Most Popular Entries
Posted by: Mike King
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Torres del Paine
The high pressure system ended abruptly with rain and wind this morning. The team got up earlier than they’d like after the long day over the pass. There was a glacier hike to get up for. After a short briefing they zipped out on a RHIB for a four hour walk on the Grey glacier, the consensus was it was very picturesque and the glacier water tasted good.
We still had to hike four hours to Paine Grande. This section of trail is rocky and when raining can be slick in some places. The area between Grey and Paine also reflects the wildfires that have swept through the park. Barren landscape at first glance, but upon closer inspection there’s wild flowers, nice rock formations and a lot of blue ice floating in Lago Grey. We got soak, 4 times and the Patagonian winds blew out the squalls and dried us out. We are at the Refugio eating dinner, enjoying the many views out the windows. Will likely get to watch some of the Super Bowl and we have 26km tomorrow if our side hike into the French Valley goes the distance.
Thanks for following along,
RMI Guide Mike King
New Post Alerts:
Torres del Paine Trek, February 3, 2024
On The Map
Thanks for the video. Cute dogs. Do they live up there or someone bring them with?
Posted by: Kris on 3/4/2013 at 6:03 pm
Hey team Orizaba! Bill’s wife here. Glad to hear it’s going well. Good luck on Ixta! I teach 4th graders and am showing my class your blogs.
Posted by: Kris Westberg on 3/4/2013 at 10:19 am
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
Posted by: Kel Rossiter
Categories: Guide News Guide Grant
Thompson Pass is part of the storied Chugach Range, the setting for more extreme skiing videos than perhaps anywhere else on the planet. Jagged, flat-iron peaks are flanked with row upon rows of steep and deep powder couloirs that spill into massive glacial basins, with easy access provided by the Richardson Highway running through it, connecting the port town of Valdez with the rest of The Last Frontier. This makes it the perfect place for the Advanced course. Whereas the introductory Ski Guides Course focuses on safely moving groups through backcountry avalanche terrain and finding the best skiing along the way, the Advanced Ski Guide Course brings in the components of safe travel on glaciers (e.g., navigating in white out conditions, avoiding crevasses, dealing with crevasse rescue, etc) and managing skiers in technical mountain terrain (e.g., roped travel through steep rock and snow, belayed entry into steep terrain, effective group management in narrow couloirs, etc).
But there's more to it than just the technical aspects—because, after all, in ski mountaineering the focus of climbing a peak goes beyond just the joy of standing on the summit—there is the consideration of finding the most enjoyable line to ski on the way down. Having completed AMGA certifications in Rock and Alpine Guiding, I'm versed in the technique and mindset needed to successfully climb large objectives, and that mindset could be generally summed up with the word “efficiency”. Moving into the world of ski mountaineering has been an exciting shift of paradigms, working to also incorporate in the concepts of “aesthetics” and “enjoyment”. In the world of alpine climbing, enjoyment is often seen as what you experience upon completing the goal, standing on the summit and coming back down safely. In the world of ski mountaineering, standing on the summit is a necessary pleasure before the true pleasure of ski descent can be attained. A greater focus on both product and process that I'm finding increasingly attractive.
I'm not the only one finding this product and process increasingly attractive: backcountry skiing and ski mountaineering is among the fastest growing segments of the outdoor world. And RMI is at the forefront in developing programs to help its audience enjoy the sport. RMI Guide Tyler Reid leads ski descents of Europe's highest peak, Mt. Elbrus, and explores Chile's renowned skiing with RMI Guide Solveig Waterfall. In 2018, I'll be doing a Mt. Baker Climb/Ski as well as a custom ski/climb program. RMI, long at the lead in helping climbers reach their summit goals, now has a range of excellent ski options to ensure that the descent is both safe and extremely rewarding.
For a look at some of my other experiences with backcountry skiing, ski mountaineering, and the AMGA Ski Guide program, check out these links:
• Mammut Athlete Team Blog about my ski experiences in the Alps prior to the Ski Guides Course.
• RMI Blog post about my experiences in learning snow science during the American Avalanche Institute's Level 3 Avalanche Course.
RMI Guide Kel Rossiter
Good luck with the weather tomorrow. We are rooting for you all!
Posted by: Marina on 5/20/2011 at 6:43 pm
Taos and Albuquerque LeBlancs wishing Dave and team the best!
Posted by: LeBlanc Familia on 5/20/2011 at 4:05 pm
Namaste!
Greetings from Nepal
The team has finally arrived in Kathmandu after some incredibly long flights and we are slowly adjusting to the 12 hour time change. Not an easy task by any means.
We started our first day with a round of introductions, getting acquainted and discussing the necessities to our upcoming adventure to Everest Base Camp. Then headed out to visit a few famous temples here in Kathmandu. First up was the massive Boudhanath Stupa, which is one of the largest in the world. Then Swayambhunath, also known as the Monkey Temple that over looks most of Kathmandu. They are two of the sevn World Heritage sites here in Nepal.
We wrapped up the evening by getting all of our gear packed and an amazing meal at a restaurant call “Le Sherpa”, sort of a modern fusion on new and old Nepali food.
Everyone is doing well and very much looking forward to heading into the mountains tomorrow!
RMI Guide Casey Grom and the Everest Base Camp crew
Love you Casey. Jen, I’m so happy you’re there with her. Awesome that you two met.
Posted by: Nancy on 3/15/2023 at 9:56 pm
I’m so excited for you all. I cannot wait to hear the stories. I wish I could be there with you but I’ll be following in spirit and online
Posted by: Penny Fong on 3/15/2023 at 4:51 pm
Friday July 1, 2022 11:25pm PDT
We were repetitive today. “What a gorgeous day” was heard over and over. We were out of our sleeping bags and firing the stoves at 7 AM and … as usual… it was calm and clear and perfect at 14,000 ft. A little cool in the shadows, but by the time we’d eaten breakfast and done another big gear sort, it was 9:50 and the sun was coming on strong. We headed up the now-familiar terrain leading to the fixed ropes and the crest of Denali’s West Buttress. The work was certainly hard, carrying big packs on steep snow, ice, and rock at high altitude, but the scenery was magnificent. It was even more magnificent once we loaded up the supplies from our cache at 16,600 and pushed on to new ground. It was a thrill to walk along the ridge crest, balancing between the big drop down to Genet Basin on one side and the Peters Glacier on the other. We rolled into 17,200 ft at about 4 PM in calm and sunny conditions and began to build our high camp.
The decision was made, over dinner in our rather compact high camp dining tent, to take a rest day tomorrow (Saturday) and to focus on a summit bid Sunday. Conditions look good for Saturday, according to the forecast, but even better for Sunday and we’d like everybody to have their best shot at the top after so much hard work.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn & Team
On on everyone! You’ve all worked SO hard. You are ALL amazing! MASSIVE GOOD LUCK guys n gals!
Posted by: Margaret Nolan on 7/2/2022 at 9:23 am
So proud of everyone and with you in spirit!! You can do this!!! Cheering you all on!!! Go, Jim, go!!!!
Posted by: Deborah Karmozyn on 7/2/2022 at 8:49 am
Posted by: Elias de Andres Martos
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Alaska
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.
Posted by: Angelica on 7/31/2011 at 6:24 am
Incredible photos!!! Chris’ son, Bodhi, says that “Dada is silly for jumping in the air!” We look forward to the next update. Thank you for keeping us updated. Safe travels!
Posted by: Lindsey Stover on 2/13/2024 at 9:27 am
View All Comments