This is Mike and team checking in after our delicious asado dinner cooked by the mule drivers. We had an eight-hour hike from Base Camp and some of our feet faired better then others. Regardless, everyone is excited to be in Mendoza tomorrow night. This has been a great group of climbers and while we didn't stand on top of Aconcagua, the team learned a lot and had fun doing so.
RMI Guide Mike King
It poured rain all night. It was still pouring this morning when we woke up. It took us awhile to work up the courage to get out of our tents and pack up but we did it. We packed our gear and booked it down the trail to find somewhere a little less wet. Now we are back in town, still soaking wet, but oh so happy to know we can finally start getting dry. Despite the soggy finish to our trip, we had a great time training on Mt. Shuksan.
RMI Guide Mike Walter and team
The Team has really lucked out where the weather is concerned. We don’t have the lightest winds in the forecast but we are hoping they stay manageable. We enjoyed another warm night with a spectacular moon following whatever lunar phenomena happened a few nights ago. We are at 18,000’ and enjoying some more tent time. There comes a point where having slightly longer days would be nice, reading 300 pages of a book in two days is quite easy with how much tent time we get. Now that we are at Camp 2, the wait for a summit window becomes more realistic. The schedule is to carry food and fuel to high camp tomorrow and rest the following day. This will get us three nights at this elevation. Ultimately, the forecasted winds might force our hand to move up a day earlier or burn a weather day in hopes of lighter wind. Until then, we have a crowded camp but with a spectacular view. Thanks for following along.
Update 4:17 pm PT
Everyone is safe and sound back at high camp. It didn’t take long for the team to eat dinner, wrap up in their sleeping bags, and pass out. Tomorrow we’ll move back down to the booming metropolis of basecamp.
Summit Call
Hey this is JM Gorum calling from the top of Aconcagua. We got kind of a late start this morning. We ended up having a beautiful day. We are standing on top right now. We are getting some high clouds and snow a little bit. We are going to start heading down hill. We will check in when we get back to High Camp. Talk to you then.
RMI Guide JM Gorum
RMI Guide JM Gorum checks in from the summit of Aconcagua.
The Four Day Summit Climb September 6 - 9 reached the summit of Mt. Rainier today. RMI Guide Steve Gately and team were 100% to the summit. Steve reported clouds and winds to the top of Disappointment Cleaver with winds 10-20 mph. The climbers left the crater rim just before 8 AM en route to Camp Muir. Once back at camp they will repack and continue down to Paradise. We look forward to seeing them at Rainier BaseCamp later this afternoon.
Congratulations to today's climbers!
Congratulations to all of you. What an accomplishment!
Posted by: Jan Charter on 9/9/2018 at 1:22 pm
WAY TO GO….Tara & group !! I can’t imagine how hard it was but also how majestic. I’m SO PROUD of you Tara & what you accomplished. Mt Ranier has been conquered !!! Can’t wait to hear ALL about it !! Love Mom
RMI Guide Eric Frank & Team decided to swap the smoky air of the North Cascades for the cleaner ocean air of Mt. Erie. The downside to the change is less significant peak objectives, but still quality rock climbing and rock movement training grounds. The team ended the program on a high note and under blue skies. Forecasts for the coming days in the North Cascades are predicting that the smoke will clear out and should provide ideal climbing conditions for climbs on Mt. Baker, Mt. Shuksan, and in the Boston Basin.
Sunday, June 24, 2018 - 9:45 PM PT
We busted out of camp at 9,500 ft by 7:10 AM. There was still plenty of cloud out and about, but not so much in the direction we wanted to go. Of course things were a little cooler at the lofty heights we were reaching, but not unpleasantly so. We reached the corner at Kahiltna Pass in just over an hour’s time and left the mighty Kahiltna Glacier. A couple of tough uphill pushes then brought us to 11,000. Conditions were sunny, calm and nice as we built camp -we’re starting to get good at this stuff. The afternoon was spent napping and prepping for tomorrow’s carry to 13,500. In the late afternoon and evening we got a heavy and hot snow shower. We dodged it eating burritos in the dining tent. After dinner, things got fun and busy as RMI Guide Mike King’s victorious climbing team came down to share camp for an evening. They’ll head downhill in the early morning and we’ll be looking upward.
