Hi everyone! Team Mexico finally checking in. Yesterday we had an epic day! The weather did not cooperate at all as it rained cats and dogs. However, our team toughed it out and we made the summit of La Malinche.
Today we are currently having a great breakfast and then we are off to our next objective, Ixta. Stay tuned to our progress. But for now we gotta go and dry out a few soggy boots!
RMI Guides JJ Justman & Elias de Andres Martos
Jambo! This is Seth checking in from Barranco Camp at about 13,000' on Kilimanjaro. It was a cool and showery day on the trail today. We started with some mixed clouds and sun but after a couple of hours it started to sprinkle. We were dry at lunch but by the time we made it to camp it had started to rain. No big deal though as our tents are dry and the cooks are preparing another great meal. Tomorrow is a short day over to Karanga Valley.
That's it for now.
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
Sending love to Wilder, Dink, and Mary from around the kitchen table at 5020 Battery Lane.
Posted by: Thursday Night Crew on 9/4/2014 at 7:49 pm
AOSTF two dapper males suffering from mild hypoxia, diaphoretic and elevated bearings. Delivered a firm slap on spinal midline followed by repeated infusions of spirited camaraderie and best wishes. A&Ox2;: patients appear to think they are in Africa. Recommend speedy return to the squad.
8/26/14 8:30 pm PST
We had another great day of training today here on Shuksan's Sulphide Glacier. We spent the bulk of the day ice climbing in a crevasse and practicing crevasse rescue with mechanical advantage systems.
There was barely a cloud in the sky all day, and the forecast looks similar for tomorrow. That's good news for us, as we're planning to make our summit attempt tomorrow. We'll let you know how it goes!
RMI Guide Mike Walter
We had another great day of training today on Mount Shuksan. We ascended the Sulphide Glacier and then stepped onto the Upper Curtis Glacier where we spent much of the day running laps on the steep ice pitches known as Hell's Highway.
Afterwards we practiced some 4th class rock scrambling on the ridge just west of the Sulphide Glacier.
The weather has treated us well so far, and the forecast looks favorable for the rest of out week here. Everyone is doing well and enjoying the beauty of the North Cascades.
RMI Guide Mike Walter
This is Dave Hahn calling from Mount McKinley. We were able to move from Basecamp to Camp 1 at 7,800’ today. We thought we were going to get a perfectly clear night, but it did end up a cloudy night again. The clouds rolled in as we were going to bed last night and put a little tension in things. We weren’t sure that the glacier surface was going to be able to freeze up with that cloud cover. We woke up to climb at 1:00 a.m. and the cloud cover was starting to break up and things were getting cold again and starting to freeze. We left Basecamp at 3:30 a.m. and conditions were pretty good. We moved on down to the main Kahiltna Glacier, and banged a right turn around Mt. Francis. The lower glacier right now is a little broken in that region with lots of crevasses. There is a lot of contour to the surface. It’s a pretty rough surface because there is ash from the volcanic eruption to the south from a couple years ago which is now on the surface of the snow. Things are melting out a little bit strange this year which made it a little awkward for sled pulling. We saw a number of other guided teams and other teams coming down and we witnessed a lot of folks stepping into crevasses. Most just post pushing a leg here and there but we actually did pretty well and didn’t have too much trouble. Conditions improved as we got closer to 7,800’ with good sled pulling condition. The group moved pretty well and everybody was feeling good, everybody was enjoying the morning.
It took us about 6 hours to here so by 9:30 a.m. we started setting up camp. We have had a relaxing rest of the day. We are taking it easy and trying to get out of the sun.
There is another snowstorm around but we seem to be in a hole. We can see it storm up higher on the mountain and back down at Basecamp. But for now it’s pretty nice right here.
RMI Guide Dave Hahn checks in from 7,800' on Mt. McKinley, July 2, 2011.
The Four Day Summit Climb teams August 23 - 26 led by RMI Guides JJ Justman and Mike King were approaching the crater rim just before 7 am. All of the climbers on Mike King's team were able to reach the summit!. Nice work team! JJ reported 10 mph winds and cold temps with climbers wearing their parkas. It's a beautiful day and a great climb. The teams will return to Camp Muir and then continue their descent to Paradise.
Congratulations to today's Summit Climb teams!
It's another day of rest for our Aconcagua team at Base Camp. Initially our team was wondering why we were going to take a second day of rest here. After yesterday's carry to Camp 1 at 16,000 plus feet the team understands. This mountain climbing is tiring work!
