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The Four Day Summit Climb of Mt. Rainier led by RMI Guides JJ Justman and Mike Soucy stood on top of Columbia Crest this morning. JJ reported that the teams were in and out of a cloud cap all morning but enjoyed light winds and pleasant conditions on the summit. The teams will descend to Camp Muir where they will pack up and refuel before making their way to Paradise. We look forward to seeing them in Ashford this afternoon. The Expedition Skills Seminar - Kautz led by RMI Guide Zeb Blais also reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. They enjoyed a light breeze while on the summit. The team will descend back to high camp for the night and will return to Ashford tomorrow. Congratulations to today's climbers!

What a nice day for the team. Really the first time to catch our breath and that is not an easy task here at 11,000ft. After the whirlwind tour of Kathmandu, a flight into the mountains, and a big hike yesterday, what a nice option to take it easy today. We still cut a swath through Namche Bazaar, invested in the local economy and even stretched our legs a bit. Recharging our physical and gadgetry batteries was the focus of the day. One highlight was a trip to the local museum. It had three viewing areas: one being a typical Sherpa home with all the furnishings, another of Sherpa history and culture, and a room full of Everest history, fantastic photos and early expedition gear. The team has been behaving well and enjoying all the support of our local outfitter, High Altitude Dreams, and the fantastic staff here at our Tea house in Namche, Camp de Base. We all feel so lucky to spend this time with these wonderful people. RMI Guide Mark Tucker

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Buenos tardes from Aconcagua! Our team enjoyed a great rest day yesterday and it really paid off today on our move to Camp One. Everyone did a great job pushing these big packs uphill and we are recovering with our afternoon siesta from the day's labor. Tomorrow we hope to carry higher and begin to position ourselves for an eventual shot at the top. But first thing's first, time to relax at our new home at over 16,000 feet! RMI Guide Jake Beren

Hello to all following the Ecuadorean skills seminar. As Casey mentioned yesterday, the wind gods in this neck of the woods, or jungle, seem to be a tad upset with Cayambe the last few days. Last night the gale rocked our hut, shaking windows and spraying dust onto our sleeping bags and equipment all through the bunk room. As I woke my concern shifted quickly not to dirt in my eyes but to Jan who will get his merit badge as the only one to have spent a night in a tent. I don't think too many of us were complaining though because the tent this morning looked very close to flying away. Unfortunately this same wind pattern continued throughout the morning making our projected second attempt at moving to high camp seem a bit detrimental to our actual summit attempt. As much as I wanted to give our team the experience of moving upward and making a high camp, discussions with Casey and Jamie helped me realize the effort needed to move up, pitch tents and get substantial rest was not advantageous to our climb tonight. What another day at the hut did allow us was more valuable training. The opening section to our route directly out of the hut offers impressive rock out croppings ideal for fixed rope travel and rappelling. After our outside time, that was certainly tested by the wind, we retreated back to the hut where we practiced rope coiling, knots and time killing activities. We are now preparing for an early dinner and retirement to our sleeping bags. We look forward to getting up early and gunning for the summit of the equator's highest point. RMI Guide Adam Knoff

On The Map

Another windy night in a tent at altitude made getting on the road no problem for the team this morning. We loaded up our packs with everything needed to survive up high and marched down to a warmer season at Plaza Argentina, stopping to pick up our caches along the way. In a few days time it will be summer in Mendoza and the cold we've lived in up high a memory, but until then we have many miles to walk and a grand asado with our mule driving friends. Talk to you when we hit the tree-lined streets of Mendoza. RMI Guide Jake Beren

