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Climbing consistently gives you opportunities to improve, especially on Denali. A summit day is possible only after weeks of getting in position. During those weeks we are dedicating ourselves to improving all aspects of our game. This morning we took the lessons of yesterday's approach to go pick up our cache at Windy Corner. Getting ready in the cold morning will pay off as we move higher. The crew did well on the back carry and the little bobbles in our rigging were addressed when we got back with everyone taking a little time to do some homework dialing in their cold weather systems. Tomorrow we will rest here at 14,000', reviewing fixed lines, running belays and if we have some visibility, taking a short cruise to THE EDGE OF THE WORLD for some views. Then it all depends on the weather, but the team is feeling great. RMI Guide Jake Beren

On The Map

After our rest day yesterday, we were certainly ready to bust a move this morning. Clear and cold conditions soon gave way to snow flurries and minimal visibility. We made ready, grabbed another cup of coffee and caught enough of a lull to try to carry loads higher on the mountain. Our plan was entirely dependent on conditions encountered on each stretch and despite being the first trailbreakers since the storm, we were able to kick a proud track through several feet of new snow up to Windy Corner and make our cache. Our team opened the route up in good style and if favored by workable weather will try to push it up to 14 Camp tomorrow. Everyone is doing great and will surely enjoy a good night's sleep after a solid day in the mountains. Thanks also for the messages to the team! Keep 'em coming! RMI Guide Jake Beren

On The Map

The last push is always the worst. We woke up at midnight to see the sun almost set. The alpenglow on Denali was spectacular. After a quick breakfast we headed down glacier for a pickup at the airstrip, which had moved even further up the southeast fork of the Kahiltna Glacier. We are forced to travel at night on the glacier because we need the natural snow bridges that provide the path over and around the cravasses to be as frozen and firm as possible. We made the trip in a little over five hours with each team member silently cursing their sleds that usually have a mind of their own on what direction to go and how often they tip over. I have been so impressed by how well this group of guys works together and has meshed as a great team. It is so easy to get overly frustrated with the mountain, your sled, and your rope-mates. Our group managed to take out these frustrations with positive humor, which is a huge reason for our success on the mountain! Within an hour of arriving at the snow airstrip, we heard the growl of the planes coming to pick us up. Thank God for modern communication. We used our satellite phone to make sure that the planes were coming for us. The person from K2 Aviation was concerned that since it was socked in with clouds in Talkeetna, the airstrip would be too socked in to land. She was almost as relieved as we were that there was not a cloud in the sky where we were! As soon as we landed in Talkeetna, we tossed or packs and duffles in the hanger and went for a monster breakfast to power us up for the task of sorting through the heavily used gear and clothing that we had been carrying for the past 21 days. After our post climb chores were completed and some napping took place we enjoyed our celebration of a truly great accomplishment. Summitting the mountain aside, we had a highly successful expedition by all the measures of fun, learning, and camaraderie! RMI Guide Mike Haugen

It's Casey and Billy checking in from down south! We've been hanging out in Quito for the last couple of days and the whole crew is already having a blast, and being situated at over 9,000 ft, we've already begun our acclimatization for our climbs. The first day around town was excellent. After a great breakfast at "Spicy" aka the hotel restaurant, we hit the town on a city tour to get a dose of history and colonial architecture. We had the chance to visit the Basilica, Presidential Palace, among other incredible buildings dating back from Spanish colonial times. This place is OLD, compared to American cities. Quito was founded in 1532! After the city tour, the group split. Half of the team headed to the Plaza de Toros and the other half went to a cool museum along the equator. The crew at the plaza had the fortune to witness a series of bullfights. Definitely barbaric but also a unique cultural experience unique to countries with Spanish influence. The other team enjoyed the interesting exhibits and experiments at the equatorial museum. The evening brought a lively night out for the team. After reuniting back at the hotel everyone went out for an amazing dinner. Local music and dancing was a great addition to the dining experience. Filet Mignon, Malbec? Who knew that you could acclimatize in such style! Day 2 has thus far been a blast as well. The entire team headed up to the volcano Pichincha for a little exercise to help with the acclimation process. After a 40 minute gondola ride we were deposited high on the slopes of the volcano and were greeted by sweeping views of Cayambe and the city below. The high point for our hike brought us to approximately 14,300 ft.; nearly the summit of Mt. Rainier! The whole team is climbing and acclimating well thus far. Tonight, being Sunday, will hopefully turn out to be a bit quieter than the previous but we still plan to have another nice meal out on the town! Tomorrow we will to leave the city following an early wake-up and head out to the Illinizas for some more training. We hope all is well back home and will check back in as the trip progresses. Viva Quito!

The Four Day Climb August 17 - 20 led by RMI Guides Pete Van Deventer, Raymond Holt and Mac Nolde reached the summit of Mt. Rainier just before 7 am today. Pete reported winds 10-20 mph and a descending cloud cap.  The team spent a short time at the crater before starting their descent.  They are en route to Camp Muir and once there will take a quick break before continuing down to Paradise.  The group will end their adventure with a short celebration later this afternoon.

Nice work team!

