Entries from Mexico
Leaving Puebla after a good breakfast we drove though fields of cactus and learned about the different ways you can eat them from our driver Rogelio. Once in Tlachichuca, we sorted gear and piled into an old Dodge Power truck and drove to the high hut on Orizaba. Fortunately it had snowed recently and the roads were not very dusty and we made it up to the hut with great views of our upcoming climb. Once at the hut we ate and rested and listened to the cold wind on the hut as we waited for our early start. Wish us luck.
This morning (or night, depending on your point of view), the intrepid Team Blackberry/iPhone, awoke to darn near perfect climbing conditions and decided to give the old lady a shot. Our high camp had positioned us perfectly for a good shot at topping out on the first of our big volcanoes for this trip. We left under dark skies, high above the town lights of Amecameca and Chalco far below us. We walked steadily through the rocky glacial debris at the base of the Ayoloco Glacier, skirting the previous night's accumulated hail and gaining the ridge just before first light. Once on the ridge we bundled up because even though in Mexico it can still get cold in the wind at 17,000 feet. From the ridge we handled our new challenge of cold temps until gaining the true summit of Ixtaccihuatl as the sun broke over the horizon, illuminating our next adventure, Pico de Orizaba. After a few photos and some summit celebrations, we steeled ourselves for the descent back to our high camp and the homemade soup of Rogelio's (our trusted driver) wife, waiting for us at the trailhead. Easing our way back into wheeled transport, we stuck to the backroads, avoiding the weekend traffic and checking in to our hotel in the zona historica of the colonial city of Puebla. Tonight we will feast and enjoy a good night's sleep at relatively low elevations, using tomorrow to explore the city and recuperate for Pico de Orizaba, the highest mountain in Mexico.
Today we left the Alzimoni hut, moving to our high camp on Ixta. The crew did very well and we made in good style to our new home at 14,700 feet. After refueling on hot drinks, soup and dinner we turned in to catch some zzzz`s before our alpine start tomorrow. Wish us luck and good weather, we'll check in manana.
Leaving La Malinche this morning our team had a great breakfast en route to Amecameca where we took a quick look around and picked up some fresh food to cook this evening. It's always good to fill up before heading off on a climb. We drove up to the Altzimoni hut at 12,000 feet to acclimatize and stage for the beginning of our climb of Ixta. Tonight we will rest up for a big day tomorrow as we push up to our high camp below the Ayoloco glacier. Everyone is feeling great and ready to start to climb our first big objective. 'Til tomorrow.
With everyone in Mexico City, we met on the rooftop restaurant of the Majestic Hotel for our first breakfast together as a team. We discussed our strategies for acclimatization and getting up and down Ixta and Pico de Orizaba over coffee and desayuna.
To start our trip we left Mexico City for the high altitude Olympic training ground turned resort of La Malintzi. Here we hiked higher until we traded timber for a misty ridgetop at 13,000 feet on the volcano La Malinche, named after Cortez`s wife and translator. We relaxed/acclimatized before heading back to our cabin for pre-dinner showers. Tonight we will rest up for our trip to Amecameca and the hut at La Jolla to start our ascent of Ixta, kept warm by our hut`s fire. Buenas Noches from Mexico, hope all are warm up north.
Billy and his crew were 100% on the top of Orizaba today! We received the good news while they were traveling back to Senor Reyes' in Tlachichuca for a hot shower and home-cooked meal. Way to go team!
Just writing a quick note before we start cooking dinner. The whole crew is in excellent spirits, not to mention in great physical shape, and we plan on making our summit attempt on Pico de Orizaba sometime late tonight or early tomorrow morning. We had a great training hike today to a spot well above 15,000 ft where we cached some of the technical gear we will need higher up on the glacier. The weather is starting to look a little iffy but if the patterns we've been seeing for the last week or so, we'll probably be waking up to clear skies: stars and a nearly full moon!
Well, that's it from your team high in central Mexico. Wish us luck and keep your fingers crossed for good weather!
Billy, Fernando, John, Ryan, Bob, Pam, and Robin.
Hey everybody, Billy here checking in on behalf of the crew. We just arrived in Tlachichuca and are busy shaking down personal gear and checking all the group gear to make sure it`s all in good working order.
We finished off yesterday`s summit of La Malinche with an awesome meal at the La Malintzi compound. Which is a restaurant and a series of cabins used largely by the Mexican Olympic teams for high altitude training. Our climb itself was fantastic. A bit dusty but clear skies and comfortable temps made for a great ascent of the 14,000+ ft. volcano. We were actually accompanied by a pack of feral dogs all the way to the summit! Who`d have known dogs could be such good climbers! The summit greeted us with sweeping views of the farmland that surrounds, dotted by other ancient volcanoes. Well, we head off to Piedra Grande in about ten minutes from where we plan to summit El Pico de Orizaba! Of course, after another day of training and acclimatization. Wish us luck!
We`ll check in again tomorrow before we head up for the summit!
Ciao!
Hello. This is Billy checking in from Mexico. Our group arrived on Saturday in Mexico City with all their luggage, always a good start to a trip. There was a large festival being held in the Zocalo near our hotel. On Sunday we visited the pyramids at Teotihuacan along with the the President of Mexico. As you can imagine that created a lot of excitement and a lot of military activity. After visiting the pyramids we drove to La Malinche where we spent the night in cabanas at 10,000' to begin our acclimatization.
Today we are taking an acclimatization hike on La Malinche (14,640') and are about 40 minutes from the summit. It is a beautiful day with warm temperatures. After our hike we will return to the cabanas for another night at 10,000' before making our way to Orizaba tomorrow.
We will check in again soon.
Humbleness is the key ingredient for climbing mountains. To embody the notion that you, the climber, are such a small part of the dynamic equation needed to safely climb an incredible peak is as challenging as the actual climbing. Our team was faced with such a challenge once we reached our high camp on El Pico de Orizaba. Weather was not cooperating with our plans to attempt the summit as wind, precipitation, and low visibility engulfed the mountain well into the morning. Many a time, emergency situations that arise in the mountains are rarely the product of just one issue, rather many tiny poor decisions that escalate to something worse. We discussed this over as a group and agreed that if we had left in poor visibility, precipitation, tough route finding, and difficult travel with the fresh snow we were not setting ourselves up for success and safety.
The weather slowly eased it's temper as the sun began to rise revealing a beautiful, snow-covered landscape reaching down to nearly 12,500'. This unusual winter storm has left a dry, dessert-like alpine environment encased in the cold grasp of winter. A cloud cap swarmed the upper reaches of the Jamapa Glacier as our team headed out for a hike in hopes of reaching the glacier. Watching the wind whip through the mountain up high, reminded us how unforgiving mountaineering can be. The snow became deeper and deeper as we approached the last section of the rocky labyrinth just below the glacier. At the foot of the glacier, around 16,500 ft our team was knee deep in snow, gazing at the summit in awe. From this point the summit was beckoning us to climb, what looked like only a stone's throw away. This is when one must face the reality in this case of what looks so close is easily 3 hours away and with deep snow, more like 4 hours. Too long, too exhausting, too dangerous at this point to go on. Our team, satisfied with the journey and experience of climbing in Mexico, returned to the Reyes' lodge for some relaxation prior to our departure home.
As we sat at our gates waiting for our respective flights, we all began to dream, to wonder of the next climb. For some us, a return trip is on the bill. For others, a future mountaineering expedition is right around the corner. For all, a peace knowing we came home safe, friends, and hungry for more. Thank you to Tom, Casey, Ryan, Jayson, Mazzie, Seamus, Collin, and Marty for making this an amazing climbing program for RMI!
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