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Hello from 17,000’. The increasing wind and snow have made the decision to go up or down an easy one, conditions dictate that we sit here and bide our time until the weather clears up. Nearly 2 feet of snow has fallen and drifted around camp and we take periodic forays into the weather to shovel out camp, clear off tents and do weather dances.
We are safely ensconced behind solid walls with enough food and fuel to weather some time up here. Cross your fingers and we'll keep you posted as things hopefully progress. Our spirits remain high and every few hours we will pile into one tent to swap stories and shoot the breeze.
For now a little forced R & R, is the best way to deal with the mountain. So, we'll sit it out until new options present themselves. That's all from 17. This is Jake, Mike and the crew hanging tough on Mt. McKinley.
Listen to Jake and Mike's "Tent Bound Things Considered" Commentary below...
Tent Bound Things Considered by Jake Beren & Mike Uchal
Posted by: Jake Beren, Steve Gately, Megan Budge
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley
Elevation: 7,800'
May 31, 2017
The team woke up this morning, ate one last home cooked breakfast and gathered at the hanger where our gear was waiting at K2 Aviation. The bad weather of the last few days cleared up over night and we anticipated being able to fly into the range early this morning. We all spent a few moments finalizing our backpacks and duffels when K2 gave us the thumbs up. We quickly loaded up two aircraft with everything we'll need for the next three weeks and before we knew it we were in world of flowing ice, snow and rock.
A 45 minute plane ride takes you from the comforts of town and puts you rather abruptly in a harsh environment and every year I'm always amazed at how I never quite get used to how quickly life changes in Talkeetna. For many decades starting in the early 1900's expeditions would start there journey with a week or more of toiling through the Alaskan bush just to reach where we have flown in under an hour. I'll take the plane please!
An hour spent repacking and gearing up had us walking down the Southeast Fork of the Kahiltna Glacier by noon. The skies were blue, the temps pleasant and the views massive. Only once in the last 4 years have I had the pleasure of walking up the Kahiltna Glacier with a view and the team did great readjusting to life in the range. Five hours of hard work brought us to our first camp at the base of Ski Hill at 7,800ft. We spent the afternoon setting up our camp. The team is now tucked in for the night getting some well earned rest. Tomorrow we will cache some gear at 10,000ft then return back to 7,800 to sleep. Forecast is calling for more good weather tomorrow and the team is excited to explore new terrain!
Thanks for following along everyone.
RMI Guide Steve Gately
On The Map
Hi!!! Thinking about you tons! Hope u r enjoying every minute! Can’t wait to hear all about it in person! Love Us
Posted by: Cosco Clan on 6/2/2017 at 2:51 pm
Good morning to all
Wish I could make you all my famous meatballs and homemade pasta
Be safe
You have hundreds of people sending you all good wishes and prayers
Love you Stephen
mom/dad - aka Tina and John
Posted by: Tina Zabinski on 6/2/2017 at 6:11 am
Posted by: Tyler Reid
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Chile Ski
With Sergio's 4x4 driving skills playing a crucial role, yesterday our Hyundai van plowed through the 20 cm blanket of new snow over the road to Las Araucarias, a ski area at the base of Volcan Llaima. It felt like full blown winter leaving the parking lot - snow falling from the sky... We decided to take the optimistic approach and see if we could potentially climb out of the clouds. After an hour or so we were at the top of the ski area, with no reference points above. We were able to fit five of us in a tiny unused lift shack, and I did what I usually so when times are uncertain: put on some reggae. With my iPhone as the sound system and Chronixx filling the air, it was the ideal "out-chill the situation" maintenance break. Properly fueled and motivated, we ascended into the whiteness above. Hours later we found ourselves in the parking lot, this time Sergio's Hyundai as the sound system, Protoje filling the air, cervezas in hand, smiles on our faces... Llaima (and the weather) said no yesterday, but what a positive day in the mountains it was.
Yesterday evening we drove to another mountain, the Hyundai taking us up and up and up a steep lava rock road in 4LO, into a mysterious and remote mountain jungle. Out of the mist appeared Sollipulli Lodge, a place that inspires your childlike imagination. "Eco lodge" is probably the best term to describe this place - each room is its own incredible yurt-like pod situated on a lagoon, with other beautiful alternative structures connected by boardwalks. Mountain jungle living, combined with incredible comfort, and incredibly gracious hosts - the father and son duo Christian and Robert.
Sollipulli is a volcano with an expansive crater that similar to Crater Lake in Oregon and was once much taller before collapsing inward on itself. This morning we had a beautiful ascent to the summit, using a variety of ski mountaineering skills along the way. The weather was in and out, but eventually we found ourselves back in the "viento blanco" - low visibility, annoyingly windy, snowing...
