Just a quick update from the Elbrus Ski Crew. We got all packed up and ready for our summit attempt tomorrow, but after another close look at the latest weather models, it looks like Sunday is going to be a better weather day. So instead of waking up at 2am tomorrow, we're going to take another rest day with some possible light skiing activity, and hold out for Sunday. Everyone is doing great and psych levels are high...
RMI Guide Tyler Reid
The Mount Rainier summit climb teams, led by RMI Guides Eric Frank and Zeb Blais, were unable to summit this morning and turned on the Disappointment Cleaver. Although the weather was clear, calm, and cold, the avalanche danger and new snow kept the team from continuing their summit bid. Both teams are safely back at Camp Muir and are planning a 9:00 a.m. departure to begin their descent to Paradise.
Sunday June 14th 12:00 a.m. PT
The weather has turned and things in the Alaska Range are looking up. All day we lounged under blue skies and made our final gear decisions.
It appears from the forecast that tomorrow and Monday will be our best opportunity to climb. We anticipate leaving in the morning and starting a 72-hour cycle of nearly continuous movement, punctuated with some periods of sleep, that will hopefully take us to the top and all the way back to our plane ride to Talkeetna.
RMI Guides Geoff Schellens and Eric Frank
Kim- in the immortal words of Diana Ross “way to go Kim & the rest of your group”!! Oops I mean, “ain’t no mountain high enough”- good luck on the big climb!!
Michael
Posted by: Michael on 6/14/2015 at 3:15 pm
Kimapotamus- exciting news about your trip!!! Good luck with the big climb-you will totally rock-it!!!!
Lora
Greetings from Tambopaxi Lodge,
Today we took a full day to rest our weary legs and heal our slightly sun burnt faces. After a breakfast with a view of Cotopaxi a few of team members went horseback riding while the rest of us drank coffee and swapped stories from our Antisana climb. The riders got all dressed up in Ecuadorean ponchos, cowboy hats, and alpaca chaps. We then wasted no time getting to our next activity...... A four course lunch. We did manage to get in some training in during the afternoon but were easily distracted by views of the mountain and galloping wild horses.
We look forward to a good night of sleep because tomorrow there will be no such luxury. Tomorrow we will be up and at 'em around 10 pm to ascend our final peak, Cotopaxi.
Everyone hear wishes their special someone at home a very happy Valentine's Day!
RMI Guide Ben Liken and Amigos
This is Mike with the Aconcagua team. We had a windy day on our carry to Camp 2 today at 18,000ft. We got a late start hoping the winds would die down, but they never really did. We got a little new snow, the wind was blowing in our faces most of the morning. The team did really well. We are looking forward to enjoying a rest day tomorrow. We'll be tuning in with more information to come. Thanks guys.
RMI Guide Mike King
RMI Guide Mike King calls after their carry to Camp 2.
Hola, Stephen, Julain, and Team! STEEP terrain, by the looks of your photos - hard climbing, especially into the wind - WELL DONE!! Stay warm, hydrated, and well fuelled. Best wishes for calmer, sunny days ahead. Love, Barry and Lynne
Posted by: Barry & Lynne Wright on 1/6/2015 at 6:35 pm
Team 1 is back!!! Thanks to Steve's genius technology skills. The team is resting today at Camp 2 which is at 18,000 feet. Everyone is doing great! As a matter if fact, I can't remember another team that was on equal level in terms of strength. If all goes well we should have a fantastic summit day. We are shooting for the summit on the 28th so keep your fingers crossed!
RMI Guide JJ Justman
The Four Day Summit Climb teams led by RMI Guides Elias de Andres Martos and Leon Davis reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning around 7 am.
Elias reported clear skies and very light wind on the summit. The from Camp Muir to the summit was covered with 6 - 12 inches of new snow. The teams will enjoy some time on the summit before beginning their descent.
We look forward to seeing everyone at Rainier BaseCamp this afternoon.
Congratulations to today's Summit Climb teams!
RMI Guide Mike Walter and his team of climbers reached the summit of Cotopaxi on July 3rd around 11 am PT. They descended to camp and will head to La Cienega today.
Congratulations to the team!
RMI Guide Pete Van Deventer checked in from Camp Muir at 6:45 am. The Four Day Summit Climb team was forced to turn around at Ingraham Flats due to deteriorating weather. They experienced gusty winds, drifting snow and heavy precipitation. Camp Muir had a small accumulation of snow throughout the morning.
The Expedition Skills Seminar - Kautz led by Elias de Andres Martos checked in from their high camp. The team was expecting to make their summit attempt today but we unable to do so due to the poor weather. The team experienced a very stormy night with consistent winds.
The Four Day Summit climb will return to Rainier BaseCamp later today. The Expedition Skills Seminar - Kautz will continue their training and spend another night on the mountain. They will return tomorrow afternoon.
Today saw, most notably, the arrival of Leif and Jake here at basecamp. It was about as eventful as a rest day could be. We gorged on a bacon, egg, and cheese scramble with grilled onions and peppers, drank mate (pronounced mah-tay) and told stories all afternoon, and then had steak fajitas for dinner. Ooh yeah, we're roughing it all right! Oh yeah, we also packed and sorted provisions for tomorrow's carry to Camp 1. It has been pretty windy, and that trend is supposed to continue, so tomorrow may be a litte tougher than normal. Wish us luck.
Beautiful mountain!
Posted by: Sus Helpenstell on 6/24/2016 at 8:45 pm
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