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The Easton Glacier Climb, led by RMI Guide Jess Wedel, reached the summit of Mt. Baker on Monday morning. The team enjoyed a smooth climb with good weather and clear views from the top. After a successful summit, they spent one more night at camp before making their way back to the trailhead this morning.

Great work by everyone involved!

PC: RMI Guide Arianna Drechsler

Sunday, February 9, 2025 - 2:57 pm PT

We are excited for our first glaciers in Ecuador.

A fun, bumpy 4x4 ride delivered us to the climbers hut where we unpacked and settled into the penthouse suite. That is a nice way to say we had to haul all our gear up a bunch of stairs and everyone was breathing heavy.

After moving in, we refreshed our walking and cramponing techniques on the rocks and dirt just above the hut.
We also met the rest of our guide team, Carmelo, Jorge and Gustavo who joined us for dinner. They are warm and friendly and quickly becoming part of the team.

We enjoyed a delicious dinner of quinoa-potato soup, followed by chicken and rice. We are getting to bed early in preparation for our early start tomorrow.

RMI Guide Walter Hailes

Update Saturday, May 30th 8:30 pm PDT Summit day! We decided to do something a bit unorthodox and wake up and leave early without the sunshine. Usually it would make for a really cold couple of hours, but the temperatures have been unseasonably balmy. It had the added advantage of getting us out ahead of several other teams that were heading for the summit also. The deviation worked out perfectly and we had a nice warm morning to walk, with no other teams in front of us. The skies stayed crystal blue all day, and 6 1/2 hours or so later, we were standing on the highest thing around! We had a good half hour on the summit, snapping pictures and taking it all in, before chilly breeze convinced us to head back for camp. We are back with plenty of time to brew up dinner and watch the later teams on their descent. It was a special day and everyone's really excited. It was especially great to have the whole team make it to the top. Tomorrow we turn our sights downhill and start the journey home! Pete, Robby, Josh and team Saturday, May 30th 3:32 pm PDT This is RMI Guide Pete Van Deventer calling in from the top of Mount McKinley in Alaska. We just touched the summit; it's just past after 2 o'clock in the afternoon. Our group and Mike Walter's group summited today in short order. It's a really, really nice day up here--sunny, light winds, and relatively warm as far as Alaska goes. The whole team made it up. It was awesome, Really great day and everybody is excited. [cheers] We'll give a shout when we're back at 17k Camp safely and soon we'll be back in Talkeetna before we know it, heading downhill. Alright, talk to everybody later.

On The Map

Mark Tucker calling from camp number one on Kilimanjaro, Machame Camp, about 10,000 feet. What a great day. Got out of our low lands, slick-slick. Team was already, packed, started our hike at the gate under perfect conditions. A little bit overcast, kind of cool in the canopy of the lower flanks of Kilimanjaro. What a group. So thrilled with performances today. Everybody did fantastic. And right towards the end of the hike coming into camp, the mountain started to show the upper reaches. That just thrilled one and all and gave us that last little boost to come into camp. Bit chilly right now. It's 9 or 10 in the evening and we're all bedded down after real nice meal. Everybody's got a good appetite. I have quite the international crew: three Norwegians, a Puerto Rican, a guy from Mexico and a few US on the team. Really fun getting to know them; we are all having a gas and will check in tomorrow. RMI Guide Mark Tucker

On The Map

The Five Day Summit Climb May 14 - 18 led by RMI Guide Tyler Reid reached the summit of Mt. Rainier today. The team reported moderate winds with clear skies above and a cloud deck below at around 7,000'. The team will return to Camp Muir and continue their descent this afternoon. We look forward to seeing them at Rainier BaseCamp this afternoon. Congratulations to today's team!

