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The Expedition Skills Seminar - Paradise led by RMI Guide Mike Haugen reached the summit of Mt. Rainier today. The team spent several nights on the mountain training for their summit attempt on Rainier and gaining knowledge and experience for future climbs. Today is the sixth and final day of this program putting their new skills to use. RMI Guide Tyler Reid led the Four Day Summit Climb to the summit this morning. As of 7:30 am both teams were at the top of Disappointment Cleaver on their descent. It's a bluebird day on Mt. Rainier, clear skies and warm temperatures. The teams will return to Camp Muir for a short break before continuing to Paradise. We look forward to seeing both teams at Rainier BaseCamp this afternoon. Congratulations to today's climbing teams!

Hi everybody. This is Casey Grom checking from the Kilimanjaro trip. Just wanted to let you know that all is going well here in Tanzania. We made about an hour and a half drive to the base of Kilimanjaro. Once we arrived at the gate, it took a little while to get all our gear sorted and weighed and allotted to the porters that we're going to have helping us on this climb. It took about an hour waiting there and getting registered and taking care of all our permits and stuff. We then were able to hit the trail. We left at about 11 a.m. and we walked literally right from the park gates right into the thick forest that surrounds the base of Kilimanjaro. We spent the entire day thankfully protected from the sun, in the trees and nice cool weather. We made it to camp with just a few sprinkles of rain falling on us. Now that we're here up at about 10,000 feet, the sky is clear and it's a beautiful evening and the team is doing great. Our plan is to get a good night's sleep here, and then hopefully get up early in the morning and punch out just above the tree line and up onto Shira Plateau. All is well; the team is doing great and we're off to bed. We'll check in and hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to get my cellphone to connect and get a few photos out to you guys. Alright, that's it for now. Thanks for following. RMI Guide Casey Grom

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Can you say cruise into camp? Why? Well, that's just what the team did. After a clear and cool evening at Shira Camp, we woke up early to hit the trail and crush most of the teams altitude records! We kept a perfect pace (of course) and with impeccable technique by one and all we hardly noticed the thin air. We were able to get in some great views of Kilimanjaro's main peak, dramatic ice fields, and the steep mountain flanks. A long descent into the Barranco Valley brought us to are next camp for the night. Barranco Camp is nestled among the crazy looking giant senecio trees. These trees have some resemblance to the Joshua tree. Looming above us are glaciers and huge ice runnels. Needless to say it is one heck of a beautiful spot. The weather is perfect, the team is great and we all wish you were here. RMI Guide Mark Tucker

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It is that time of year. Here in Ashford, my hometown, it seems like the rain never ends. While that means snow—a lot of snow on Mount Rainier—and I really should be heading on up and take advantage of some amazing backcountry skiing, there are three things I am absolutely passionate about: one is high altitude mountaineering; two is road cycling; and three goes hand in hand with the first two: suffering! If I cannot ride my bike outside, I ride indoors on my trainer. Today, I want to share with you my epic, indoor, high intensity interval-training workout that pushes my anaerobic and aerobic capacity to the max. To start, many people see my BMC road bike and ask me, “What does BMC stand for?” The Bicycle Manufacturing Company or BMC as it is known is a Swiss company that builds what I believe are the best bikes in the world. However, I refer to my BMC as my Big Mountain Climbing Machine! So here is my “go-to” indoor cycling workout. Before you get started: • Make sure you have one, or more realistically, two water bottles. • Have a towel at hand. You are gonna sweat! • A television will help. I’ll explain later. • Obviously your own Big Mountain Climbing Machine, a.k.a. a bicycle and an indoor trainer This interval session takes about 40 minutes total and is extremely simple, yet so powerful. To help motivate me, I cycle in front of the television on which I play a recorded stage of The Tour de France. That way I can pretend I am beating Philippe Gilbert (one of the pro peloton’s strongest cyclists). Yes, I beat him every time! The Workout: Pain Scale: Use a subjective pain scale. 1 is Super Easy; 10 is “oh my gosh, I can’t take this!” 6:00 warm up (Pain Scale: 6): Pedal at an easy and fast cadence 15 Intervals as follows: 1 minute all out interval (Pain Scale: 9 to 10): Place your bike’s gearing so that you are pushing hard and fast! 1 minute rest (Pain Scale: 3): Spin easily and recover. Do 15 intervals: One minute all out hard and fast followed by one minute of recovery and repeat it 15 times totaling 30 minutes. 4:00 Cool Down (Pain Scale: 3): With all 15 intervals complete, spin easily to move lactic acid out of your tired legs. If you are like me, your last or 15th interval will include that sprint where you beat Philippe Gilbert at the finish line of the Champs Elysees in Paris! Remember: beat him every time! Fast, hard intervals like these serve to increase your anaerobic threshold. There are times in the mountains, say the fixed line section on Denali above 14,000 feet, where it gets steep and the climbing becomes very demanding at times. Interval workouts like these give me an extra gear to push with before I redline and become anaerobic, which at altitude is unsustainable. Mentally, I need to dig deep and push it to the top where I know the terrain mellows out again and I can relax, and the challenge of pushing through 15 sets of intervals helps me develop that frame of mind as well. Climbing isn’t always easy and at times you have to suffer a little bit before it gets easier. This interval training session not only allows you to push physically harder, but also develops the mental ability to push harder. Incorporate this workout into your training plan, and you will begin pushing through those physical and mental barriers where you stop saying, “I think I can” to “I KNOW I CAN!” Now go out…or in this case in, and jump on your Big Mountain Climbing Machine and break through those barriers! _____ JJ Justman is a senior guide at RMI Expeditions. He guides expeditions to some of the highest mountains around the World. JJ just arrived in Mendoza to lead an Aconcagua climb (the first of the season), and will head north in May to Denali's West Buttress. Based in Ashford, WA, JJ is a passionate road cyclist and can be seen on his "Big Mountain Climbing Machine" pushing the pace to Paradise and back down. Questions? Comments? Share your thoughts here on the RMI Blog!

