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Today we waited out the snow by having our own avalanche course right here on the Ruth glacier. Skies cleared to a beautiful evening during dinner. The team is excited to go explore some new terrain tomorrow under blue skies!

RMI Guide Dan May & Team

Wednesday, May 7, 2025

We made use of being in the full white out of a snow globe to continue our skills practice at camp and have a few nice big meals in between. The sound of crashing avalanches and falling ice seracs filled the air all day, an eery feeling not being able to see them yet hear them.

Camped in the middle of the glacier has put us at a safe distance from any overhead hazard as we continue to fortify camp amongst all this new snow!

RMI Guide Dan May

The Mt. Rainier Four Day Climb led by RMI Guides Casey Grom and Nikki Champion stood on top of Mt. Rainier this morning! The teams reported clear skies and light winds on the summit. They are currently on their descent to Camp Muir, where they will pack-up and refuel. We look forward to seeing them at Rainier BaseCamp later this afternoon.

Way to go, climbers!

Finally with all of our gear, we left Mendoza this morning and headed for the mountains. The tree-lined streets of Mendoza gave away to carefully tended vineyards that produce the famed Malbec wine for which Mendoza is known. The road led into the foothills of the Andes, weaving along the edge of the thick red Mendoza River. The small hills soon grew to tall mountains and the road began passing through tunnels carved through the rock in the mountain sides. By midday we reached the ski outpost of Penitentes, a handful of kilometers from the Chilean border. Penitentes, no more than a few buildings with long slanted tat break the incessant winds, is a ski resort in the winter and a staging ground for Aconcagua climbers in the summer. We spent the afternoon in Penitentes preparing our gear for the mountain. We set up and checked our tents, fired up the stoves, and packed our food and fuel into tight, well protected containers to endure the jostling of the mules on the approach to Base Camp. Once our loads were prepared, we ventured up the valley to Punta del Inca, a famous natural bridge created from geothermal springs that spans the entire river. Decades ago visitors would drive their cars across it. We ventured a bit further up the road to the mouth of the Horocones Valley where we caught our first views of Aconcagua since reaching Mendoza. Capped in clouds and new snow, the mountain's impressive south face loomed over the head of the Horocones Valley. It was an impressive, exciting, and humbling moment. We are settled into our Hosteria now, enjoying the thin cold air, and happy to finally be in the mountains. RMI Guide Linden Mallory

Today was a well deserved rest day for the team. After a long day of climbing yesterday we spent today relaxing and seeing the sights in Puebla. Molé, the traditional sauce of Mexico, was sampled by everyone on the team and I know one person had it at every meal. It's definitely a favorite of mine. Also, since it is Valentine's day the Zocalo (town square) was full of people celebrating the holiday. It's a big one here in Mexico. We capped off the day with a great dinner at the Mason Sacristía de la Companía. Tomorrow we switch back to climbing mode and head to el Pico de Orizaba! RMI Guide Seth Waterfall

Last night at high camp, it just didn't seem like we would get a chance to make the top of Aconcagua... it was snowing and socked in when I sent yesterday's dispatch. But then, just before darkness came on, the snow stopped and the clouds dropped. During the night there were occasional waves of intense wind that could be heard coming from miles away, but these were short bursts and sure enough, at 4 AM the stars were out and the wind was gone. Our stoves were cooking by 4:15 and we were walking out of camp by headlamp at around 5:15 AM, bound for the summit. We had crampons on all the way and were lucky to be on snow for about 95% of our journey. Peter mentioned that he'd done the same climb without once touching snow, just loose rock, so we were happy with the conditions. It wasn't terribly cold and once we found sunshine things were quite pleasant. We lost that sunshine when we began the long, long traverse to the base of the Canaleta. There were perhaps a hundred other climbers going for the top today, but we ended up nearly in the lead by half-way up the steep and direct Canaleta. This broad gulley is about 800 vertical feet... easy at sea level, I'm sure, but beginning at 22,000 ft makes it somewhat challenging. We were challenged, but all did well, the extra nights at high camp had worked in our favor for acclimatization. We popped out on the summit at noon and enjoyed a sunny and wonderful hour up there. We were victorious and thrilled with the new views... but several of us cried like babies as we remembered our friend Fede and his tragic passing on the summit of Aconcagua all too recently. We left the top at 1 PM and walked quickly into a snowstorm. Not a vicious snowstorm, there was little wind, but a socked-in, steady snowfall. It only took us two hours to make it back to high camp and so we knocked the tents down and set out walking for basecamp. We were anxious to get down and rejoin the rest of our team who'd descended yesterday. In Basecamp by about 6:30, we had a fine reunion dinner and made plans for our walk down-valley begining tomorrow. An improbable summit became a treasured moment with great friends close to 23,000 ft above sea level. All are safe, all are down the hard part of the mountain.

This morning at 6:15 AM, the Four-Day Climb teams, led by RMI Guides Jess Wedel and Alan Davis, reached the crater rim of Mt. Rainier. The teams were rewarded with perfect weather and improved route conditions, allowing for a safe summit experience.

After taking in the views and celebrating on the summit, the teams made their way back to Camp Muir. There, they took time to rest, refuel, and reflect on the morning’s achievement before continuing their descent.

Now en route to Paradise, the teams are expected to arrive back at RMI Basecamp later this afternoon.

Congratulations to today’s climbers for their determination, teamwork, and a successful summit.

Wednesday, June 21, 2023 - 10:38 pm PT

Another storm day at 11,000'. Though not the worst storm, mostly cloud and snow without a lot of wind where we are... but of course that is why we are camped here. We did a long and slow breakfast, sipping coffee and telling stories. We hung out in our tents, napping, reading and watching tv and then it was burrito night. We celebrated Mitch's birthday and celebrated solstice in our snowstorm.  We hope to get climbing again soon but we need the storm to move along first.

RMI Guide Dave Hahn

RMI Guide Brent Okita led the Four Day Summit Climb teams to the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. Brent radioed from the summit shortly after 7 am as the teams were crossing the crater. They reported cold temperatures with moderate winds and clear skies. The teams began their descent from the crater rim around 7:40 am. They will return to Camp Muir for a short break and then continue down to Paradise later this afternoon. Congratulations to today's climbers!

Hi everyone! The team today awoke to conditions that are not ideal to climb in. With all the new snow it just has not settled enough to allow safe climbing. So to enjoy and have a full mountain experience the team went up to Muir Peak to watch the sun rise. It's my favorite part of climbing. The photos simply do not do it justice. We are safe and we are happy and we are still laughing and having fun! RMI Guide JJ Justman & Team