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Another day in Paradise! The team is enjoying a sunny, glorious day in base camp. The great news is everyone woke up feeling good. It can be a difficult first night at 14,000 feet and the doctor here in camp even confirmed that everyone is marvelous during our medical check-up.
Today is a rest day. However, after a scrambled egg and veggie breakfast we all got busy organizing gear for tomorrow's
carry to Camp One. For now we are going to finish packing and I, personally, am going to start drinking one of the four 2-liter coca colas that I brought with me. All this organizing is making me thirsty!
RMI Guides JJ Justman and JM Gorum and team
On The Map
Hello again from Kilimanjaro -
Today the team had our usual start at 7am with a full breakfast at 7:30 and hit the trail just after 8. The skies were clear and it felt wonderful to be hiking uphill in the warmth of the sun. Our route today took us up to about 15,000' (setting new altitude records for some) as we passed a landmark known as Lava Tower and then descended down into the
Barranco valley. This valley is full of giant groundsels and senecio trees that look like something out of a Dr. Seuss book.
As we arrived at camp the clouds enveloped us once again and we are currently relaxing back in our tents waiting on dinner.
Everyone is doing well and enjoying the climb.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew
On The Map
Hello again everyone!
All is well here on
Kilimanjaro after a good nights rest. Today the team woke at 7 am to coffee and tea being served at our tent doors by our gracious staff. We had breakfast with healthy serving of fresh fruits, bread, assorted meats and cheeses, and fried eggs. After filling our bellies we hit the trail shortly after 8 am and slowly made our way along the ever winding trail towards the Shira Plateau. Our team did great on the rocky trail as we ascended higher up the mountain, stopping to take breaks and let the never end line of porters pass us.
It took about 5 hours to reach our new camp, which our staff had already set up before our arrival. Clearly we are not roughing it too much!
Everyone is doing well and seems to be enjoying the climb thus far. We'll spend the next few hours resting in our tents and taking in the splendid view we have from just over 12,000'.
RMI Guide
Casey Grom and crew
On The Map
RMI Guide JM Gorum called to let us know that the
Expedition Skills Seminar - Emmons Team were on the summit of Mt. Rainier. The team put their week of training to work and climb via the Emmons Route on Mt. Rainier. JM reported cold and windy temperatures, but a great climbing route. The team is on their descent back to Camp Schurman where where they will spend the night before hiking out tomorrow.
Congratulations to Today's Team.
We packed up after a stormy night at 19,600'. The evening was filled thunder, lightening and lots of snow. The early start had our hands and toes cold, but we were rewarded with a stellar sunrise and a quick descent through the snow and scree. There was gear to pick up at the lower camps and finally we got to
Plaza Argentina to enjoy a warm afternoon of packing for the mules and some well deserved rest at lower elevation. Tomorrow we'll walk to Lenas, our first camp of the trek for the legendary asado and one last night under the stars. This trip has been filled with lots of laughs, better then normal weather and a great team. This will be our last dispatch of the trip, your loved ones will be in reach once we arrive in Mendoza on the evening of the 8th. Thanks for following along on our expedition to the top of South America.
RMI Guide Mike King
The skies cleared overnight and we were treated to the first truly blue bird morning of the trip.
Cotopaxi was out in full glory. A leisurely morning lead to another fantastic breakfast served up by our Master Chef Josè. After breakfast we took a short stroll around the area to stretch the legs. It is climber Aaron D.'s birthday today and upon our return from our walk we surprised him with a cake equipped with candles and all! Happy Birthday Aaron! After enjoying our Ecuadorian pastel we hopped onto the bus and took the short drive to Tambopaxi where we will stage for our summit climb. With the weather looking good the team is excited to tackle our last objective! Off to bed here shortly in preparation of an early wake up. Wish us luck!
RMI Guide Steve Gately
On The Map
At 7:13 a.m. the
Four Day Summit Climb led by RMI Guide
Dave Hahn reached Columbia Crest, the highest point on Mt. Rainier. Dave reported perfect conditions today. The team will spend some time on the summit celebrating before beginning their descent. We look forward to seeing them in Ashford this afternoon.
Congratulations climbers!
May 6, 2017 11:18 pm PST
We had a very successful day today, carrying a load of supplies up to around 10,300' where we buried it under a couple meters of snow so that the ravens won't dig it up. Then we returned back to our camp at the Base of
Ski Hill (7800') for the night. After a good hot dinner, we've all retired to our sleeping bags for well earned rest. Tomorrow we are hoping to move camp up to 11,200'. We'll let you know how it goes.
RMI Guide Mike Walter & Team
By three this morning, my team of prospective Kili climbers was all present and accounted for on the fringes of
Arusha, Tanzania. Eleven of us spent the day getting ready for a week on the move. As is normal with my groups, the team stifled yawns and feigned great interest as I conducted our introductory meeting after a fine Dik Dik Hotel breakfast. They claimed "jet lag" was the culprit rather than my rambling on. Possibly. We're a good ten hours removed from some west coast US homes now.
After the briefing, it was time for personal equipment checks and packing for an early departure. This left a good chunk of the afternoon for the gang to relax, to walk the garden-like grounds of the hotel, and to periodically climb the water tower to see if Kilimanjaro was out. She was, by evening... faintly... and floating like a cloud in the distance. As we organized, the local guides and kitchen staff had the much bigger job of packing the food and gear for the trip. It was impressive as always to see lead guide Freddy Kilewo out there making order of the chaos. He has about fifty people to plan for, between porters, camp staff, clients and guides. He makes it all look easy.
We'll begin walking the Machame route tomorrow and coming to grips with this challenge that many have been dreaming and scheming about for years. But this evening it is time to enjoy a send-off feast and a last night in a bed... even with jet lag, we all know it is a good deal.
Best Regards,
Dave Hahn and Team
Hi everyone! The RMI
Aconcagua team is safely back at Base Camp. We are enjoying cokes and beers and just relaxing. I will be honest, most of us are exhausted, me included. It was a perfect summit day and it has taken its toll. We all deserve to relax and unwind. This is officially the last blog post for our team. We will walk out tomorrow and arrive in Mendoza on the 13th. Thanks for all of your support along the way. Ciao from Aconcagua.
RMI Guide
JJ Justman and
JM Gorum
On The Map
Hi there, Mike. Wow, 60-mile an hour wind! You guys are doing great with the good medical check-up results. Mmmm! Lunch sounded great: cucumber/tomato,avocado salad! Happy climbing, Mom and Dad
Posted by: Joan and Spence Vigneau on 2/5/2016 at 5:00 pm
Lookin forward to the summit pic Mike. You got this one. Slip in under the weather window like Everest,Kili,Whitney and longs. Good luck to you. Eric
Posted by: Eric on 2/4/2016 at 4:07 pm
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