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Dave and I are safely back at Everest Basecamp. The Sherpa team has one more load to carry down from Camp 1 in the morning and then the expedition will officially be done with the Everest climb. RMI Guide Seth Waterfall [Audio posted from Dave Hahn after returning to Basecamp]

RMI Guide, Robby Young, recently completed the American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA) Ski Guide Course, held in Utah’s Wasatch Mountains under the tutelage of IFMGA guide Erik Liedecker and Sierra ski guide, Peter Leh. Over the duration of the 12-day course, a wide array of skills was covered including uphill and downhill ski guiding techniques, technical rope skills, snowpack evaluation, winter camping, backcountry rescue, and risk management in alpine terrain. Despite Utah’s challenging snowpack and over two feet of fresh snow that fell during the course, Robby and his colleagues were able to put these skills and techniques to use in Utah’s easy-to-access alpine world. While skill development was the primary focus of the course, the famous Utah powder skiing made for a very enjoyable educational experience!

RMI Guide Grayson Swingle and his Mt. Baker team all reached the summit this morning!  They will descend from the mountain today.

Hello everyone,

Today the we had an early start and left behind our beautiful lodge as we have headed to the mountain towards the start of the climb. We left around 8am and drove along the rural country side and small villages for 2 hours before reaching the Kilimanjaro National Park entrance.

Most of the area surrounding Kilimanjaro has been cultivated and primarily used for coffee and banana production, plus a variety of other agriculture needs. There are still a few areas that have been untouched and resemble more of a savannah that Tanzania is known for. Kilimanjaro’s base is mostly forested and resembles more of a jungle, this area is called the cloud forest.

Once we arrived at the park gate we had all of our gear weighed and divided into loads for our porters and other staff to carry before hitting the trail. Once everything was in order we started our climb slowly making our way up the winding trail that ascends continuously through the thick forest. Thankfully the overhead canopy provided a bit of relief from the hot sun overhead.

The team hiked for about five hours, reaching 10,000' and arriving at our first camp. After settling into camp and get situated the team was served a nice warm meal for dinner.

Everyone is doing well and looking forward to a good nights rest.

RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew

RMI guide Elías de Andrés-Martos and office member Bridget Schletty returned last fall from a 5-week expedition the Himalaya, completing and exploratory climb of Kyajo Ri as well as climbing Ama Dablam. By Bridget Schletty We headed to Nepal in early October with the intention of climbing and exploring in the Khumbu region. In this, our 4th trip to the highest mountain range in the world, our objectives weren’t going to be any of the 8,000m peaks in the range, but smaller peaks in the 6,000m vicinity, focusing more on the style we used to climb them. Our trip started with an exploratory trek to the base of the Mahalangur Himal, a subrange that encompasses Cho Oyu, and that contains a few unclimbed peaks we wanted to check out for a potential future climb. Reaching the rarely frequented southern base camp of Cho Oyu, the 6th tallest mountain in the world, provided great acclimatization, and spending several days in this secluded area was an incomparable experience. After breathing the thin air, looking at the Tibetan border, photographing wild yaks, and circumnavigating alpine lakes at 18,000ft, our time was up; we were ready for our first climbing objective: Kyajo Ri, which rises to 20,295’ between the trekking routes to Gokyo and Thame. We headed to the Kyajo Dranka, a valley between the renowned Cholatse Peak and the Rolwaling mountains. We did not see a single soul, save our team of porters, from the moment we left the standard trail between Namche and the presumed Base Camp around 14,400ft. At that point, we waved goodbye to them as well, pitched a tent and spent the night; the next morning we’d start our one-push climb of this remote peak. While we were focused on attempting this peak in alpine style (only the stuff we could carry in our packs, climbing straight up without doing carries or fixing any of the route), it turned out that the discoveries of beauty along the 4-day push to the summit were the true reward. We did climb an incredible, steep ridgeline guarded by a few technical pitches of rock and mixed terrain, but the hanging glacial lakes, the vertical rock walls protecting the access to the valleys, and the solitude we encountered were more captivating than our success in style and technique. With this objective tackled, we could have headed home satisfied with our climbing ambitions; however, we had laid eyes on another peak on previous expeditions, often recognized as the most beautiful peak in the Khumbu: Ama Dablam (“The Mother’s Jewel Box”), a 22,349-ft tower of rock, snow, and ice. Perfectly acclimatized now, we were charged up to try and move as quickly as we could. With a few days rest in Namche Bazaar, we had 2 days to make it to BC. Once there, we corroborated the weather forecast, and with no extra time to hang out, we had to start climbing and use the following 3 days to go up. Steep and involved from just a few hours out of Base Camp, the route only seems to be more impenetrable as you move up it. Making it to C1 proved to be a heads-up as to why this mountain is only successfully summited by less than 25% of the people who try it. Focusing on our plan, we settled in for the night, knowing the most difficult terrain lay ahead. An early start the next morning was mandatory; getting stuffed along the fixed terrain near the Yellow Tower could be a drag, and arriving there with no space to pitch a tent, a nightmare. Despite being the first party to arrive at this iconic landmark, with only 6 or 7 feasible tent spots, it was disheartening to find other teams had already claimed the prime real estate during previous carries. Luckily our minimalist style had us travelling with a small Bibler tent, which we made fit on the only remaining spindrift, a good portion of which was sticking out over the almost 5,000' cliff of the SW face. Clearly we had no choice but to spend the least amount of time possible there. We decided to forego Camp 3 and attempt the summit that very night, from Camp 2. A 9pm wake-up was delayed by high winds, but by 11:45pm, we were on the move. Ascending through mixed terrain (nearly vertical snow slopes and incredibly exposed rock traverses) proved to be demanding and involved. Fixed lines protected the exposed terrain which allowed us to push the pace to stay on schedule, moving as quickly as we could. By 4am we reached Camp 3 to the amazed, yet encouraging eyes of the team that, at that time, was preparing to depart. “Where are you coming from?” asked one climber. “Camp 2,” Elías responded. “You continuing up?” “Yes!” At that point, the high winds that had delayed our departure came back with a vengeance, and the most bitterly cold temps we’ve ever experienced convinced me to stay put, keep all my fingers and toes, and allow Elías to have a quick crack at the summit. (It would only be “a few hours.”) Benefitting from the ultimate gesture of Sherpa hospitality, I was welcomed into a small frosty tent, where 5 local climbing guides were sipping their last cup of warm milk and eating handfuls of champa (roasted barley grits) before departing for their summit bid. There was something a bit surreal about being handed a hot beverage from strangers in puffy down suits and 8,000-m boots at 4AM and dozing off to the comforting aroma of incense burning over a tiny camp stove. Just as the sun hit the tent, a voice woke me up from my slumber. Elías was back from the summit, urging me to grab gear and continue down; accomplished but tired, he was eager to return to the comforts of lower elevations. An uneventful but quick descent took us to Camp 2, with enough time to continue farther down. After a 16 hour day, Elías had gone from Camp 2 to the summit (foregoing C3) and all the way down to C1. Perhaps it was the promise of chocolate cake and a real bed that kept us speeding along towards the finish line! Three days later, we reached the Lukla airstrip, where the adventures had begun 5 weeks before. Following the obligatory “duffle shuffle” day back in Kathmandu, we arranged to spend our last day in Nepal volunteering with TRIFC, an NGO based in Bellevue, WA. This group focuses on children with disabilities. We gathered with an eager group of blind children and adults at the climbing gym in the central tourist district of Thamel. The morning was filled with encouraging cheers, lighthearted giggles, and proud smiles, as we coached our excited athletes up and down the wall. After a pleasant group meal, in which many of our assumptions about physical limits were restructured, we were shuttled to a home and rehab center for physically impaired youth. There were, no doubt, plenty of signs of adversity: cracks in the walls from the recent earthquakes, transportation complications, and the social stigma and financial struggles that families with disabled children face in Nepal. Yet spirits were high as we witnessed how well these children had learned to cope despite the odds being against them. Prosthetic limbs and other physical deformities didn’t keep any of these youngsters from going to school, playing their favorite sports, doing household chores, and even hosting a dance performance for us! We will strive to hold these memories close the next time we find ourselves wallowing in self-pity high on a frozen mountain. We are so fortunate to be able to push our bodies to their limit and venture into the serenity of remote Himalayan regions – and to do so among people who welcome visitors with open hearts and doors. _____ Bridget Schletty and Elias de Andres Martos are a husband and wife climbing team. Elias guides worldwide from the Himalaya to Peru for RMI Expeditions, and Bridget spends the summers helping out climbers in the front office of RMI. This was their fourth expedition to the Himalaya, with previous expeditions including a successful climb of Shishapangma. Elias will be guiding an expedition to Kyajo Ri this fall! They call Ridgeway, CO home when they aren't traveling the world.

