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Mt. Rainier: Expedition Skills Seminar Muir Spends the Week Training

May 20, 2022

Posted by: Dave Hahn, Nikki Champion

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier

Elevation: 10,080'

The Expedition Skills Seminar - Muir led by RMI Guides Dave Hahn and Nikki Champion spent the week at Camp Muir honing their alpine mountaineering skills. While the spring storms kept the team from making their summit attempt, they had a valuable week of training the will prepare the climbers for future expeditions on Aconcagua and Denali.

During the week the team learned route planning and preparation, avalanche forecasting, instruction regarding Leave No Trace practices and environmental considerations; and a discussion/demonstration of knots, anchors leading into crevasse rescue.

The team will be descending today returning to Rainier Basecamp early this afternoon.

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Mexico’s Volcanoes: Beren & Team Summit Pico de Orizaba

October 24, 2015

Posted by: Jake Beren

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mexico

Elevation: 18,701'

Hello, this is Jake and team on the top of Pico de Orizaba under an absolutely beautiful sky today. It's a little stormy around us, but it's blue above us. And we had just about perfect conditions today on the way. So we are super happy, everyone did very well and we're at the halfway mark. So we'll give you a shout when we get down, and let you know how everything went. For right now, I'm super proud of the team. Everyone did well and the halfway mark has been reached. So take care everybody. Talk to you later. RMI Guide Jake Beren

RMI Guide Jake Beren checks in from the summit of Pico de Orizaba, Mexico.

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Everest Base Camp Trek & Island Peak Climb: Grom & Team Start Trek

March 20, 2014

Posted by: Casey Grom

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Everest BC Trek

Elevation: 8,700'

Hello from the Khumbu everyone! Today we caught our early flights from Kathmandu and safely arrived at the famous Lukla airport on what was one of the smoothest flights I've ever had. Luckily for us there were no clouds in sight which allowed us an easy and very scenic flight into the heart of the Himalayas. Once in Lukla we relaxed and had breakfast at one of the tea houses while our bags were sorted and readied for our porters. We hit the trail just after 8 am and hiked casually along the trail taking in the clean fresh mountain air and all the beautiful sights of the surrounding peaks. We hiked for just over three hours stopping along the way to snap photos and enjoy the scenery of the lush green forest with towering snow capped mountains overhead. The team is comfortably settled in to another tea house here in a village called Phakding that sits on the edge of a beautiful blue river. All is well and everyone is delighted to be here. RMI Guide Casey Grom and Crew

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Mt. McKinley: Van Deventer & Team Cache Gear at 13,200’

June 25, 2013

Posted by: Pete Van Deventer, Geoff Schellens, Robby Young

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley

Elevation: 11,200'

Tuesday, June 25th, 2013 We are back at our 11k camp after a very successful day of carrying and caching gear at 13,200. What had been a pretty busy camp now feels like a ghost town, as most teams in camp got an early start this morning to move to 14,000. We also had a decently early start to try to beat the heat, and by 1 pm, we were back in camp snacking and napping. We'll be a day behind the main pack; everyone did excellently today, and so the plan is to move ourselves to 14k tomorrow! That will put us in great position, and one step closer to our goal. Best to everyone back home. Cheers, RMI Guides Pete, Geoff, Robby, and the gang

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Mt. Rainier: August 7th Update

August 7, 2012

Posted by: Zeb Blais, Casey Grom, JJ Justman

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier

Elevation: 14,410'

Summit! The Mt. Rainier Summit Climb was on top this morning in clear skies and light winds. RMI Guide Zeb Blais reported the team began their descent from the crater rim at 7:40 a.m. RMI Guide JJ Justman and his Expedition Skills Seminar - Emmons also reached the summit this morning. The team is still enjoying their time on the summit before they descend back to Camp Schurman for the night. JJ sent a video last night and can be viewed below. Congratulations to today's teams!

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Mt. McKinley: Hahn & Team Waiting for Firm Glacial Snow

July 16, 2011

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Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley

Elevation: 7,800'

There wasn't much chance to finish the journey this morning as it snowed until about 8 AM. By nine the sun was poking through and we knew we couldn't count on the glacier surface being firm enough for safe travel. So we sat for the day and waited for a clear and cold night. We've waited through many days on this trip and this was one of the tougher ones. Denali was out in all of its glory and although from a distance we could no longer tell just how much snow it had gotten or how hard the wind might be blowing, it sure looked climbable. Our climbing tomorrow morning will be in the other direction, but these will surely be the most important steps we take on the entire trip. The lower glacier in mid-July demands respect. We'll get moving by three or four in the morning and will try to reach the airstrip by 9 or 10. RMI Guide Dave Hahn

A Rest Day at Basecamp

April 28, 2009

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Categories: Expedition Dispatches Everest

Elevation: 17,350 ft.

