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So exciting! Good luck Charlie and the team! Can’t wait to hear how it goes :)
Posted by: Anna on 2/16/2014 at 7:16 pm
Go Dad GO.
Love reading about what you are doing.
Ken, Alex and Sophia
Posted by: Veronica on 2/16/2014 at 7:10 pm
We have been following your progress and think that you have been fortunate so far in the weather gods! Keep it up! Stay safe and we wish you great luck on your summit climb.
Posted by: Ruthann Rossiter on 7/2/2011 at 8:12 pm
Good Luck. Hope you can summit soon!
Posted by: Mom Haugen on 7/2/2011 at 3:59 pm
Posted by: Casey Grom
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Kilimanjaro
Hello one last time everyone!
Today the team headed to Tarangire National Park know for its abundant animals and plentiful elephants, and it didn’t disappoint. Not sure how many elephants we saw, probably several hundred, possibly more than a thousand. It wouldn’t seem like we could get tired of seeing elephants, but there were so many that eventually we had to keep driving so we could see other animals.
There were lots of giraffes, zebras, wildebeest, Cape buffalo, impalas, monkeys, ostriches, and many others, including 6-8 lions which was a highlight.
We are spending our last night here in Africa at Nyikani Camp, which has beautiful tented rooms with screen windows to allow the sounds of the African night in. If you’ve ever heard the term “Glamping” that’s exactly what we are doing.
Everyone is doing great and we hope to catch a sighting of a few more cats on our way out tomorrow. Then we will head back to our main lodge near Arusha for a quick shower before catching our evening flights home.
I asked everyone for a single word that would best summarize their experience for this trip.
So in no particular order here are our words.
Overcome
WOW
Perseverance
Transformative
Humbling
Determined
Indomitable
Connection
Fulfilling
Simple
Transcendent
Come join us for an adventure sometime!
RMI Guide Casey Grom and the safari crew

New Post Alerts:
Kilimanjaro Climb & Safari September 2, 2025
Posted by: Casey Grom, Lael Butler, Mitch Valaitis, Brooks Ordway Smith, Julian Kral, Felipe Guarderas, CJ Rogers, Simon Kearns
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Four Day Climbs led by RMI Guides Casey Grom and Lael Butler reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning! The teams were on the summit around 7:45 am and enjoying the beautiful weather. We look forward to seeing them back in Ashford later this afternoon.
Congratulations climbers!
Posted by: Casey Grom
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Kilimanjaro
Jambo Everyone
Today the team left behind our beautiful and comfortable river lodge and have headed to the mountain towards the start of the climb. We left around 8am and drove along the rural country side and small villages for two hours before reaching the Kilimanjaro National Park entrance.
Most of the area surrounding Kilimanjaro has been cultivated and primarily used for coffee production and for a variety of other agriculture needs, but there are still some areas that have been untouched and resemble more of a savannah that Tanzania is known for. The base of Kilimanjaro is more forested and looks more jungle like and is called a cloud forest.
Once we arrived at the park gate we had all of our gear weighed and divided into loads for our porters and other staff to carry before hitting the trail. Once everything was in order we started our climb slowly making our way up the winding trail that ascends continuously through the thick forest. Thankfully the overhead canopy provided a little cover from the intense sun and we were happy it didn’t rain either. It took our team around 5hr to reach our camp for the night that sits around 10’000ft.
Once we were settled into camp and got everybody situated the team was served a nice warm meal for dinner before retiring for the night. Everyone is still feeling the jet lag, and I’m sure the team will sleep well tonight.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and Kili crew
Posted by: Dave Hahn, Hannah Smith, Chad Gaffigan, Luke Wilhelm
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley
Elevation: 14,200'
On The Map
Wow! Truly amazing Meghan! Happy 4th!!
Peg
Posted by: Peg DecFilippis on 7/5/2019 at 3:16 pm
Posted by: Mike Haugen, Geoff Schellens
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
Congratulations team. I was so intent on getting my post climb comma sleep I did not get to say a proper good by to you all. It was a pleasure climbing with all of you. Truly an inspiring group of folks to climb with. There was never a doubt that this entire team was going to make it “up top”. Thank you all for your inspiration. Thank you Scott for the post climb refreshment drink. Thank you Mike, Josh, and my rope team leader JM for taking such great care of us.
PS: I did wake up from my 10 hour comma sleep and thought, yes, I want to do this again!
Posted by: David Fruin on 7/12/2014 at 7:58 am
Helen and Roger, I hope you are having the time of your life. I’ve been thinking about you and praying for your safety. Stay warm and I am sure you are enjoying the beautiful view. Hugs to you both!!!
Posted by: Vickie Davis on 7/12/2014 at 5:50 am














Another summit conquerd. Congratulations Trey. Enjoy being back in civilization.
Posted by: Phyllis Craig on 7/23/2019 at 12:28 am
Love these posts! Congrats on another summit. Can’t wait to see the pics.
Posted by: Bridget on 7/22/2019 at 6:35 pm
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