"Clear, calm, and reeeeaallly cold!" That was the summary of today's climb. We woke up to a perfectly calm morning, almost even warm (at least for Antarctica). It was shaping up to be a perfect summit day, so we packed our bags and left for the top. We climbed a low-angled glacier, weaving our way through the surface of wind blown ice and sculpted snow, eventually reaching a large amphitheater with Vinson's summit standing at the head. We crossed the basin, navigating a few small crevasses until we reached the slope that leads up to Vinson's summit ridge. Despite the forecast for "extremely cold" we were warm on the climb, climbing comfortably without needing to wear our thickest down layers. The views around us were truly breathtaking (well, nearing 16,000' was also a factor). The higher we climbed the more of the Ellsworth Range came into view - a jagged line of ice capped peaks piercing through Ice Cap spread out below our feet. The size and scale and rawness of the landscape is hard to comprehend, even when standing in the middle of it.
By mid-afternoon we reached the final summit ridge, a thin ridge of snow and rocks with a few small rock outcroppings that require delicate balance to navigate around. Just as we reached the ridge, a steady and frigid wind blowing straight from the direction of the South Pole picked up. Despite bundling up our body temperatures instantly began to slip. We navigated the ridge without much trouble, despite having to stop every few minutes to keep the circulation going in our hands. Onward we climbed, trying desperately to hide from the breeze in layers of hoods, until suddenly there was no more ridge to climb. We had reached the top of the bottom of the world - the summit of the Vinson Massif, Antarctica's highest point. It was amazing, beautiful, and really cold. Despite the effort in getting there, we weren't inclined to stay long, we snapped a few pictures, shared a few high fives, and then set our sights on getting back down the ridge and out of the wind. The sub sub sub zero temps made every move that much more challenging but Penn and Jon climbed beautifully, moving through the exposed terrain without difficulty and soon we were dropping back off the ridge into the amphitheater and out of the cold southern wind. We stopped in the sun, our faces covered in rime ice, and started laughing - we were through the thick of it and it was nice to be heading downhill. We retraced our steps back across the glacier and reached High Camp in the early evening. Tired but happy, we and another team of two climbing rangers a few hours ahead of us, were the first climbers to reach the summit of Vinson this season and despite the chilly summit ridge, it was a very spectacular climb.
Tomorrow we set our sites for Base Camp and hope to move back downhill in search of some slightly warmer temperatures, thicker air, and hopefully some good ski touring around Base Camp.
RMI Guide Linden Mallory & Team
RMI Guide Linden Mallory calls from the Vinson Massif summit!
WOW - CONGRATULATIONS JON, PENN and LINDEN!!!!
Great updates and great coverage - feel like I am there without ever leaving the confines of 70 degrees in Birmingham :))
Send more photos and video - the video from the summit was Incredible !!
Safe Travels and Congratulations!
Lee
Posted by: Lee Styslinger III on 12/4/2014 at 9:35 am
Way to go, Team! Congratulations!!!
( and Linden: SO nice to see you on top of yet another “massif”!!!)
Safe journey home, everyone!
- Dana Marie Buchanan
Posted by: Dana Marie Buchanan on 12/3/2014 at 8:50 am
The Four Day Summit Climb Teams Led by RMI Guides Brent Okita and Walter Hailes called as they reached the Summit of Mt. Rainier at 6:59am this morning. The teams have clear weather with light winds, but cold temperatures. They spent some time on the summit before starting their descent back to Camp Muir.
Congratulations to today's teams!
RMI Guide JJ Justman's team was awarded with a beautiful day of climbing up to Camp Muir. The team is keeping their fingers crossed for good weather tomorrow morning!
What an awesome journey you have just completed. Walking by the full moon in the wee hours of the day to stand on top of the world must have been exhilarating and inspiring. Your hard work was admirable as you put your energy into reaching your goals. I bow gently in respect for all of you. Now…What’s next?
Our Four Day Summit Climb teams reached the top of Mt. Rainier early today, by the light of the blue moon. The guides reported good weather, the winds were decreasing, and it was cold!
This summit climb marked RMI Guide Brent Okita's 450th summit of Mt. Rainier! Congratulations on your remarkable milestone!
We would also like to congratulate RMI clients Alex and Julie. News from the summit this morning that Alex proposed to Julie and she accepted! A special day on Mt. Rainier!
Greetings from Upstate NY. Dixon and Kevin, glad you reached the summit in one piece and hope you enjoyed.