Hey, this is Dave Hahn calling in from Advanced Base Camp on Mt. Everest 21,300'. The climbing team came up here in good style today, all the way from Base Camp, this morning. We started out about 4:15 in the morning, still dark, climbing by head light. The climbing route is ok but kind of spooky. We walked thru some very large debris fields from avalanches that have come down in the last couple of days from both the West Shoulder of Mt. Everest and from Nuptse. Both mountains have thrown down debris that is across the climbing route. We didn't have a bad day, we were pretty lucky with our conditions. It was kind of a breezy day and they say the jet stream is right over Mt. Everest right now. The weather we are experiencing certainly seems to bear that out. It was sunny, cold and gusty and windy most of the day but that saved us from being too hot coming up into camp, this big reflector oven of the Western Cwm. Thing are really dry up here. Our camp is great, our Sherpa team did a wonderful job building up our Advanced Base Camp ahead of our arrival. We are going to spend our first night here tonight. We will see how we are doing in the morning. Tomorrow will probably be a rest day, but we might get in a hike or two. That's all for now. RMI Guide Dave Hahn

On The Map

May 29 12:04am PT

This morning we woke up with the goal of caching gear and food as close to 17 camp as possible. As we passed each of the normal places people cache below 17 camp, such as the top of the fixed lines, below Washburns thumb etc., we just couldn’t find a reason to not keep going.

The weather was perfect, not a whisper of wind, and the views endless. The team was performing extremely well at such high altitude for the first time this trip, not to mention how they floated through the most technical terrain we’ve encountered thus far, so we went all the way to 17,000 ft camp. After digging ourselves a hole to cache in, we retraced our steps back down the west buttress and the fixed lines until we rolled into camp just as the shadow of the mountain engulfed the tent city.

All in all, a successful day completed by a strong team!

Guides JT, Matias, Jackson and the RMI team

After several long days of travel, the team has fully arrived. The glowing Argentinian sun has welcomed us with open arms. With bellies full of steak, the team has enjoyed the slow pace of life here. Everyone is in high spirits as we finalize our packing for the expedition ahead. 

More to follow,

RMI Guide Luke Wilhelm 

RMI Teams reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning!  The Five Day Climb, May 29 - 2 June, made their summit attempt this morning led by RMI Guides Jenny Konway and Taylor Bickford.  The teams were walking into the crater rim around 7:15 am.  Taylor reported an exceptional day on the mountain with very little wind, good route conditions and warm temperatures.  The teams enjoyed some time on the summit before starting their descent.  They will return to Camp Muir for their second and final night on the mountain. 

Hello again everyone

The team had a really nice day here on Kili today, waking to clear skies and a beautiful view of Kilimanjaro looming in the distance. We had a light cloudy layer which helped keep us cool while on the trail, which was nice as the sun can be quite intense here near the equator.

We started the day waking at 6:30 to start packing up before moving into our dinning tent for a nice breakfast with porridge, fried eggs, toast, avocado and even some fresh fruit, and most importantly plenty of hot coffee.

We hit the trail shortly after 8am and slowly made our way up the rocky trail with occasional views of Kilimanjaro above. The trail climbed up a blunted ridge and eventually out of the trees and allowed for some truly spectacular views of the valley below. The team hiked for a little more than four hours before reaching out next camp that sits on the Shira plateau, which is the remnant of an ancient lava flow.

Everyone is doing very well and we are currently relaxing in camp.

RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew