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Well the story of the day was the weather. When we woke up this morning at the hotel it was raining. That didn't seem to bum anyone out too bad though and we were all packed and headed to the gate in good time.
Once we drove up to the gate the rain had turned to mist but we geared up anyway. That turned out to be a good idea since it rained off and on for the first two hours.
As we pressed on the cloud thinned and dried out. We were able to pull off the rain-wear well before camp and even dry out a bit.
The mist has returned but we are all in camp getting ready for dinner. Our tents are dry and we have a really nice dining tent to hang out in. All in all it was a fine day to start a Kilimanjaro climb.
This is a shot of some of the team getting a lesson on the chemical toilet.
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
On The Map
Posted by: Mark Tucker
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Kilimanjaro
The day went like clockwork. We had a great breakfast and then hopped in our vehicles for a short drive to the entrance of the Ngorongoro National Park. The day was cloudy and cool to start, but by the time we descended some two thousand feet, to floor of the largest unbroken and unflooded caldera in the world, the sun was a shining. I would guess that we only saw about 20% of the 30,000 animals that live in the crater. On our way back to the amazing Plantation Lodge for another night we stopped into a Masai Village for a tour and some special shopping options. Tomorrow brings us to the home of more elephants per square mile than anywhere else in the world, Tarangire National Park. Somebody has to do it, wish you were here.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
The Ecuador Volcanoes climbing (and all of our luggage) has arrived in Ecuador! Everyone arrived in the country by early this morning and hit the ground running. We spent the bulk of the day on an interesting and educational tour of colonial Quito, visiting the Presidential Palace, the Basilica, and various other points of interest in southern Quito, also known as Old Town Quito. Our local city guide, Jorge, is extremely knowledgeable and happy to share the wealth of information he has about the history, culture, politics, and religion of Ecuador. As always, it's a pleasure to work with Jorge.
After a typical Ecuadorian lunch of empanadas, locro de queso (potato soup with cheese & avocado), and fritada (fried pork with corn and plantains), we headed to the Equator. We visited an ethnographic museum and stood straddling the Equator, with a foot in each hemisphere (see photo).
We're all still a little weary from a long travel day to get here, and I'm sure everyone will sleep well tonight. Tomorrow we had head out on our first acclimatization hike. We'll be in touch tomorrow to let you know how it goes.
Cheers,
RMI Guide Mike Walter
On The Map
Ken! Amazing to read, incredible to SEE!! Great job everyone!
Posted by: Carlo Barone on 6/24/2013 at 10:46 am
Thinking about you Ken! Be super careful. What an experience! Jan
Posted by: Jan Swenarton on 6/23/2013 at 3:23 pm
Yesterday's carry to 14,000' left many members of the team knackered, so today is a very relaxing rest day in our well-appointed camp at 11,000'. A leisurely morning was the main agenda, with coffee, bagels, cream cheese and smoked salmon on the breakfast menu. A pan of hash browns and cheese is on deck for the afternoon snack.
The posh house, our group meeting location, kitchen, and dining room is in heavy use today, with its many panel seams radiating out from the center pole like the legs of an octopus. Under its protective canopy we've been solving the various problems of the world and making sure we stay hydrated. Team members drift in and out, while conversation and laughter drifts across camp.
Fortunately the light snow we have had the past couple of days is tapering off, and the sun is working to dry out our moist sleeping bags and tents. We are conserving our energy for tomorrow's move to 14K camp, which will put us over the halfway mark and in good position for the higher reaches of the mountain.
Climbing a mountain like Denali is a long process, and taking time to get to know one another is a big part of that. Today's rest is allowing the team to strengthen our group dynamic, and get to know each other more intimately. What started as a group of strangers more than a week ago is quickly morphing into a solid team of friends, ready to tackle the rest of the "Great One."
But we'll leave the hard work for tomorrow, and enjoy the down time today. Stay tuned for more!
Dan, Robin, Jess, James, Lori, Justin, Tyler and Garrett
On The Map
So glad to hear the weather has improved and the sky is being kind to you guys!Hope the spirits stay high and every one stays safe. Love you Robin.
