This is Avery and Eric Frank's North Cascades team calling from the summit of Sahale today. We've had an absolutely beautiful day, couldn't ask for better weather. Managed to summit early in the day and get some training in in preparation for a Forbidden summit tomorrow. Going to get some rest tonight. And get ready for the Forbidden summit in the morning. Thanks for following along.
RMI Guides Avery Parrinello and Eric Frank
RMI Guide Avery Parrinello calls in from the summit of Sahale Mountain in the North Cascades.
June 6, 2017
Today we woke up to the expected winds on the upper mountain. The temperatures are creeping up slowly but the winds are keeping us low for a day, or a few. This means we acclimate by doing light activity and a bit of lifting.
We started with a hot drink and traveled back to the edge of the world to outstanding views. Afterwords, the team all piled into the cook tent for a round of blueberry pancakes.
Building walls around our camp, creating a mountain castle, filled the next few hours as we fortified our outpost. We now have the best walls and the best views in camp! A fellow RMI team lead by Jake, Steve, and Megan arrived at 14 today, and our group was happy to lend them a hand setting up camp. We are now surrounded by friends in a beautiful camp. Everything is in its place, and we are ready to move uphill when the mountain allows it.
RMI Guide Tyler Jones
Fingers crossed for clear weather and being able to push ahead at the soonest opportunity.
Go John and the rest of the team!
Posted by: SoCal Gunns on 6/8/2017 at 9:56 am
Hi Dear Amir and Hi to all team members,
Hope all is OK with you and you have a pleasant and safe climbing. You are just at it!! You are on a hard journey. Years ahead you look back and you enjoy remembering an unforgettable, amazing and exciting experience in fighting physically and spirituallly against hard rock stones in your way up. Your ascent is symbolising how you need to move forward and pass the barriers patiently and humbly but resolutely. Tomorrow morning I will be climbing Claun Bastami at 4300 meter height, beginning at 4 am and coming down in the afternoon.
Please take good care of yourself, preserve your skin from the intensity of sun and stay well!
Hadi, Mitra’s dad
June 6, 2017
The cocoon of warmth and comfort provided by our sleeping bags is tough to leave sometimes, especially when the mercury is hovering well below zero outside. But starting at 6:30am that is my job: to look outside and check the climbing conditions for summit worthy weather.
The winds around camp had settled a little, but blowing snow was obvious above us around Denali Pass. Although better than yesterday, I was still rather leery of bringing the team into conditions like that. With improvement by 7:30 we had hots on for breakfast and the team prepared all they could by being all dressed and ready to go, but hanging out in their tents and staying warm.
At decision time there was still blowing snow off the higher ridges and the Pass, and I made another tough decision not to go for the summit, As soon as it warmed up a bit we continued with the home improvements started yesterday and are now proud owners of a roofed and enclosed bathroom. Ok, basically it's just a place for us to pee and poop, but we'll now have some privacy and a little protection from the gusts of wind and snow we've had to deal with the past few days. Up here, it's the little things that help make this tough life at 17,200' just a little nicer.
It was good for all of us to move and work a bit, and many blocks of snow were cut in the construction of our masterpiece. I believe we impressed our neighbors to no end, with many people coming over to garner building tips for making on of their own, or just taking pictures and marveling at the energy we put in to our humble commode.
As these days pass by even the most patient of us are getting antsy for the summit, but there's one thing we don't have control of is the weather. So, we just make the most of what we have. Life on this beautiful mountain in the company of some pretty cool people. Things could be a lot worse.
Bye for now.
RMI Guides Brent, Christina and JT
I admire your perseverance with the waiting game, undoubtably the hardest part of the climb. Camp construction and naps are a great way to pass the time. I’ve been checking the weather periodically and trying to guess as to when you all might head for the summit. Fingers crossed for warmer weather when that finally does happen! Sending great thoughts for a safe summit bid!!
Love,
K
Posted by: Kristen Kelliher on 6/8/2017 at 6:11 am
Wow! What a night and what a day for Team Russia. I have been guiding here since 2002 and I haven't seen weather quite like this. The winds are very strong still. However, the thunder and lightening has moved away. Instead of acclimatizing towards 15,000 feet, the team was forced to stay put. So today was a rest day and we did manage to go for a short walk and do some skills training. Tomorrow we will give it another try in climbing up towards 15,000 feet, weather permitting.
