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Hi folks,
Well, it's time to say goodbye to
Aconcagua Base Camp and hit the dusty trail back to Las Lenas. Given the grim outlook on this mountain for the next week, the team is rather excited to be able to get back home to you all just a little bit sooner. We're hoping that the promise of huge slabs of steak cooked over an open fire will motivate us along the 18 or so miles we have ahead of us today. Hopefully we can stay hydrated and blister free.
You used to call us on our sat phone,
RMI Guides Pepper Dee and JJ Justman
Tough job today. Had to get up, pack for safari, and game view the day away. What a great contrast from mountain life. Nice banquet last night- summit certificates for all and a special cake to boot. Once again the team excels at any challenge put in front of them. To take on a safari you have to be, let's say "awake", well most of the time. Napping is an option, especially after a great lunch in the bush. While dining at lunch in
Lake Manyara National Park, we observed a troop of baboons frolicking in close proximity. Always a bit unnerving when no bars separate human from beast. Goes to show we are still living on the edge here in deepest Africa. A bit breezy today, which kept the dust and bugs at bay. Off to Ngorongoro Crater in the morning, the eighth wonder of the world.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
Luckily for us the rain stopped about midnight. Clear and cool as we started the day with yet another fine breakfast. Not a long climb today, just a little over two hours to get us here at high camp, Barafu 15,000 ft. After making camp and enjoying lunch we got sorted for the summit climb to night. Lots of lunch/ snacks for the 12 hour climb ahead were a big focus and planing our clothing layers as well. Nice weather for drying boots and lounging about. Going to try and take a break before early dinner and nap till 11:30 wake up. The whole team is in good shape so with a bit of luck some good weather we should be on top soon.
RMI Guide Mark Tucker
100% on the summit of Mt. Rainier!
RMI Guides Brent Okita and Leon Davis led their
Four Day Summit Climb teams to the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. Brent reported gorgeous weather with no wind. The teams began their descent from the crater rim just after 7 am. We look forward to greeting them back in Ashford later today.
Way to climb!! Congratulations!
RMI Guide Andy Bond and his
Shuksan Seminar team all reached the summit! Andy reported great weather with a little smoke south of them. The team arrived back to camp in the afternoon. They will be training tomorrow and ending their seminar on Friday.
The Team packed up and moved the bear necessities to Cholera, located at 19,600'. Camp is built and we are enjoying a calm and warm day, which is a plus since this camp is named after the fierce winds that plague this part of the mountain. Tomorrow is our summit day and there is some nervous energy and excitement to be finally nearing the objective of the climb. Everyone sends their best back home. Not much else to do but eat, pack, try to sleep and enjoy the thin air. We'll call in from the summit should
Aconcagua bless us with calm winds and a wicked cramponable route.
RMI Guide Mike King
On The Map
July 4, 2017
It was the calm and sunny morning we'd been hoping for at 14,000 ft today. Which certainly made it easier to get up and get sorted for going downhill. Independence Day at 14,000' Camp was so nice that we lingered in camp until just after noon. Then it was walking down, hauling sleds around Windy (but not actually windy) Corner, across the Polo Field, down Squirrel and Motorcycle hills and into 11,000 ft. We dug up our long lost cache there and shifted gears. We swapped out crampons for snowshoes and ice axes for ski poles and the got trudging down toward the
Kahiltna Glacier. It was stunning to come around the corner and to have the entire glacier laid out below us. We dodged s few crevasses on ski hill and reached our old camp at 8,000' by 7:30. Just in time to throw up tents, enjoy a picnic dinner, watch nature's best fireworks show and to hit the hay for a few hours. We'll likely be up at 1 AM and walking by 3 in our quest for travel in cold conditions. We want the glacier well-frozen for the last bit to the airstrip.
I read the blog comments to the team at breakfast this morning (we don't surf the web up here, the comments were cut and pasted into a simple text email to us) and the crew was very happy to hear from so many great friends and loved ones.
Best Regards
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
On The Map
This was the perfect day for climbing to the top of Africa. There wasn't a puff of wind -from the time we woke (11:30PM) to the time we left
high camp (12:45AM) to the time we summited (7:55AM) or came back to high camp (11:15AM). There wasn't any high cloud and the low clouds just minded their own business all day. We did have a little cumulus roll in once we were back at 15,000 ft Barafu Camp, but by then we didn't so much care about the weather. The team made steady progress up -it seemed we had a lucky crowd free zone for the most part. As is normal, there were hundreds of other folks on the route, but through good luck, we didn't have much "traffic" around us. Sunrise was spectacular from close to 19,000 ft, but some on the team believed that last night's sunset at Barafu was even more spectacular. Our local guides, camp staff and porters helped us in every way possible today -which certainly made our success possible -and fun. After our return to Barafu, we enjoyed lunch, packed up and hit the trail for Mweka Camp. It took us just under four hours to drop a vertical mile. We got stronger as we descended -but we also got tired and were quite pleased to arrive at our camp in the trees. One last night on the hill... and we each expect to sleep right through it -which hasn't happened much lately with jet lag, altitude and that alpine start.
Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
On The Map
RMI Guide
Solveig Waterfall and the
All Women's Four Day Summit Climb reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. Solveig reported clear skies and a light breeze on the summit. The team started their descent shortly after 7:00 a.m. PDT. We look forward to seeing them in Ashford this afternoon.
Way to climb ladies!
RMI Guides Brent Okita & Seth Waterfall led their teams to the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. Brent radioed in at 7 am from Columbia Crest reporting great conditions and a beautiful day for the first summit of the 2016 season. Both teams left the crater rim around 7:30 am en route to Camp Muir. They will repack and continue their descent to Paradise this afternoon. We look forward to seeing them at Rainier BaseCamp later today.
Congratulations to today's
Five Day Summit Climb Teams!
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Great to meet you and have some fun with your team!
Cheers! Fred
Posted by: Fred Doar on 1/17/2016 at 4:07 pm
Hi Eric Leger & ACONCAGUA Team: It was a nice experience following along on your journey through the blog. Thank you so much. You have so much to be proud of in all that you were able to experience in your mind/body/spirit. Wishing you all safe travels home.
“It is not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves” -Edmund Hillary
~MIllie
Posted by: millie Chase on 1/13/2016 at 7:07 am
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