Namaste everyone
We certainly feel blessed with the weather we've been having, as today was another beautiful day.
Our daily routine has been breakfast at 7:30 or 8 and hitting the trail generally no later than 9. Then we hike 30-40 minute intervals until lunch, then head back out until we reach camp. Today was a little different as we stopped off to visit Lama Geshe who lives in Pangboche. He is a very high ranking Lama and generally gives blessing to the climbers and Sherpas headed to Everest, most of whom won't climb without his blessing.
After our visit with the Lama we finished up our hike pulling into another village that sits along this ever winding path to Everest. Pheriche is where we are and where we will spend a few days to acclimatize as we have finally reached the 14,000 ft mark.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew
We had great weather as we made our way to 14,200' today. Our mission was to carry a load of food and fuel to 14k camp so we can try to move up there tomorrow if the weather permits. The team looked strong as we climbed our way through some pretty windy conditions into the sunshine of "14". We ran into Jake [Beren] and his team. They are waiting to make their move up to 17,000' as soon as the winds die down up top. Looks like there is going to be a party @ 14,200'!
RMI Guide Mike Haugen
Woohoo! Sounds like a fiesta! Hope the wind subsides and that you are staying warm- bet you’re missing some good old malaysian cooking right now after all that trail food, don’t you worry, i’ll eat an extra plate of chicken curry for you. Love you papa.
Posted by: Yashu on 6/23/2011 at 10:45 am
Dr. K we are here at st.marks thinking about you. Wondering if you still have all of your toes or do you need bethany to make you an appointment with Dr. Anderson. Homer want to know if you could bring him back a northern light.? We hope your hike is going well. Take lots of pictures for us and we will see you soon.
Love,
Homer, Scott, dr zimpolich, and the heart crew.
Ps. run like a gazelle!
Posted by: St.Marks Heart Team on 6/23/2011 at 10:26 am
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!
The Any Mountain Five Day Climb led by RMI Guides Jess Wedel, Rosie Hust, Stella Johnson, and Margo Kerr reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. The team spent about an hour on the summit enjoying the breezy weather before beginning their descent to Camp Muir. The team will spend one more night at Camp Muir before making their descent to Paradise tomorrow.
Today the gang got up at 6:30 refreshed after a much needed nights sleep, we had breakfast, then hit the trail one last time. It took just around three hours to reach the park gate where the team had lunch and said our final goodbyes to our amazing crew that took such great care of us on the mountain.
We finished the little celebration by handing out their well deserved tips and then hopped aboard our awaiting bus for the ride back to the lodge.
Finally we are all safe and sound, cleaner, and smelling fresh after an exciting seven day journey up and down Kilimanjaro.
Today we got a casual start in Penitentes, there is a lull in the season where no other groups started the trek to base camp. Our Team enjoyed overcast skies and a generous breeze on our hike to Las Lenas. We admired the bountiful shades of red, orange and brown that make up the rocky terrain. Five hours of hiking brought us to Camp and we enjoyed the warmth and solitude this camp provides. Our mule drivers got the coals started for the famous Las Lenas asado and before long we were eating grilled meats and vegetables, telling stories from past trips and previous lives. It’s always a surprise how ten miles of walking over softball-sized rocks can be forgotten with good company, delicious food and a little red wine. This camp is a spectacular place to sleep under the stars. The Milky Way runs straight down the valley and the Southern Cross is where you would expect it to be. No ambient light for hundreds of miles. When you wake in the middle of the night and look up, you get the sense you're an insignificant animal on a blue marble that’s being shot across the galaxy. Context and perspective is readily challenged in this valley. Tomorrow we continue our trek to Casa de Piedra, the Team is doing great and sends their love back home. Thanks for following along.
