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Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mexico
Barafu Camp 15,200’
We're here! High camp on Kilimanjaro where we'll be going for the summit tonight.
The walk here was straight forward and everyone is in good shape. We again walked like the seasoned climbers that we have become.
It's busy on the mountain and even our amazing camp staff couldn’t hold the prime spot we usually use this time around. It's hard work supporting us climbers. Not only is our entire camp transported each day, but something as simple as water needs to be brought in from someplace. Today at Barafu, the porters must go back to Karanga Camp, then another 30 minutes just supply us. How amazingly strong and hard workers our porters are, and so kind and generous too!
Today we’ll have a hearty lunch, followed by a very light dinner so we can hit the sack by 6:00. Our plan is to wake up at 11:30 pm and be walking at 12:30 am. This should allow us to hit the summit rim around sunrise, and the summit, Uhuru Point an hour later.
Wish us luck! I'll be in touch at the summit.
RMI Guide Brent Okita & Team
Posted by: Mike Walter, Avery Parrinello, Luke Wilhelm
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Alaska Mt. McKinley
Elevation: 14,000'
Saturday, May 29, 2021 - 2:54pm PT
Strong winds and lots of blowing snow have us tent bound today. The fortresses of snow walls we built yesterday are paying huge dividends, protecting the thin pieces of nylon between us and the elements. We can hear the winds roaring over the West Buttress above us, a sound that evokes images of violent ocean waves crashing onshore.
Fortunately life in our tents is relatively serene and warm.
We’re hoping for better weather in the wake of this storm; we’ll figure out our next move then. When will ‘then’ be ‘now’? Soon.
RMI Guide Mike Walter & Team
Gearing up for some good stories :) Sending good vibes for some calmer skies!
Posted by: Margaret on 5/30/2021 at 5:50 pm
Theme song for today:
WHATEVER IT TAKES!
Falling too fast to prepare for this
Tripping in the world could be dangerous
Everybody circling, it’s vulturous
Negative, nepotist
Everybody waiting for the fall of man
Everybody praying for the end of times
Everybody hoping they could be the one
I was born to run, I was born for this
Whip, whip
Run me like a racehorse
Pull me like a ripcord
Break me down and build me up
I wanna be the slip, slip
Word upon your lip, lip
Letter that you rip, rip
Break me down and build me up
Whatever it takes
‘Cause I love the adrenaline in my veins
I do whatever it takes
‘Cause I love how it feels when I break the chains
Whatever it takes
Yeah, take me to the top I’m ready for
Whatever it takes
‘Cause I love the adrenaline in my veins
I do what it takes
Always had a fear of being typical
Looking at my body feeling miserable
Always hanging on to the visual
I wanna be invisible
Looking at my years like a martyrdom
Everybody needs to be a part of ‘em
Never be enough, I’m the prodigal son
I was born to run, I was born for this
Whip, whip
Run me like a racehorse
Pull me like a ripcord
Break me down and build me up
I wanna be the slip, slip
Word upon your lip, lip
Letter that you rip, rip
Break me down and build me up
Whatever it takes
‘Cause I love the adrenaline in my veins
I do whatever it takes
‘Cause I love how it feels when I break the chains
Whatever it takes
Yeah, take me to the top, I’m ready for
Whatever it takes
‘Cause I love the adrenaline in my veins
I do what it takes
Hypocritical, egotistical
Don’t wanna be the parenthetical, hypothetical
Working onto something that I’m proud of, out of the box
An epoxy to the world and the vision we’ve lost
I’m an apostrophe
I’m just a symbol to remind you that there’s more to see
I’m just a product of the system, a catastrophe
And yet a masterpiece, and yet I’m half-diseased
And when I am deceased
At least I go down to the grave and die happily
Leave the body and my soul to be a part of thee
I do what it takes
Whatever it takes
‘Cause I love the adrenaline in my veins
I do whatever it takes
‘Cause I love how it feels when I break the chains
Whatever it takes
Yeah, take me to the top, I’m ready for
Whatever it takes
‘Cause I love the adrenaline in my veins
I do what it takes
~ Imagine Dragons
Posted by: Julie Morris on 5/30/2021 at 10:37 am
On The Map
Hey Mark! Don’t forget to floss! :) Good job and make it back safe.
Posted by: Chrissy on 3/26/2013 at 3:02 pm
L & P- Congrats on making Pheriche!! Mark’s post from Deboche was great!! Enjoy!!
D is really excited and enjoying every step of the way with you! Take good care and soak it all in!! Thanks again to Mark!
Love M & G
Posted by: Gretchen & Mike on 3/26/2013 at 10:39 am
On The Map
On The Map
Hope you are on the way up so you can come down soon
Wishing you sunny days and good times. Be safe.
