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Saturday June 11, 2022 – 10:54pm PT

Hello bloganeers or whatever you call people who read blogs!

We went to bed with a nebulous forecast and thankfully awoke to optimistic looking skies! Looks like the weather would allow us to climb high and sleep low. We feasted upon a southern favorite, grits and pop tarts for breakfast. Then we racked up our gear and headed towards the fixed lines.

A couple hours of slow but steady walking and we arrived at the gaping maw that is the bergschrund at base of the fixed lines. The team locked and loaded and soon we were climbing up the steep snow and hard blue ice. Shouts of “This is awesome!” and “My fingers are cold,” were heard at various times during our ascent. Topping out the fixed lines rewarded us with beautiful views of the West Ridge of Denali and everyone and everything below us. We dug our cache, tossed in our excess gear and took a couple deep breaths of 16,000-foot air before beginning our descent.

Fleet feet and sturdy arm wraps meant a quick trip back to camp where a large meal of mac and cheese and cheesecake was enjoyed by all! Tomorrow, we let the winds up high blow while we gain strength and acclimate here at 14k camp.

Thanks for tuning in blogadors!

Avery, Jack, Liam and the team

Brrrrrr! You know what they say “clear skies, cold nights” and boy howdy was that true last night. Thankfully the team has the equivalent of at least two gooses worth of down to stay warm. Sun didn’t hit camp until 9:30 so breakfast was a puffy pants and big parka affair. Thankfully the solar radiation at this altitude works quickly and it was hotter than the center of a hot pocket before we knew it. In order to beat the peak of the days heat we quickly geared up and headed down hill to grab our cache at 13k. We loaded up and trudged back to camp with day dreams of eating the snacks we had cached.  The rest of afternoon was spent lounging and devouring meats, cheeses and cookie dough. Tomorrow is a full rest day where excessive snacking is encouraged!

See ya later alligators!

Avery, Jack, Liam and The Team.

A well earned day of rest. We have come to the point now in this expedition where things are now earned instead of deserved. Granted we all worked hard on our last rotation. A storm came in and bullied us into coming down a day early. The wind beat us like a naughty pet and kept camp two, our primary objective out of reach. Despite the storm, everyone did great handling themselves and proved they are ready for the final push. Now we must really focus on staying positive and healthy. Our bodies are wearing down even here at Base Camp. The mountain, letting us touch and feel a little bit is hiding no secrets and will demand our strongest effort yet to gain her summit slopes even though our physical selves aren't as tip top as they were two weeks ago. So now we earn it. Nothing will come easy. From here until the end we must become more adept and graceful at dealing with the hardships. The want to come home and hug our loved ones and eat fresh food and enjoy a warm shower is growing stronger everyday. All of us must embrace the spirit of climbing this mountain and believe that working hard, suffering well and giving everything we have both physically and emotionally will earn us a chance to stand on top. These next few rest days will all blend together. Sleep, eat, drink, sleep, cards, read and so on. I personally spiced things up today when I crawled into the Gamov bag just to see what it was like and 15 minutes later had a claustrophobic panic attack and had to be let out before hyperventilating. This provided a touch of humor but all in all we now must rest and wait. We all understand what these next two weeks will bring. We came here to climb Shishapangma and we will give her our finest effort. Even during days of rest. More on that tomorrow. RMI Adam Knoff

Our Four Day Summit Climb Teams led by RMI Guides Casey Grom and Jake Beren reached the top of Mt. Rainier today. Jake reported moderate winds, warm temperatures and hazy skies. The team enjoyed some time on the summit and started their descent to Camp Muir at about 7:42 am. Congratulations to today's teams!

Hey Everybody Billy calling in with another dispatch this time for the 4th of July. Happy Independence Day everyone back home! Hope you guys are celebrating properly with barbecues and blowing things up as it typical custom. Not so much of that here in Ecuador. We actually left the Chilcabamba Eco Lodge this morning and headed up to the Jose Ribas Refugio. The team is getting settled in we had a great dinner and we are looking forward to that first rough night at a new elevation. Hopefully the team will do well and make it through the night. Tomorrow we plan to head out and do a little training as we continue to acclimatize and get prepped for our big summit push. We will call and check in tomorrow after our training day and let you know you how we did. Again, Happy Independence Day to everyone back home. RMI Guide Billy Nugent and Team.

On The Map

The American Lung Association Climb for Clean Air team was unable to reach the summit due to route conditions. The team climbed to Ingraham Flats to watch the sunrise before starting their descent. This team spends the year raising funds and supports the mission of the American Lung Association to saving lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease.

Congratulations Team!

Another passage from the annals of RMI Aconcagua #5 history: Today was decidedly less hot and subsequently much more enjoyable than yesterday. Our intrepid crew rose early and made short work of our journey from Pampa de Leñas to our second camp on the approach at Casa de Piedras. Sunny skies and a nice breeze kept our spirits high as we cruised through the enormous Vacas Valley. Right as we were arriving in camp we spotted Pete Van Deventer's crew headed down from their successful summit bid. They were looking tired and skinny but super-psyched on their accomplishment and the fact that they were headed for the barn. We gave them high-fives and settled in to build our camp. We too are in good spirits, moving well, and excited to make it to Basecamp tomorrow at Plaza Argentina. Hasta pronto, RMI Guide Billy Nugent and the rest of the gang.

Hello RMI Blog, This is JJ Justman. We are done resting and relaxing in the town of Puebla, and are now at our camp on Orizaba at 14,000’. A nice little spot everyone is guiding out our tents making sure they do not blow away in the wind. We do have a little bit of a breeze, but the weather is beautiful. They are calling for a bit of a cold front tonight so it might be chilly, but we are planning on waking up early and going for the summit of Orizaba tomorrow morning, most likely at 2 o’clock in the morning we will be walking on out. The team is doing great, we are well rested, well fed, and we are looking forward to see what Orizaba has to offer. Stay tuned we will give you a call tomorrow to let you know how everyone is doing. Everyone on the team says, “Hello!” RMI Guide JJ Justman & Team

The May 8th Mt. McKinley Expedition led by RMI Guides Mike Walter, Pete Van Deventer and Maile Wade is now en route to Base Camp. The weather in Talkeetna was clear this morning and the team headed for the K2 Aviation hanger. Good luck on your expedition!

The Mt. Rainier Four Day Climb led by RMI Guide Daniel May called Ingraham Flats their high point this morning. While route conditions prevented the team from climbing higher, they spent time at 11,200' watching the sunrise over Eastern Washington and the Cascades. We look forward to welcoming the team back to Rainier BaseCamp this afternoon.