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Namaste from Kathmandu!
RMI's 2018
Kyajo Ri and Ama Dablam Expedition has officially started. Everyone arrived yesterday on time, and we kicked off our trip with a nice dinner in Thamel, the central commercial district of the city. Today we spent the morning sightseeing and the rest of the day organizing and prepping for tomorrow's flight into the Khumbu, to start our trek uphill.
Stay tuned for our adventure into the mountains to start!
RMI Guide Elias de Andres Martos and team
Monday, June 4, 2018 - 9:27 PM PT
We woke to mostly clear skies, with some visible wind above us. With very cold temps we waited a little to let it warm up and to see if the winds abated. Temps did warm but the winds remain...not atrociously strong, but something to keep an eye on.
Leaving camp at 10:00, along with about 100 of our best climbing buddies, we headed up the
"Autobahn" towards Denali Pass. The temps were cold and winds made it chillier. By the time we reached Denali Pass and turned the corner, the winds were in our face, colder and stronger than before. We pressed on, in the hopes that the winds would decrease. But as we gained more altitude, the winds kept increasing and getting colder; it was challenging to stay warm--especially our hands, toes, and fingers. So we turned around at the top of Zebra Rocks (~18,800') and headed back to High Camp. We climbed for seven hours and got back to our tents cold and tired. We'll check the weather forecast to see what our next move will be. Hopefully we will get another chance to go for the top.
RMI Guide Mike Walter
On The Map
Saturday, June 2, 2018 - 7:25 pm PT
All is well on
Denali at 14,000 ft camp. We climbed for approximately five hours today after quickly breaking down camp at 11,200 feet. The air was crisp all day but we had full sunshine keeping us comfortable. This day on Denali is always tough and today was no exception. Thankfully we are all in camp now relaxing with our boots off resting up for a big tortellini dinner. I am sure it will be an early night to bed and we will enjoy a well earned late wake up in the morning
RMI Guide Walter Hailes
On The Map
Good evening from Otavalo,
Ecuador.
Today was a good day. It started as all the others have. Breakfast and coffee at the hotel, light rain on the streets and an eagerness to see something new. The exception was we left Quito. It is easy to fall into the creature comforts of city life but we know that bigger and wilder places await outside of the country's capital.
Once loaded onto Victor's magic bus, we weaved our way through the maze of streets which eventually took us to the Pan-American Highway heading north. After two hours of driving we arrived at the foothills of a volcano called Fuya Fuya. Even though it's altitude topped out at 14,300 feet, it still posed a worthy hike. Unfortunately the weather had it out for us. Just like yesterday, a soggy rain fell all around and the prospect of hiking for three hours up a slick mud trail didn't sound worth the benefits gained by going up 2,000 feet.
Much like yesterday though our team of determined climbers showed strong will so we stopped the van 5 km from the parking lot where our climb would have started and walked the road to our waiting van. This idea proved sound when five minutes after arriving the heavy skies opened up and soaked everything with a downpour no hiker would want to be in.
This is what Ecuador can do. So after Fuya Fuya we headed down into town for lunch and then moved 11 men and 20 duffel bags into our beautiful hacienda.
After a couple of hours settling in we gathered in the sun room, ordered some cervezas and listened as Nick taught everyone knots, hitches and bends.
The weather hasn't been perfect but we still seem to have fun times.
Tomorrow we visit the largest crafts market in Ecuador. Pray for sun.
Hasta Manana,
RMI Guides
Nick Hunt,
Adam Knoff and team
On The Map
June 10, 2016 - 12:12 am PT
And back to the tents... Rain kept us at camp today, with the exception of a few hours in the afternoon. We spent that time learning and reviewing more rope skills, and talking about staying motivated for a climb tomorrow. Our hopes are on the South face of the Middle Troll, the main formation that reigns over the
Pika glacier.
Stay tuned.
RMI Guide Elías de Andres Martos and team
Gortex was the outfit of choice when we arrived at the Kilimanjaro National Park Entrance Gate this morning. Lucky for us, the rain stopped and we had nice conditions as we climbed through the rainforest on Kilimanjaro's lower slopes and the giant heather in the Moorland Zone to reach
Machame Camp. The team did well and we're all our tucked in for the night at ~10,000 ft on this beautiful mountain.
