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"By far the best of the year" was RMI Guide Brent Okita's description of today's weather on the summit of Mt. Rainier. Brent led the Four Day Summit Climb July 29 - 1 August to the top this morning. RMI Guide Eric Frank led the Five Day Summit Climb July 28 - 1 August to Rainier's summit with 100% of his team. Both teams reported warm temperatures with just a whisper of wind. They began their descent from the crater rim just before 8 am. The teams will return to Camp Muir and then continue their descent to Paradise. RMI Guide Mike Haugen led the Expedition Skills Seminar on the Kautz Glacier. The team spent the week training at Rainier BaseCamp and on the mountain. This morning they packed up their camp at 13,000' atop Wapowty Cleaver and reached the summit of Mt. Rainier. The team will descend via the Disappointment Cleaver Route. This marks the 100th summit of Mt. Rainier for RMI Guide Mike Haugen. Congratulations Mike! RMI Guide Jake Beren called to check-in from Mt. Shuksan. The team is back at camp after being 100% on top today. Jake reported that the route is “near perfect” with an amazing sunrise, views of Mt. Baker and the surrounding Cascades. They ascended the central gulleys of the summit pyramid and stood on top with windless, sunny conditions. The team had a great descent, rolling in to camp at the same time as the fog. They are back at camp hydrating and resting before hiking out tomorrow. We look forward to seeing all the groups at Rainier BaseCamp this afternoon. Congratulations to today's teams!

Friday May 20 - 10:38pm

Today we woke to another perfectly sunny windless day. The team moved strongly up to 10,000 feet where we cached gear to retrieve later.

After that we made short work of the descent, and are now back at camp 1, hoping to move up the mountain tomorrow!!

JT and the RMI team

Hello Everyone 

It's incredibly beautiful, peaceful, and the mountains are grandiose. We've been very comfortable hiking each day in the sunny weather, then bundling up in our warm sleeping bags each night as the temperature drops. 

Dinner is often around 7 and the menu is pretty much the same at every tea house with plenty of soups, simple pasta, rice, potatoes, and typical Nepalese Dal Bat.  

After dinner we relax and have a brief review of the day ahead and then it's off to bed. 

The team hiked up Kala Patar this afternoon to get a better view of Everest which didn’t disappoint!

Spirits are high as we push closer to basecamp and if the weather cooperates, we should arrive tomorrow. Hopefully we’ll be able to get updates out, but in the off chance we can’t, the team will be at Everest Base camp for two nights. 

There’s no cell service or WiFi most likely. 

That's all for now

RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew

Monday, June 20, 2022 - 10:04 pm PT

Greetings from 7200 ft on the SE Fork of the Kahiltna Glacier.  Right where we wanted to be.  We left Talkeetna in two classic ski equipped Otter prop planes and headed into the Alaska Range.  Clouds were clearing and the views were stunning.  The weather in this section of Alaska has been quite dry in recent months and so there wasn’t much snow left outside the range.  We had great views of the giant, striped glaciers like the Ruth and the Tokasitna.   We landed uphill on the SE Fork at about 11:15.   Avery Parrinello’s successful RMI climbing team greeted us and helped us unload, since our then empty planes were taking them toward Talkeetna and home.  We exchanged a few hugs and wished each other well and then our team set to building a camp.  It was made just slightly difficult. -putting up tents- by our need to stop every few minutes to marvel at the scenery and scale of everything.  Mt. Hunter towers over basecamp, seemingly straight up for miles.  Mt. Foraker, at 17,400 ft just across the way, looks impossibly massive and formidable.   Once camp was up, we dove into some training and review for glacier travel and crevasse rescue.  We covered many topics through the afternoon and evening, aiming to have the team well-informed for travel in the early morning hours tomorrow -when the glacier surface is frozen solid.  We ate our first dinner on the mountain in a quickly excavated dining room and then did a few last organizational chores before turning in early (in the still bright sun) for some rest.

Best Regards,

RMI Guide Dave Hahn

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

On The Map

11:39 a.m. PST Billy Nugent & Team called and they are safely back at High Camp. It has started snowing so they are packing up and heading for Plaza Argentina. The team is doing great and they will send an update when they get there. Hey everybody, I am checking in for our Aconcagua crew giving you guys a call from the summit. We are [broken] clear skies [broken] and 100% of our crew on the summit. We are all giving hi-fives, taking pictures and just looking around kind of in awe. I'll give a call when we get back to camp safe and sound but until then, ciao ciao. RMI Guide Billy Nugent

On The Map

Hello from the Kahiltna Glacier! We woke to frigid temperatures on our first morning, with the temperatures reaching negative 25 F. Thankfully the sun came out to play and things quickly warmed up for us. We enjoyed our first day exploring the SE fork of the Kahiltna Glacier. Everyone is doing great. We'll check in soon. RMI Guide Jason Thompson

At 5:45 am this morning, the Four Day Climb led by Dave Hahn and team successfully reached the summit of Mount Rainier. The climbers were greeted by clear skies and a stunning sunrise, making for a truly memorable moment at 14,410 feet.

The team reported encountering some wind while ascending the Disappointment Cleaver, but conditions improved as they neared the summit. By the time they reached the top, the winds had calmed, allowing for a peaceful and awe-inspiring views.

Currently, the team is on their descent, working their way back to Camp Muir. Congratulations to Dave Hahn and the entire team on a safe and successful summit!

The Mt. Baker - Easton Glacier September 7 - 9 team made their summit attempt this morning but were turned back due to extremely wet conditions. The team returned to their High Camp and was going to take a bit of time to dry out. Later today they will continue their descent to the trailhead and conclude their program.

Everyone slept great last night after a big day yesterday. Today's activities included a beautiful morning walk from the village of Cheget to Azau, where we enjoyed a leisurely lunch at the Freeride Cafe. Afternoon horseback riding included an exciting river ford and a visit to the valley's mineral springs. This evening we celebrated our successful climb with Yuriy, our local Russian guide who's climbed Mt. Elbrus "maybe 200 times...maybe 300. I've stopped counting many years ago." BBQ lamb, potato pancakes, Russian salads, and of course, vodka... tomorrow it's another alpine start as we head for St. Petersburg. All is great in Russia. RMI Guide Tyler Reid

On The Map