Hello all.
It was a beautiful day here on Kilimanjaro today. Clear skies and relatively warm weather made for an enjoyable day.
The team easily climbed the 1,000-foot high and intimidating Barranco Wall on our way to camp today. We made our way via a series of broken ledges and small steps and we were in awe of how easily the porters climbed this wall while still balancing their loads on their heads.
We are currently resting at Karanga Camp, which sits above the great Karanga Valley and has views of the towns far below.
Everyone is doing well and we are in good spirits!
RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew
After three long days of climbing we are back at 14 Camp with the summit of Mt. McKinley under our belts. We couldn't believe our luck when we woke up at 17 Camp to absolutely beautiful weather so we set out on our summit bid mid morning, having waited a bit for the sun to warm everything up.
Nevertheless, it was still cold as we climbed the long traverse out of camp to Denali Pass at 18,500'. At the Pass a light but cold wind was blowing, so we kept our break short before continuing upwards. As soon as we climbed a few hundred vertical feet above the pass we escaped the wind that was funneling through there and it became great climbing. We made our way upwards, passing a few rock outcroppings before cresting into a broadd plateau called the Football Field (19,500') that sits below the final push to the summit. The weather remained perfect and the team strong so we set out, climbing the slopes to the summit ridge and then traversing the wildly corniced ridgeline to the summit. A moderate wind was blowing out of the southeast, which we had been protected from up till that point, but as we climbed along the ridge it blew plumes of powder snow around us - making for cold going. Finally we skirted the last cornice and climbed the final feet to the summit. It was beautiful from the top, with views in all directions.
After celebrating and soaking in thhe moment for a bit, we turned around and descended back to hig camp. The winds picked up as we descended but otherwise everyone climbed well, making it back to camp in the late evening.
This morning the wind continued to blow down through Denali Pass and into camp - not a great day to go for the top. We packed up camp and descended back down the West Buttress and down the fixed lines. It was smooth going but our legs felt the summit day yesterday, so we were all pleased to reach 14 Camp and take our packs off.
Now are sights are set on getting back to Base Camp so we can fly back to Talkeetna and then head home. We are spending the night here at 14 Camp before descending back to our first camp at 7800' at the head of the lower Kahiltna Glacier tomorrow. We plan to set up camp there for the evening and then wake up in the middle of the night to cross the lower glacier when things are nice and frozen and the snow bridges across the crevasses are strongest, hopefully arriving at Base Camp Sunday morning and flying out later that day. We'll need the weather to continue to cooperate but we're all feeling optimistic. We'll check in tomorrow from 7,800'.
Linden
The Expedition Skills Seminar – Emmons has reached Camp Schurman. JJ reports that the team is doing well. The weather is currently sunny with some clouds above and below. The team is planning on making their summit attempt tonight. Wish them well!
RMI Guide JJ Justman
The Four Day Summit Climb led by Casey Grom returned safely to Camp Muir at 8:53am. The team left Muir for their summit attempt at 3am, by 7am they had reached their highpoint of 12,000’. Casey reported inches to feet of new snow with drifts, “It’s like winter up here!”
The Five Day Summit Climb just arrived to Rainier Basecamp in Ashford. They are enjoying some breakfast and warming up after a rain and snow descent from Camp Muir this morning.
We had a great climb of Iliniza Norte today. Conditions were good, a mix of rock and snow, with a steep scramble to the summit at ~16,500'. The weather was good- at times we were climbing in the clouds, and at others we had good views of other high peaks in Ecuador, including Antisana, Cayambe, and our next objective, Cotopaxi.
On the drive down from the climb today we were treated to two condors soaring above us. It was majestic to see their 10-foot wingspan backdropped against a verdant patchwork of Andean farm country.
We're now headed to the hacienda Chilcabamba, where we will get a chance to shower and rest before heading up to the climbers' hut on Cotopaxi tomorrow.
Everyone is doing great, and we give a big "hola" to everyone back home.
We'll be in touch soon.
RMI Guide Mike Walter
Around 12:30 today, our entire team stood on top of Mt. Shuksan. Today the weather was mostly cloudy, but we were rewarded with a break in the clouds on our descent. Tomorrow morning we will pack up camp and head into town to celebrate. Congrats to the team!
RMI guide Sam Hoffman, Hannah Blum, and Brooks Ordway-Smith
We're still hanging at 14,000' Camp, amid snow, wind, and very limited visibility. We're hoping for a little break in the weather so that we can pack up camp and head down around Windy Corner and start our descent. The weather isn't having any of that, though. At this point we're comfy and safe at camp and there's no reason to force a descent into terrible weather. As eager as we are to get to Kahiltna Base Camp, it is not a pressing matter because planes cannot fly (much less land on the glacier) in this weather.
Good evening again, this time from Yanapacha Moraine camp. After a good rest/acclimatizing rest day yesterday, we moved uphill today, and established our home for the next couple of nights in the vecinity of the glacier at 4800m. The hike was one the most beautiful ones that this guide remembers, with giants like Huandoy, Chacraraju and Huascarán North guarding our ascent over the steep grassy slopes on the foothills of Yanapacha.
Everyone did a good job, arriving ahead of schedule and we enjoyed an incredible meal pre-cooked by our chef Emilio. French fries with a beef stir fry was a hit at this elevation. We waved good bye to our porters, and as the sun went down, we crawled into our sleeping bags to remain warm and keep the psych for tomorrow's endeavor on Yanapacha. Stay tuned for more,
Guides Peter, JT, Elias & team.
Hi this is Seth checking in from our last camp on Kilimanjaro. We are all down from the summit safe and sound.
We had a great climb that started off with a pretty good snow storm for Tanzania and ended with clear skies on top. Everyone made it to Uhuru Peak as well which was great. That makes 100% success for my two trips this season.
After the summit we had sunny skies back to high camp where we had a late breakfast and a brief rest. Following that we made our way down the notoriously steep Mweka descent trail to our final camp.
Of course we had a few rain showers get to us on the way down. That has just been the nature of Kili this season but we are all dry in our tents and planning on an early dinner.
Tomorrow we will head out in the morning and expect to be back at the Dik Dik hotel by early afternoon. Our safari starts the next morning!
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall calls in from the summit of Kilimanjaro.
Congrats to Frank and the whole team! Great job on a bigggg mountain!
Posted by: Tony Horness on 7/11/2011 at 7:41 am
We are all anxiously awaiting your return, but BE SAFE! A big hug to Frank.
Posted by: Laurie M on 7/9/2011 at 12:17 pm
View All Comments