RMI Guide Mike King
After spending four nights at Plaza Argentina the routine began to feel a bit like the movie, Groundhog Day, same people in the same clothing, tasty but similar meals, etc. We packed up our remaining gear and clothing and headed uphill around 9 am. The most advantageous aspect of our time at PA was the acclimatization. It showed today, with lighter packs the Team was in camp in under four hours and they felt good enough to descend to 15,500’ and back carry our heavy cache from two days ago.
We are currently snacking and relaxing in our tents, organizing gear and getting ready for a well earned meal at 16,400’. The wind is light and should remain until the 26th. Camp 1 is located on a large flat ‘bench’ with Ameghino flanking the northern slope. On most days you can lie in your tent and listen to the wind above as it builds up and then comes crashing down like a wave. Our agenda for tomorrow is a bit in the air due to the extra work of the back carry. I think we will have a casual morning and see how people are doing then ideally carry some food, fuel, and equipment to Camp 2.
RMI Guide Mike King
sounds like an incredible experience. glad everyone is doing well. Hope u r sharing some of your funny stories during rest time , Neil. Merry christmas. Love u Mom
Posted by: Lois Yoder on 12/23/2018 at 8:46 pm
Glo, I am living vicariously through you. Love you Aunt Char
Posted by: Charlene Lindsey on 12/23/2018 at 5:48 pm
May 31, 2015 - 2:39 am PT
Good evening from 11,000 feet! We woke this morning to more sunny skies and warm temperatures. After a casual start to the day and a nice breakfast, we ducked into the tents for a couple hours to get out of the heat. By late afternoon things cooled for more comfortable hiking conditions, so we broke down camp and got on the move! Even though it's been just a few days on the glacier, the team has adjusted well to mountain life and is traveling efficiently. So after a few hours of moving we arrived at camp, quickly put up our tents, and enjoyed a late dinner. Now we're all settled in for the night and it's time to get some sleep!
RMI Guide Tyler Jones
Hope you guys are able to enjoy the mountain without me there haha. You dont know how bad I miss that mountain. Play some gigantic twos, find a new friend to eat all your leftovers, build a new Taj Ma-stahl and make sure you get a good rap session in. Wishing you guys great weather and safe travels. PS i hope the other guides arent making tyler read these off.
-Lad (aka Jake Wander)
Posted by: Jake Wander on 5/31/2015 at 8:39 pm
hi Brenda looks like the weather and conditions are all in your favor. Enjoy the journey lol R
Posted by: Richard Larscheid on 5/31/2015 at 11:59 am
We successfully made it down from base camp back to Pampa de Lenas. Our celebration asado was an enormous success and went late into the night which may make our final walk to the road a little slower than normal but no one would have it any other way.
RMI Guide Walter Hailes & Team
Hey this is Seth calling from the summit of Kilimanjaro. We have every single last member of the team up at Uhuru Peak. That's 100% of us 11 plus 5 great African guides. It's a nice day, clear skies all night long. The rain we had before, the last two days, just disappeared. There is a cloud deck down below us. We just had the nicest summit day. Everybody is doing great and we're gonna head back down. We have a long drop, it's about 9,000 feet down to our last camp. And then we are on safari. We will check in when we get to our last camp. Ciao.
RMI Guide Seth Watefall
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall calls from the summit of Kilimanjaro.
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Woohoo! Sounds like a fiesta! Hope the wind subsides and that you are staying warm- bet you’re missing some good old malaysian cooking right now after all that trail food, don’t you worry, i’ll eat an extra plate of chicken curry for you. Love you papa.
Posted by: Yashu on 6/23/2011 at 10:45 am
Dr. K we are here at st.marks thinking about you. Wondering if you still have all of your toes or do you need bethany to make you an appointment with Dr. Anderson. Homer want to know if you could bring him back a northern light.? We hope your hike is going well. Take lots of pictures for us and we will see you soon.
Love,
Homer, Scott, dr zimpolich, and the heart crew.
Ps. run like a gazelle!
Posted by: St.Marks Heart Team on 6/23/2011 at 10:26 am
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