I learned a new tactic on Sollipulli for terrain reference in whiteout conditions. When you're in the lead, it can be hard to know what sort of terrain you are on, or about to walk into, and guides will use various tricks in these conditions to ensure they're not leading the group off a cornice or into a crevasse. These are low tech solutions like throwing snowballs, casting a piece of cord tied to your ski pole like a fishing rod...or bringing along a pack of three golden retrievers who follow you all the way to the summit, clearly loving every minute of it, while also providing valuable terrain reference. These Sollipulli dogs were amazing, and also very competent in the winter alpine environment.
Our Sollipulli descent ended in a wood-fired hot tub next to a crystal clear river, an ideal place to relax in the late afternoon rain.
RMI Guide Tyler Reid
July 15, 2014 - 4:21 pm PT
Hello again from Huaraz!
Relaxing day we had after all the travelling today... A two hour walk after breakfast took the team the overlook above town from where we devised the closest peaks of the Cordillera Blanca. It served also to get the blood pumping, on this the first day above 3,000 m, elevation we reached yesterday by car, so all benefits. We had a great meal afterwards (pizza from the stove oven restaurant of "El Horno", a classic in Huaraz) and an easy afternoon of pre-packing the duffles prior to tomorrow's departure to the trailhead.
We´re getting ready for dinner and an early bed time; Cashapampa trailhead and eventually Llamacorral Camp await tomorrow. Next post will be from the trails.
Best regards,
Elias de Andres Martos
Cool. Keep the updates coming. We’re watching closely and I’m posting everything to Facebook. These updates are my only link to what you guys are doing and where you are. I’m sending everything to Kenzie’s family and friends so they can follow too. Good luck fellas! Enjoy the mountains and stay away from getting caught doing the Alpine Starfish :)
Posted by: Rhea Campbell & Alex Lickerman on 7/16/2014 at 9:36 am
Posted by:
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Ecuador
Our team has all safely arrived in Quito (the capital city), and is presently getting accustomed to the new environment and the high altitude here. Today we went on a city tour of the historical parts of Old Town Quito, where we saw much of the colonial center of town. We learned a good bit of interesting Ecuadorian history from our very knowledgeable and enthusiastic local guide, Jorge. After various stops at historic points of interest we traveled to the hill in the south of Quito known as El Panecillo, where beautiful weather afforded us expansive views down on the city of Quito, as well as views of the mountains we will attempt to climb: Cotopaxi to the south and Cayambe to the north. Next we headed south to the equator, where we were able to stand with one foot in the northern hemisphere and one in the southern hemisphere! We also visited a very interesting ethnographic museum at this site and we learned about the very diverse cultures of Ecuador. The day ended with a delicious dinner in the relaxing atmosphere of the popular Magic Bean restaurant.
Tomorrow we will take our first of two acclimatization hikes. We will take a gondola ride from Quito to 13,500' and begin a hike up the Volcano Rucu Pichincha. The hike will take us up over 15,000' and (weather permitting) will allow for views of the Avenue of Volcanoes. Everyone is doing well here in country, and we're looking forward to getting some exercise on our hike tomorrow. I will check in tomorrow to update you with the events of the day.
Posted by: Dave Hahn, Hannah Smith, Chad Gaffigan, Luke Wilhelm
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley
Elevation: 14,000'
Wednesday, July 3, 2019 - 10:22 PM PT
Yet another snowy, cloudy morning at 14,000' Camp. There was less wind today though, so it was easier to be outside. It wasn’t a day for moving up or down the mountain -everybody stayed put. We found diversions, like remodeling the walls of our bathroom and kitchen and generally just digging holes in the snow. There was a brief clearing around noon, but then things clouded up again and the wind appeared to ramp up on the South Peak. We did a mid-afternoon quesadilla session and then logged a little tent time. In the evening we attended a barbecue. The final National Park Service ranger patrol of the season is tasked with packing up the NPS camp at 14K and they decided they had too much meat. Not wanting it to go to waste, they invited all the remaining teams on the mountain to come over to socialize and get a cheeseburger, which we did. There were about fifty of us standing out in the snow, comparing home towns and countries and climbing goals. Up at 17,000 there may be another 25 climbers waiting for a weather break, but they are sadly out of cheeseburger range.
Believe it or not, we STILL like the forecast. We’ll get moving again tomorrow or the next day.
Best Regards
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
On The Map
Love you and miss you Tym!! Hang in there.
Posted by: Kristen on 7/4/2019 at 10:07 am
Posted by: Dave Hahn
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Vinson Massif
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The weather out at Vinson Base remained unsuitable for flying. The fog was in. We ate breakfast and drank coffee at Union Glacier Camp. Without a ray of hope for the Vinson mission, the Twin Otter aircraft were dispatched on long flights that took them close to the South Pole. They dropped off several teams interested in skiing "the Last Degree" (of latitude - 60 nautical miles) to the Pole. Back at Union, our team whiled away a windy morning inside the dining tent. After lunch, things had calmed and so we got out our ropes and rescue gear to run through crevasse rescue systems. There are dozens of other climbers in our same boat... Waiting for a plane. They were out in force today, reviewing their own rope techniques in Russian, German, French, Chinese, and exotic English.
