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The jagged, monolithic peaks of the lower Kalithna begin to make themselves visible again.

We have just torn down camp. The anticipation of this moment has been building even greater since our departure was delayed by yesterday’s fog. The midnight sunshine just beyond the horizon still illuminates us deep into the night making the time of 1:55am seem wildly incorrect. We begin to move.

It’s now 3:12am. We’ve descended the hazy 600ft from base camp and sit just beyond the danger of the house-sized seracs looming off the side of Mt. Frances. Directly in front of us as we sit and replenish ourselves with food and drink is Mt. Crosson. Just left of it looms the beautiful Mt. Foraker, its upper half hidden just hidden behind a small cloud system. Our rest comes to an end. It’s time to begin the ever so slightly increasing grade up towards our next camp.

As we move the air is light and serene. Other than the sound of our snowshoes crunching the snow beneath our feet and our sleds sliding, there is no other noise for miles around us. In my left earbud plays Fryslan by Phil Cook. The pattern of our movement becomes hypnotic. My world becomes managing my pace to avoid stepping on the rope in front of me, interspersed with seconds of beholding the ether that surrounds me. To our right, an orange and magenta hue begins to materialize in the Alaskan sky as the sun begins to return from its brief absence beyond the horizon. Looking upward towards it presents our desired destination, veiled in a partially transparent fog, like a bride on her wedding day, Denali appears. It beams with a beauty matched by very few other things in this world.

We continue forward entranced by the sight. The weight of our heavy packs and sleds begin to melt away as we gaze upon the peak. A solemnity fills the moment that feels religious in nature. There is no more music playing in my earbuds. It is just the rhythmic beating of our snowshoes that fills my ears, and this epic sight that fills my eyes. I am totally absorbed. Quickly as this moment came, so it did depart, as again the mountain would hide itself behind an immense fog, abruptly returning us to the physical realm.

Enriched by this experience, we press forward, climbing steeper terrain before reaching a plateau which will lead us to our next camp site. The going is slow and heavy. Chilling cold air pockets move through our path at times. We break one final time before making the final mile push to camp. Upon arrival our guides probe the area upon which we will be building our living quarters for the next couple days (hopefully). We finish just before 9am. Crawling into our sleeping bags for “night,” we adorn the proper attire of sleeping masks to block out the now powerfully shining rays of the sun to spend the day resting for the journey which is set to continue early tomorrow morning once again.

As I now lay in my sleeping bag, my tent mates asleep beside me, I sense a number of emotions within me: satisfaction, anxiety, excitement, connectedness, all of which seem to stem from the same place: a determination to succeed at this challenge as a team. I close my eyes as gentle folk music softly plays in my earbuds once again. “One thing at a time,” I remind myself.

For now, all there is to do is to rest.

RMI Climber Thomas Goossen 

Friday May 10, 2024 9:02 pm PDT

Everything that we could not see last night was visible and resplendent this morning. Skies were crystal blue, and Hunter, Foraker, and Denali were all standing proud. It was the perfect morning to start moving. Some breakfast and quite a bit of organizing, caching, measuring out ropes and sleds, etc., and then we were ready to start walking. First down Heartbreak Hill to the lowest point of the trip, then steadily up the gentle inclines of the lower Kahiltna. It should be the only day of the trip where we move with everything at once, so our loads were HEAVY! But the team did great churning the legs and we sidled into camp at the base of Ski Hill around 5.

Throughout the day the weather deteriorated, and we went from staring at these Alaskan beauties to being able to see 20 feet in really flat light. We went from stripping to sun hoodies, to putting on puffies, and set up camp in similar conditions with light snow. The sun is poking out now as the stoves roll towards dinner. Soon we'll be crawling into sleeping bags.

We'll check in tomorrow.

RMI Guide Pete VanDeventer & Team

Hola From Quito, What a change from 24 hours ago.   As I write this the horns from Quito's busy streets blare below our window and the team is preparing with hot showers and clean clothes for a dinner on the town.   This wasn't the case last night.  Twenty-four hours ago we were camped at 17,500 feet on a small perch located on Ecuador's highest peak.   For weeks now Chimborazo has thwarted climbers attempting a summit push with unusually bad weather and deep snow.  I am sorry to say things haven't changed.   After a solid meal of freeze dried chicken and rice we hit the tents for a few hours and tossed and turned until the alarm went off at 11:30, pm that is.  From here we ate a hasty breakfast and geared up.  The sky was clear so hopes were high.  The first two stretches of climbing were going well until we hit the end of the trail made by climbers the previous night. We took a break at 19,000' and had a long discussion about what was happening with the snow conditions and how that played into an ever-steepening route.  In the end we could not justify continuing up into the unknown with a team of 13 climbers.  All the other teams on the mountain had already turned around but we held onto hope for just a bit longer.  Finally we had to make the call to turn around. Chimborazo has not seen a successful ascent yet in 2017 and for now it will stay that way.   Even though the team did not summit we gave it a serious shot which our bodies will confirm.  So after dinner I'm sure we will toast a great journey and then crash hard for a restful 12-hour snooze.  We are all looking forward to coming home to see our families. Thanks for following along. Hast Pronto- or until next time. Team Ecuador saying adios. RMI Guide Adam Knoff

