit. Things look really good for us tomorrow, so fingers crossed, we'll make our push in the morning.

RMI Guides Pete, Leif, Erika, and team

RMI Guide Alex Halliday and the Expedition Skills Seminar - Emmons August 6 - 11 team reached the summit of Mt. Rainier today.  Alex reported light to moderate winds and sunny skies from the summit at 10:30 am.  The route on the Emmons was good up high but challenging at the lower elevations due to bare glacial ice.  Today the team will descend to Camp Schurman for their final night on the mountain.  Their program will conclude tomorrow with a descent to the trailhead near White River Camp Ground and a return to Rainier BaseCamp.

Congratulations to the Emmons Seminar Team!

RMI Guide Hannah Smith reported beautiful climbing conditions from Glacier Peak today. The team went 100% to the top of one of Washington's most remote volcanoes. The team spends two days trekking into camps before starting their summit attempt. The team is staying at White Pass Camp to enjoy some well-deserved rest before descending to the trailhead tomorrow.

Congrats team!

May 27, 2022 10:40pm PST

Hello everyone! 

After a day of organizing gear in Talkeetna, we successfully flew onto the Kahiltna Glacier ready to start our much-anticipated Denali Expedition!  

The last few days have been full of expedition preparation. We spent the day napping and prepping to move to the night schedule for these first few days but after hearing the weather, and talking to a few other guides on the mountains, we decided to avoid what would have been a cold windy walk in the dark and started climbing around 8 am this morning. Surface conditions made for fast moving, and the wind kept us cool. We rolled into the base of ski hill just a little after 1 pm Before taking off the boots, we unloaded group gear, and made camp.

The remainder of the evening will comprise of eating some well-deserved burrito meals, deciding what gear to cache, and getting some rest before we carry some of our gear up to 9600'.

RMI Guides Nikki Champion, Taylor Bickford, Emma Lyddan and Team

May 26, 2022 6:48pm PST

May 24th Denali climb checking in with our first dispatch!

After spending all day organizing, pack and repacking in Talkeetna yesterday, we woke up to perfect weather and were able to jump on the first flight around 9AM this morning. We unloaded the planes, set up camp for the first time and took a quick nap before doing a midday brunch and reviewing skills. With the warm temperatures, we will be on the night schedule for the first couple days - so we've all crawled back into our bags. and plan to wake up in the night and make our first move to the base of ski hill. Glad to be on the mountain!

Check in tomorrow.

RMI Guides Nikki Champion, Taylor Bickford, Emma Lyddan and Team

Tuesday, June 29, 2021 - 4:25 pm PT

The sky was blue and winds were calm at 14k this morning. Up higher it was a different story, with a lenticular cloud cap on the summit and long plumes of spindrift streaming out to the east. We enjoyed a morning jaunt to the Edge of the World, where we could look down almost seven thousand feet below us to the Kahiltna Glacier and our camp at the Base of Ski Hill at 7800'.

We also spent a few ours reviewing and practicing some climbing techniques that we will employ up higher.

Our next task is to establish a cache up high, above the Headwall on the West Buttress proper. Weather willing we'll do that tomorrow. Now it's time for some reading and resting before dinner.

We'll be in touch tomorrow.

RMI Guide Mike Walter

Wednesday, June 1, 2022 - 12:52 am PT

Quick dispatch: We are homeward bound. We packed up camp at 17,000' and started down the West Buttress. We got to high five the team led by JT Schmitt as they passed us on their ascent. At 14,000, we regrouped, grabbed everything we had left, and considerably heavier, started towards 11,000' Camp. By 6 we had made it to 11,000'. The air is so much thicker! We dig up our cache from what seems like ages ago, and made a quick meal in team Champion's cook tent. We'll sleep for a few hours, then wake for an early push to the air strip. With any luck we'll be in Talkeetna mid morning tomorrow.

RMI Guide Pete, Leif, Erika, and team

RMI Guide Mike Haugen and the Expedition Skills Seminar - Kautz team reached the summit of Mt. Rainier via the Katuz Route early this morning. Mike reported great climbing, clear skies, and light winds. The Kautz Route is a great adventure for physically fit climbers ready for a slightly more technical adventure on Mt. Rainier, and today's team climbed strong! The team will be descending the Disappointment Cleaver Route, taking a short rest at Camp Muir before returning to Paradise.

Congratulations Team!