We woke up hoping to cache below 14,000 Camp, the mountain had other plans so we spent the day eating, reading, relaxing, and building a snow fort. Hopefully tomorrow the weather complies and we can move supplies up the mountain.
Today was quite possibly the nicest day in the Alaska range that any of the guide team can remember. The last several days earned us a perfect, clear, calm day and as such the expedition cogs were churning all over camp. Teams that have been waiting to move to 14,000' Camp were busily taking down camp and teams that have been waiting to cache were saddling up to go. We already had packs loaded, so a quick breakfast got us going and then we were finally, FINALLY, climbing. The whole team climbed really strong, enjoying the chance to stretch our legs. A few stretches of walking got us to our cache location at 13,500', where we unloaded food and fuel, then enjoyed a light, quick jaunt back down to our 11,000' Camp. All told we had an easy six hours round trip. The forecast sounds like it's holding, so our intention tomorrow is to retrace our steps in the morning and head to our next home at 14,000'.
Another day, another incredible Tanzanian National Park. Today we visited Tarangire... A system of rivers, swamps and savannas that host a mind-blowing number of elephants, zebras, wildebeest, gazelles, giraffes and just about every other East African animal you can think of. We were particularly interested in the big cats today. As luck would have it, we spied a cheetah, a lioness up a tree, and finally a big and beautiful leopard in an Acacia tree at sunset. The elephants of Tarangire were everywhere and their signs of passage were everywhere else. We could see where they'd been scraping bark from the giant baobab trees in search of moisture, and flat out destroying smaller trees in other places. In terms of bird-life, we saw everything from an African Fish Eagle (eerily similar to an American Bald Eagle) to the ubiquitous superb starlings with their incandescent colors. It was just getting dark when Joseph and Clement brought our Landcruisers in to Kikoti, a hotel of screened in cabins with a luxurious and open-planned center dining room and bar just to one side of the national park. This will be our last evening together and our last out in the wild, but we look forward to a final day's journey back through the park and "home" to Arusha.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
August 24th at 8:35 pm PST
18,000ft + and still going strong! A beautiful sunrise graced us this morning.
August 24th at 6:25 pm PST17,000ft and doing well. It's a little breezy but not too cold.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew
Steve B and Brian S,
CONGRATULATIONS to you both!!! I knew you could do it! The Summit picture is awesome! :-)
Now trek down the mountain just as safely and come back to us.
XO
Posted by: Maggi on 8/26/2013 at 6:57 am
Dear Chris and Jessie…We’re anxiously awaiting news about your reaching the summit!!! Love Dad (papa) & Mama J
The Four Day Summit Climbs August 12 - 15, 2013 led by RMI Guides Eric Frank was unable to reach the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. Strong winds and precipitation prevented the teams from climbing. The teams checked in from Camp Muir shortly after 7 am where they were safe and warm in the Muir hut. The teams will descend from Camp Muir to Paradise this morning.
The Expedition Skills Seminar - Kautz led by RMI Guide Elias de Andres Martos was unable to summit this morning also. They will spend today training on the mountain. Tomorrow they will descend to Paradise and complete their program.
We look forward to seeing them at Rainier BaseCamp.
Hello, this is Jake calling in from Ecuador. Just to let everybody know that after our successful climb of Cayambe today, we have made it safely, soundly and well fed back to Chilcabamba where we will be spending tonight and tomorrow resting to get ready for Cotopaxi. All's well after a big day and we're looking forward to a little bit of R&R.
RMI Guide Jake Beren
RMI Guide Jake Beren checks in from Chilcabamba Eco Lodge.
This is Seth checking in from 11,200 feet on Denali. Today we completed our carry to 13,500 ft. The weather was spectacular when we awoke and our climbers were psyched to get higher up on the mountain. Everyone put in a good effort and we made great time. The forecast looks good for tomorrow with a deteriorating trend starting on Wednesday. So our plan is to move to 14k tomorrow and wait out the weather there. That's all for now.
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
Cotopaxi summit! 100% of our climbing team reached the top of the beautiful 19,600' active volcano. We awoke at midnight to a clear and starry night, and started climbing at 1:30. A light breeze turned into a strong, cold wind that stayed with us most of the climb, but the skies remained clear and the climbing conditions were excellent. The wind eased on the summit, and we were treated to a beautiful morning with views of the surrounding peaks: the Ilinizas, Chimborazo, Antisana, and Cayambe, our next climbing destination.
We're all safely off the mountain, and enjoying the ammeneties at the Hacienda La Cienega. I'll touch base tomorrow with more, and hopefully some pictures. But right now there's a shower with my name on it.
Today we traveled to the entrance of the Kilimanjaro National Park at the Machame Gate. We registered as a team and began climbing up from 5,900 feet.
We left the Cultivation Zone, where bananas and coffee plants grow and we made our way through the Forest Zone. It's lush rainforest made a beautiful day walking in the cool mist.
We kept our eyes out for the occasional Colobus monkeys in the canopy above but we only heard their screeching love songs.
Approaching camp at 9,800 feet, we entered the Giant Heather of the Heather and Mooreland Zone. Some of the heather grows over 30 feet tall. We are now sitting in our dining tent eating popcorn, drinking tea and relaxing.
RMI Guide JJ Justman
Mark Tucker checking in from Barafu Camp. We are at the lower camp at about 15,000’ just under the southeast edge of the Kilimanjaro Summit. We have the jungle below and the top of the mountain above and a team that is rip-roaring and ready!
We put on a couple of miles today from the Karanga camp. The upper mountain is a bleak zone, but quite beautiful in its own way. We’re going to have a quick dinner and crawl into the tents for about five hours of rest to get us ready for an early a.m. departure. I am happy to report that we are 100% go power with this team. Everybody is getting pretty excited and doing really well. A couple of minor headaches but the overall health and well-being is very very good. We are ready the weather is cooperating we had to puffy clouds in the afternoon not unusual. Last night was beautiful so we are keeping our fingers crossed that we have one of the same. We have a pretty bright moon illuminating our trip so we are in pretty good shape.
Talk to you later,
RMI Guide Mark Tucker & Team
Glad you see you got to move again today!
Posted by: Sheila on 5/25/2021 at 8:52 pm
Wow this is amazing to “watch”! Praying for the whole team’s success. You got this, Matt! Enjoy every step.
Posted by: Linda Baker on 5/25/2021 at 5:41 pm
View All Comments