The team did strong work today, shouldering a load out of base camp that would have made an ox shudder. Each climber probably had north of 100lbs of gear between pack and sled. We schussed down Heart Break Hill relatively smoothly, given the load and started the long, gradual accent of the Kahiltna. The weather was beyond perfect. Blue skies, warm, probably too warm for a bit, but then a gentle kiss of breeze cooled us down. 

6 hours of that steady diesel truck burn brought us to our first real camp of the climb at the Base of Ski Hill. We spent the next couple hours establishing a routine that will become quite familiar: building tent platforms, erecting tents, digging kitchens, bathrooms, melting water, making dinner, and finding time for self-care.

Tomorrow, we will look to move a load uphill and cache before returning to this same camp. We will all be happy for lighter loads. 
Wish us bon voyage.

This place just keeps getting better and better. Today we climbed Radio Tower!!! The weather was incredible and the views just fantastic. We climbed this peak via the southside and gained the east ridge to the top. The entire group had the chance to learn a lot and had a great time while climbing our first summit. After a long day we are eating dinner and planning a day of ice climbing and crevasse rescue that we have in front of us. All best, RMI Guide Andres Marin and the Alaska Alpine Seminar

Day of R&R, with a short hike to 14,600' - higher than Mount Whitney, but nothing by Nepalese standards. Most are feeling much better, with the hope that a new day will bring much-needed strength to those still recovering from the Khumbu stomach bug. Of particular interest, see attached photo: Nepalese use of biofuels. Cribbage is the bomb, hope to master it soon! Hi to Yuki, Karis, and Rianna, don't wish you were here :) yet, missing all of you. The yak cheese was really good! RMI Climber Keith L.

On The Map

Two nights ago, when I sent my last dispatch, we were all a bit deflated, having been told we'd most likely be sitting here at Union in bad weather for 4 more days. To our surprise, though, yesterday morning brought brilliant blue skies and the possibility of an Ilyushin flight in the evening. As the day went on, it was clear the Ilyushin would be coming to take one load of passengers out to Punta Arenas. Included in that first flight would be Ed, Cindy, David, and Ben. The rest of us - Peter, Seth, Caroline, Kent, and I - would be on the next flight. With ample sun and stunning peaks waiting outside camp, there was little option but to go climbing...for those of us not packing. Mount Rossman, a towering massif of snowy ridges and rocky buttresses, had lured many already with it's siren song. Unclimbed until last year, nearly every couloir and ridge on the multi-summit peak had seen a first ascent in the past 10 days. Caroline went off with Vic Saunders and some others for one of the few remaining unclimbed lines on the right side of the peak. Soon after, Seth blasted uphill, skis on his back, to make turns off the summit. Kent and I, after finishing up some production work, decided on another unclimbed line, a nice looking couloir climbing some 1500 feet up the peak. For me, the joy of doing a first ascent, of setting the first tracks on a given route or peak, is not to be able to brag about it, but rather just the sheer adventure of it, for you have no idea what lies ahead. Sure, Kent and I looked at the route from camp, saw that it looked continuous and snowy the whole way, and seemed to be steep enough to be fun, but not too steep. But, you never know. Would the snow be good? How about the rock quality where it seemed to pinch closed 1/2 way up? Ice screws? Pickets? Would there be the bullet-proof, blue ice we'd seen elsewhere, or just easy-going neve? While those questions could be intimidating, swirling in the back of the mind, they are, to me, the part that gets me going. It's the lack of knowledge, the feeling of some vestige of "true" adventure, which makes such an outing enticing. In the end, Kent and I found a beautiful, aesthetic line following generally good snow up a 40-55 degree couloir for 1500 feet. The rope and gear we brought stayed in my pack, neither of us feeling the need for it with such good conditions. It was just fun climbing, some shooting by both of us, and an immensely enjoyable few hours on a new route on Mount Rossman. We called it "Ilyushin Fields" after the plane which, as we descended, dropped through a curtain of ice fog onto a blue ice runway, loaded 62 passengers, and swept them off to Punta. Soon, we hope, we, too, will be in the air from Antarctica over the Drake Passage. But, if not, while some 20 first ascents have been ticked off around here in the past 2 weeks, there are still a lot of firsts left to do around Union Glacier. We won't be bored. -Jake Norton

It was another beautiful day here in the Khumbu valley, and we had some nice views of Ama Dablam as we headed out of Namche, but high clouds keep us from seeing Everest today. Normally that wouldn’t be ideal, but the clouds and light breeze made for ideal hiking weather and we’ll certainly see Everest again soon enough.

We hiked for about 6 hours today up and down, dropping all the way down to a river called Dodh Koshi, which is a stunning turquoise, then climbed slowing up the hill to the famous Tengboche Monastery.

Traditionally we have gotten a blessing from a famous lama in Pangboche, but that lama has moved on to a higher calling. So today we were able to request a private Puja with another lama at Tengboche and each received a blessing. The Puja is a Buddhist ceremony where the lama chants a Buddhist prayer and gives us a blessing to protect us from harm. Everyone receive a silk scarf called a khata and a sungdi, which is a string we wear around our neck that embodies the prayer.

We've since settled into a nice and warm tea house called Rivendale that is hosting a handful of trekkers from around the world.
Hot showers and good conversations have rounded out the evening and now it's time for a little rest.

RMI Guide Casey Grom and the newly blessed crew.