Today we made the move further up the mountain. The winds rattled the tents through the night. By the morning, they eased up. After sorting some logistics, we made our way up the mountain getting closer to our final goal, the tippy top.
The team did a fantastic job, making good time to the camp.
I knew it was going to be a good day because as I went to the bathroom, I saw a fox. Foxes have been a good omen for me on big mountains like Denali. I'm sure it will be one here too. This is my fourth trip seeing a fox on this mountain. Any who, we are keeping an eye on the winds as we get in position for our move to high camp and summit bid. We are looking at going for the top on Monday. Tomorrow, we are going to carry some gear to high camp and acclimatize.
To those reading, please ask mother nature to cool her jets with the wind and allow us a calm next few days. For now, we shall be lulled to sleep by the sound of tents flapping in the wind.
Hey Hannah! I am sending my Best wishes for calm winds sunny skies and the strength of a 100 bulls to you and your team as you head to the summit!!
Farmer Dave
Posted by: Dave Kestel on 1/20/2023 at 8:17 am
Bummer, Rob! But,I am guessing as we discussed if you are not 100%, then you have to step aside, Still a bummer.
As athletes, we tend to preference the training activities that we enjoy doing and are also best at. It’s entirely natural for these tendencies to crop up, but often they do so at the expense of those workouts that we don’t enjoy as much or struggle with. This can affect both the quality and quantity of those less enticing activities. For instance, as people that enjoy spending time in the mountains, your weekend five-hour hike with a pack may be the highlight of your whole week and you may find yourself pushing those five hours to six or seven, seeking out new destinations. The mid-week weight room or interval workout that you dread however may be the first item on your calendar that is expendable, pushed out by the sudden schedule conflict that arises.
Cross training is a great way to find new ways to accomplish the workouts that you don’t enjoy, and to focus on an underserved portion of your training. In general, while we want to keep the bulk of our training focused towards mountaineering (walking up and downhill with heavy weight), some training outside of that goal will still bring benefits. If you have been training a lot of cardiovascular, working on leg strength is going to help you carry your pack. Flexibility will help to prevent injuries, and keep your muscles working optimally. Thus, seek out opportunities for interesting new ways to accomplish your training goals.
Anaerobic: Nearly all ball sports have a heavy anaerobic interval component to them. Think about the last time you watched or played a soccer game: players spend a good portion of the time walking or jogging up and down the field without the ball, interspersed with flurries of dead out sprints to or with the ball. Pick your favorite and try to find a pickup game or league nearby. Similarly, tennis, racquetball, and squash all will get you to that anaerobic zone. Mountain biking is another great natural interval sport, as it boosts your heart rate on nearly every climb, with a recovery roll afterwards.
Strength: Rock climbing gyms and yoga studios are a great place to seek out alternative core strength options. Both activities engage a large part of the core and upper body, and have a great community component to them. While it has a strong cardiovascular focus, swimming also trains the core and upper body in a low impact way.
Flexibility and balance: Yoga is probably the most common flexibility activity that most people do today. There are lots of different classes with different focuses. If a class you tried wasn’t working, check out a different type. Often, studios offer a “yoga for athletes” class, where the focus on flexibility in the key problem areas for most athletes is increased. You can also jump outside of the box and join a gymnastics class.
Endurance: If you dread the long workouts, there isn’t a great substitute for them, but you can vary your activities. Start a rotation of running, cycling, hiking, swimming, and rowing. Give yourself another goal and boost by periodically signing up for races so that you have immediate goals that you are working towards. Ultimately though, there is no substitute for long endurance training.
Cross training won’t fully prepare you for your next mountaineering adventure, and it shouldn’t make up the bulk of your preparation, but it can add some spice and give a boost to a neglected portion of your overall training. Seek out the fun opportunities and figure out how they fit into your plan.
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Questions? Comments? Share your thoughts here on the RMI Blog!
Happy Easter! The Everest Base Camp bunny somehow found his way through falling snow last night and left chocolate for each climber and trekker to find this morning. In the night, we couldn't hear the the rabbit over the noise of storm winds aloft and a handful of thunderous ice avalanches off the mountains around us. Morning wasn't so bad though, the sun eventually made it through the clouds and Kumar's great breakfast had us all feeling comfortable and content. This was a holiday for our team... 17,500 feet takes a little bit of getting used to and so we hadn't planned anything more strenuous than a series of naps and a walk out to "Icy Cyber" -the spot out in the Khumbu Glacier where we dependably get 3G cell service. A few helicopters came through on flight seeing tours and we watched the Icefall Doctors working their way up and down this year's route through the jumbled glacier. Our Sherpa team labored at building the stone altar for our Puja, which ought to take place in several days.
Tonight's dinner will be special as it will be our last chance to hang with Erin and Bonny. They'll start working back toward Kathmandu tomorrow morning, as planned, and we'll begin to focus on the mountain.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
I am truly excited for you guys…again! Be safe and enjoy the whole thing as very, very few get that experience. bb
Posted by: Bill Bussey on 4/6/2015 at 6:19 am
HW: Finally at EBC. Glad to hear the Easter Bunny paid a visit to you too,and brought you some chocolate. We were at the zoo for some eggtravaganza. Kids had great fun. Best wishes to you and the entire team. -FX
Hello from the Dik Dik. This is Seth with a quick check in letting you know this we are all off the mountain safe and sound. We had a nice walk down from our last camp this morning and we're back at the hotel before 1pm. After some well deserved showers we had a great celebratory dinner. Now were all psyched up for our safari. That's starts tomorrow with a visit to Lake Manyara. We'll check in after our game drive.
- RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
We were greeted by crystal clear skies this morning which allowed some amazing views of Kilimanjaro and the route ahead. The team did a great job this morning getting packed up and hitting the trail after a breakfast full of fresh bread, fresh fruits and fried eggs. Not to mention the 10 hours of sleep we had!
The trail out of camp slowly climbed out of the forest and up onto the Shira Plateau. We watched in amazement as the porters moved past us with ease while balancing loads on their heads. Our crew certainly out did themselves by having prepared another feast for lunch about half way up the climb. It was a nice surprise to arrive at lunch with the tables and chairs waiting on us.
It took us about five hours to reach our next camp on the plateau and again camp was set up and our group was happily awaiting our arrival.
Needless to say the team had a wonderful day and everyone is doing great. We will rest here at 12,200' for the night to help with acclimatization and will head up again tomorrow morning.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew
Hi mom & dad! I miss you guys but i am having a great time with Kara! She has shown me your pictures and they look amazing! Kara Has taken me on a lot of walks and I get to sleep on her bed with her!! I miss u guys but I’m hiking bull run with Kara this weekend so it’s pretty much the same thing hehe hope you are having a fantastic time :)
Love your darling dog jake!
Our team had a great day today, putting in a cache at 13,700' at Windy Corner. We returned to a day time schedule, and enjoyed a warm and sunny day today. The weather is beautiful here at the 11,000' camp tonight; there is blue sky above, clouds below, and no wind. We're all in our sleeping bags and looking forward to a good night's rest.
If the weather is good tomorrow morning we are planning to move our camp up to 14,200'. We are feeling ready and are looking forward to the challenge of tomorrow. That's it for now...time to get some zzzz...
RMI Guide Mike Walter
Hello points North, this is Jake on the summit of Pico de Orizaba with our team who did a great job today getting up in good style. We had awesome weather, light winds, warm, we are on the top looking into the crater right now. Enjoying some great views and really unbelievable day.
So thanks to everybody back home for all of the support and we will be calling you when we get down. Well, all right, that's it from the third highest point in North America.
Take care up there and we'll be seeing you soon.
RMI Guide Jake Beren
RMI Guide Jake Beren calls from the summit Pico de Orizaba
We slept well in the Barrels last night, the paneled walls providing a surprising amount of insulation from the cold mountain night. The morning again dawned clear and after breakfast we headed out on our final acclimatization hike. The fact that our bodies are already growing stronger at this altitude was evidenced by our pace this morning as we made it to our high point of yesterday a bit faster and with far less effort.
We continued upwards, donning our crampons and picking our way across the rushing rivulets of surface water beginning to run down the glacier as temperatures warmed. By midday we reached our goal, an outcropping of rock at 15,300' or so. Above us stood the east summit of Elbrus towering another 3,000' higher. Below us stretched the massive rolling glaciers of the mountain, enveloping all sides of the mountain like an apron. It was a beautiful view and we were pleased to be up there.
Retracing our steps, we descended back to the Barrels in time for an afternoon lunch before relaxing for the rest of the day. The weather once again turned unsettled in the afternoon, occasionally spitting rain and hail on us. A fairly consistent trend has emerged while we have been here - clear skies in the morning followed by light afternoon precipitation. It appears as though it will continue for the rest of the week, boding well for our planned summit bid the day after tomorrow - keep your fingers crossed!
A light hike and some rest is planned for tomorrow.
RMI Guides Casey Grom and Adam Knoff are leading our first Expedition Skills Seminar - Muir of the 2013 season. Today they are spending the day at Rainier Basecamp preparing for their next five days on Mt. Rainier. Team introductions, gear organizing, and technical training is on their agenda.
While the team was testing out their boots on a hike from Basecamp, they ran into Lou Whittaker, the man who started RMI 44 years ago! Some stories were told and photos were taken, then it was back to training.
The team is anxious to head up on the mountain tomorrow!
Hi there this is Seth checking in for the Mt. Elbrus Northside Expedition. Our friend the wind finally gave us a break today! At around 2 am the big gusts died off and by sunup everything was calm. Everyone was stoked to get up and finally get on the glacier. By 9:00 we were cramponed up and climbing. The route was great and JJ set a nice pace. We made it to our high camp in 4.5 hours. We dropped off some food, fuel and a little gear there and then boogied back down to Camp 1. If the weather allows we will move up to high camp tomorrow!
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
Hey Hannah! I am sending my Best wishes for calm winds sunny skies and the strength of a 100 bulls to you and your team as you head to the summit!!
Farmer Dave
Posted by: Dave Kestel on 1/20/2023 at 8:17 am
Bummer, Rob! But,I am guessing as we discussed if you are not 100%, then you have to step aside, Still a bummer.
Posted by: Terry Reilly on 1/20/2023 at 5:06 am
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