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We had sunshine and calm conditions at 7 AM in highcamp today... which was better than the forecast called for.  There was still plenty of cloud about, but we decided to go for the summit.  It took until 9:50 to get fully fueled up and geared up for climbing, and by then a few more clouds had rolled in though we still had a good feeling about the day.  Vinson put up a fight, of course, and a few of the team were feeling effects of the altitude and so not everybody topped out.  Those that did, made it up in about 8 hours, spent nearly an hour on the summit and came down in just a couple more for a respectable round trip under 11 hrs.  The conditions swung between sunny and calm, breezy and cloudy and everything in between... all at temps of about -20 to -25 Fahrenheit, so our rest breaks were short and business like so as to keep fingers and toes flexible.  We enjoyed views of the tall and jagged peaks to Vinson’s north, and when the mountains were obscured, the sculpted cloud formations covering them were spectacular.  On top of Antarctica’s highest mountain, the team lucked out with calm and sunny “gloves off” conditions for photos, fist bumps and flag waving.  By 8:30 PM the gang was all back together at high camp.  We spent a few hours brewing up, eating, drinking and laughing.  A most memorable New Years Day was had by all. 
Best Regards
RMI Guides Dave Hahn

On The Map

The Four Day Summit Climbs August 28 - 31 led by RMI Guides Dave Hahn and Tyler Jones reached the summit of Mt. Rainier today! The teams reported they were climbing in their down parkas due to the cold temperatures this morning. They had good visibility with a broken cloud layer above at approximately 16,000' and light winds throughout their summit climb. Both teams will descend to Camp Muir and return to Paradise later this afternoon. Congratulations to today's Summit Climb Teams!

With more snow falling throughout the night and a cloudy obscured morning here at 14 Camp, we spent our 4th of July parked here at 14 Camp. The snow let up by mid morning and we spent a few hours touching up camp after all of the snow. The big snow walls we have around our tents do a great job breaking the wind but make clearing the tents a challenge as all the snow needs to be thrown up and over them. Once the tent area is cleared of the new snow we set about snugging up the guy lines and tent anchors that secure the tent in place, crucial points in case the winds pick up to keep the tents from blowing away. Turning our attention to the kitchen, we spent some time reworking our benches and cooking counters out of the snow. The kitchen is a big circular pit dug into the snow with benches and flat counters dug into the edges with a round teepee like nylon tent that covers it. After a few days of use everything begins to melt out so it took a couple of hours of shoveling and chopping through the ice to reform everything in there. With camp squared away we dove into a serious session of knot tying, spending the better part of the afternoon practicing the basic as well as more elaborate mountaineering and climbing knots. The weather has slowly cleared throughout the day and looks to be improving, a great trend for us. We are looking at the possibility of moving to high camp either tomorrow or Wednesday, depending on the weather and a few logistics we need to coordinate with Mike Haugen's RMI team which will hopefully be descending tomorrow. Happy 4th too everyone back home, we hope you're enjoying the barbecues and fireworks! RMI Guide Linden Mallory

Chad Peele reporting from 21,000 ft Casey, Scott, Rob and I moved up from Basecamp yesterday. We woke to clear skies here at Camp Two. After a nice breakfast we walked up to the base of the Lhotse face for exercise. We are preparing to climb up to Camp Three on the face tomorrow and spend the night, weather permitting. At Basecamp today, Tuck and some of the RMI Basecamp cook staff, along with a group from the HimEx team, helped build a second heli pad. Word on the street is that four more people stood on top of the world at 6:00 am today.

The Mt. Baker - Easton Glacier August 15 - 17 climb team led by RMI Guide George Hedreen reached 9,700' today before freezing rain turned them around.  They descended safely to Sandy Camp.  Once back at camp they were planning to continue their descent to the trailhead and conclude their program.

