The clouds around Vinson basecamp lifted some today, but didn't go away. In particular they were stuck over the Nimitz Glacier and the approaches for an airplane trying to get into the Branscomb. There was some optimism this morning, what with blue sky over camp and Vinson's summit visible again, but it never quite got good enough to tempt the Twin Otters in from Union. Eventually they gave up on us and flew back to the South Pole to pick up more centenerary celebrants. That being a long round trip, our next window of opportunity to fly from Vinson would be tomorrow afternoon. We passed the day easily and quietly. TA, Vlado, Mindy and I went for a glacier walk in the afternoon to stretch legs. In the evening the ALE crew generously hosted a dinner for the three climbing teams. The food was superb... And we were all just plain happy to sit in real chairs for a time.
Best Regards
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Hello, this is the Huascaran team. We are back at High Camp after summitting the tallest peak outside of the Himalaya. We reached the summit at 8:30 AM local time. It's been a hard day, this mountain is no joke. We are at High Camp and will plan on heading down as far as we can today.
Thanks for following along.
RMI Guide Elias de Andres Martos
RMI Guide Elias de Andres Martos calls from High Camp after summit bid.
Yesterday we walked without any great difficulty from Lobuche to Everest Basecamp. Conditions were perfect, with sunshine, blue sky and no wind whatsoever. We stopped for a brief rest in Gorak Shep where we were all grateful for 3G cell coverage again (Lobuche is lacking in this respect which is why we took a couple of nights off from blogging). But we didn't linger for very long in Gorak Shep because by then we were just a short distance from our home for the next seven weeks and we were excited to finish the trek. We walked a bit more along the lateral moraine before dropping onto the actual Khumbu Glacier. By then, the only thing difficult about the travel (apart from being over 17,000 ft) was walking while looking up at a couple dozen hanging glaciers and giant peaks. We were into our basecamp by midday and eating a great lunch in our dining tent 30 minutes later. It was great to catch up with our Sherpa team and mind boggling to see the work they've accomplished in two weeks. Kumar is our incomparable chef once again, assisted by Raju, Jetta and Tikaram. Our expert team of Sherpa guides is of course led by Lam Babu who did such a great job accompanying us on the trek. In the meantime, Chhering, Kaji and Geljen were moving a lot of rock around to build camp. We just had to move into well built and anchored tents, which was pretty easy. We were excited to watch a big avalanche off the Lho La -the pass above us which is the border with Tibet. And we were happy to spend an easy afternoon and evening getting settled. The night went well, with all seeming to be adjusting well to the altitude. Morning in such a place was just as awe inspiring as you'd expect.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
We spent the day visiting the heart of Moscow today, walking through places familiar from a lifetime of hearing their names but only witnessing for the first time - Red Square, Kremlin, Bolshoy...
We left the hotel this morning and crossed the two bridges spanning the Moscow River and walked along the walls of the Kremlin until we reached Red Square. After wandering through the area for a bit we met our Tour Guide, Nina, for a tour of the city. In fluent English tinted by a distinct Russian accent, she spent the next three hours recounting stories, history, and significances of the many places we bounced between. First walking around St. Basil's Cathedral, the ornately decorated church on the south side of Red Square, we then passed through the GUM Department Store, the beautiful former Soviet State Store now turned luxury shopping mall. Between the stores full of familiar Western brands - Levi's, Prada, Jaques Cartier - she also recounted her personal experiences transitioning from Communist Russia to life in Moscow today, explaining the differences in food choices to retirement.
Across from the Bolshoy theater we descended into Moscow's subway system, hopping trains between several of the impressively ornate underground stations, many covered with mosaics, frescos, and hanging crystal chandeliers, before emerging into the sunlight back at the entrance to the Kremlin. We then walked beneath the thick red brick walls into the center of the Kremlin, passing throughout the churches and monuments in the heart of the Russian Government.
By late afternoon we returned to the hotel and spent a few hours of down time before dinner, trying to shake the last of the jet lag. Tomorrow we leave Moscow and fly to the foothills of the Caucasus Mountains to reach the foot of Mt. Elbrus. The team enjoyed Moscow and we are excited to head into the mountains and begin the climbing.
We will check in tomorrow from our hotel in the Baksan Valley.