The Expedition Skills Seminar - Muir led by RMI Guides Brent Okita and Garrett Stevens reached Camp Muir on Monday with their team. This week has been beautiful and the team has spent their time on the mountain honing their mountaineering techniques. This morning the team left Camp Muir en route to the summit. They arrived around 6:30 am PT and were able to enjoy the blue skies and sunshine from the top. The team will return to Camp Muir for their final night on the mountain and some additional training. Tomorrow after noon they will return to Rainier BaseCamp. Congratulations to today's climbers!

Hola from Ecuador! Today the team left the busy city of Quito and headed north to the much smaller and far more rural town of Otavalo. We were hoping to do a acclimatization hike on a small mountain called Fuya Fuya, but due to a little rain, thunder and lightning, we opted for a little acclimatization while eating pizza! And based on what happened to all the pizza, it was a huge success. It was an enjoyable drive along the Pan-American highway through the Ecuadorian countryside. We passed many farms magically perched on hillsides and what seemed to be endless rose plantations. We spent the remainder of the afternoon playing cards, reading, taking naps and a review of all the gear we'll need for our upcoming climb. We are currently relaxing in the comfort of La Casa Sol. Everyone is doing great and looking forward to tomorrow's adventure. RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew.

RMI Guides Dave Hahn and Garrett Stevens led their Four Day Summit Climb teams to the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. The teams reached the crater rim around 7 am and were able to spend some time on the summit taking photos and enjoying the views. Both teams began their descent from the crater rim and will return to Camp Muir for a short rest before continuing down the mountain. We look forward to seeing everyone back at Rainier BaseCamp this afternoon. Congratulations to today's Summit Climb team.

Hello, this is the May 31st RMI McKinley Expedition checking in. We are all packed and ready to go. Everybody is super psyched, looking good and strong. It looks like a great crew and we are all super excited. Unfortunately, the weather is not being super cooperative for us to fly from Talkeetna to the Kahiltna Glacier. We spent today getting packed up, rigged and ready for the glacier so as soon as we have a break in the weather we'll take it and get flown on. All of our gear is packed in the K2 Aviation Hangar and we are staged and ready to go. We will return to the hangar in the morning and hopefully we'll be able to fly. We will send more dispatches as we get further along in our expedition. RMI Guide Garrett Stevens

Yesterday we flew in to Kahiltna Base Camp to start our climb. The weather was beautiful, and everyone enjoyed the spectacular flight from Talkeetna; flying over the tundra and then into the Alaska Range; seeing the extensive span of mountains, with the dominating presence of Hunter, Foraker, and our objective, Denali; passing the Pika and the Ruth Glaciers then over the Kahiltna and landing on the glacier. We arrived at Base Camp early, and took advantage of the good weather to pack our equipment and move to Camp 1 at the base of Ski Hill. Today we moved up to Camp 2 pulling our sleds loaded down with equipment, food and fuel for the next couple of weeks. The conditions have been great for traveling and the weather cooperative. Some clouds moved in this afternoon and very light snow started as we got to camp. The forecast looks good, with some light snow tonight and tomorrow; we should be able to get to Camp 3 (11,200') tomorrow. Everyone is doing well. We'll be in touch again soon. Cheers, RMI Guide Mike Walter

Good Friday to one and all. A beautiful sunny rest day here in Deboche with just a bit of wind. The team has been doing some short hikes to near by ridges and the Tengboche Monastery. Views of Everest show its not the day to be on top with winds creating a plume off the summit that streches for miles. \ Tomorrow we move up from 12,300' to Pheriche at just over 14,000'. Which in this part of the world means good by to trees. By the time we get to basecamp not even a bush will be present. I look forward to eight weeks from now when we return to this beautiful forest, but can't wait to get to the base of the Khumbu Icefall and spend time on the glacier. Wishing you a Happy Easter!

Seth Burns and Team had a great three days on Mt. Baker. The team practiced mountaineering skills just outside of camp and climbed the Easton Glacier under bluebird skies reaching the 10,781' summit early this morning. 

Congratulations Team!