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Greetings from Machame Camp, The missing bag finally showed up last night and we have one very happy climber. For the last few days the weather has been a little unstable, with some heavy rain showers in the lowlands. But this morning, just as we were approaching the mountain, the clouds started to thin and we saw Kilimanjaro for the first time. After people got over the initial surprise of how big it looks from a distance, it became obvious that the unstable weather we had in town, had covered the mountain with a white blanket of snow. Usually you have to look pretty hard to find snow on the mountain, so this was a pretty cool sight to see. It won't affect our climb though, as most of it will melt before we reach high camp. Having left our hotel this morning right on time, we were at the park gate before any of the other climbing groups showed up. We made quick work of taking care of the permits and registration. And after the final porter's bag was weighed, we were off and walking. The weather continued to improve all day and we had perfect temperatures all the way to camp. We walked into camp at 3:30 and got settled into our new accommodations at 10,000'. Everyone did great today on the trail. This group showed up well prepared, and ready for the challenge ahead. We'll send out another update tomorrow when we get to Shira Camp. Best, RMI Guide Jeff Martin

On The Map

Hey this is Seth standing on top of El Pico de Orizaba also known as Citlaltépetl , the tallest point in Mexico, the third highest in North America. It took us about 7 ½ hours from high camp to reach the summit. Everybody did great, it’s a beautiful day and the boys are psyched let’s here them (yells in background). We will check in again when we are back down in Tlachichucha this evening. And tomorrow we are going home. RMI Guide Seth Waterfall

On The Map

It's a cold, cold world. We woke up and fired the stoves at about 3:30 this morning and things were looking good: clear skies, bright moon, and calm winds. We scarfed a quick breakfast, had a quick cup of coffee, packed up, and hit the not so dusty trail. The consistent snowfall of the past week has blanketed the mountain so what is normally a gravelly trail out of Cólera was a very snowy sendero. Our team moved well, per the norm, despite the large number of other climbers clogging the route and before too long we had climbed past the Indepencia Hut (ruins) and hit the traverse into the Canaleta. At some point along the way we found ourselves no longer enjoying the clear skies but instead traveling under consistent snowfall. In fact it was snowing heavily and visibility was poor. Despite the worsening weather the snowpack seemed ok until we reached the center of the traverse. Walt and myself headed out further without the group and found the normally gravelly trail under several feet of snow. In fact the whole Canaleta was smoothed over with the storm snow. Every other team on the mountain had already turned around due to avalanche hazard but we hadn't seen anything worth turning around until the deep storm layer that we encountered in the lower Canaleta. While the snow didn't seem super reactive the steeper part of the Canaleta was surely more dangerous and there was no way to see without exposing ourselves to the hazard. With worsening weather and continued snowfall we decided that the dire consequences of an incident were too much for us to shoulder. We weren't willing to bet our lives on it so we did the smart thing and turned around at 21,500'. Now we are back at high camp and the weather is still crappy. So much for the forecasted sunny day... RMI Guide Billy Nugent

On The Map

Our climbing team has all arrived in Ecuador, and we just got back from our first acclimatization hike up Rucu Pichincha, a 15,400' volcano outside of Quito. Now we're traveling to the town of Papallacta, well-known for its natural hot springs, for another acclimatization hike. Everyone is doing great with the rapid increase in altitude, but we all felt the thin air and were huffing and puffing up above 15,000'. Thanks for checking in. We'll be in touch... RMI Guide Mike Walter

On The Map

The Four Day Summit Climb teams led by RMI Guides Elias de Andres Martos and Walter Hailes reached the summit of Mt. Rainier around 7 a.m. PT. The teams reported really good weather and climbing conditions. Mostly blue skies above them with a thick cloud layer down around 9,500'. They will enjoy some time on the summit before starting their descent to Camp Muir and continue down to Paradise this afternoon. The Liberty Ridge climb led by RMI Guides Casey Grom and Andres Marin will be returning to Ashford today. The team was unable to climb due to poor weather and route conditions. We look forward to seeing the teams this afternoon at Rainier BaseCamp. Congratulations to today's summit climb teams!

Hi Everyone! We are back at 14 Camp after a great day carrying a load of food and fuel to the top of the fixed lines at 16,200'. Our team climbed strong and we were all excited to get a feel for the upper mountain and steeper snow and ice. We arrived back in camp with enough sunshine left in the day to sit outside the tents and relax and rehydrate while our boots dried (and more importantly AIRED!) out. The weather is looking good and we hope to move up to high camp soon and make our summit bid! RMI Guide Solveig Waterfall & Team

Rest, rest, rest...the order of the day was rest. After five days of mountaineering work on Mt. McKinley everyone enjoyed our first day of eating, napping, reading, more eating and then bed time. As luck would have it that the first windy, snowy day coincided with our day of rest. Perfect timing. As we get in bed for the night the sky is clearing and the wind has subsided. We are hoping for another good day tomorrow as we climb to 14,000 feet. Happy anniversary Steve and Denise. RMI Guide Walter Hailes & Team

On The Map

Ok we didn’t get eaten by lions that last night in Tarangire National Park.  There were fresh overnight Hyena tracks in the dirt where we were loading up the Landcruisers though, so we’ll count it as a close one.  It was still dark when we ate breakfast at Nyikani Tent Camp and just beginning to get light when we drove away -on the prowl again for a final morning of wildlife viewing.  Our excellent naturalist guide/drivers Johnson and Chacha kept finding (and explaining) the good stuff, including a big python on an overhead branch, and “strangular“ fig trees taking over baobobs.  Safari couldn’t last forever though, so at 10:30 we left the park finally and began making our way back to Arusha.  We made a final stop for shopping, some culture and a picnic lunch before returning to the familiar Rivertrees for the afternoon.  By evening the team was going separate ways; some to Zanzibar, some to the Serengeti and several of us back into uncomfortable airplane seats.  We shared a fun and memorable adventure on the roof of Africa…more than making up for airline/airport tediousness. 
Thanks for following along. 

RMI Guide Dave Hahn

RMI Guide Dustin Wittmier radioed in at 8:45 am to report that the team reached the summit of Mt. Rainier. The team started their summit attempt from Camp Schurman and climbed the Emmons Glacier to reach the top. They have one more night on the mountain where they will continue to develop their alpine mountaineering skills in hopes of tackling bigger peaks like Denali and Aconcagua.

Congratulations Emmons Team!

RMI Guide Mike Haugen radioed from Columbia Crest at 7:10AM to report that the Four Day Summit Climb July 9 - 12 was on the summit of Mt. Rainier. Mike reported a beautiful day with lights winds which increased at the crater. The teams enjoyed the clear skies and beautiful views before starting their descent from the crater rim. Congratulations to today's Summit Climb teams!