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June 26, 2014 - 9:33 pm PT Hey this is Billy checking in from 17K on Denali, again, where we are still pinned down by the weather. Today is our second storm day. We actually had some sort of blue skies and clearing and some hope on the horizon but things closed back in here. They are calling for high pressure to build over the mountain this weekend. If we get up tomorrow and it looks promising, we might take a crack at it or we might be sitting tight until Saturday. Last night was definitely one of the most ferocious storms I have had to battle up here in Alaska. We were definitely up all night digging out tents with feet and feet of snow and very, very strong winds- 70 miles an hour. For our chance for it, we have tons of food and fuel, and we just need the weather to cooperate. And that's all for now. RMI Guide Billy Nugent

On The Map

Jambo, After the long day of travel, we decided to take full advantage of sleeping in this morning. We sat down for breakfast around 9:00 am, and then started in with our first team meeting of the trip. The last member of the team arrived this morning, which makes a total of eleven in our group. For most, this will be their first climb. For everybody, this climb will break all previous trip altitude records. We spent much of the morning going over the details of our Kilimanjaro climb, covering the route, distances, and elevations of the camps, how to best pack all of the gear needed for the mountain, and the daily routines that we will need to use in order to climb efficiently at altitude. We ended the meeting with a thorough equipment check for each climber just to make sure we have everything needed for the next seven days. We headed into Arusha after lunch and spent several hours exploring the main market, with its many vendors selling everything from Maasai medicines to some of the biggest avocados one has ever seen. Then we made our way to the tourist part of town to buy some small souvenirs and local handicrafts. By the time we got back to the hotel, it was already dinner time and we sat down to a wonderful 5 course meal. It's early to bed tonight as we have an early wake up call in the morning. Our hope is to be driving to the Machame Gate at 7:30 and walking the first stretch of trail by 10:30. We'll check in tomorrow from Machame Camp. RMI Guide Jeff Martin

Linden speaks with Dave Hahn at the South Summit.

Today we gave our best shot at the summit of Ixta, but the mountain countered with a stronger blow. We woke up to mild temperatures and light winds and decided to start climbing around 2am. From past experiences our local guide, Ulisses, and myself were wary of these conditions, such warm temperatures with moisture aloft often indicate heavy precipitation and winds in the near future, so we decided we would climb tentatively upwards until the first sign of bad weather. We successfully climbed through the most technical portion of the mountain to an elevation of 16,500 feet. At this point the winds started to increase as well as the rate of precipitation, so we decided to head back down. By the time we reached the final saddle before camp, the winds were nearing 40 mph and the snow was blanketing everything in sight. We were happy we turned back as soon as we did and everyone welcomed a dry tent and a hot drink. Now we are off to Puebla for some much earned rest before we go to climb Orizaba! Enjoy some pictures from the last few days. RMI Guide JT Schmitt & Team

Namaste! The 2014 Dhaulagiri team has reunited in Kathmandu after the three waves in which all of us arrived. With the last minute of extra food shopping done, we had the mandatory briefing at the ministry of tourism this morning and paid a special visit to Ms. Hawley, the "bookkeeper" of Himalayan climbing. She helped us understand this endeavor even better with some statistics pertinent to our team: among our nationalities, only 14 Americans (2 women) and 28 Spaniards have summited on this mountain with just 300 total ascents. Really exciting! Tomorrow we fly early morning to Pokhara, and then a six-hour drive will take us to Darbang. This is the trailhead to our week-long approach to base camp. We'll check in next from the trails! RMI Guide Elias de Andres Martos

Hello from Barranco Camp, Today was another perfect day for us. We got out of camp early and made great progress to Lava Tower. We were there by lunch time and everyone felt great, despite being at almost 15,000'. While we had a cloudless sky in the morning, the clouds had started to roll in and we decided to begin our descent to Barranco Camp. The highlight of the descent was seeing all the giant groundsels as we approached camp. It is hard to describe their unique appearance, but suffice to say that you could just as easily have been on another planet. We were in camp by 2:00 and after settling into our new accommodations, we headed to the dining tent for tea and snacks. Now we are just hanging out and enjoying the impressive views around camp and taking advantage of some idle time to write in journals, do some reading, send some texts, or just relax. The team has been climbing strong everyday and everybody remains healthy. We'll send the next dispatch from Karanga Camp tomorrow. Best regards, RMI Guide Jeff Martin

On The Map

We made it to Piedra Grande! After getting blasted by snow on Ixta and hearing grim reports of bad roads, we're pleasantly supprised to have a bit of good luck today. The sun came out this morning as we left Puebla and we were treated to an excellent view of El Pico de Orizaba as we aproached the village of Tlachichuca. After packing and a late breakfast we headed out in four wheel drive trucks, hoping to get at least half way to the hut at Piedra Grande. Fortunately we were able to get within a few miles and a truck with our gear made it to within 1.5 miles of the hut. We had sunny but cool weather as we hiked the road, which made for pleasant walking conditions. We have just finished dinner and we're all looking forward to roping up and trying for the summit tonight. I'll check in tomorrow. If all goes well, we'll be on the summit.

Saturday, May 31, 2025 9:20pm PDT

After 8 days in the comfort of 14,000' camp we went climbing today.  The team packed up and we made our way once again up the fixed lines.  The west buttress did not disappoint, delivering panoramic views.  The weather could not have been better with only the slightest of breezes and the occasional cloud. While tired, the team is ready to hopefully take advantage of a small weather window.   Send good weather vibes our way!

RMI Guide Seth and Team

The Four Day Climb led by RMI Guides Joe Hoch and Pete Van Deventer reached the summit of Mt. Rainier Early this morning. The team enjoyed the views and spent about an hour on the 14,410' summit before starting their descent. The team will be back in Ashford this afternoon to celebrate their success at Rainier Basecamp.

Congratulations Team! 

It was another cool and cloudy morning in the highlands where we woke up, but as we descended into the rift valley again, it got warmer and drier. We stopped for some souvenir/gift shopping and then made the move toward Tarangire National Park. We entered just before noon, weaving between giant baobab trees scarred by elephant tusks. Immediately we began seeing wildlife… impalas, zebra, wildebeest… first in ones and twos, then by the hundreds. Eventually we mixed in elephants and giraffes and seemingly everything else. 

Tarangire is a vast land of animals. From horizon to horizon. Our seasoned safari team spotted two impressive lions that no one else had managed to find. We spent the day marveling at elephant families and birds of all sizes and flavors. We searched high and low for cheetahs and leopards… but (so far) without success. By sunset we were sitting around a fire just outside the park boundary in a “tent camp” still spotting wildlife from our chairs. It is our final night as a team. As the first few stars began to show, we shared a spontaneous and appropriate few minutes of silence… and then we burst into laughter and conversation and eventually storytelling. 

Leopards in the morning.

Best Regards,

RMI Guide Dave Hahn & Team