RMI Guide Linden Mallory
Hello!
Mark Tucker checking in from the Barranco Camp, situated at 12,992’ on Mt. Kilimanjaro. We had great conditions for our hike today. Sunny and a little bit of clouds down in the low lands. Our conditions were just perfect. Everyone on the team, except for myself, had record breaking altitudes. We got up to 15,272’ was our high point and then descended back to his camp at 12,900’.
It is a wonderful night out. A little breezy, clear and lots of stars. A half moon is illuminating quite a bit of snow cover up there on the summit, not the true summit but up to about 18,500’. A really pretty night tonight, that we are all enjoying.
We had a birthday celebration, one of our team members Carlos, turned 50 today. So, we had a cake, candles and the local staff did a sing-song and a beautiful red-rose covered card all signed by the team. He had quite a day.
We are staring at the Barranco Wall which is our challenge in the morning. It is more intimidating than the actual effort it takes to climb it. It is usually one of the more fun parts of the whole climb. [Call connection lost]
Well, checking back in had a dropped call there. On a satellite phone here so sometimes it does that.
The team wanted to give a shout out a big “hello” to everyone back home. Everyone is doing just fine. Rumor has it there have been some comments made to the Blog site which we are unable to check. But we look forward to taking a look at them when we get back to some computer access. Much appreciated by everybody sending their best wishes. Thanks for following. We will be in touch.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
RMI Guide Mark Tucker checks in from Barranco Camp on Kilimanjaro.
The wind died today which meant that with the sun it felt very hot on the glacier today. We moved our camp south, closer to base camp and closer to some areas that have terrain features that are good for training and climbing. We spent the afternoon hiding from the sun in our new camp, We just finished an early dinner and are going do some evening ice climbing now that the temperatures have quelled.
The Mongolia team has made the jump from Olgii in Western Mongolia back to the capital, Ulaanbataar. We are enjoying the cosmopolitan feel of the city and a final cultural event today - visiting a 13th century recreation of Chinggus (Ghengis) Khan's kingdom and palace. Tomorrow morning we all catch flight home to our love ones.
Thanks for following along!!
RMI Guide Eric Frank
At 2:45 a.m. PST, Casey Grom and team were all standing on the "Roof of Africa!" As seen in the photo sent below, the weather was bluebird skies and everyone looks extremely happy. The team has descended from the summit and will continue down to Mweka Camp at 10,000' today.
Congratulations to the team!
Congratulations Jess!! What an AWESOME accomplishment! We have a bottle of champagne and something from Jay ;) waiting for you in Doylestown to celebrate!! xxxx Jen, Jay, Jane, Bob, Huck & Finn
Posted by: Jen Leventhal on 8/26/2013 at 5:32 pm
Congratulations Steve and Brian! What a huge accomplishment. Can not wait to hear all of the stories.
We made it!
Everyone has safely returned from our fantastic climb of Elbrus, the highest point in Europe. Our summit day started with falling snow and flashes of lightning in the distance that left the team feeling a little uneasy. Shortly after starting our climb the snow stopped while the lightning provided some beautiful views as it slowly moved away and the skies cleared. We ended up having one of the most enjoyable days in the mountains I've had in a long time. It took us about 7 1/2 hours to reach the summit, which was sunny, warm and windless. All but two of our team were able to stand on top and we spent about 20 minutes taking photos, giving hugs, high-fives, and just taking in the breathtaking views. We made it back to camp after 13 hours on the go and most of the team is currently taking their well earned post-climb naps.
Thanks for wishing us luck
The Five Day Climb led by RMI Guides Eric Frank and Seth Burns climbed the Ingraham Direct Route on Mt. Rainier and reached 12,800'. Firm route conditions kept the team from climbing higher.
The team is at Camp Muir where they are in and out of the clouds. They will spend some time re-fueling and organizing their gear before starting their descent.
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Congratulations!! So cool!! I couldn’t be happier for all involved!
Laura
Posted by: Laura Bryson on 7/21/2019 at 7:55 pm
WOWOWWWW! Great job and CONGRATS! What an accomplishment! So happy for you all and such great work!
Kim K
Posted by: Kim on 7/21/2019 at 4:38 pm
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