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Dobry vecher from Moscow, By seven last night the entire team - including all bags and gear! - reached our hotel in Moscow to kick off the 2009 RMI Elbrus Northside Expedition! The team was tired from the hours of traveling from halfway around the world, but excited to be here as we shared a drink with the sun setting over the buildings and illuminating the Moscow River. We found a little cafe down the street from the hotel where, with two English menus amongst the ten of us, we managed to order a delicious dinner through a mix of broken English and phrasebook Russian. Afterwards, we returned to the hotel for a well deserved rest. This morning we made the short walk from our hotel across the Moscow River and along the red walls of the Kremlin to Red Square. We arrived early enough to beat the crowds of tourists and admired the stunning architecture of the GUM (the Soviet State Department Store), St. Basil's Cathedral with it's unmistakable brightly colored onion-shaped domes, and the dark red walls of the Kremlin, the seat of Soviet and now Russian government. After visiting Lenin's tomb, walking through the dark and somber marble building, we met our local Muscovite, Nina, who led us on a tour of this famous area. We walked through the shops of the GUM whose shelves used to stock basic provisions and now houses luxury brands like Dior, then explored the dozens of small, beautifully painted chapels that make up St. Basil's Cathedral, before watching the changing of the guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. We ended our tour by making our way through the gates of the Kremlin and exploring it's beautiful churches, gardens, and monuments - such as the largest bell and cannon in the world. After a full day of sightseeing we relaxed for a few hours in the afternoon, taking some time to explore Moscow on our own. We are headed to a fantastic Georgian restaurant tonight to sample cuisine straight from the Caucasus before we head down there ourselves tomorrow. We are catching a morning flight to Mineralyne-Vody, the gateway to the northern Caucasus. We will check-in tomorrow night from the town of Kislovodsk, our launching point for our climb of Elbrus' wild northside.

The Five Day climb led by RMI Guides Dominic Cifelli and George Hedreen successfully reached the summit early this morning via the Disappointment Cleaver route. Dominic reported moderate winds and firm route conditions, contributing to a smooth and efficient ascent.

Following their successful summit, the team returned to Camp Muir, where they will spend one final night before descending to Basecamp tomorrow.

Congratulations Team!

Wednesday, June 25, 2025 - 8:51 pm PT

It’s been 8 days since my last dispatch. Eight days since those heady times at 11,000' Camp, when our pounds and pounds of food seemed excessive, when trading for extra toilet paper and coffee were moments of mirth; now we covet our remaining pounds of food, and those trades seem like masterstrokes of genius.

Our first week at 14,000' is coming to a close, our team has experienced wind, snow, and searing heat. Being simultaneously as hot and cold as we have ever been in our lives. While the recent weather has not been as amenable to a quick summit as we would have liked, this past week has still been an incredible and hard to describe experience. The views (when they are available) are breathtaking, reminding us of how lucky we are to be here at all, and how thankful we are for our family, friends, and coworkers supporting us back in the real world allowing us to stay focused on our goal.

The team’s morale remains high, supported by our amazing guiding team of Dom, Ben, and Mike, who keep us active, both physically and mentally, every day. Special shoutout to Dominic’s wife for providing the team a rousing trivia night via satellite messaging a few days back.

As we enter our second week at 14,000', the team is a coiled spring, ready to launch as our hopeful weather window approaches, but until then thank you for all the love and support as we wait out the weather (but god save us if the hot sauce runs out).

RMI Climber Tate Bishop 

Friday May 21, 2021 - 9:56 pm PT

Winds had calmed by 5am, and I got my hopes up as I fired the stoves in the cold Alaskan dawn. But it turned out to be a brief lull instead of a pattern change. Persistently strong winds and snow returned and we were dealt another weather day.

We’re optimistic that the weather pattern is changing; we saw the sun this evening for the first time in four days. We’re all in good spirits, ready and rested for the move to 14k.

RMI Guide Mike Walter and Team

June 26, 2017 Today was a well deserved rest day! Yesterday was quite the endeavor and I think everyone was happy to not have an alarm clock to answer to. We stayed cozied in our sleeping bags until the sun hit our tents and the warmth beckoned us out around 9:45 am. Emerging from our tents we wet straight into a leisurely Quesadilla breakfast, a special request by Pepper Dee, who turned 26 today! Later in the day we took a walk to the Edge of the World and everyone got to strike a pose while peering out over the vast expanse of glaciers and mountain peaks. I may be bias but I think the best picture involved a blow up couch that the birthday boy had hauled up all the way from base camp! We finished the day off with a quick dinner and chat about plans for tomorrow. If the weather cooperates we will be headed to 17,000' camp in order to be in position for our summit bid! Yeehaw! Good night from 14! RMI Guide Mike Haugen

On The Map