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Posted by: Casey Grom
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Kilimanjaro
Jambo (Swahili for hello/greetings) from Tanzania
All is well here in Tanzania and the team has finally all safety arrived after some very long flights. It was a short and peaceful ride to our lodge that is nestled in between Arusha and Moshi and not so far from the base of Kilimanjaro. The team had a quick dinner and headed for bed as the time change had us all feeling just a little off and pretty tired after all the traveling.
Today we had a leisurely morning with our group meeting after breakfast , where we did a round of introductions and then discussed the upcoming program for the days ahead. The team spent the remainder of the day getting our gear packed up, exploring the grounds of our peaceful lodge and dodging the gaggle of monkeys patrolling the grounds.
We wrapped up the evening with a delicious meal and plenty of friendly conversations.
Seems the team has had their fill of cake since we enjoyed celebrating our 2nd birthday in a row already.
Everyone is doing well and excited to be here.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and the Kili crew!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY CASEY GROM!
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!
Posted by: Geoff Schellens
Categories: Guide News
On May 9th Jake and I departed from Base Camp around 8:00 AM, skiing down the Southeast Fork through the cold, crisp morning air to the main flow of the Kahiltna Glacier. We continued down the glacier for another half hour and reached the West Ridge of Mt. Hunter. Here Jake and I cached our skis and began climbing. We approached this objective in a light and fast technique, known as “alpine style,” bringing four days of food, a small stove, a lightweight tent, and no comfort items. As we started climbing we found a very nice boot pack leading up the ridge that made for extremely efficient travel. At first we felt guilty drafting behind someone else breaking trail, but soon decided that each of us has done our fair share of trail breaking on other peaks and that we ought to just enjoy this one. As the two of us climbed higher on the West Ridge with ear-to-ear smiles we decided on a plan, “Lets climb until we’re not having fun and then camp there.” Well, the climbing on the West Ridge was extremely fun and after twelve hours of navigating the corniced ridge, peppered with exquisite sections of rock, steep snow and ice, we found ourselves at the 11,400’ bivy - tired but still smiling. We set our tent in a small notch and ate freeze-dried dinners with a fantastic view of the Alaska Range. It was truly an awesome place to be.
The next morning brought beautiful weather and a sense of excitement for where we were and what lay ahead. With our approach of simply having fun, we enjoyed the morning views and a few cups of coffee before breaking camp at noon. Moving quickly relishing every step and with a swing of an ice tool we ascended steep snow pitches and navigated gaping crevasses. Soon we found ourselves on the summit plateau at 13,000’ walking across the largest stretch of horizontal terrain we had seen in thirty hours. From there we ascended the final 55° slope that took us to the summit ridge. From there, forty more minutes of easy climbing gave way to the summit of Mt. Hunter. While standing on the summit Jake and I hooted and hollered with excitement, “What a fun climb!”
Soon we began our descent with the same approach we used on the ascent - climb until it is not fun and then set up camp. Down the ridge we went back to our bivy site, where we decided to descend via the Ramen Route. Quickly Jake and I realized that we had made a wrong turn into the entrance of the Couloir. This meant that we had to do a few tricky rappels and down climb through seracs to get ourselves back on route. Once we were back on track, we had a few more rappels before softer snow conditions allowed us to down climb to the base of the 3,300’ Ramen Coulior.
Now, for the second time in two days, we found ourselves again on flat glaciated terrain. At this point it was getting late in the day, but we were still enjoying ourselves and decided to continue our descent. Due to the time of day we chose to navigate the extremely broken-up glacier since it provided more camping opportunities if we needed to set up camp. This was a time intensive descent however as Jake and I soon found ourselves in a world surrounded by incomprehensible seracs and crevasses. A couple more hours brought us back to the main flow of the Kahiltna Glacier and our skis. After forty-two hours we arrived back at Base Camp exhausted, hungry, thirsty, and smiling. Employing our tactic of “climb until we are not having fun” had been the perfect strategy for this route.
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RMI Guide Geoff Schellens is a senior guide leading trips on Aconcagua, the North Cascades, Mt. Rainier, as well as, guiding Ice Climbing and Mt. McKinley. He is currently preparing for his next adventure this spring on Dhaulagiri, an 8,000 meter peak in the Himalayas. See more of Geoff's mountain photography on his website.
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Categories: Expedition Dispatches Kilimanjaro
On The Map
Posted by: Dustin Wittmier
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Ecuador
Yesterday we made a valiant effort on Cayambe. The team stuck together and supported each other along the way. We sat down for a break at 18200' anticipating one more hour to the summit. However, Mother Nature had a different plan, and we were privy to a surprise lightning show that was a touch too close for comfort. After packing up at the hut we made the trek south to Chilcabamba Eco Lodge where we are letting the bodies rest and reset. The team went for a neighborhood walk this morning and were delighted to have the neighborhood dogs join, although it seems the dogs had the ulterior motive of getting into mischief. Currently we are taking in stunning views of Cotopaxi and setting our sights towards our next high altitude adventure.