Posted by: Dave Miller on 9/4/2012 at 11:10 am
Hi to all of you,
Congrats to all of you on a great climb to the top. A special congrats to Alex and Julie; how romantic to have a proposal at the summit during the Blue Moon. Have a safe climb down the mountain.
Rest day for our entire team today. The Sherpas were certainly entitled to one after their big day going to Camp II and back. And for the rest of us, it has been several days back-to-back of hikes and training. Time to slow it down, catch up on food, hydration and rest. And of course, hygiene. Today was shower day... we've got a little on-demand propane burning water heater rigged up on a shower tent that does the trick nicely. Not every day, of course, because propane isn't exactly naturally occurring in this valley, and because getting water just where you want it to be is rather labor intensive, as well. But every now and then it is oh so nice to get clean again.
Just before lunch, Mark Tucker made it into camp, fresh from Island Peak and another full circuit of the route to Lukla. So with our Basecamp manager on scene, the entire team is now assembled.
The climbers are getting gear ready for a "dress rehearsal" in the Icefall tomorrow, a practice run to the halfway point. The Sherpas are getting ready for a holiday... Nepali New Year tomorrow. To help with the festive atmosphere, Seth and I gave out brand new RMI uniform gear: Eddie Bauer First Ascent climbing clothing for the staff.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
The Four Day Summit Climb August 20 - 23 led by RMI Guides Dave Hahn and Jake Beren reached the top of Mt. Rainier today! They experienced very high winds with a cloud cap on top of the mountain. The teams began their descent from the crater rim a little after 9:00 a.m. PT.
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall and the Expedition Skills Seminar - Emmons will continue training today. Due to high winds and heavy rain last night the team will postpone their summit attempt until tomorrow morning.
Congratulations to today's Summit Climb team!
At above 17,000' the temperatures dipped well below freezing last night and the small stove in the teahouse dining room lay cold this morning. We wrapped our hands around steaming cups of tea at breakfast and searched for the patches of morning light streaming in through the windows. It was another clear, beautiful morning and we were warm within a few minutes of setting out from Gorak Shep.
The trail to Base Camp brought us along the edge of the Khumbu Glacier, weaving, climbing, and descending among the rocks and eroding slopes of the hillside that is being continuously carved by the glacier passing along it. After a couple of miles ascending along the glacier's edge we dropped off the morraine and onto the glacier itself. This far down the glacier surface is covered with rocks pulled from the mountain higher up, yet just beneath is glacial ice, requiring full attention walking to avoid slipping - not such an easy task with the incredible views as we passed between Nuptse and Pumori and stared up at Everest's West Shoulder.
By late morning we reached the community of tents that is cropping up at Everest Base Camp. We were warmly greeted by RMI's Sherpa and BC staff who gave us the tour of Base Camp. They have been here for two weeks already, carving platforms from the uneven ice and building rock walls to support the tents, and have done an incredible job turning a rather desolate patch of ice into a comfortable home for us. Kumar, our expedition cook with more than 15 yrs of experience, prepared a phenomenal lunch for us and everyone agreed it was the best meal yet of the trip (although it was quickly topped by dinner this evening).
We spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing and exploring Base Camp, venturing over to the entrance to the Icefall and paying a visit to the Icefall Doctors, the legendary team of Sherpas who fix the route through the Khumbu Icefall. When the sun passed behind Pumori, the peak to the west of BC, the temperatures again dropped. Wearing our down coats at the table, we enjoyed another excellent dinner before crawling into our tents here at BC.
We are spending the day in Base Camp tomorrow, using the surrounding glacier to train for Island Peak. The team is thrilled to be here, everyone is doing well and sends their best to those at home.
RMI Guide Linden Mallory
Amazing seeing the ruggedness of the mountains. Looks like you are in good hands. Enjoy every day, our family prayers are with you all. Breeze please!
David Eicher
Posted by: David Eicher on 4/5/2011 at 7:59 am
Bill and Sara, I am thinking of you both every day. I love reading about your expedition and I pass them along to my office staff and I brag about you (mostly about Sara, Bill, sorry). You are both really cool.
It is in the low 80’s today here on the posh rock of HHI. Flip flops and shorts….sand and shore, but alas, no sherpas and no excitement…..love to you both. cathy
RMI Guide Mike Haugen led his team to the Mt. Rainier summit via the Disappointment Cleaver Route this morning with beautiful weather and a slight breeze. The team began their descent at 10:00 a.m.
RMI Guide Jason Thompson was leading his team on the Emmons Route on the northside of Mt. Rainier. Due to firm conditions and a cloud cap developing on the mountain, the team had to make the tough, but more importantly, safe decision to turn at 12,500'. They will stay at Camp Schurman tonight and descend the mountain tomorrow.
