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Mark Tucker here at high camp of Island Peak. Hands are freezing but the rest of me is pretty good. We are situated a couple hundred feet below 18,000 feet. We got a bit to go but we're in good shape. Have the tents up. Actually have a small kitchen tent where our Nepali staff is making us some fresh momos. He has a rolling pin out, had the flour going, cooking up the vegetables. We're roughing it but its still reasonably comfortable. Having aghast. We've got peaks above, ice, rock every where. Ocean below, giant peaks peaking out of the clouds, and yes, a bit chilly. I'm sure we're going to be in for it tonight when it comes to the cold but lots of layers and keep moving should do the trick. So we're planning to start looking at the weather at 1 am, hopefully moving by 2ish and route sounds like it's in pretty good shape. So if things go right, we're going to get on top of this thing and make a call to y'all. We're going to error on the side of smart and conservative, not push too hard, but give it a gosh darn good effort.. So we're looking forward to it, all fired up and can't wait to report in again. RMI Guide Mark Tucker

On The Map

We are all back at the tents after a beautiful summit day on Aconcagua! The weather was even better than forecasted, with no wind, clear skies, and warm temps. This let us leave a bit later, just as the sun was rising, and we enjoyed its warmth for the whole day. I personally have never had better conditions on the summit than today: just a light fleece, no gloves, and a vista that stretched for hundreds of miles in all directions. Congratulations to the team for a huge effort, and standing on the roof of South America. The guides would like to thank the whole team for such a successful and fun trip. Tomorrow we descend back to base camp, and get ready for the trek out and a return to Mendoza. Cheers RMI Guides Pete, Leon, Mike, and the climbers

We made the move to Aconcagua Camp 1! We're now resting in our tents at 16800' or so. The group did great and climbed strong. When we woke, there were clouds over the summit, and towards the end of our first stretch, a sudden snow squall blew threw, sending us scrambling for our hard shells. For the next couple of hours, sun alternated with clouds, making it hard to choose the correct layers. Just as we got ready for the last hard climb up a scree hill to camp, the snow set in in earnest. The group did great getting camp set quickly so everyone could get into shelter. We're settled in for the night now, and our hope is to wake to nice weather so that we can bump a cache of food and gear to Camp 2 tomorrow. Wish us luck! RMI Guide Pete Van Deventer and crew

On The Map

Happy New Year!    If you are reading this post, there’s a good chance that you are preparing for a mountain climb, or at least considering one! At this time of year many people charge into fitness like a horse bolting from the starting gates. It’s tempting to start the New Year with resolutions to improve fitness, eat better, change habits, and many other goals.    However, it is important to remember that the secret to athletic success is consistent and moderate effort. You may feel behind, your belt might be a little tight after the holidays and there are big goals nearing on the horizon. However, try and avoid the temptation to go crazy with fitness right now. By climbing a mountain, no matter the size, you’ve already chosen a highly motivating goal. Enjoy the training process and make it fun, positive, and healthy. Most of all, make it balanced; not too hard and not too easy; not too much and not too little. Each week, keep nudging your fitness forwards and you’ll make massive gains over the next months.    In my opinion, you don’t need a resolution. You have a very real and tangible goal that will motivate you forwards long after many New Year’s Resolutions are forgotten. Congratulations on choosing that goal!   If you are new to this blog, please take a look over the basics covered in the past few months, especially on planning your training and basic, key workouts like the Daily Dozen. I hope you’ve set aside time for some hiking and training this week to focus on your climb ahead. Enjoy the start to the New Year!   We look forward to introducing ‘Fit To Climb The Sixteen Week Training Program for Mount Rainier’ over the next few weeks, starting in February and we will map out a weekly training plan each Monday as part of the Fit to Climb Program.  - John Colver John Colver is a longtime climber, former mountain guide, and certified personal trainer with the American Council of Exercise. Colver introduced outdoor fitness classes to athletic clubs throughout the greater Puget Sound region before creating his adventX brand. Currently, adventX leads training programs in Seattle and Colver presents clinics on outdoor fitness at companies such as Microsoft, Boeing, the American Lung Association, and REI. Colver lives in Seattle, and is working on his second book, Fit to Climb - a 16 week Mount Rainier Fitness Program. Questions? Comments? Share your thoughts with John and other readers on the RMI Blog!

RMI Guide Jake Beren called to check in from Mt. Shuksan. They are at high camp enjoying warm temperatures. With this team's later goals of Mt. McKinley, Jake is teaching them all the necessary skills that will help them attain this goal and will finish the week with a summit bid on Mt. Shuksan.

Today we enjoyed the luxury of waking to the sun on the tents, avoiding the early morning cold. Once up and fed, we took a fantastic walk to THE EDGE OF THE WORLD. Perfect views of the lower Kahiltna Glacier 7,000 feet below our perch and we all took turns peeking over the edge and snapping a few photos. Don't worry friends and family, we were on belay the whole time. For the afternoon we rested and welcomed the RMI 4 team after their stylish send on Denali yesterday. Nice job everyone! Then it was back to work, setting up a fixed line practice and trying as many variations as possible to prepare for the cache tomorrow. Now it's dinner time, catch y'all tomorrow. RMI Guide Jake Beren

On The Map

It’s a beautiful day here at Everest Base Camp. RMI Expedition Leader Dave Hahn and our team of climbers and Sherpa left Base Camp early this morning en route to Camp 1. The team made great time through the Khumbu Ice fall and up to almost 20,000'. They are now tucked in comfortably at Camp 1. Their plan for tomorrow is another early start to climb up to Camp 2. The Western Cwm can get quite warm with its high ice walls and an early start will get them through with some cooler temperatures. The team will spend several nights at Camp 2 (21,000') to acclimatize. While at Camp 2 they will be accompanied by climbing Sherpa Lam Babu and Tsering as well as our cook Yubarj. Two members of our Sherpa staff, Kaji and Dawa, went to Camp 2 a few days ago to ready the camp for the team’s arrival and have now returned to Base Camp. I attended a meeting today here at Base Camp to discuss the plan for getting the rope up to the South Col and finishing the route work. Things went well at the meeting with a great amount of support and cooperation amongst the teams. Life is good here on the glacier. Till next time, RMI Guide Mark Tucker

On The Map

Today was the first day we've been stymied by lousy weather but the forecast looks pretty good! We're just stuck in our tents waiting for sunshine and calm winds. The rest of the crew is taking the weather day quite well. Depending on tomorrow's conditions we may move to Cholera Camp (19,600') in a single carry because the distance is relatively short and the group loads will be light... We'll keep you posted! Stuck in tents, RMI Guide Billy Nugent and the crew

The Four Day Climb led by RMI Guides Brent Okita and Emma Lyddan reached to summit of Mt. Rainier early this morning. The team had low visibility, and light snowfall and only spent a short amount of time on the summit before starting their descent.They will be back at Rainier Basecamp in the early afternoon to celebrate their success.

Congratulations team!

RMI Guides Mike King and Alan Davis led their Four Day Climb teams to 11,600' today before being turned back by new snow and poor conditions.  RMI Guide Alan Davis reported drifting snow up to 2 feet in places.  The teams departed from Camp Muir around 8 am and will conclude their program at Rainier BaseCamp today.