The first day and night down after an Everest climbing rotation are great for enjoying the novelty of comfort and easy living again. But it isn't really until the second night back down that I normally get full and renewing sleep. And looking at Kent, Seth and Erica over coffee this morning, I'm guessing it was similar for them. We all seemed back to our normal selves again today, ready to make plans and preparations for climbing again. Toward that end, during breakfast out in the sun, we began sketching a big calendar of the next four weeks. There are plenty of blanks on it still, naturally... and of course a big question mark or two at the end, but I was pleased to at least be building a framework out into the all-important second half of May. I consider it a great luxury to be down merely resting rather than recovering (which can be a much less predictable process). I'm crediting that distinction to my strong, fit and patient partners... but also to my experience and past mistakes in this arena. I'm guessing that we did just enough up high this last time around... not too much, not too little. It is all too easy for me to remember the many trips that formed my learning curve on which I wasn't satisfied to come down the hill until my throat was bleeding, my head was pounding, and my muscles were pulled. This is better. And I find I can illustrate the elusive "big picture" with the help of a calendar and some colorful marker pens. Pacing is everything in a two-month-long "race." My partners didn't fight me on any of this stuff (making me worry that my own slow learning curve could possibly have been avoided by employing a bigger brain). Erica settled in for a morning of schoolwork. Kent went to fiddle with his cameras and Seth had reading to do. We'd already made good use of yesterday in showering, shaving and leveling our tent platforms, so today was just plain old good rest. That is what they were doing up at C2 today as well. And perhaps it was the plan all over the mountain, as I didn't see very much traffic in the Icefall this morning. Our Sherpa team didn't rest today, but then they were up early enough and moving fast enough that by my morning survey, they were well out of sight and on their way to C2 already. By afternoon, I was in the mood for struggle and conquest, and so I sought out renowned Scrabble player Justin Merle in the IMG camp. We tussled for a bit (alas, no bingos) before the better man prevailed. And then it was nice to just share afternoon tea with my longtime friends Mark Tucker and Eric Simonson. HimEx leader Russell Brice and Monica, his team doctor, showed as well for an unplanned and relaxing chat. Linden Mallory completed the party when he came to make sure that the "Sirdar" meeting was taking place as scheduled. Far more important than our tea party, this was a meeting of the Sherpa team leaders and dealt with figuring a plan to fix rope -and soon- on the summit terrain. While I may seem smug about taking the longer road and viewing the bigger picture, and all that, in order to get to the summit in the easiest and safest way -three weeks down the road- I'm anxious to have others start pounding away urgently at the door to the top... NOW! There are plenty of strong and ambitious people here, and I don't want them all going to the top when I want to go to the top. It benefits everybody to have the door to the summit open for a longer period... and it will benefit my team to have that route pounded in and well-tested. Those who desire more challenge and more bragging rights back home can go early when it is colder and meaner. I wish them luck. Kick big footsteps, please. Now if the first night down low was novel and the second was restful, I wonder what the third will be like... Will I soon be able to brag about having achieved the perfect basecamp rest day? Ambition takes many forms.

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Mt. Rainier: Beautiful Summit for Five Day Climb

July 14, 2025

Posted by: Joe Crawford, Hannah Blum, Julian Kral, Kat Porter

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier

Elevation: 14,410'

Led by RMI Guides Joe Crawford, Hannah Blum, Julian Kral, and Kat Porter, the Five Day Climb reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. The team reported beautiful windy weather from the Mt. Rainier summit crater. The team has descended to Camp Muir where they will spend one more night on the mountain. They'll finish their descent back to Paradise tomorrow.

Way to go climbers!

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Everest Base Camp Trek & Lobuche Climb: Smith & Team Have Puja Ceremony in Pangboche, Arrive Pheriche

March 26, 2023

Posted by: Hannah Smith, Abby Westling

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Everest BC Trek and Lobuche

Elevation: 13,950'

Hello Readers,

We woke to a clear frosty day. The team made their way to the dining hall for various hot drinks to warm up the bodies before hitting the frozen trail. Once on the trail it didn't take long for the sun to begin to thaw the grown and us. Shortly I to our hike we came across about 15 Tahr roaming the hillside. You can't beat a wildlife sighting. Halfway to our new Teahouse we stopped in Pangboche to do a puja ceremony where the team got blessed for safe travels. Even though we do not practice their religion or understand all the intricacies in the ceremony, it's a moving experience and makes you want to learn more. A quick stop for tea fueled us to our final location, Pheriche. Here we will spend two nights acclimatizing. The other RMI teamed rolled in in the afternoon. It was fun to see the descending team and know that will be us in about a week. For now we will enjoy the scenery around us and let our bodies adjust to the new altitude.

Goodnight all,

RMI Guides Hannah, Abby, and Team

Aconcagua: Smith & Team Rest At Camp 2

January 20, 2023

Posted by: Hannah Smith, Ben Luedtke, Daniel May

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua

Elevation: 18,000'

Good evening,

Not a whole lot to report from Camp 2. Our night was noisy with wind, which didn't let up till later in the afternoon. With the winds blowing in the morning making the camp look all sparkly we decided to stay put and not participate in the windy day.The carry is not a crucial part of our agenda so it is OK that we opted not to carry to high camp. We spent out day watching the snow Dance off the ridges and the top.Tomorrow will be another rest day before we make the move to high camp where we launch for the summit. The winds should be lessening as our day approaches. For now we snuggle into our sleeping bags for warmth and enjoy a other hypoxic sleep at 18,000'.

Goodnight all,

RMI Guides Hannah, Ben, Dan and Team

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Most Popular Entries

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