Jambo from Barranco Camp,
Another cloudless day awaited us as we got out of the tents this morning. The whole upper mountain was in clear view and even Mt. Meru was visible to the south.
It was a bit colder this morning, but warmed right up as the sun hit our tents. Being our third day on the trail, the team was quick to get everything packed up and we were the first team out of camp. The climb up the Shira Plateau is not steep, but is a gradual incline all the way up to Lava Tower, our high point of the day at 15,100'. The group was strong the whole way up, even as we broke the personal altitude records of eight of our team members. After a nice break at Lava Tower camp, we began our descent to Barranco Camp. Since it was such a beautiful day, we stopped often for pictures and to just take in the views. The Barranco Camp has to be one of the best camps on the whole mountain. It is nestled on a flat bench with Kili's southern face rising dramatically right out of camp and dominating the horizon. On the valley floor, we are surrounded by some very unique plants including scenacios and lobelias, creating a landscape that almost looks like a page out of a Dr. Suess book. A pretty amazing place.
We had an early dinner tonight and are now enjoying a beautiful night sky as we get ready for bed. Tomorrow, we tackle the Great Barranco Wall. Even though it looks a bit intimidating from camp, everyone is up for the challenge.
We all wish Winsor a very Happy Birthday.
RMI Guide Jeff Martin & the Kili Team.
Hi KATERINA!!!!,
We read the blogs and saw the pics from Jeff and are so amazed and excited about your trip!
We are so proud of you! We are also excited and preparing for our trip to Greece this coming weekend. Hope that u continue to be well. We wish you a fun and safe remaining journey. Love Vicky
Hi Catherine its Jason. It must be really cool climbing a mountain. Did you see any animals? Tell me how it was climbing mount Kilimanjaro. Love Jason
HiCathie its me john i looked at the pictures and it looks awesome to be climbing the tallest mountain in Africa. Are u tired? we miss yo u love john.
Posted by: Vicky, Jason & John on 7/31/2011 at 8:56 am
A special hello to my dear friend Catherine! I’m so proud of you (but not surprised)!!! You are AMAZING. DON’T STOP. KEEP GOING!!!! Love and miss you, Angelica P.S. Many thanks to Jeff for the great blogs and best wishes for continued safe climbing for you and your entire team.
Hey everyone, this is JJ Justman, I have an incredible news story coming to you live on the summit of Aconcagua. Hey everyone. Everyone on Team 3 made the summit of Aconcagua at 1:30 (ART) this afternoon. 100%! The team did just absolutely fantastic. Team give a shout out to everyone back at home. [Cheers from the team!] I'll tell you its always a tough day getting up here, but the rewards are great. Beautiful day climbing. We are the only ones on the summit of Aconcagua right now. There is a little bit of wind so hopefully I'm not yelling too loud, but definitely want to let you guys know that everyone did great, everyone's safe and sound. We're gonna take a few hero shots and then we're gonna start heading down hill. Thanks for following a long. We will touch base with you when we get back to high camp. Everyone's doing great. Everyone says hello to family and friends. Take care from the summit of Aconcagua.
Congratulations to Tom Shilson! Your guess of 1:23 is the winning summit time. An RMI t-shirt and hat is on its way to you!
RMI Guide JJ Justman
Jambo!
Mark Tucker here calling from the Kikoti Camp, outside of the Tarangire National Park, Tanzania. We had a wonderful game drive today, many, many animals, lots of elephant, lots of leopards. I could go on and on and make you all so jealous. So we are having a real fun time at this beautiful property we are at here tonight. We will have coffee in the morning on our lanai. Then we will be making our way back to the Dik Dik Hotel for an evening flight tomorrow. If all works out we will be back in your neck of the woods sooner than later.
We’ll drop you a note tomorrow.
All the best,
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
RMI Guide Mark Tucker checks in from the Kikoti Camp, Tanzania.
WOW - CONGRATULATIONS JON, PENN and LINDEN!!!!
Great updates and great coverage - feel like I am there without ever leaving the confines of 70 degrees in Birmingham :))
Send more photos and video - the video from the summit was Incredible !!
Safe Travels and Congratulations!
Lee
Posted by: Lee Styslinger III on 12/4/2014 at 9:35 am
Way to go, Team! Congratulations!!!
( and Linden: SO nice to see you on top of yet another “massif”!!!)
Safe journey home, everyone!
- Dana Marie Buchanan
Posted by: Dana Marie Buchanan on 12/3/2014 at 8:50 am
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