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 RMI Guides Dave Hahn and Dustin Wittmier and the Mt. Rainier Five Day Climb teams endured a steady and consistent spring storm at Camp Muir. Windy conditions prevented the teams fom ascending above Camp Muir but will make for epic stories of traveling to the outhouse while at camp. The teams will return to Rainier Basecamp in Ashford this afternoon.

Hannah and I are thrilled to announce to bloglandia that every RMI team member, all 13 of us, summited Cotopaxi this morning around 6:15 am.   I gotta say, this team is batting the perfect game.   Every climber has successfully reached the top of all four mountains without as much as a few blisters.   Granted I taped those blisters up this morning at 12:03 am and I was happy they weren’t mine, but it goes to show that stamina and toughness go a long way up here.   

Potentially assisting in the team’s great success is the unbelievable weather.   I was awe struck at how beautiful Cayambe was but surprised even more at the perfection of today’s weather and route conditions.   Whoever cashed in their karma chips certainly deserves a Pilsner Grande for their investment.   We simply could not be blessed with better luck.  Adding to the beauty this evening was a near full moon which lit up the glacier so brightly we were able to climb without headlamps.    Usually one element, wind, rain, snow, fog or cold is waiting for you at the top.  Today all we had was an intense rotten egg smell from the still active lava tube belching sulfurous gas but other than that nada mucho.   

After a spectacular climb and full blown photo shoot extravaganza, we descended quickly to the hut for homemade pancakes.  Again, this is how mountain climbing should be?   (When do we get cooks again at camp Muir?)

A brief packing session and 600 vertical foot hike down to the bus landed our exhausted carcasses into our assigned seats and off to the Hacienda for a needed shower and big dinner.   I think the average calorie burn on peoples watches indicated between 7 and 9 thousand calories for the day so some papas fritas and lots of meat shouldn’t tighten the belt too much.  

We hope this trend continues tomorrow as we head further south to attempt the grand finale of Chimborazo.   This mountain is notorious for its difficulty so stay tuned.

RMI Guide Adam Knoff

On The Map

RMI Guide Alan Davis checked in via inReach. The team arrived at the western end of the Ishinca Glacier at 14,400' yesterday. They will spend a couple of days building on the skills in preparation for our first summit bid, Ishinca at 18,143'.

All is well, no hiccups! 

July 14, 2022

After waking to wild horses outside our tents in search for scraps, we gulped down some coffee and porridge and began walking uphill in the cold of the night at 2:00 a.m. We made the toe of the glacier by 5:30 a.m. and donned our crampons and climbing gear. Due to the melting out of the glacier we attempted a new route over a rocky ridge where we began climbing two pitches of firm nevé to the cruzy glacial traverse toward the steep summit ramp. The team dug deep through the heat of the morning and reached the summit of Ishinca where we were surrounded by cobalt skies and beautiful snowy peaks. Back at camp, the team was tired and ready for bed. We enjoyed fresh avocado salads and asada then quickly got horizontal under a clear starry night. Ready for a well deserved rest day tomorrow!

RMI Guide Alan Davis and Team

Silence. Beautiful silence. For the first time all trip we had a windless night. Needless to say everyone slept deeply and blissfully after the previous nights adventure. We woke up with the late morning sun and enjoyed a relaxing day of snacking, restocking on water and double checking our gear for summit day. Tomorrow we move to High Camp and the team is in high spirits to be that much closer to our goal!

RMI Guide Walter Hailes

We pushed back our wake-up and starting times this morning in order to let a few of the surrounding teams get out on the trail first.  The Barranco Wall has a few tight passages along rock ledges where we’d just as soon miss the traffic jams.  That meant a leisurely pace to rolling out of bed and packing up.  It was cool in the shadow of the mountain though, and a relief -during breakfast- when the sun hit. We marched toward the base of the wall at 9 AM with perhaps a few butterflies in some stomachs as folks wondered how it would all work out.  From below, the Great Barranco Wall looks very much like a Great Wall… intimidating.  But as we started winding up the trail and came to grips with the tricky parts, most began to relax. Our local guides -John, Tom, Naiman and Philibet were at every difficult move, pointing out hand and footholds and managing porter traffic.  Before long we’d cruised past the narrowest ledges and gotten to easier -though still steep- trail sections in the middle of the wall.  There were still a few places requiring both hands on the rock near the top, but then we popped out onto flat ground about 1200 ft higher than where we’d begun.  We took a well-deserved break and snapped a few pictures of the spectacular South Face of Kilimanjaro.  The rest of the walk to Karanga was easy in comparison to the Wall.  Just a few valleys to traverse, and lots of sights to see as much of the lower cloud melted away.  We sat down to lunch in our new camp at 13,100 ft.  The afternoon was a chance for resting and rehydrating.  As the sun set, John -our lead guide- led the team in an impromptu dance session on the concrete heli-pad adjacent to camp.  We sat down to dinner in our well lit dining tent and then came out to another beautiful night scene, this time with the lights of Moshi (the city at Kili’s Southeast corner) spread out far below. 

Best Regards

RMI Guide Dave Hahn