Lisa
Posted by: Lisa on 6/7/2013 at 9:10 pm
Thinking of you, Lori. Thankful for these e-mails, I look forward to them each day. Met Wendy by chance at Culvers, special. Keep having good weather, and good luck to you all. Mom
Posted by: Fern Hansen on 6/7/2013 at 7:22 am
Hi everybody, who’s been following along. This is Billy, just checking in, we just completed, our summit day and we were able successfully put six climbers on top of Aconcagua this afternoon. We’re all back at camp safe and sound. And we enjoyed a sunny summit and then the weather kinda came in on our descent. And we are sitting in tents right now and it's snowing lightly. But pretty much plans from here on out are to pack up and high tail it out- out to basecamp and then straight back to Mendoza. Everyone sends their love to their family members and loved ones, and especially Richard. Richard wanted me to make a point of saying that he loves his wife very much and that she’s his valentine and that he could not have summitted today without her. And we’ll check in again as things progress and we're headed back home. All right. Take care. Bye bye.
RMI Guide Billy Nugent
Billy talks about their summit day.
Nice job everyone. I was on Billy’s team last year standing atop Aconcagua, and have been following your progress. Congratulations! Now get outta there safely!
If he isn’t doing his Chicago Superfan routine on your hike out, you are totally missing out.
Posted by: Dan on 2/15/2011 at 12:03 pm
Great job guys! I’m happy for y’all! Lots of Malbec waiting for you in the city. Maybe even Basecamp, if you’re as lucky as Team Gabby was.
Posted by: Keith P on 2/15/2011 at 10:44 am
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After many days of going without much of a stop, we took a good rest day today.
It started off wonderfully, with Caroline cooking up a good batch of bacon and powdered eggs - darn good down here in Antarctica.
After that, there was much gear sorting, drying gloves and socks and other items in tents under the warm sun. And, for Ed, Cindy, David, and Ben, packing in
anticipation of a Twin Otter coming to ferry them down to Union Glacier this afternoon.
At 5:00, we finally heard the low-pitch whine of propellers coming over Vinson, and caught sight of the Otter flying in after picking up two scientists on the other
side of the peak. A powdery landing on the glacier, and two Ski-Doo's were offloaded to make room for our team. Before long, the Otter was in flight again; Ed, Cindy,
David, and Ben are back now at Union Glacier, awaiting an Ilyushin flight on to Punta Arenas.
Peter, Seth, Caroline, Kent, and I are settling in, eager to begin the next phase of our Antarctic journey: ski. Tomorrow, we'll sniff around VBC a bit, ski some
lines, get a feel for the snow, and scour our maps for less-tracked terrain for the days to come.
Much fun awaits...
-Jake Norton
Today was another great day for the crew down here in Ecuador. After an early rise and quick breakfast we loaded up our van and headed out on the road from Quito into the countryside. The valleys and mountainsides around Quito are a gorgeous emerald green and the high peaks were all covered in fresh snow. We caught glimpses of our first mountaineering objective Cayambe, as clouds moved in and out. Needless to say the group was excited as we continued past Cayambe to a large volcanic caldera called Fuya Fuya. We spent the late morning and early afternoon summiting one of the twin peaks of Fuya Fuya at around 4,200 m. The views from the summit were spectacular. We looked down on a huge lake filling the crater and were surrounded by many beautiful peaks. After a quick descent the team headed to the Hacienda San Luis for dinner some R&R. Everybody is enjoying the beautiful grounds and rustic rooms (complete with fireplace) here. Tomorow's plans call for a trip to the open air market in Otovalo and then a move up to the climber refugio high on Cayambe!
I'll check in again as soon as I can, we hope everyone at home is doing well too!
Ciao from the Equator!
Thanks to Dawn Kim for the photos in this post!
Dobrey Vecher from Moscow,
Our Elbrus North Side Climbing Team congregated from across the world today, everyone arriving from various destinations into Moscow by late afternoon. Despite the many flights and thousands of miles travelled arrivals were smooth. There is always a moment of great anxiety when arriving at your destination on an international climbing expedition occurring immediately upon arrival: standing at the luggage carousel as unfamiliar bags sweep past waiting to see if all of your climbing gear arrived with you. Thankfully, all bags and climbing equipment appeared one by one to our relief.
