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Hello from Mweka Camp,
We did it! The entire team made it to Uhuru Peak, the
Roof of Africa, this morning at 7:30 am. But there were no gimmes today, we fought hard for every step. What started out as fairly decent weather when we woke up, quickly changed as we were about two hours into our climb. At first, it began snowing lightly, but the higher we climbed, the harder the snow fell. The trail was completely covered by the time we reached 18,000'. By Stella Point, the crater rim, it was blowing about 30 mph and 4-6 inches of snow had fallen. Definitely not your typical summit day. Despite the challenges of the weather, the team did great today.
We left camp at 12:50 am and were on top at 7:30 am. We only spent about 10 minutes at the summit sign, and then it was time to get back down. The fresh snow made for an interesting descent, and new snow had fallen all the way back to high camp.
After changing out of our summit gear, we re-packed our duffels and headed down to
Mweka Camp, 5000' below us. We arrived in camp just before 5:00 PM, and our 17-hour day is now over. We are all tried, but in great spirits and looking forward to a good night's rest.
Best regards,
RMI Guide Jeff Martin
On The Map
Today we left camp to the sound of our herreros singing as they packed up the mules for
Casa de Piedra, today was again hot, but as the temps rose, our tailwind turned into a headwind and kept us cool.
The team did great today, handling day two of our approach and just before camp we were treated to a spectacular view of Aconcagua and Cerro Amenghino. We even saw two guanacos loping down valley as we pulled into camp! Nice to see our objective at last and tomorrow we all look forward to making our basecamp on the mountain.
PS is it the end of the world as we know it? We feel fine.
RMI Guide Jake Beren
On The Map
Climbing up through the rocks and gullies that make up the base of our route, the team did very well getting to the upper glacier on Orizba. As the sun started to rise we climbed up the glacier, treated to cold and very clear views in all directions. We had a great mountain shadow of Orizaba over Tlachichuca and higher up were able to see La Malinche, Ixta and the smoke of Popocapetl. Great day to go climbing. Everyone did well and really pushed themselves, earning a spot on top of Mexico's highest mountain. Congrats team, time to celebrate in town.
Thanks Paul, Greg and John for a great trip!
"Tashi Dele" from
Namche Bazaar!
What a lucky team we are! Scheduled to fly yesterday into Lukla, the morning greeted us in Kathmandu with cloudy skies, grounding the little aircrafts that are meant to bring climbers and trekkers alike to the Khumbu.
After a long hour of uncertainty, (and with the news that Lukla was also shutting down,) we relied on our trustworthy outfitter personnel at the airport; Sagar and Shangkar pulled some magic and about an hour and a half later, we were boarding... a helicopter! This safer vehicle under such conditions, provided us with awesome views of Everest and Nuptse as we approached Lukla above the clouds and we continued to give high fives in disbelief of what we were experiencing.
Soon after we met our Sherpa Nawang and porters at Lukla, we headed for Phakding, where we'd spend our first night at a Sherpa lodge. Continuing today with astonishing views along the lower valleys, we proceeded towards Namche, from where we are writing now as we enjoy a cup of milk tea.
The biggest excitement of the day was provided by the many hanging bridges, the last of which is a new addition to the trail since last season and sits some 300 feett above the river! As the mystique of the Buddhist populated land embraced us, we enjoyed the great hiking trails ornamented with centennial Mani stones and prayer flags.
Upon arrival, we enjoyed a hardy dinner at "Camp de Base Lodge" and we're now ready for a well earned rest. Tomorrow we'll meander in Namche optimizing our acclimating process with hopes of taking some sunrise pictures over Ama Dablam, weather permitting.
Best regards from Nepal,
RMI Guide ElÃas de Andrés Martos
On The Map
Hello from
Pheriche! 14,042 feet but who's counting. After a nice dinner, the team is tucked away for the night. Lot's of hiking in all directions today. Nice to have such great Sherpa support to be able to offer many options. A few new altitude records for the team. Another day of perfect weather, and trail conditions in great shape. We are now above tree line, but lots of bushes still keep us thinking we are where life forms can survive. It is a rather tough environment to be in, we welcome these islands of paradise called tea houses. Plan is to take a rest day here tomorrow. Some day hikes and a bit of training for my crew that will go with me to
Island Peak in the not so distant future. The surrounding peaks of Taboche (21,309') and Cholatse (20,784') always impress. Crazy to think that the real big ones are up this valley and around the corner. Looking so forward to reuniting with those views.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
On The Map
Hello from Mexico City,
Tonight the team arrived, all with the same number of bags they left the states with and ready to go. We had a great intro dinner at a classic Centro Historico restaurant and retired to our rooms to get a good night's sleep before leaving the city tomorrow. Off to a good start down here and we'll check in from
La Malinche tomorrow.
RMI Guide Jake Beren
Our team had a great summit day on Kilimanjaro. As we left Baranco Camp, our high camp, at 15,000' on our summit attempt there was a thin layer of clouds that insulated us and provided a nice temperature for our midnight climb. The beautiful and bright moon lit our way and our headlamps remained in our pack. As we reached Stella Point, 18,680', the wind picked up and we added more layers of clothing as we continued our ascent. As we reached the true summit of Kilimanjaro, Uhuru Peak, the winds subsided and we enjoyed spectacular views in all directions.
We have now reached Mweka Camp at 10,000' and our last camp on the mountain. It has been a long day and everyone is tired from their efforts ascending and descending this mountain. I would like to thank the team for a great job on the climb and for the mountain for allowing us to stand on the summit today.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
Just got off the radio with Dave calling from the South Col. He reports everybody is down from the summit and in good shape. They are taking a nice break, but will soon begin breaking down the South Col camp, then heading for Camp 2 where they will spend the night.
All in a days work.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
Greetings everyone,
The team has adjusted to our new home and daily routines. Everyone seems to be feeling well and we are all excited about heading higher. There has been plenty of training on the lower glacier and several acclimatization hikes that leave us feeling we are ready for the next step. Our new goal will be to ascend the famous Khumbu Icefall. We have already had a few small forays into the lower glacier and everyone did great. The Icefall starts just a few feet from camp and ascends a little over 2,000 ft to Camp One. Our goal will be to ascend the icefall as quickly, safely, and comfortably as we can. It won't be a race, but more like a slow, steady climb to camp. We are hoping it takes no longer than 6 to 7 hours for our first trip. If all goes well we will spend a few days at Camp One and might even venture up the Western Cwm to Camp Two. George Mallory himself named the Western Cwm (Cwm being a Welsh word meaning valley).
The weather has been interesting these last few days and it's beginning to snow as I type. Hopefully a few days of rest, some good weather and we'll be on our way.
Hope everyone is doing great back home and we miss you all (well, most of you anyway!).
Seth checking in from Barafu Camp, high camp on
Kilimanjaro. We've had exceptional weather today and we hope it continues for the next 24 hours. We'll be getting up in the middle of the night for our summit bid!!!
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
On The Map
Way to go Boehms!
Posted by: Lindsay on 2/20/2014 at 9:48 am
When the road gets tough, the tough get going! We bow to your efforts and successes! Enjoy the first of your celebrations and the rest of your journey!
Love,
R&C
Posted by: Rondi Saslow on 2/17/2014 at 9:00 am
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