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With support from the Eddie Bauer - RMI Guide Grant, RMI Guide Lindsay Mann took part in an American Avalanche Institute Level 3 Avalanche Course this winter in Jackson, Wyoming. Afterward, Lindsay sat down to reflect on the course. This past January I participated in an American Avalanche Institute Level 3 Course in Jackson, Wyoming. A Level 3 Avi Course entails a great deal of prep work as participants need to complete snow observations, make numerous snow pit profiles, and spend ample experience traveling and making decisions in avalanche terrain before the course even begins. After several days of classroom and field learning, the course concluded with several testing components. These test involved completing a full data snow pit in under an hour, finding three buried avalanche beacons in less than seven minutes, and completing a written test. The conditions for our course were ideal for learning. Midway through the course a major storm cycle came through the area, resulting in rapidly changing conditions within the snowpack that had a wide array of implications on avalanche risk. While the class focused on the technical aspects of snow crystal identification and anticipating the array of components that contribute to avalanche forecasting, we were also able to enjoy some great skiing between the times we spent observing and forecasting the rapidly changing snowpack. I walked away from the course with a sense of accomplishment, as this is the highest-level avalanche education course available in the U.S., and a greater understanding for mechanics of avalanches and and avalanche forecasting. The complexities of avalanches are remarkable and this course was invaluable in contributing to the toolbox of skills upon which I rely for decision making in the mountains and in avalanche terrain. ________ Lindsay Mann is a Senior Guide at RMI Expeditions and a NCAA D1 Skiing Champion. She has climbed and guided around the world, from Peru to Alaska. Learn more about Lindsay and see her upcoming trips here…

The Four Day Climb July 30 - 2 August reached the summit of Mt. Rainier today. RMI Guide Nikki Champion led the team reported cold and windy conditions with a good route.  The team spent some time in the crater before starting their descent to Camp Muir.  Once back at Camp they will take a short break before continuing the remaining 4,500' to Paradise.

Nice work today team!

Hello from the Carstensz Pyramid team, What a way to start an expedition. Mountain climbers surf Bali! Fresh red snapper for lunch and solid 3 foot swell for dessert. I love my job! We head to the airport at midnight tonight for a 2 am flight to the town of Timika on the Island of New Guinea. The whole team and all bags are here and ready. Everyone is looking forward to the rest of this adventure. RMI Guide Mark Tucker

On The Map

The team of American Lung Association (ALA) climbers on the Four Day Climb June 19 - 22 led by RMI Guide Abby Westling reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning.  The climbers enjoyed blue skies and sunshine on their ascent and were able to spend some time in the crater.  Abby and the team started their descent from the crater rim around 8:30 am en route to Camp Muir.  Once back at camp, they will get a short rest before continuing down to Paradise.  The program ends this evening with a celebration for the team members for their hardwork and contributions to the American Lung Association. 

Congratulations to today's climbers!

The Four-Day climbing teams led by RMI guides Steve Gately and Christina Dale reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. They reported some light route traffic and a great climbing route.

They will return back to Camp Muir for a quick rest break before descending back to Rainier Basecamp in Ashford this evening to celebrate their success!

Nice work team!

We made the big move up from Low Camp to High Camp today. The team climbed well and strong... getting the job done in a little over five hours. But it wasn't easy, by any means. A cold wind hit us just above the top of the fixed ropes and then harassed us all the way into camp. That made for some cold campers, initially, but we got a few tents and a kitchen built and life got better, the way it always does when such things are around. The teams that we flew onto the mountain with managed to summit today -the storm hit some of them on their way back into camp but they coped well, for all we could tell. Of course our hope is that wind and clouds will flee in time for us to enjoy a Christmas summit of Mount Vinson, but we shall see. If we have to give the storm a day or two to pass through, we can do that as well. A Christmas spent napping in a warm sleeping bag alongside friends is not a terrible thing. We just hope Santa will find his way into the chimney on these tents without too much difficulty. Merry Christmas from the Ellsworth Mountains, Sentinel Range, 12,600 ft up on the Vinson Massif, deep in the heart of Antarctica. RMI Guide Dave Hahn

On The Map

RMI guides Mike King and Mike Haugen called from the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. They reported some chilly temperatures, moderate winds and beautiful weather for climbing this morning. Despite the cold temperatures, the team enjoyed a great climbing route. Congratulations climbers!

We woke to a starry sky and calm winds last night, perfect conditions for our summit attempt on Chimborazo. We had altered our plans because the volcano Tungurahua, to the east of Chimborazo, was spitting out ash two mornings ago. So, instead of establishing a high camp in tents, we attempted our climb from the lower climbers' hut. We had our work cut out for us, with about 5,000 vertical feet of climbing, and a circuitous route to avoid the current rock fall hazard on the normal route up Chimborazo. Fortunately the weather cooperated all day for us, and we had a very strong and experienced team, and we were able to summit Chimborazo! We had a very, very long day of hard climbing. We started climbing in the dark, and got back to the climbers' hut a few hours after dark. We encountered steep and firm climbing conditions on Chimborazo, which made climbing and descending particularly slow as we had to concentrate on good cramponing and climbing techniques for hours on end. Our team proved up to the challenge, and we climbed safely the whole day. In the end, it was one heck of an adventure. We're headed back to Quito now, and we should be at our hotel just slightly after noon. We'll have plenty of time to enjoy leisurely walking around the city (after a much anticipated hot shower!) before we have a celebratory dinner tonight. Then it's back to the old US of A on our respective flights tonight and tomorrow. RMI Guide Mike Walter

RMI Guides Win Whittaker and Dan Windham led the Four Day Summit Climb teams to 13,500' this morning before deciding to turn around due to deteriorating weather conditions and increased winds. The teams checked in from Ingraham Flats around 7:30 a.m. on their descent as the rain continued to fall. They returned to Camp Muir to repack and hopefully dry out a bit. At 10:00 a.m. they began their descent from Camp Muir to Paradise. We look forward to seeing the groups at Rainier BaseCamp in a few hours.

The Kautz Seminar, led by RMI Guide James Bealer, was stopped by route conditions this morning.  They reached 12,500' before making the call to abort their ascent.  The team is currently working their way back to high camp.  They have had a full week of training and will spend one more night on the mountain before concluding their program tomorrow.