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Today's Mt. Rainier teams reached the summit at 6:00 a.m.  They reported windy conditions with clear skies.  The teams began their descent back to Camp Muir at 7:08 a.m. where they will pack up the rest of their gear and continue down to Paradise.

Congratulations to the summit teams!

The Four Day Climb May 27 - 30 led by RMI Guides Andy Bond and Alan Davis reported pockets of wind slabs on the steeper portions of the route which forced the teams to turn around at 12,800’.  They enjoyed a spectacular sunrise with great views as they descended to Camp Muir.

Photo: Andy Bond

On The Map

Saturday June 11th, 2022 – 9:04pm PT

After making our way from 17 camp to 14 camp, we crawled back into our tents and took a nap. Around 10pm, we woke up for either a late dinner or early breakfast of Ramen noodles and began packing up camp for what we thought would be the very last time. While we had walked into 14 camp in a whiteout, during our nap the clouds had settled below us and it had become a beautiful brisk night.

With camp packed up, we headed towards Basecamp and the airstrip. While we arrived in decent weather, we got word that clouds kept the planes from flying all day. We've now crawled back into our tents and await a weather window that allows us to fly back to Talkeetna.

Think good weather thoughts!

RMI Guide Nikki Champion and Team

RMI Guides James Bealer and Bryan Mazaika led their Five Day Climb teams to the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning.  The teams reached the crater rim at 6:15 am.  It's a beautiful day with blue sky and no winds. After taking in the views and getting all the photos the team started their descent.  They will return to Camp Muir, pack their gear and continue the remaining 4.5 miles back to Paradise.  We look forward to greeting them at Rainier BaseCamp later this afternoon where they will celebrate their efforts and good fortune before completing their program.

The Expedition Skills Seminar - Emmons led by RMI Guide Mike King has had a successful week of training and Denali Prep. While weather and route conditions kept the team on the lower slopes of Mt. Rainier, they were able to take advantage of the time to hone in on their mountaineering skills. The team trained on and discussed the following topics; avalanche forecasting, route finding, crevasse rescue, camp building, and various glacier travel techniques. 

Congratulations Team! 

Monday, May 31, 2021 - 11:09 pm PT

Sunday, May 30th, started out clear and cold but quickly warmed up as the sun hit our camp. The good weather meant moral was high in 14,000' Camp as everyone who was acclimated and ready to go started to climb towards High Camp at 17,200'. We, of course, being new to this high elevation stayed in camp and watched the conga line turn into a log jam at the base of the fixed lines. We made good use of our day by brushing up on our fixed line and running belay techniques. At the end of the day a well worn trail was stomped in by the uphill traffic and left us feeling optimistic about our own plans to cache at 16,200'.

Today (May 31) the team braved a cold morning in order to get a head start out of camp.  We climbed up the fixed lines and cached at 16,250' on the West Buttress.   The afternoon turned into a scorcher on the way down as the solar energy made it feel like 90 degrees outside.  We returned to camp and had delicious burritos for dinner. 

RMI Guide Eric Frank

It was just a little on the cold side this morning at Shira Camp.  Kibo -Kilimanjaro’s main peak- was between us and the sun.  But  we were far above the clouds and it was clear up high, so the views more than made up for the cold temps.  The sun was on us by the time breakfast had finished and so things were comfortable when we got walking at 8:30 AM.  Our path led directly toward Kibo and the terrain was easier than what we’d dealt with yesterday.  We worked up broad, gently angled slopes.  Old lava flows.  Obsidian chunks were easy to find amongst the sagebrush and wildflowers.  By 11 AM we were higher than Mount Rainier and a short while later we were higher than Mt Whitney… thus breaking altitude records for everyone on the team (except Kim who has been to 19,000 ft).  We made it to the Lava Tower -at 15,200 ft- just after noon.  Clouds had formed up again and so it was cool, but not so bad that we couldn’t enjoy some lunch.  We began working downhill at 1 PM.  It felt good to drop altitude and to get back into warmer air.  We took a break just as we got into a garden-like grove of giant senecios and lobelias… the “Dr Suess plants” of Kilimanjaro.  Another careful hour of descent had us walking into 13,000 ft Barranco Camp just after 3 PM.  We settled in at the base of tomorrow’s main objective -the great Barranco Wall. 

We napped and read and sipped tea through the remaining afternoon hours. Dinner finished up by 8 PM and we marveled at the stars on this moonless night.

Best Regards

RMI Guide Dave Hahn

The  Mexico Volcanoes Team arrived yesterday with all their equipment. Today we left Mexico City for a two and a half hour drive through the scenic country side on our way to La Malinche. Along the way we got great views of Orizaba, Ixta and Popo. In my eight trips I’ve not seen the air quality this clear for such long distances. Which makes having our hike cut short around 12,000’ due to the park police turning hikers around all the more disappointing. This area is known for afternoon thunderstorms and apparently the park is instituting a strict turn around time now. 

We decided to listen to the tactically dressed officer with the gun and not end up in a Mexican jail. The group got a chance to stretch their lungs and legs some, we all would have hoped for a longer hike. The remainder of the day will be spent in the former Olympic training center that now hosts tourists and locals. We will look forward to heading to Ixta tomorrow for a hike and gear check. 

Thanks for following along,

RMI Guide Mike King