It didn't appear to be a great day for going to the top of Mount Everest, but it was a perfect day for the top of Kalapathar. Dan and Seth and I went back down-valley to Gorak Shep and then hung a right to do the classic hike. Everest still had a jetstream plume of cloud and snow blowing from her upper reaches. But about 10,000 feet lower down we enjoyed sunny and calm spring weather. It was good to be out of base for a bit and away from the all consuming obsession with weather forecasts and picking summit days. We'll get worked up about it all, soon enough.
For now it is still a matter of getting the team healthy and strong.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
You all are looking good and healthy. Stay healthy and strong for your summit. Looking forward to reading about it. Blessings for a safe summit.
AQ Uptown#985 NM/AZ/CO
Posted by: Rachael C. Lujan on 5/15/2013 at 10:17 am
Love the beard buddy. Looks like your having the time of your life. Good luck everyone at work and myself are rooting for you. Be Safe! Look forward to your return and your stories.
Larry
Moving up the mountain, bit by bit. We seemed to make pretty quick work of the move from Vinson Base to Camp One today. It didn't hurt that we had another day of perfect, sunny and calm weather. The team seems to be getting into the swing of things now and the climbing seems easy and familiar... marching along low angled glacier carrying heavy packs and hauling sleds full of gear and supplies. But now, having established camp at 9,300 ft on the Branscomb Glacier, the approach is over and tomorrow the climb begins. If all goes well we'll tackle the steep fixed rope section and try to make a carry to high camp.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Bruce,
I clicked on the link for the page here and they had a link for Mt. Kili. More my speed. Best of luck on the climb up tomorrow. If you see penguins on the way back remember to stuff one into your pack for me. I don’t expect you to lug one all the way to the top. Everyone at GFH3 says hi.
Posted by: Reid on 12/9/2012 at 6:13 pm
Sterling. I’m back in OC. Guess this is a rest day? Incredible pictures!! Hoping for continued good weather. Sue
The weather at Everest Base Camp is cloudy but the temperatures are nice. We have heard that more climbers have successfully reached the top of Mt. Everest.
Kaji and Dawa after going to the South Col yesterday have comeback to Base camp. Lam Babu has also returned to Base Camp from Camp 2.
Tsering and Yubarj plan on carrying loads to the South Col tomorrow early morning early if the weather allows.
Speaking of weather, the forecast for lighter winds has been adjusted to more moderate speeds, we have heard of a number of teams adjusting their summit schedule to a later date. Everyone is looking for that perfect weather window. Some teams are in position for summit attempts tonight and tomorrow night.
Our team at Base Camp continues with the resting and eating routine. We are working hard to fatten up Dave, Linden, Sara and Bill. We had a few friends over today to throw some horseshoes. The focus now is keeping track of the forecasts and monitoring resting patterns. How much simpler could life get.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
Guys…. my two favorite things resting and eating… but I do know you both can not wait for some your mom’s/wife’s home cooked meals ... Stay strong and we are all thinking and praying for you! love. Stacey
Posted by: Stacey on 5/13/2011 at 5:38 pm
Sara and Bill,
WOW, I absolutely love seeing these pictures. Funny how it does make me think “Anything” I am doing here is so trivial compared to what you all are doing. Stay Strong like you are… fatten up, (ha)and we will pray for low winds and good weather. lots of love and prayers. Kathy
The Four Day Summit Climb led by RMI Guide Peter Whittaker reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. Peter reported windy conditions on the summit. The team is making their descent and we expect them back at Rainier BaseCamp this afternoon.
Way to climb!
Safety is priority number one. Rumors of high winds coming in early next week has our team paying close attention to the forecast. The higher the winds, the colder it gets. Lucky for us we have all the necessary gear. Sure our packs are big but we are warm.
For now, the team is lounging around Camp 2 at 18,000 feet on Aconcagua. We went up to 19000 + feet to acclimatize and everyone is doing really, really well. We need to rest and recuperate here tomorrow. We will be watching the winds and then we will make a game plan.
Keep the fingers crossed and the positive vibes coming!!! Everyone here says hello to friends and family.
RMI Guide JJ Justman
Congrats Team 2 on trekking to camp 2!!! I’ve try enjoyed following along your journey and hearing of your progress each day.
Josh - you make me so proud. Not a minute goes by that you aren’t on my mind, talked about, or asked about. You are an unbelievably special person. Keep up the good work. We are behind you 100% of the way and can’t wait to hear you’ve accomplished your next goal. Enjoy your day of rest.
Sending much love….Jess
Posted by: Jessica on 12/26/2013 at 11:15 pm
Wow!! Kim - this is incredible, you are such a rockstar!!
Hello friends and family of Rainier Mountaineering. This is J.J. Justman really happy to report that our entire team is on the summit of Mt. Elbrus as we speak at 18,510’. We had a great day today. We actually started out pretty iffy weather, there were a lot of clouds, winds, sleet, snow and rain but it parted ways. We started out about 3 in the morning and wouldn’t you know it, we toughed it out, we are in a little bit of a white out. We wish we could have better photos but we are on top.
Everyone wants to say hello to friend and family back home. I’d like to definitely give a shout out to the folks back at RMI: Autumn, Sarah, Melissa, Lacey and Casey for helping to get this trip started the right way. Definitely helps me focus on what I need to focus on and that was making sure our team was acclimatized and having fun. What do you say guys, are you having a fun time? [Cheers in background].