We'll hope for a change in the fog out at BBC tomorrow.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Antartica seems to be such an isolated and beautiful space and while I am hoping one day to be able to explore the under and above aspects of this remote white and blue place, I am going to content myself by reading your adventurous expeditions. Way to go ” Mr Cousteau in the mountains “
Posted by: Chrystel on 12/11/2014 at 11:56 am
Back to back Vinson Massif guide climbs Dave? You are still an animal! Be safe all and have fun.
Posted by: Jeff Olson on 12/10/2014 at 7:50 am
Posted by: Elias de Andres Martos, Robby Young
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Peru Seminar
Elevation: 17,380'
Good afternoon, this is the climbing team in Peru. Elias calling here. We have made it to high camp on Tocllaraju and we are perched at 5,100m right on the edge of the glacier. A sense of accomplishment that everybody has right now. It's indescribable as we are in one of the most beautiful places that we have seen so far on this trip. We are surrounded by a huge cirque of 5,000 and 6,000-meter peaks. Tonight we are going to get ready to climb Tocllaraju, the last and most challenging objective of our seminar. Everybody is doing really well and we are having right now really good weather. Everything is on schedule and we will keep you posted tomorrow hopefully from the summit, sometime in the early morning. Right now it's 4 o'clock in the afternoon local time in Peru. We are brewing some water and cooking some dinner. That's pretty much it for now. We will hope to, like I said, call tomorrow from the summit and wrap up this amazing expedition. That's all for now. Good evening.
RMI Guide Elias de Andres Martos
Elias de Andres Martos calling from Tocllaraju's High Camp.
Corell - it sounds beautiful ( and you are too - that should embarrass you if Elias reads these out loud!)
Thurston the Younger loved his first day at lacrosse camp.
Christian is still glowing over Germany’s win - and we are off to UVA today for orientation.
Good luck on the summit. And come home quickly - I am going through withdrawal and need a fix!
Posted by: Thurston on 7/10/2014 at 5:06 am
Posted by: Billy Nugent, Chase Nelson
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mt. McKinley
Elevation: 7,800'
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June 13, 2014 - 9:40 pm PT
Welcome! To the first of many blog installments for the June 10, 2014, RMI expedition to Denali. Our team first met a couple days ago in Anchorage and enjoyed a cramped van ride up to Talkeetna. There, we spent the following day packing and prepping for our bush flight in the midst of a shaky weather forecast. We went to bed on Wednesday night locked and loaded with our fingers crossed for blue skies in the a.m... As luck would have it our good friends at K2 Aviation were able to drop us off at Kahiltna Basecamp in a pair of Otter ski planes first thing in the morning! After building and moving in to our camp we spent the rest of the day making our final preparations for the trip.
Today was the first real day of the expedition. We woke early and broke camp and packed up for our single-carry to Camp 1 at 7,800'. A single-carry means we are loaded down with all of the equipment, food, and fuel to sustain our expedition for 22 days... It rounds out to about 100lbs of gear per climber split between a sled and backpack. We had a couple of occasional breaks of clear skies but spent most of the day sheltered from the blazing sun by a thin layer of clouds and light snow flurries. While it might sound inclement, it actually kept temperatures from getting too warm and made for nice walking. We are all settled in at 7,800' for the night and are hoping to continue up tomorrow with another single-carry to 9,600' and Camp 2.
We'll check in again and let ya'll know how it went...
RMI Guide Billy Nugent
On The Map
Happy Father’s Day Michael and to any other fathers with you! Your life lessons have been and continue to be incredible. Enjoy the journey! Love you and stay safe!!
Posted by: Mary Lou Quandt on 6/15/2014 at 7:15 am
Mike,
cycling class isn’t as fun without you! We are thinking of you daily!
Well wishes-Paige and Warren
Posted by: paige woodward on 6/14/2014 at 7:02 pm
The RMI Four Day Summit Climb Teams led by Chad Peele and Garrett Stevens stood on the summit of Mt. Rainier today. The teams are doing well and reported warm temperatures and clear skies. The teams are now en-route back to Camp Muir.
Congratulations to Today's teams!
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WHOOHOO!! Go Team! So great to hear you have reached 17’000… bring on the summit! I can’t even imagine how you are all feeling at this point but know that we are thinking of you every day and praying that the weather will co-operate. Barry we love you brother. Say a prayer for us too. It’s raining 24/7 here in Vang Vieng, Laos, South East Asia so we might not get to go “tubing”, everybody AWWWW (joking!). Obviously you have a lot more to be thinking about :) God bless you all and may you have the most incredible experience on reaching that summit. Irish love and hugs XXX
Posted by: Kathryn & Pearse Mc Kiernan on 6/28/2011 at 5:27 am
Gilbert are you there…...we have heard from Jake and Mike….where are you? Hope the wind calms down soon and you all can move to the top!
Posted by: Chris chase on 6/27/2011 at 2:00 pm
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