Our Four Day Summit Climb teams led by RMI Guides Casey Grom and Kel Rossiter reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning just before 7 am PT. Casey reported a little breeze and a cloud cap but overall good conditions. The teams spent an hour in the summit crater and began their descent just after 9 am. The teams will return to Camp Muir and then continue down to Paradise. Congratulations to today's Summit Climbers and Happy Father's Day!

Thursday, May 28th 10:37 pm PDT We woke up this morning to blue skies in Talkeetna, which meant great weather for flying! After a meal at the roadhouse we scurried over to hangar to transition from Talkeetna street walkers to Denali climbers. With climbing boots on and smiles on our faces we enjoyed a great flight onto the mountain. Once we arrived at Basecamp the team was highly efficient organizing their gear. After a minimal amount of time at Basecamp we embarked on our journey up the Kahiltna Glacier. Several hours later we arrived at our camp for the night at 7,800'. The team immediately set up tents to shade themselves from sun and nestled in. After a delicious meal of Annie's Mac and cheese we hunkered down for the night. We will check in again tomorrow night after another day of good work. RMI Guide Tyler Jones

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Greetings all We departed Talkeetna into cloudy weather and for a while there we did not think we would make it. But thanks to the skill of our K2 pilots we were able to sneak in as the skies briefly parted. As a result of our teams hard work and cooperation we now have a fortified camp. We will sleep well behind block walls and we are excited for a chance to climb the radio tower tomorrow morning. Tonight we sleep under clear blue (still) skies and just a whisper of a cool breeze. Until tomorrow then! RMI Guide Leon Davis & Team

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Sunday, May 18, 2025 - 9:57 pm PT

After the late night we enjoyed sleeping in a bit to wait out the storm. We woke up to the rhythmic sound of snow on the side of the tent. We had a lovely breakfast of bagels with lox and warm drinks before going back to the shelter of our warm tents. About a foot of snow fell overnight and into the early afternoon. Life on the glacier is peaceful. Reading, playing cards, and sharing stories made the time go by pleasantly. We organized our resources and are hoping to carry tomorrow. Just before dinner the visibility improved and we were able to watch the birds rejoice in the break in the weather. Dinner was accompanied by stupid jokes and cheerful laughter. Today was a great day, the team is in good spirits.

Peace, Love, and Gratitude,
RMI Guides Seth, Jackson, Ray, and Team

Friday, May 31, 2019 7:58 PM PT Today we woke to relatively warm temperatures and light snow. As we looked up to the ridge of the West Buttress there didn’t appear to be any winds, although a bit of snow continued to fall. After a speedy breakfast we decided to make moves and head on up the mountain to cache gear somewhere above the fixed lines. Throughout the first few hours of the day we progressed apprehensively, wary of some menacing looking clouds that were lingering higher up on the mountain, but as we cruised up the fixed lines we were treated with warm temperatures and light winds. This enabled us to progress to 16,600 feet to dig a cache to store some gear to support ourselves for our summit bid. After a quick break we turned around and headed back down to 14 Camp where we are now relaxing and waiting to eat some dinner! Spirits are high and we are all looking forward to a rest day tomorrow. RMI Guide JT Schmitt

We had a relaxing day in historic Puebla yesterday. The Team spent the day walking around the markets and taking in the beautiful buildings and cathedrals. The city was founded in 1531 and is a busy commercial hub filled with murals, colorful buildings, delicious food and several ornate cathedrals. Today we are headed East through rolling Mexican farm land to the small village of Tlachichuca near the base of Pico de Orizaba. After we pack our gear, 4x4 trucks drive us up to Piedra Grande hut at 14,000’. From there we will get ready for a summit bid tomorrow. The weather looks promising and recent snowfall should make for great climbing. Everyone is doing well and looking forward to the main objective, 18,491’ Orizaba. RMI Guide Mike King

On The Map