 

PC: RMI Guide Avery Stolte

Jambo Everyone

All is well here on Kilimanjaro!
Today we woke to beautifully clear skies with even better views of Kilimanjaro and clouds obscuring the valleys below. Our morning ritual has been waking around 6:30 and getting everything in our tents packed up before heading into our very spacious dinning tent for quite the feast.

We hit the trail once again around 8 am and hiked for an hour before taking our usual 15 minute break, then back on the trail for another hour. All total today we hiked for just over six hours before reaching camp which is set up and ready for us. 

Along the way we passed around the famous and beautiful Lava Tower reaching just over 15,000', setting new altitude records for some and we also chatted with a few other climbers who are on the same schedule with us. All in all it was a really nice day with clouds gathering in the afternoon to help keep the temperature comfortable for hiking. 

That’s all for now. 

RMI Guides Casey Grom, Jess Wedel and the Kili crew

Saturday, May 18, 2019 10:11 pm PT We awoke to clear skies this morning and the team enjoyed the extra sleep and a leisurely breakfast of toasted bagels, cream cheese and bacon. Just before midday we put the ropes back on and traveled back down glacier to about 10,000' to retrieve our cache of gear. The weather stayed cool for us with high wispy clouds and filtered sun making the climb back to camp quite pleasant. The team then had the rest of the afternoon off and spent it snacking, napping and more snacking. Well earned time off after the long haul up the Kahiltna. Tomorrow, weather permitting, we will try and climb higher to about 13,600ft to place another cache of gear and further acclimate. This though we lose the sleds and snowshoes for crampons and an ice axe! RMI Guide Steve Gately

On The Map

The Five Day Summit Climb Teams led by RMI Guides Robby Young and Andy Bond reached the summit of Mt. Rainier early this morning. Andy reported clear skies, light winds and cool temperatures. The route is in great condition, the team took just under five hours to reach the summit. Congratulations to today's team!

At last, we are ready to go! As of 6:30 this morning, all luggage and personnel were present and accounted for, just in time for our departure from Quito. After another hearty breakfast at our hotel, we checked out from our rooms and met up with Victor, our driver for the next few days. The pile of equipment in the hotel lobby was a sight to see, but we quickly transferred our gear to the bus and got under way. We had fun in Quito, but everyone was excited to leave the big city behind and get one step closer to our bigger climbs. A couple hours on bumpy roads took us up to a beautiful alpine lake and the start of our second acclimatization hike. Our goal this afternoon was the summit of Cerro Fuya Fuya, a fantastic peak with a craggy finish, topping out just shy of 14,000 feet. We dodged another bullet with the weather, too! Despite a brief bout of rain showers during our morning drive, by the time we started uphill the rain had stopped and we even caught a few glimpses of blue sky! After our descent from Fuya Fuya, we piled back in to the bus and drove to Otavalo and our hacienda for the evening, La Casa Sol. We spent the evening eating, drinking, and packing for our upcoming attempt at Cayambe, the first major peak of our trip. Tomorrow we'll visit the Otavalo market in the morning for some souvenir shopping and the drive to our Cayambe basecamp in the afternoon. Spirits are high with this team and we're all having a great time! Stay tuned! RMI Guide Nick Hunt

On The Map

Today we traded the bustle of Quito for the serenity of the northern Ecuadorian countryside. Life is a little slower here in Otavalo where we are staying for the night. We sat down to dinner, which felt like a family dinner as we are the only party in this hacienda tonight. Even the house dogs joined us at the table, making us truly feel like we're at home.

Our day consisted of several hours of driving and another acclimatization hike, Cerro Fuya Fuya. The weather remained quite dry today and afforded us seldom seen views from the summit. To the north we could see well into Colombia, to our east a clear view of Cayambe and to our south a variety of other big mountains of Ecuador. In fact, it was nice enough that the bus driver took a swim at the lake while we hiked.

Tonight, I'm enjoying literally the best chocolate bar in the world and tomorrow an affogato at my favorite coffee shop near the Otavalo market. Some nice treats before we begin walking up very big hills.

RMI Guide Dustin Witmier