Posted by: mary doyle on 5/14/2012 at 10:19 am
tell coleman to take his time——we lost the goldman line any way….. all the best smoker
Posted by: josh jacobs on 5/11/2012 at 11:43 am
The day had its ups and downs. We left Dhole (at 13,250ft) just after breakfast and continued our trip down the magnificent gorge. There were waterfalls everywhere and we enjoyed being back among trees, shrubs, and grasses. After a little more than an hour, we had bottomed out below 12,000 ft and needed to start climbing again. The team are old hands at going uphill in the Himalaya by now, and so we cruised the switchbacks and crushed any and all competition.
It was delightful to take tea sitting outside where we crested at 13,000 ft. Once again, we were looking directly out at Ama Dablam (to say nothing of Kangtega and Thamserku) just across the valley. For a time, we were back in the “traffic” of tourists, porters, and yaks on the main route to and from Everest Basecamp, but we ventured into much quieter terrain by taking a turn up toward Khumjung, a beautiful village just over the hill from Namche. We ate lunch there, next to the famed Hillary School, and then walked a final hour in swirling clouds to reach Namche Bazaar once again.
The gang is happy to be back in the lap of relative luxury. Camp De Base seems like the Ritz to us now. Showers and shopping were in order, along with comfortable beds.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn & Team
New Post Alerts:
Gokyo Trek September 28, 2024
Posted by: Pete Van Deventer, Henry Coppolillo, Tatum Whatford
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley
Elevation: 7,300'
Our Denali escapade has commenced! Everyone arrived in Anchorage without incident and enjoyed a surprisingly smooth drive to Talkeetna. We spent yesterday crawling through all our gear, packing, repacking, wondering if we should bring more, less, or had forgotten something entirely and tearing it all apart to start again. Once we were sure, we weighed it all in for the planes and got sorted for the two Otters that would ferry us to base camp. We enjoyed a last dinner in Talkeetna, and some took two, three, or four showers to make up for the coming weeks and be sure to fly on smelling like roses.
We woke up this morning ready and hopeful to launch immediately, but it wasn't to be. Base camp reported that they were in a snow globe with 12 new inches overnight. We commenced the chill, sipped coffee, visited the myriad shops, ate lunch, and became somewhat convinced that we would HAVE to spend another night in a bed, have to take another shower, and have to eat a meal. Then, suddenly the RMI1 team got told to ready 5 and launched. Our hopes changed - but also Came with the realization that we would be landing quite late, and cooking dinner would be even later. So, we compromised. We would sleep on the ground and forego a shower if we could have one more mountain high pizza meal. We grabbed pizzas, trapped the stack together, and flew in with them in our lap. Our flight was stunning, with the long light of evening lighting the thousands of peaks in the Alaska range. We landed, set up our shelter, ate our pizza, and are settling in for our first night on the glacier.
We will be in touch tomorrow with more news. Stay tuned!
RMI Guides Pete Van Deventer, Henry Coppolillo, Tatum Whatford, and Team
Thank you for the blog posts! We love hearing about what Bailey is experiencing. We praying for safety and an incredible experience for the whole team!
Posted by: Karlyn Sullivan on 5/14/2023 at 4:42 pm
Lap pizza is my new favorite Denali beta!! Hope it tastes even better from the glacier :D
Posted by: Corey on 5/12/2023 at 11:01 am
Posted by: Mike King, Alex Halliday, Abby Westling
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Alaska Mt. McKinley
Elevation: 11,200'
Tuesday, June 1, 2021 - 3:10 pm PT
The forecast ended up being accurate for a change. We got light snow and wind beginning around midnight that has intensified over the morning. Between the wind, snow and lack of visibility we are staying at 11,200’ today in hopes of making a carry to 13,500’ when the weather allows. Until then we are enjoying the heavier meals and lot of good stories in the kitchen tent. While not the most exciting part of the trip, days like this let the legs rest and the heart/lungs acclimate which will only help us up higher on Denali.
I hope you are acclimating well; taking deep breath’s and enjoying such amazing views. Praying for good weather and a safe climb. Cheeseburgers will be waiting for you!
Posted by: claudette Crockett on 6/4/2021 at 5:01 am
Stay warm Rob and team!
Posted by: Connie on 6/3/2021 at 7:41 am
Posted by: Mike King, Taylor Bickford
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
Today's Mt. Rainier Summit Climb Team, led by RMI Guides Mike King and Taylor Bickford, are on top! They radioed from the top reporting windy and clear conditions. Their descent back to Camp Muir will begin soon with a celebration at Rainier Basecamp to commence this afternoon.
Congratulations to the team!
Good job everyone. Have a safe trip down!
Posted by: Carla Clemmer (Trey’s Mom) on 5/17/2021 at 1:26 pm
Wow Julie and Brent you never seize to surprise me with your athleticism and enthusiasm for the great outdoor. Love to join you one day. Jody
Posted by: Jody Jacobs on 12/2/2023 at 7:18 am
Thanks so much for the great updates and beautiful pictures. You are all climbing to the summit right now. I’m so excited for you! Thank you so much to the guides and staff for making this an amazing experience for my family. Happy trails!
Posted by: Lisa Corcoran on 8/5/2023 at 4:08 pm
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