RMI Expeditions Blog
Monday, May 16, 2022 - 6:54 am PT
We spent our first night in the Alaska range cozy in our -20 bags and woke to clear skis and a stunning view all around. The peak of Denali above had a small cloud hat, but otherwise the mountains jutted up into the blue and the sky promised another gorgeous day. We fired the stoves for breakfast and as the sun got closer to camp, woke everyone.
After bagel bacon sandwiches, we set to the task of organizing what gear we were going to move uphill to cache. A fair bit of our food and fuel made up the bulk of it. We departed, loads considerably lighter than yesterday and worked our way up Ski Hill. Several hours of steady uphill work brought us to 9700', where we opted to dig a deep hole in the snow and hide our treasure, to be retrieved in a few days. Moving light and downhill, we made quick work of the descent back to camp and a dinner of burritos. And so goes the rhythm of Denali - wake, eat, walk, eat, sleep. We'll touch base tomorrow.
RMI Guide Pete Van Deventer, Leif Bergstrom, Erika Birkeland, and team
May 16, 2022
Posted by: Avery Parrinello, Jack Delaney
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Alaska Seminar
Elevation: 4,500'
Sunday, May 15, 2022 - 10:19 pm PT
We waited for the sun to rise this morning before packing up camp and heading back to our cache. We cooked burgers for lunch while repacking our sleds for the long haul back out of the Ruth Gorge. After some difficult hours of travel we arrived at the Mountain House airstrip. We made a quick camp and enjoyed our last evening in the gorge. All is looking well to fly out tomorrow morning.
May 15, 2022
Posted by: Pete Van Deventer, Leif Bergstrom, Erika Birkeland
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Denali
Sunday, May 15, 2022 - 1:10 am PT
It was an auspicious start to our May 12 Denali Expedition today. When we called K2 in the morning to ask how things looked they replied "unlimited visibility and perfect". We rallied a hasty breakfast and headed for the hanger. We had gotten all of our bags set yesterday, so it didn't take much to get the planes loaded and launched. The pilots were taken with how clear and gorgeous the day was too, taking several detours to show us stunning corners of the Alaska Range on the way.
We landed and hit the ground running. Fully loaded sleds and packs were an indication of the magnitude of our undertaking, but the team cruised through the 5.5 miles of mellow glacier travel, and we rolled in to our first camp looking fresh. Everyone is fed and tucked into warm sleeping bags and as we write, a stunning full moon is rising over Mt. Hunter.
We plan to carry a load up towards Kahiltna pass tomorrow and then return to camp. We'll be in touch.
RMI Guides Pete Van Deventer, Leif Bergstrom, Erika Birkeland, and team
May 15, 2022
Posted by: Mike Walter, Abby Westling, Henry Coppolillo
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Denali
Elevation: 11,000'
Saturday, May 14, 2022 - 10:08 pm PT
We enjoyed some pretty amazing weather today. We had a relatively easy day retrieving our cache and returning to 11k camp. On our journey we were treated to a unique wildlife viewing, with snow geese flying in formation above us. They landed on the glacier up around Kahiltna Pass, something I have never seen before. Back in camp, the good weather continued and we relaxed and shuffled gear for the next stage of the game. Tomorrow, weather permitting, we will establish a camp up above Windy Corner. The forecast looks good and we're climbing strong, so we're optimistic that will happen tomorrow. I'll let you know how it shakes out. Either way, it's good to be in the mountains and we're enjoying our time here.
Go, MAK, go!!!
Posted by: Jenn on 5/16/2022 at 5:46 pm
Great to hear the weather is holding up for the team, sounds like smooth climbing so far. Keep up the hard work!
Go Mike K, Go!!!
Posted by: Tina on 5/15/2022 at 8:57 pm
May 15, 2022
Posted by: Avery Parrinello, Jack Delaney
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Alaska Seminar
Saturday, May 14, 2022 - 10:21 pm PT
Today was full of highs and lows, ups and downs, success and failures, proud moments and embarrassing ones. It started with warm sunshine hitting our camp by 7am, and we soon after headed up towards 747 Pass. After some glacial navigation and steep climbs we crested the saddle. We quickly gained the west ridge of Mt. Dickey and began ascending upwards. After a couple hundred feet it became apparent that the snow pack had changed dramatically. After seeing some red flags and investigating further, it was concluded that we shouldn’t continue. Considering the terrain and remoteness of the climb meant we had little margin for error and the unstable conditions pushed us past our safety margin. The entire team was disappointed but only momentarily as we all decided the summit was not worth it and the view from up high was down right spectacular. We had a safe and enjoyable descent back to camp where we ate snacks, told stories and laughed a great deal. Tomorrow we shall start migrating back to the airstrip for our departure on Monday.