Day three of the AMGA Rock Guide Course started a little less comfortably than we had hoped. Our course’s venue was located in the heart of central Oregon and early November often offers a mixed bag of weather. For the four of us who were camping near the park, this meant we awoke to find ourselves shivering and scraping a light layer of frost off of the inside of our tents. As mountain guides, we often deal with inclement weather, but even our familiarity with discomfort didn’t stop all the grumbling that morning as we made coffee. Luckily for us, our instructor team was equally apprehensive about climbing in freezing temperatures and had called a quick audible. The day’s goals shifted to learning rescue techniques and skills in the ‘comfort’ of a covered cooking space. After just finishing my first year with RMI, I was excited to see how our in-house rescue training would compare to the official AMGA equivalent. As the morning progressed, the instructor team grew equally excited as it became clear that much of the rescue curriculum was review, albeit, made a bit more difficult by the vertical orientation and the small working zones that the rock environment demands. Despite the cold temps and biting wind, we were able to fly through hauling techniques and knot passes. That morning’s training concretely highlighted for me how well RMI trains their guides. Because of our familiarity with many of the techniques, we were able to open the book and learn a couple new tricks and subtleties that may have otherwise been lost on a less experienced crew. Once we had mastered new slack management tricks and practiced the variety of haul systems, we changed venues and tried to warm ourselves up with some rope ascending. Ascending is one of those skills that any basic crevasse rescue course will teach you, yet even our most experienced guides were able to walk away with a new trick or two. This again speaks to the level of experience and expertise that our instructors brought to the course. The day’s training finished with a variety of skills that we will be tested on in our next course. A large part of the AMGA course curriculum is a series of examinations that aspiring guides go through to prove their proficiency. For many, these examinations can be stressful and difficult. However, this course has shown me that as long as I continue to work with the incredible fellow guides and instructors that make up the AMGA and RMI, this will be a process I am excited to continue on. With my first year at RMI finished and my first AMGA course completed, I am more enthused than ever at the prospect of continuing my education. Without a doubt, my most profound take away from this course has been how much of a pleasure it is to work with professional mountain guides. In all my time in the mountains, I’ve never found a group who equals the enthusiasm and commitment to perfecting their craft that RMI guides have. Finally, I want to echo Seth’s thanks to RMI for investing in their guides and allowing these courses to happen. I’m already looking forward to my next AMGA course and my next season with RMI! _____ Caleb Ladue just finished his first season guiding with RMI. He grew up in Vermont, where he learned to love the mountains for all that they offered, and that passion has taken him throughout the US and to the Peruvian Andes. He'll be hanging his hat in Jackson Hole this winter, and will return to Mt. Rainier in the Spring, excited to share his passion with many more climbers!

Hey everybody, this is Billy checking in for Mike King and Garrett Stevens and the rest of our crew. We are at high camp on Aconcagua at about 19,600 feet and we made our move up today. And we're gonna be hopefully taking a crack at the top tomorrow. Because it is the only weather window that we have. There is a wind event that is coming on that is supposed to blow 75 miles an hour at the summit for the next 5 or so days out in the extended forecast. So our chance is now. We're hoping things are going to lighten up for us right now. Kind of a little bit crappy here at [Camp] Cholera. Fair bit of blowing snow and about 20 mile an hour winds maybe gusts of 30 to 35. But yeah, keep your fingers crossed, and we'll give you guys a call in a little bit and let you know how it all went down. Ciao. RMI Guide Billy Nugent

On The Map

We awoke at dawn. Not all that impressive because dawn is at least 8 hours a day this time of year. Once awake we had a beautiful cruise down to our cache at the corner of the Kahiltna Glacier with great visibility in the early morning light. We loaded our packs and reveled in the absence of the sleds/anchors and even picked up the pace a bit to help with our acclimatization. Back at camp it was second breakfast, a nap and a bit of technical review before dinner. Tomorrow, if the mountain allows, we will carry towards 14 camp and return to 11,200 feet to recover. That's all from here, the team is doing great and looking to take it higher tomorrow! RMI Guide Jake Beren

On The Map

We woke up early to a taste breakfast at the hacienda. Quickly loaded the bus and headed out. Our first stop was the vibrant Otavalo Market. The colors of the woven textiles, the aroma of fresh flowers, and the lively chatter of local vendors filled the space. We wandered from stall to stall, picking out unique gift. Some crazier than others.

After a few hours of shopping, we drove south toward Cayambe, passing through rolling hills dotted with grazing cattle. The road twisted and turned, leading us to a spacious hut at the foot of the volcano.

Along the way, we grabbed some hearty sandwiches, some of which were bigger than expected.
Finally, we arrived at the lower hut on Cayambe. The clouds scrouded the mountains most of the day but we did get a quick peak at the snowy slopes we hope to climb.

Nicole taught a master class on climbing knots. Everyone diligently practiced tying while laughing at our mistakes but feeling accomplished as the knots became second nature.

RMI Guide Walter Hailes

Oh boy what a day. 

Another day on the trail and today, is one of the longest distances. 

What started as a light drizzle transformed into moody cloudy overlooking the vast scenery that Torres Del Paine offers. Baby blue glacial lakes, jagged ridges, and jurassic valleys were the theme of the day as we walked the Patagonian flat trail. To top it off? The Paso de Vientas showed us what it was made of. Just enough wind to make it fun, not quite enough to lift us off our feet like a kite. 

Lago Dickson was the destination of the day, and it's like a mirage here. A small peninsula surrounded by the lake that feeds the Paine River. We walked the beach, played farkle (of course) and tried out a new (Alex and Jackie created) card game. 

The team goes to Camp Pedro's tomorrow, our most rustic of the trip. We'll get ready for the big climb and descent over John Gardner pass. Wish us good weather and safe travels! So far, the weather has been just our luck, Patagonian perfect. 

RMI Guide Dominic Cifelli & Team