RMI Guide Dustin Wittmier and Team
Sending Perfect weather thoughts for Cotopaxi!!!
Posted by: Dave Kestel on 12/8/2021 at 7:28 am
Hello again everyone,
The team had a good night’s rest last night and today was just a short 3 hour hike up to 15’000' to our high camp. It started out sunny, but then quickly clouded up thankfully for great hiking temperatures. The Equatorial sun at this elevation is quite intense, a little break was needed.
The team has just wrapped up lunch and discussed in great detail the plan for tomorrow’s climb. Everyone knows what we’ll be wearing, what will be in the pack, as well as the schedule.
Our game plan will be to wake at 11pm and have a quick breakfast at 11:30pm, then hopefully hit the trail right at midnight. The team has been doing great thus far and I’m expecting us to reach the summit in 7 to 8 hours if things go according to plan.
As per usual on a Casey climb, one lucky trivia winner will get a phone call from the summit.
So everyone back home please keep your phones handy and if you receive a call from a strange number please answer. We are 8+hrs ahead of the east coast time zone.
Wish us luck!
RMI Guide Casey Grom and the Summit Bound Crew
Congratulations Eric, what an amazing accomplishment! Can’t wait to see the pictures and hear the stories!
Posted by: Kim and Jack on 9/4/2022 at 8:24 am
Great job John and Bob and all the climbers!! I hope you loved the summit!!
Posted by: Brigid Miller on 9/4/2022 at 7:10 am
Posted by: JT Schmitt, Alex Halliday
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 10,080'
Strong winds and about a foot of fresh snow prevent the Four Day Climb led by RMI Guides JT Schmitt and Alex Halliday from leaving Camp Muir. Big spring storms and winter like weather are keeping all climbing teams from reaching the summit.
The team will enjoy the stormy morning with a leisurely breakfast before starting their descent. We expect them to return to Rainier Basecamp in the early afternoon.
Glad you’re staying safe! Enjoy the rest of your adventure, mountaineers! We look forward to hearing about the trip and seeing photos!
Posted by: Jane and Doug Green on 5/14/2022 at 9:48 am
So excited to watch your progress! Stay safe and have a fabulous adventure! Love from Michigan!
Posted by: Charlene Hatfield on 5/14/2022 at 8:34 am
Posted by: Walter Hailes, Jack Delaney
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua
Elevation: 14,500'
Hola Amigos! It’s finally happened, we have arrived on the mountain! After some last minute packing and eating a lot of empanadas while we waited, we got a weather window and flew into Plaza de Mulas at 14,000 feet. It was one of the most scenic and incredible helicopter flights I’ve ever been on. We settled nicely into our Basecamp, where we will spend the next several days acclimatizing. We’re happy to be here and are going to bed with full bellies thanks to the amazing food and hospitality of the staff at camp.
RMI Guides Walt Hailes & Jack Delaney
Walt,
Good to seeing you on the Blog. Looking forward to climbing with you again someday.
Stay safe.
Pat and Lynn Morrison
Posted by: Pat Morrison on 1/16/2022 at 9:07 am
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Categories: Expedition Dispatches Kilimanjaro
We were up before the sun at Lokisale, our tented hotel in the outback of Tarangire. It was wonderful to sip coffee as the baobab trees took shape with the rising sun. Some heard a lion passing near to camp. The great staff put out a fine and fast breakfast for us and then we said goodbye and hopped into the Landcruisers for one final morning of safari. We cruised the “swamp” -a vast expanse of grass- with no other cars around. There were herds of zebra and elephant, wildebeest and Cape buffalo stretching for miles and miles. Eventually, Saiman and Izach pointed our vehicles toward the distant park entrance, but on the way, we saw the good stuff… a leopard climbing a tree, a lion hunting, hyenas crunching the bones of a kill… some final scenes to sustain us during endless airplane travel homeward.
It was a few more hours back to Rivertrees Inn, and then showers and packing for travel. We had time for a last dinner together out under the big trees, and then we were headed to the airport and a million lines and our goodbyes to each other.
It has been a fine two weeks of seeing the world together. Thanks for following along.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn and Team
Great to see the group picture! Looking forward to following your climb!
Posted by: Alicia Avila on 8/30/2022 at 8:11 am
Love the pictures of this adventurous group! What great memories you will create with these wonderful companions. I know Katy will keep you highly entertained and motivated. Have a safe and joyful climb!
Posted by: Cindy White on 8/29/2022 at 6:42 pm
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