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Howdy from Pheriche. Today we walked in bright sunshine out of shady Deboche, crossed the river and cruised into Pangboche. There we met with Lama Geishi, the trusted and friendly high lama that so many of the Sherpa climbers revere. Lama Geishi was very kind to bless our Everest team... he wished us each luck, gave us prayers to bring to the summit of the world, and tied ceremonial red strings around our necks that we'll each keep on for the duration of the trip. I've had a number of meetings with him through the years, and he has always welcomed my teams... but we were definitely worried that he might not be able to see us this time. The word was out that he'd just been released from the hospital in Kathmandu. Sure enough, he smiled as he acknowledged the serious nature of his illness. He laughed in telling us (with Lam Babu acting as interpreter) that just a week before, he hadn't thought he'd survive. We left Pangboche and quickly left behind the world of trees... entering instead the land of rock and ice as we turned the corner toward the North and Pheriche. It is significantly colder now and the animals are mostly rugged four-wheel-drive yaks these days whereas down lower they were mostly cows. We are all feeling great and are ready for our first night at 14,000 ft. Nearly the height of Mount Rainier. Best, RMI Guide Dave Hahn

On The Map

THE CLIMB BEGINS
Today we awoke for an 8am breakfast, the last luxurious basecamp breakfast for a week and a half. Hell has it really only been a week in this dust?! From meeting in peruivian airports to tent mates, how have we only known each other 9 days and in tents for 7?

We quickly ate our food and stashed away our future mountain lunch. Before long we were making our way up the mountain again. This time we kissed goodbye to the sweet creature comforts of basecamp… have no fear the speaker made it on the pack list! Up the winding switch backs, through the penetentes, over the glacier streams, and up the final scramble to our new home, campo uno. We set up camp, acquainted ourselves with our new bathroom situation, and started treating our water.

Tonight we feast on quesadillas and Indian style tasty bites… good thing we have our blue bags at the ready (RMI please take the hint). Tomorrow we have another big day, a carry to 18,000' feet. On this trip we’ve learned many things. We’ve learned why the moon waxes and wanes differently in the southern hemisphere. We’ve mastered the game of euchre. We’ve etched our guides pet peeves into our brains so as not to do those things..purposefully at least. But what we have yet to learn is our future on this mountain, we can only continue to set ourselves up for success, having each others back, and controlling what’s in our power to control. Summit or not, one thing we will walk away from this mountain without a doubt is what we’ve learned about ourselves, our proven strength, our attitude, and our camaraderie as a team of strangers turned friends.

I’d like to make a call out to our two biggest fans Eddie and my mom Michelle, and our other fans the polish team and the burrows. We have yet to decide on a team name, please send your suggestions in the comments, no guarantees we will use it, but we would love your thoughts!

And lastly. Happy early birthday to my ride or die Ambre, I love the hell out of you and I hope you have the best birthday. Lord knows I was thinking of you crossing that river!

Climber Mikayla Demers

Our Four and Five Day Summit Climbs led by RMI Guides Mike Haugen and Garret Stevens were just leaving the crater rim at 7:19 am. The teams have had a blue bird morning with clear skies, great views and light winds. We expect the teams back at Rainier Base Camp this afternoon. Congratulations to Today's Teams!

RMI Guides Adam Knoff and Jake Beren led the Four Day Summit Climb August 3 - 6, 2013 to the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. They reported a smooth ascent and a beautiful day with barely any wind. The teams began their descent from the crater rim around 7:40 am PT. They will return to Camp Muir to repack before continuing their descent to Paradise. Congratulations to today's summit climbers!

Friday, June 7, 2013 Happy 100 Year Anniversary of the first ascent of Denali to all our friends in the lowlands! We celebrated the occasion by leaving Basecamp for our first camp at the base of Ski Hill. On our way we ran into RMI Team 3 with Brent, Leah and Logan, fresh (generous term) from the summit. A big congratulations for a job well done. We travelled early this morning, making use of the cooler temps to stay on the surface of the snow instead of post holing our way into utter frustration. Our way to camp was smooth and we can only hope the melting snow doesn't disappear too fast so that we can make our way out of here in a few weeks. I'm sure it will work out just fine. We plan on calling it early tonight and carrying higher early tomorrow morning while it's still cold and then we can soak up the heat in the afternoon. The team is off to a great start, climbing strong and happy to be on the mountain. RMI Guide Jake Beren & Team

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

Jambo (Hello) from Africa, The team arrived late last night after some very long flights (18hrs). We wasted no time getting back to the hotel and called it a night after a quick dinner. This morning we had our team meeting and discussed the upcoming climb and gear needed. We then took a break and enjoyed a little sunshine by the pool. Its basically summer here and most of us are on vacation after all. After lunch we took a short ride into Arusha and did a little sightseeing. Arusha is busy city of 300'000+ with a very rural and simple feeling. The team has just finished a wonderful 5 course meal provided by the Dik Dik Hotel and are headed off to bed. We'll be getting up early and headed for the trailhead tomorrow so that all for tonight. RMI Guide Casey Grom & Team

Noah's Ark doesn't have anything on us! Yesterday the mountain received a little precipitation and as our team approached Camp One, we discovered a new river running through camp. Not only are tents up and people are settled in but we are on ditch digging crew to divert our new river, which we named Rio Horiskey. The entire team did great getting up to 16,500 feet. We are camped a little higher than the normal camp because we like peace, quiet and pristine water. The agenda for tonight is to make hot drinks and eat another fine meal. I have a little surprise for the team. In honor of playoff weekend I brought some Green Bay Packers hot dogs. You know...for good luck! RMI Guide JJ Justman & Team

On The Map

RMI Guide Casey Grom checked in via satellite phone on Saturday night, September 22 at 10:01 p.m. PT from the summit of Kilimanjaro, The Roof of Africa. Casey was very happy to report that all team members had reached the summit it was a perfect day, sunny and beautiful. "It is a fantastic day up here" Casey said. After spending some time enjoying the views the team will descend to the 10,000' Mweka Camp for their last night on the mountain. Congratulations to Casey Grom and all of the Kilimanjaro September 15th team members!

On The Map

Helloooo everybody, The team has been very busy today here at Camp 1. It's hard work napping for several hours, eating as much prosciutto and cheese as we can, and making sure to stay hydrated to boot. Games of cards, iPods, and chit chat fill in our spare time. All of this work is necessary however for our success on the upper mountain. Tomorrow will see us move to a new camp at 18,000', and we'll start the acclimatization cycle over again. The weather has been pretty sunny today with clouds here and there, but our fresh breeze that began last night has encouraged the group to remain in tents for much of the day. We are looking forward to a scrumptious dinner of tortellini, and a good night of sleep. For those that are wondering, cooler temps and the breeze today have resolved our aquatic camping problem, turning our aquarium into a rather exciting skating rink. Abrazos from Argentina, RMI Guides Pete, Gilbert, Gabi, and the Aconcagua double A hockey team

On The Map