Jet lag still prevails and we are looking forward a good night's sleep for our first night on the mountain. We will check in again tomorrow with our progress towards the Roof of Africa.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
On The Map
Tuesday, October 29, 2024 - 6:20 am PT
We had a lovely acclimatization trip to the summit of Rucu Pichincha yesterday. We caught a bit of light rain, not enough to stabilize the electrical grid, but enough to keep us cool for our nice day hike. On the way down, the clouds opened up a little and were treated to views of surrounding valleys, which includes the city of Quito.
Today, we are heading for the Illiniza refuge and hopefully a summit of Illiniza Norte tomorrow morning! While this is labeled as an "acclimatization" hike, it's definitely fun in it's own right. The route from the hut goes up a steep ridgeline that occasionally requires some class 3 scrambling. The views from the summit are astounding and the movement enjoyable.
We will check back in tomorrow with an update as we head towards Cotopaxi!
RMI Guide Dustin Wittmier
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New Post Alerts:
Cotopaxi Express, October 26, 2024
Monday, June 3, 2024
Hello readers,
Today was jammed pack with packing and sorting. The team went through their gear making sure they have all the crucial items to safely climb the mountain. Along with those crucial items is 22lbs of snack food. Everyone has a good mixture of salty, sweet, crunchy, chewy items to make them happy on the mountain. Once we knew we had all the right gear, we sorted it into our packs and duffles to be weighed for the plane. We ended our day with some souvenir shopping and a team dinner. The team is excited to get on the glacier and begin their expedition they have been training for. Fingers crossed the weather holds!
Goodnight,
RMI Guide Hannah Smith and Team
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New Post Alerts:
Denali Expedition June 2, 2024
The sun hits the tents here at
Plaza Argentina around 7:30 am, until then it’s difficult to justify getting out of a warm sleeping bag. The Team experienced a range of sleep and rest last night, and everyone seems to acclimating well. We had breakfast together and then got to work sorting gear and food for the upper mountain. After a quick visit to the doctor’s for the mandatory check up, we went for a walk uphill to stretch our legs and lungs. Plaza Argentina is situated on rock covered glacial moraine. The area is filled with many shades of red, brown and orange rock. The first stretch out of base camp is a good opportunity to see if your mountaineering boots are going to cause any blisters. The terrain is all scree and large talus so the group gets to see how the rigid boots behave when compared to walking in snow. Back down for lunch and people are enjoying some tent time to escape the wind and finish packing.
Tomorrow we will carry food, fuel and some personal gear to Camp 1. We hope to have light winds and blue skies as the Team continues to acclimate by doing some work at higher altitude while still sleeping here at Aconcagua Base Camp. Thanks for following along.
RMI Guides Mike King &
Nick Scott
Recipe for recovery, rest and relaxation: one hot shower, two cold beers, great food, friends and a soft bed. So good!
Our descent from Mweka Camp at 10,000' to the gate and our bus went smoothly. It was preceded by the closing ceremony at camp where the mountain staff sing and dance to commemorate the special week spent together, and we in turn get to express our appreciation for their hard work and dedication to making our mountain experience as wonderful as it was.
An African lunch was enjoyed before we had to say goodbye to the local guides, porters and kitchen staff. Then it was back to the Arumeru Lodge to clean up and relax. The water ran brown for the first minute in the shower as the weeks worth of dirt washed off our bodies. I think we all felt a bit reborn as we put on clean clothes and headed to the bar for a cold one.
A nice surprise for me was seeing my good friend Dave Hahn, who was leading the RMI Kili trip before ours and getting ready to start his next trip.
Shortly, we'll be up for breakfast and beginning the next part of our adventure: the safari, where we plan on visiting Lake Manyara, the Ngorogoro Crater and the Tanagire National Park. There we'll be hoping to see some of the incredible wildlife this special part of the world call home. Lions, elephants, leopards, wildebeest, hippos, zebras, giraffes and so much more. And, no more walking for a while.
Bring it on!
RMI Guide Brent Okita
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Champion effort! May you be well rested for another summit run and may she,the Mountain,help make it so. Many Blessings, Hujo and Katie.
Posted by: HUGH DE PENTHENY O KELLY on 6/6/2018 at 9:08 am
You fellas have fun up there. Maybe have Robby eat some more torts and ride him to the top like a rocket ship…. I don’t know, maybe??? Just think about the 8 cases of beer buried at base camp!
Posted by: Todd Hayes on 6/5/2018 at 8:28 pm
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