RMI Guide JJ Justman
Saturday, July 9, 2016 - 2:23 a.m. PDT
Yesterday was an unlikely summit day. There were clouds everywhere and breezes blowing... But we'd begun to think we wouldn't get anything better. So we went for it, leaving high camp at about 10 AM. Right out of camp though, we were breaking trail... And it went that way all day. Slow going and strenuous climbing. But it mostly went our way. The winds died just before we reached Denali Pass. It was a cold day - by July standards- but our team dealt well with the challenge. Sadly, we never got much in the way of views due to the clouds, but when we topped out at 7:15 PM, no one seemed overly concerned with the things they might have seen on a better day. We made it back to high camp at midnight and had a late late dinner. Breakfast this morning was a rolling thing, with folks wandering through the kitchen one by one as they woke. It was a stunningly nice day... Clear and sunny the way it never seems to be anymore. But we could not have known such a fine day was coming... The forecasts didn't hint at it. In any case it was good for descending. We dropped down the crest of the West Buttress, the fixed lines and the snowy hills above 14 camp. It took time to reorganize there and then we set out for 11,000ft. The route was barely recognizable as there'd been huge snow and plenty of avalanches. We were sinking in deeply and engaging in a great sled rodeo on the steep side hills, but we kept on trudging and finally reached our old home at 11,000ft. We look forward to some deep sleep and recuperation here -6,000 ft below our last home.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
June 10, 2016 - 10:35 pm PT
Waking to clear skies and minimal wind was a great way to start our move to 14K Camp. Of course when you walk amongst the clouds sometimes they come say hello. As we crossed the Polo Fields towards Windy Corner, weather set in and the team got their first taste of what Denali can dish out. We managed quite well and rallied through the pass to the calm on the other side, none the worse for wear, but with a few wider eyes to show for the effort.
After an easy camp build (Thanks Jonesy!), we dined and toasted our friend Ryan for his Birthday! Katrina even no baked a cheesecake to celebrate the joyous day.
That's the news from 14K, stay tuned for the next episode.
RMI Guide Jake Beren
Hello, this is Elías and the Alpamayo team calling again from High Camp. Today, at the base of the Alpamayo Head Wall, we are taking a rest day, as we'd let you know yesterday. The weather looks really good, we are in good spirits and health, and we're just relaxing and waiting for our summit push tonight. So tomorrow, this time, check in, and hopefully we will have a summit report from you. Otherwise, stay tuned until then, and best regards to everybody back home. Bye.
RMI Guide Elías de Andres Martos
RMI Guide Elias de Andres Martos checks in from High Camp on Alpamayo.
K-So nice to hear from you -the call made my day!!! So I am thinking that when you get back maybe you can tackle Campbell Hill (1550’) in Logan County—-Race ya to the top!! Mike
Posted by: Michael on 7/21/2015 at 6:44 pm
Dear Team, have a good rest and some serious sleep hours and all the best for the summit push! Thinking of you all and sending a BIG hug, Feli
Posted by: felicitas funke-riehle on 7/21/2015 at 6:16 pm
The Ecuador Seminar team got to shake off the final bit of jet leg today, with the main focus of the day being acclimatization. Many of our team broke altitude records today during our hike to the summit on Rucu Pichincha (15,354’). A moderate hike, the team gained around 2500’ through grasslands up to the rocky, scrambly summit. The rest of the day will be spent resting and relaxing, allowing our bodies to adapt now that we’re back at lower elevations. We plan to culminate the evening with a nice team dinner at a local restaurant and perhaps a soak in the hotel hot tub. Tomorrow, the team heads to Laguna Cuicocha, our next acclimatization hike before heading to the Caymbe hut. Spirits are high and the team is stoked to get on their first major objective.
We loaded up all our gear and added 10 liters of water to our already four gallons and hit the trail for High Camp. It was slow going with heavy packs ,loose scree steps, and not much atmosphere above us but all went well. We made many friends along the trail who are all rooting for the tall blond lady team. Tonight we will hopefully get some sleep and wake up at midnight for the summit bid.
Think warm and speedy thoughts!
RMI Guide Christina Dale
Waking today was groundhogs day. Low and lightless grey clouds. Gently falling snow, muted sounds. But that all changed as the day went on. To the point that by late afternoon it was blue skies and sunshine all around. That didn’t make the Ilyushin fly though. We, of course, want the plane to come in to take away the marathon runners -much as we’ve grown attached to them- they stand between us and spare seats to Punta Arenas. There is new snow covering what should be a blue ice runway here at Union and, reportedly there are ridiculous winds limiting a transport plane from taxiing for a takeoff from Punta. Nonetheless it turned into a brilliant day here at Union. People congregated outside the tents, staring at the sun and forgotten horizons and mountains. Much as 60 odd people wanted out... nobody could deny that Antarctica was amazing (and captivating) today. We all attended and appreciated a lecture by an ALE guide who’d broken records for a solo female journey to the South Pole. We watched a fine movie about Shackleton’s Endurance expedition. Generally, we celebrated the fact that 107 years ago today, man first reached the South Pole of planet Earth.
Best Regards
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
-(P3).jpg)
Fingers crossed for clear weather and being able to push ahead at the soonest opportunity.
Go John and the rest of the team!
Posted by: SoCal Gunns on 6/8/2017 at 9:56 am
Hi Dear Amir and Hi to all team members,
Hope all is OK with you and you have a pleasant and safe climbing. You are just at it!! You are on a hard journey. Years ahead you look back and you enjoy remembering an unforgettable, amazing and exciting experience in fighting physically and spirituallly against hard rock stones in your way up. Your ascent is symbolising how you need to move forward and pass the barriers patiently and humbly but resolutely. Tomorrow morning I will be climbing Claun Bastami at 4300 meter height, beginning at 4 am and coming down in the afternoon.
Please take good care of yourself, preserve your skin from the intensity of sun and stay well!
Hadi, Mitra’s dad
Posted by: Hadi on 6/8/2017 at 6:51 am
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