Best Regards
Dave Hahn
Sue- we are with you on every step! We are there pulling the sled with you, hauling the pack, and climbing! You so have this!!!
-Lots of love, Your crazy tent mates from downtown Kahiltna 2017!!
Posted by: Patty Kudla on 6/26/2018 at 7:07 am
Margaret and Jon, Amy just told me about your climbing adventure and who it honors. What a special tribute to your father, Margaret. Wishing you and all of your team a safe climb. We are cheering you on from Melbourne! Go Go Go!!!!
Saturday, June 23, 2018 - 10:26 PM PT
This one started out differently. It wasn’t snowy at 3:30 AM and it wasn’t cloudy. In fact it looked pretty good for climbing. We were walking out of 7800 ft at 6 AM with a big view of Denali’s South Face and some of its classic climbing routes. Our classic climbing route for the day was on “Ski Hill”. Once again we had heavy packs and sleds, once again we used snowshoes and ski poles. The fact that the snow surface had frozen overnight was in our favor, making for good walking. The fact that ski hill is all uphill certainly made things harder, but such difficulties weren’t exactly unexpected. We rolled into our intended site at 9500 ft by 10 AM. Building camp was easy enough in strong sunshine and calm conditions. We snoozed away the warm afternoon, or snacked, read, chatted and hydrated. Dinner in the dining tent was a picnic in the dry and calm conditions. We can no longer see Denali from this particular angle, but the view down 43 miles of the Kahiltna Glacier certainly isn’t bad. Most were in their tents again and turning in by 8 PM when the sun went behind Kahiltna Dome. A little cooler up here now as we start gaining altitude.
Best Regards
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
Well, this morning went about as smoothly as it possibly could have thanks to the team's expert preparations yesterday. We had breakfast in the hotel, and then walked next door to make our final preparations for departure. After a short shuttle ride to the mouth of the Vacas River, we checked in with the park service and headed up the valley. We had cloudless skies and a consistent breeze all day, so it never got unbearably hot.
The team arrived in camp around 3:30 this afternoon, which left plenty of time for relaxing and exploring. Dinner consisted of more food than we could eat, prepared by the mule drivers on an open flame. Most folks are crawling into bed now, and since the weather is so nice we're going to forgo the tents and sleep under the stars. All the team says hello to everyone at home.
RMI Guides JM Gorum, Hannah Smith, and Avery Parrinello
Today was just right for moving. We were up and getting ready shortly after the ten thirty sun hit the tents. Launch time was 12:50 PM and with perfect conditions, we made steady and excellent progress. Certainly the 2,000 vertical feet of the fixed lines were still difficult with heavy packs, but we had the benefit of being on familiar ground. We cruised into High Camp at 6 PM, still feeling strong, but also noticing just how much colder it is up around 12,300 ft. We dressed up and built camp, got stoves going and sat down out in the sunshine for dinner. The views from here are other-worldly, with ice stretching beyond the visible horizon in any direction and mountains rising to ridiculously sharp summits all around. The teams we waited with at Union Glacier all hit the summit today and we greeted them each with a “congratulations” and a fist bump when they rolled into camp on their return.
Perhaps we’ll get as lucky tomorrow. We will be ready.
Best Regards
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
How cool is this that I get to write you a little note. I have been thinking about you and what an amazing experience you must be having. I’m looking forward to hearing about it when you get home. Be Safe!!! I’ll tell mom about this web sight. We love you!!! Joke: What do you call a cold ghost?
A: casp-burr!
Stay Warm!!!
Posted by: Allison Gibbons on 12/10/2017 at 9:08 pm
Steve,
We are praying for you and your team. We hope that today will be the day. Be safe and enjoy this special time. We will be anxious to see you upon your return.
Best to you. Jack and Camille
Posted by: Jack and Camille on 12/10/2017 at 5:32 am
Wonderful congrats a day late
Posted by: Alice and Don on 1/13/2019 at 10:30 am
We love you Cory!!! Congrats! Awesome job - can’t wait to hear about your adventures!
Posted by: Karen Prykull on 1/13/2019 at 6:11 am
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