So, we are a little tired and we still have a little bit of work to do so we are going to start heading down hill. Chaio from Russia.
That was Vladimir our co-guide along here with me, it was great climbing with him. We will have some photos and videos for all of you of our terrific summit day. We will send them tomorrow when we descend to the village of Cheget at the base of Mt. Elbrus.
RMI Guide J.J. Justman
RMI Guide JJ Justman calls in from the summit of Mt. Elbrus.
Our team reached the summit at 8:30 am this morning via the Emmons route, and we were back at Camp Schurman at 1:48 pm. Gorgeous views and a beautiful sunrise! We will finish our training and head downhill tomorrow.
Yesterday turned out to be a stormy one on Osorno. With hopes of possible clearing we set off from the hut in weather that felt more like winter in Hokkaido than spring on the volcanoes. After 1200’ of climbing, it became apparent that things would not be improving anytime soon. We skied down, and like clockwork, the skies began to clear. But it was just a Northern Patagonia sucker hole, and soon it was pounding snow once again. We had a nice evening on the lake in the beautiful town of Puerto Varas, a great place to wrap up a very successful trip with a fantastic crew. It’s a beautiful morning as I write this, with Osorno looking proud across the water. A good reason to come back..
RMI Guide Tyler Reid
We woke up to the sound of rain pounding on the roof and a sinking feeling descended over me: rain meant cloudy weather and no flights into Lukla and I began to wonder if we would be forced to spend the day waiting for clearer skies in order to fly back to Kathmandu. I hesitantly looked out of the window of the teahouse and much to my relief it was only a light rain falling from a thin layer of clouds above. By the time we packed up our bags and sat down for breakfast the skies cleared and soon airplanes began making the harrowing approach into the narrow strip of runway in Lukla.
After wrapping up breakfast we said goodbye to our porters and Sherpa staff and walked the hundred yards up the trail into the Lukla airport where we checked in for our flight. We reweighed all of our bags, once again amazed at the loads our porters were able to carry for the duration of our trek, and then found a seat in the waiting area. Every loud roar accompanying the landing of an airplane we would jump up to stare out the window to see if the plane arriving was ours. Finally, after a couple of planes came and went the green tail of our Tara Air appeared on the runway and and we lined up outside of the idling aircraft to take our seats.
The flight back to Kathmandu lacked the views of our flight in and the plane was forced to take a long route around all of the clouds already building by mid morning before we finally began the descent back into Kathmandu. We landed safely and stepped out into the thick and warm air of the city, a very different feel than the mountains above. Once all of our gear was loaded into the back of the van we set out for our hotel. Needless to say, the melee of cars, motorbikes, horns, buildings, and throngs of people is a radical change from the relative quiet and calm of the Khumbu and it is taking us a good bit to make the shift back into the scene here in Kathmandu.
We arrived at our hotel but not all of the rooms were ready so we sat down next to the pool behind and ordered lunch: fresh salads, vegetables, and burgers (even in Nepal!). It was a feast. We then turned our attention to showers and clean clothes - another luxury for us. By late afternoon, showered and dressed in fresh clothes, we headed into Thamel, the heart of Kathmandu, and spent a few hours wandering the streets and taking in the scene. It feels great to be back in Kathmandu but hard to believe our adventures are over; we've settled into our trail and routine and it's a bit strange to not have to wake up tomorrow, pack the duffel bag, and start walking. It's going to take a bit to readjust. We are heading out for our celebration dinner tonight, looking forward to another good meal. Tomorrow is our contingency day, just in case weather prevented us from moving at some point during the trip, and we are using it to check out a few of the sites in Kathmandu before our flight home the following day. The team is all excited to get home and share their stories, thanks to everyone for following along with us.
RMI Guide Linden Mallory
Hello! Did you climb to the top of Island Peak? What is the mountain behind you in the picture from today? So glad you are doing well!! We miss you! -Mrs. Hartman’s class
Posted by: Mrs. Hartman's class on 4/9/2012 at 9:42 am
Hard to believe that the trip is almost over. We men are excited about getting our women back. Linden - thanks for shepherding these special ladies through a lifetime adventure! Hurry home Corell.
A summit success early this morning on Pico de Orizaba! Most of our team stood at 18,491 feet a little after sunrise, soaking in the views after a tough climb at high altitude.
It was a long last day in the mountains, but spirits were high as we descended to Tlachichuca where we enjoyed the comforts of the small town.
Our final night together as a team was spent sharing stories from the mountain and appreciating the trip, from the dust to the sunrises, the team is grateful for good weather and safe passage in the mountains.
Thanks for following along with the team on our adventures through Mexico and our climbs of the mighty volcanoes.
You all are looking good and healthy. Stay healthy and strong for your summit. Looking forward to reading about it. Blessings for a safe summit.
AQ Uptown#985 NM/AZ/CO
Posted by: Rachael C. Lujan on 5/15/2013 at 10:17 am
Love the beard buddy. Looks like your having the time of your life. Good luck everyone at work and myself are rooting for you. Be Safe! Look forward to your return and your stories.
Larry
Posted by: Larry Price on 5/15/2013 at 7:49 am
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