Wow. We did it. Against all odds, the team made it clear over to East Africa without missed or canceled flights and without losing luggage.
We’re assembled here in USA River, Tanzania (on the outskirts of Arusha) and ready to begin our Kilimanjaro adventure. Some of the team used the day to explore the town, some were still en route and some of us just napped… trying to work out the jet lag. But we came together for a pleasant dinner in the garden-like setting of the Rivertrees Hotel. Most chose to wear sweaters, finding the cool temps a pleasant change from the various heat waves plaguing the States these days. The nine team members simply enjoyed each other’s company this evening… tomorrow morning we’ll begin the business of prepping for a week of climbing Africa’s highest mountain.
The Four Day Climb led by RMI Guides Taylor Bickford reached the top of Mt. Rainier early today. The teams climbed above the clouds and were greeted with clear skies on the summit!
The team is in route to Camp Muir. Once there they will pack up their gear and descend to Paradise and then back to RMI Basecamp to celebrate.
Things looked pretty perfect this morning, so we loaded up our packs and started climbing. Lenz Rocks is a somewhat exposed camp and there aren't so many tent sites, so we were happy to be some of the first out of camp with full-looking backpacks intending to stay up high tonight. The breeze mainly kept things pleasantly cool as we worked our way up the glacier, intensifying only just as we reached Lenz. It took the whole team working together to keep a handle on tents as we got them set up. Now, we are comfortably moved into our abodes, resting for the summit push tomorrow. The winds are supposed to continue to diminish overnight, so things are shaping up nicely.
RMI Guides Pete Van Deventer, Mike Uchal, and team "can we leave this break yet?"
Hello from the Ngorongoro Wildife Lodge,
We were driving down into the crater at 7:00 am this morning for a full day of game viewing. We saw at least 10,000 animals today, mostly zebra, wildebeest, cape buffalo, and gazelles. But the two black rhinos (mother and baby) is what stole the prize. We first saw them way out in the distance, but they continued to travel in our general direction and so we waited patiently. They ended up crossing right in front of us, about 100 yards away, and we were the only group to see them. Timing is everything when it comes to safari.
We also saw lions, a cheetah, hyenas, a serval cat, and elephants. It was quite a day. After spending the majority of the day in the crater, including a picnic lunch, we headed back up the road to the crater rim. At the top, we stopped at a traditional Masai village to learn about their culture and how they live off the land. It was a lot of fun getting a tour of their huts and watching them perform their traditional dances.
It was then time to head back to our lodge to grab a drink and head out on the patio to watch the sun go down over Ngorongoro Crater.
Tomorrow, we travel to Tarangire National Park where we plan to spend another full day game viewing. The only animal left on our "Big Five List" is the leopard. We have heard that our chances are good that we can see one in Tarangire.
- The Kili Team
Hello from Talkeetna, Alaska
The result of a day of hard work sorting and packing stuff we'll live with for the next two or three weeks. With a little luck we might be flying onto the glacier in a couple of hours or so. The weather looks promising here, but of course it could be completely different on the mountain.
We're all set and doing great. But first, breakfast at the Roadhouse ...
RMI Guide Brent Okita
have fun daddy! i miss you more and more everyday. i hope you have fun up there! be safe and come visit me soon! love you forever, like you for always as long as your living my daddy you will be
Posted by: Cory on 5/25/2013 at 10:59 am
Good luck on your hiking trip! I also hope you have good weather. All the snow on the mountain makes me feel very cold in Georgia. Ally Mac, your hiking gear and food look very very heavy. You must have strong arms for this trip.
Cheers to all!!!
Posted by: GrampZ & Grandmom on 5/24/2013 at 11:50 pm
Today's teams were unable to reach the summit due to high winds and new snow. The Four Day Summit Climb led by Andres Marin and the Five Day Summit Climb led by Pete Van Deventer reported consistent winds with stronger gusts and two new inches of snow overnight. At 8:00 a.m. PT the teams began their descent from Camp Muir.
Well, the gang's all here and we're ready to fly on to the Kahiltna Glacier to start our Denali expedition. We spent all day packing our gear and preparing for the trip, paying close attention to the finest details. We are all very excited to get on the mountain and start climbing! Hopefully the weather holds and we can fly tomorrow morning. We will update you on our progress as soon as we can. Stay tuned!
RMI Guide Mike Walter
Hello everybody back home. This is Casey Grom checking in from the Ecuador’s Volcanoes Expedition. Just letting you know that everyone doing quite well up here at the hut at Cayambe. We woke up to a beautifully clear morning and were able to see most of the volcano through the valley here. We had a nice leisurely breakfast then we hiked for just over an hour to access the lower part of the glacier here on Cayambe. We reviewed some of our climbing techniques that we will need for tomorrow’s upcoming summit climb. Everyone seems to be doing great. We made it back to the hut. We just finished up a nice lunch. Folks are taking some naps. Looking forward to an early dinner tonight and getting a most likely midnight start for our summit time tomorrow. We will do our best to call from the summit to let everybody know how things are going. At very least we will call tomorrow when we return from our hopefully successful climb. Once again, everyone is doing great and we will check in tomorrow. Thanks.
