Today, RMI Guides Brent Okita and JJ Justman led their teams to the summit of Mount Rainier! With a looming forecast of a change in our glorious weather, the guides decided today was the day! They crested the crater rim around 7:40 a.m. and spent an hour on the summit before a cloud cap started to form and they began their descent. The team is currently on the last stretch between Ingraham Flats (11,200') and Camp Muir (10,000') where they will celebrate and rest for the night. The seminar has two more days to gain additional training before they end their week on Mount Rainier.
Congratulations to the teams!!!
Jambo! We are back in Arusha getting our last minute shopping in. Today's game viewing in Tarangire was excellent. We started with several close ups of elephant families and then, right before we exited the park, we came upon a pride of lions that was stalking a herd of wildebeests. The lions made several runs at the wildebeests but did not make any kills. It was still really cool to see the big cats in action though.
After we finish shopping we will head back to the Dik Dik to clean up and then it's off to the airport for our flights home. It's been a great trip and today was the icing on the cake.
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
We're half way through the second day of safari and we are off to a great start. We had an early breakfast at our safari lodge and then drive to Ngorongoro crater. Before entering the crater we visited a Maasai village. Once inside the crater we got lucky and have been able to see some of the big cats. We're about to have lunch now and then we'll do some more game viewing.
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
RMI Teams reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. RMI Guide Brent Okita led the Four Day Summit Climb and Eric Frank led the Five Day Summit Climb team. The teams began their descent from the crater rim at 7 am and reported light winds and a bit of a cloud cap. The teams will return to Camp Muir and then continue down to Paradise. We look forward to seeing them back at Rainier BaseCamp later today.
Congratulations to today's Summit Climb Teams!
You did it!!! I love you and we are all so proud of you! You are awesome!!!
Posted by: Bobbie Jo on 8/12/2014 at 8:06 pm
Daddy! YoU did it! I am so proud of going after a dream and actually living it! You are such a great example. I love you daddy and I cannot wait to hear all about it! Xoxo Mari Jo
We woke to beautiful, clear skies today and enjoyed the early morning warmth after a slightly chilly night. First up for the day was an all important breakfast with pancakes, eggs, hashbrowns, cereal and last but not least COFFEE. A special thanks to Jeff Martin for preparing a wonderful travel kit with plenty of it.
We hit the trail a little before 9am and slowly made our way passing dozens of tea houses, trekkers, and porters. We crossed several suspension bridges decorated with prayer flags that sit high above the valley floor with amazing views in all directions. After a few hours hiking we arrived at the big hill that leads up to the famous Namche Bazaar, which is the center of the Khumbu Valley. The team did a great job and before too long we all arrived in Namche just in time for a late lunch and before the snowflakes started to fall from the sky. We spent the remainder of the evening exploring this small town and napping as we continue to adjust to the new time zone and altitude.
Everyone is in good spirits and looking forward to our rest day tomorrow.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew
The team has now trekked into the thin air of Camp 2. With an elevation of 18,000' nothing proves to be easy up here. Even the simple tasks like setting up tents, inflating a sleeping pad, or heading to the bathroom take twice as long, but the team is handling it perfectly!
After a relatively short hike up and now having camp established, the goal is to breathe, sip water, and feel good. With the views of this proudly positioned camp it can at least aid in the task of feeling 100%. It looks in one direction northward over the impressive crest of the Andes Mountains, with glaciers pouring out of the high valleys. In another direction, is our next goal, Camp 3, 1,600' above our current location. And in yet another, the top of Aconcagua, around 4,800' above us.
As the summit draws closer, it is tough to just lay in the tent and let our bodies adjust to this unforgiving environment, but very key to our success. The team is strong, positive, and amped to be in one of the highest places in the world.
RMI Guide Garrett Stevens
Our Four Day Summit Climb Teams led by RMI Guides JJ Justman and Billy Nugent did not leave Camp Muir last night. High winds, heavy precipitation and low visibility made Camp Muir the high point for the team. The teams enjoyed breakfast and hot coffee this morning and are now en-route to Paradise and will be back at RMI Basecamp early this afternoon.
Congratulations to today's teams!
JJ, Billy, Katrina, Steve, Lindsey and Brian(?) were AWESOME!!! Thank you so much for the expert instruction, professionalism, the laughs and most importantly for making sure we all were able to make it back home safely and in one piece. Best of luck to all of you.
Sincerely,
Two-timer(Roger) and Treadmill(Debbie)
P.S. Sheik Rules!!
Posted by: Roger and Debbie on 8/31/2013 at 12:03 pm
Hey Seth here checking in from Mweka Camp, that is our last camp on Kilimanjaro. We made it back to High Camp in really good time and the good weather continued all the way down. Everyone is tucked into our tents and just waiting for dinner. We are going to crash out early tonight after a super long day, but a successful one. Tomorrow we are off the mountain and back at the hotel. I will send summit photos when we get back into Wi-Fi range.
That’s it for us.
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall and team.
Unbelievable accomplishment for this team. A huge congrats to Phil and Susan. We are super proud of you both, but Susan, you rock! Missed you in the Hood, but what you did there can’t be topped. Ciao! D & W
Posted by: Denise and Wayne on 8/13/2013 at 10:01 pm
The crew continues to impress. Today we once again met our goal of arriving back at 11000'. We enjoyed another priceless day climbing down the West Buttress to 14,00' camp to gather our cache and leftover food. The team took a couple hour rest before continuing down to the now thick air of 11000'. Tonight we all contributed the last of our meats, cheeses and bread products for a well deserved greasy fry pan delight. Now for some sleep and one last early start and our final long walk of Kahiltna Glacier to base camp.
The weather at Kahiltna International Airport in the morning will determine our true final step in completing this incredible adventure. One last quote for the evening, shared from Lisa at base camp a few nights ago: "The summit is for the ego, the journey is for the soul." What a journey we have had!
Hi Larry,
What an experience you and the team must have had up there. Can’t wait to hear more about the trip from you.
Congrats to all,
From your proud sis.
Posted by: Debbie on 6/20/2011 at 9:57 pm
Great job to the whole team! Soak up the views on the way down and enjoy the end of the journey. Craig and Josh, so proud of you guys! I can’t wait to see pictures and hear your stories. Big thanks to Tyler and team for keeping up in the loop.
Craig, miss you and see you soon in Alaska! Love Susan
Hola from Ecuador,
All is well as we prepare for our summit attempt.
We spent the first half of the day reviewing some basic climbing techniques on the glacier. Then the team had a quick lunch and a siesta to make up for some of the sleep we didn't get last night. Apparently a few of the team members forgot to mention they snore.
We had a nice dinner and then finished packing up the last bit of gear needed for our climb. Everyone is feeling good and excited for tonight's climb. The weather has been good thus far, clear in the mornings and cloudy in the afternoons. Hopefully it will be the same for us tomorrow.
Wish us luck!
Jeff and the entire team congratulations on a great job. We are sitting Ina bar in Moscow and everybody is cheering you on. Mom and Dad
Posted by: Donald Norris on 9/20/2014 at 7:18 am
Congratulations Marc!!! We are so proud of you! What an accomplishment!
Love you, Susan, Cameron, Sydney & Lucy
Posted by: Susan on 9/19/2014 at 5:23 pm
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