After each person's transfer navigated the infamous Moscow traffic after their flights, we at last met up at our hotel. Moscow is a vibrant, chaotic melting pot that never ceases to surprise. With only twenty years since the end of the USSR, the city is a mix of old and new, of history and progress, and of dilapidation and glamour. All of this is apparent within the drive across town and it continues to present itself around every corner. We gathered as a team this evening, getting to know our fellow climbers over a few pints of local Russian beer and excellent steaks sitting on the terrace of our restaurant overshadowed by the colorful bell towers of the neighboring Russian Orthodox Church. Despite the 11 hour time difference between Moscow and the West Coast everyone seemed to be in good spirits and holding up well from the jet lag and talk quickly turned to the climb as we laid out our game plan for our time in Moscow and subsequent departure for the mountain.
With night settled in we wrapped up dinner and headed back to our hotel, situated right on the southern banks of the Moscow River across from Alexander's Gardens and the red walls of the Kremlin. We are ready for a good night's rest before heading out to visit the famous sites of Moscow tomorrow.
Up to the top of the Massif today. We had an easy time getting out of camp this morning as conditions were perfect, no wind and no clouds above (although there was an ocean of cloud below). We pulled out of camp a little before 9 AM. For the first hour or two, temperatures were mild and most of the team was wondering if all the down gear was necessary, then we caught a minor but persistent breeze and hoods went up and zippers got shut. The cooler conditions were ideal for walking. Vinson summit day is a long, moderate incline (on glacial ice, of course) up a broad valley until you hit the final rock and ice peak atop the broad summit plateau. Then things steepen and tend to get more interesting. Throughout the climb we were treated to increasingly magnificent views of the sharp and lofty peaks to the North. Eventually we were sheltered from wind as we came along our summit peak, but then caught enough of it on the 16,000 ft final ridge that we had to be very much on the lookout for frostbite on each others faces. We walked onto the highest point in Antarctica at 4:15 PM. I've had more relaxing times up there -the steady cold breezes needed to be paid attention to this time as one couldn't take gloves off for picture taking or snacking. But it was stunning and beautiful to see the mountains up and down the Ellsworth chain sticking out of the endless cloud sea.
We got off the ridge without frosting anyone and had a smooth and easy walk down to high camp, which we reached around 7:45 PM. Strength returned as we sat around for hot drinks and dinner. Inevitably, with the relief of having made the top, folks started talking about airplanes, but I tried to keep people focused on the need to climb down safely first. We'll do that tomorrow, high camp to basecamp, with some heavy loads. And from what we heard, none of the other teams did any flying yet and don't expect to tomorrow -that sea of clouds envelopes both Vinson Base and Patriot Hills. So perhaps we'll catch up to all the other climbers soon. My team is looking forward to a good sleep first... It is supposed to reach -30 C at high camp tonight.
Our day started in the cloud layer we were hoping to escape, but clear weather seemed imminent. An hour later we finally found sunshine. What was really cool today was that Ken was able to rejoin our team at Shira Camp last night after his health improved following a major GI problem.
The Shira Plateau we were ascending was far gentler on our legs and lungs than yesterday's climb. This was nice since we had a long way to go today. Our destination: Barranco Camp. But first we had to get past Lava Tower, 15,200'. The team climbed well on this terrain and by noon we were feasting on the sack lunches prepared by our kitchen staff. The descent into the Barranco Valley proved just as beautiful as I recall. We're hoping this cold mist at camp goes away with the coming evening so we can enjoy this beautiful camp. This might be my favorite.
Goodnight from Barranco Camp. The dinner bell is about to sound.
RMI Guide Brent Okita and Team
Exciting to hear the group’s progress!
The summit is nearing!
Sending good vibes!
Posted by: Vish Subramanian on 8/3/2023 at 9:54 pm
Thank you, Brent, for your updates with pictures!! It is interesting and helpful to learn about the team’s journey!
Wishing everyone the very best for the rest of the hike!
Best wishes,
Suganthi
Posted by: Suganthi Subramanian on 8/3/2023 at 7:17 pm
rain never stopped someone from Seattle glad you are starting the climb
Posted by: cornelia miller on 8/8/2013 at 7:48 pm
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