RMI Guide Casey Grom
We survived the first night without a roof over our heads. Quite comfortably, by all accounts. There were no dogs barking in the night, no heavy boots clunking down wooden hallways to latrines, none of the endless coughing fits coming through the thin walls of trekking houses. Instead, we had easy breezes, the quiet rustle of comfy down sleeping bags and moonlight coming through our tent ceilings. Oh yeah, and occasionally the violent thunder of avalanches... but that didn't truly bother us. We know we've picked a safe place for basecamp far enough from the vertical walls of this enclosed valley.
The day has been spent sorting gear, talking over plans, napping, reading, eating and getting to know our Sherpa teammates. We've got great strength and experience in our Sherpa team, and we'll depend mightily on them during this trip. I'm not aware of any team attempting the mountain this season that won't be reliant on Sherpa help. Some may claim to be going with minimal support, but they will still be heavily dependent on the Sherpas who fix the route through the Khumbu Icefall, to say nothing of the route above. This is not to say that, of the many talented non-Nepalese climbers assembled here at the foot of the hill, none would be capable of climbing the mountain without Sherpa aid, but the simple fact is that such climbs are not attempted in this day and age on this route on this mountain.
There is often confusion among those not versed in Himalayan climbing as to who Sherpas are and what their various jobs may be. I'm often unnerved back home to hear people say, while hiking or working hard, that they'd sure like to have a Sherpa along to carry their pack or to do their digging. Such comments are usually made in jest and are probably for my benefit when folks know that I have spent time in Nepal and Tibet. Nevertheless, they tend to sell the real Sherpa people short.
Referring to someone as "Sherpa" is to say that they are from a tribe of mountain people in a specific region of Nepal. It is not a job designation. It doesn't simply mean "porter" and it definitely doesn't mean "servant." Early on, when the pioneering Himalayan expeditions were discovering the amazing work ethic common to the Sherpa culture, these men were trained as high-altitude load carriers. But almost from the start, there were plenty of individuals -notably Tenzing Norgay who excelled at the art of climbing, who eagerly grasped its strategies, and who exhibited just as much ambition to reach summits as any Westerner.
By this 2009 Everest season, one cannot correctly make more than a few broad generalizations about who the Sherpas are on this mountain. Many may still be farmers the rest of the year... many may still fulfill the simple yet essential role of high-altitude porter... but then there will also be a fair number of excellent mountain climbers with superior strength and skill on rock and ice who are being counted on to guide individuals and lead expeditions. Some will struggle with English, but will then surprise the heck out of you when they turn out to speak French, Korean and Japanese just fine. Some will never have been out of these valleys, but increasingly others will turn out to have traveled the world; to be putting their kids through college in Canada, India or the U.S., to be web-savvy, literate and politically astute.
Away from the Himalaya, the assertion is often made (by people who, I feel sure, mean to honor this group of climbers) that Sherpas are universally strong and across-the-board gifted with a physiology that makes high-altitude climbing a snap. True, many Sherpas have less trouble acclimatizing than those who visit these mountains from elsewhere, but it probably does Sherpas more honor to recognize their limitations than any perceived inherent advantages. They don't live on Mount Everest. The highest commonly inhabited villages are usually only around 12,000 ft to 14,000 ft in elevation. They don't have three lungs and two hearts... or any other crazy adaptation that makes climbing easy. The really humbling thing for me is to realize that my Sherpa partners are working just as hard as I am when we are clawing our way up some slope in difficult conditions with heavy packs. That climbing is difficult for them -not easy- and that they go out to do it anyway, day after day without whining, indeed while smiling and laughing. It isn't just what we see on the mountain either. For a bunch of days we walked through rough farmland where every single rock was neatly in place, where fields were endlessly being tended to, where houses were simple but always in good repair. The work ethic was obvious, uncommon and admirable.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not implying that the First Ascent team will be on holiday here. When the Sherpas we're partnering with cook and carry water and hack out tent platforms from the Lhotse Face and fix rope and get hard work done in dangerous conditions, sometimes we'll be right alongside them. And sometimes they'll be doing it while we rest or get other jobs done. And obviously the Sherpas won't be doing it for free. Money is a huge motivator in this part of the world, and expedition work turns out to produce some of the best opportunities in all of Nepal. But money doesn't adequately explain the smiles and the warmth and the friendship that our Sherpa partners will share with us on this trip. We'll try to be worthy of that friendship.
RMI Guides Avery Parrinello and Alex Halliday lead the Five Day Climb June 8 - 12 to the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. Alex reported a lovely day with a light breeze. The teams reached the summit crater between 6:30 and 6:45 am PT. The teams enjoyed some time in the crater before starting their descent just before 8 am. Once back to Camp Muir they will take a short break to refuel and repack before descending the remaining 4.5 miles to Paradise.
Congratulations to today's Five Day Climb team members!
Enjoy every minute!
Posted by: Jeff Tracy on 7/31/2022 at 4:24 pm
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