We had a casual morning here at base. Steve and I made our famous home fried potatoes that even brought the Base Camp cooks out to get a plateful. After breakfast we went for a walk and got a great view of base camp from a whole different vantage point. Now team members are lounging, taking showers and ordering pizzas. Tomorrow we plan on moving up to Camp 1.
If you don't mind, I need to address one of RMI's owners, the Legendary Joe Horiskey. Joe, please, no matter what happens between the Sea...what's their name again...and the Green Bay Packers, I hope we can still be friends!
RMI Guide JJ Justman
Holler mi Familia!
I hope you two are not only surviving but enjoying yourselves too. The rest of my trip in Colorado was great. Mom and I are going to see a puppet show about caring for elders with dementia on Friday…how will you be spending your Friday night? Dad I booked us a meditation retreat that takes place in Auschwitz in November. Love and miss you both!!
Dad-To a man standing at the edge of a cliff, progress is defined as taking a step backwards.
Jenny-What is happening within us, will create what is happening outside of us.
I BELIEVE IN YOU, SO YOU BELIVE IN YOU!
Love, G
Posted by: G on 1/14/2015 at 6:01 pm
Christmas cards arrived yesterday and they look great! Jenny, thanks for all of you did getting the artwork ready. David, your 30 are in the mail today, the rest will follow this week. I am going to MN this weekend so I will be home to retrieve you two intrepid hikers from ORD on the 27th. Love you both!
M/N
Our team left the Baksan Valley and the beautiful Caucasus Mountains and hopped a flight to Saint Petersburg. Yes!!! It's a St. Petersburg selfie!! Eat your heart out Ellen! That is the expression you have when you arrive in St. Petersburg. The team had a long day first driving to the airport and then flying to get here. And let me tell you...it is worth it. I love this city and I can't wait to share the sights with the team. It is a luxurious way to end our adventure in Russia.
RMI Guide JJ Justman
June 21, 2014 - 11:38 pm PT
This morning the team woke to some clouds in the sky and a lenticular on the top of the Mt. McKinley. We got ready for the day while we waited for Adam to get the final words from the mountain gods on our next move. If only we knew what the mountain gods had in store for us...
Heavy loads up Ski Hill came first, followed by snow falling in a microwave followed by setting up camp in a serious snowstorm. The team made such impressive camp walls that a solo climber decided to use them as protection also for the night.
The best news of the day though is that today marked our last uphill single carry of the trip.
Happy solstice!
RMI Guides Adam Knoff, Andy Hildebrand and Lindsay Mann
Glad to hear you are all having such a great trip so far, lets hope it stays that way! I hope you are ever ready for the summit attempt later down the road! Stay safe!
(world cup spoiler below!)
By the way, you missed a nail biting end to the USA-Portugal game—Portugal came back in the last 10 seconds with a header to tie it at 2-2!
Well gang,
Here we are chilling in beautiful Mendoza! Obviously, after a long, dusty, and somewhat brutal walk out from Plaza Argentina through the Vacas Valley. On our final night in the backcountry we rolled in to Pampa de Lenas where our mule drivers had prepared a delicious asada to greet us. We dined on juicy steaks, chicken, salad, and of course plenty of wine around an open fire that had been used to prepare the food. These guys know how to live! Eat, drink, be merry, and then go to sleep under the stars high in the Andes. Needless to say, our crew was a bit of a sorry sight in the morning. By the time we rubbed the sleep out of our eyes and ate some quick breakfast it was 9 or so in the morning. Oops. We still had about 4 hours of walking until we hit the road. But we cruised on and ended up timing our arrival perfectly with the arrival of our baggage with the mules. After a couple hours of working with and cleaning up the group gear we hit the road to Mendoza. What were we looking forward to? The Super Bowl! After a shower and a quick nap we all went out to the pub and watched the Super Bowl over dinner and a few beers. Tonight's the night of our real celebration. We all plan to cap off our day of sitting poolside with a celebratory dinner at Francis Mallman 1884. This is truly one of the world's finest restaurants, and it shouldn't be too out of hand because of the wonderfull exchange rate!
Thanks to everyone who has been following along and supporting the members of our team from home. We miss you all and will see you soon!
Sending love to Wilder, Dink, and Mary from around the kitchen table at 5020 Battery Lane.
Posted by: Thursday Night Crew on 9/4/2014 at 7:49 pm
AOSTF two dapper males suffering from mild hypoxia, diaphoretic and elevated bearings. Delivered a firm slap on spinal midline followed by repeated infusions of spirited camaraderie and best wishes. A&Ox2;: patients appear to think they are in Africa. Recommend speedy return to the squad.
Posted by: Station 26 Crew on 9/4/2014 at 6:21 pm
View All Comments