May 14, 2022
Posted by: Mike Walter, Abby Westling, Henry Coppolillo
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Denali
Elevation: 11,000'
May 14, 2022 - 10:04 am PT
It was a bit breezy and chilly yesterday, but it made for great climbing weather.
We packed up camp and headed up Ski Hill, continuing up around Kahiltna Pass and into the 11k camp. Glacier conditions were perfect, and the winds abated as we climbed higher. Everyone is climbing strong and doing well. The plan for today is to go back downhill to retrieve our cache at ~9600'. We're sitting in a good position to start pushing higher on the upper mountain. So far, the weather is cooperating with us and allowing for steady progress. We'll definitely spend a few nights here at 11k to acclimate before moving camp higher, but we may try to get a cache in around Windy Corner tomorrow, as the weather is forecast to be pretty nice.
We'll keep you posted on our progress.
Glad to hear you continue to enjoy good weather. Thanks for the updates, they are really appreciated.
Posted by: Maria Alexandra Velez on 5/14/2022 at 6:18 pm
May 14, 2022
Posted by: JT Schmitt, Alex Halliday
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 10,080'
Strong winds and about a foot of fresh snow prevent the Four Day Climb led by RMI Guides JT Schmitt and Alex Halliday from leaving Camp Muir. Big spring storms and winter like weather are keeping all climbing teams from reaching the summit.
The team will enjoy the stormy morning with a leisurely breakfast before starting their descent. We expect them to return to Rainier Basecamp in the early afternoon.
Glad you’re staying safe! Enjoy the rest of your adventure, mountaineers! We look forward to hearing about the trip and seeing photos!
Posted by: Jane and Doug Green on 5/14/2022 at 9:48 am
So excited to watch your progress! Stay safe and have a fabulous adventure! Love from Michigan!
Posted by: Charlene Hatfield on 5/14/2022 at 8:34 am
May 13, 2022
Posted by: Avery Parrinello, Jack Delaney
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Alaska Alaska Seminar
We awoke to a chilly morning and more clear skies. After enjoying blueberry pancakes we geared up in camp for a dry run through of crevasse rescue. After nailing the flat ground rescue we roped up and headed towards the saddle between Mt. Dickey and Barrill. We headed into the maze of lateral crevasses looking for one that would be ideal for practicing our new skills and trying out some ice climbing. We ended up finding a bottomless abyss surrounded by a beautiful cathedral of ice formations. We finished up climbing just as clouds rolled in a snow began to drift down.
A hearty meal of andouille sausages was had, some stories were swapped and then it was off to bed.
Tomorrow we plan to move camp to 747 pass to begin our summit cycle up Mt. Dickey!
Thank you for this blog. I look forward to peeking in on the training. Michelle—Mikayla’s Mom
Posted by: Michelle DeMers on 5/13/2022 at 6:12 pm
May 12, 2022
Posted by: Mike Walter, Abby Westling, Henry Coppolillo
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Denali
Elevation: 9,650'
Thursday, May 12, 2022 - 7:10 pm PT
Today was nearly a mirror image of yesterday's weather: mostly sunny, then partly cloudy, then mostly cloudy. It made for great travel as we ascended Ski Hill. As we gained the 9500' plateau, mostly cloudy changed to light snow and moderate winds coming through Kahiltna Pass. We had another good day, and decided to cache at ~9650' rather than press further into deteriorating weather. After leaving our gear deep in the hole we dug, we descended back down Ski Hill to camp in time for a little siesta. We'll hope for good weather tomorrow so we can bump camp up to 11,200'. We'll let you know how it goes.
Thanks for the posts. It is fun to keep up-to-date with the climb!!
Posted by: Deb Beaudway on 5/13/2022 at 3:16 pm
Thanks for updates. Basic weather forecast looks very good starting Saturday.
Posted by: Paul Kent on 5/13/2022 at 11:16 am
May 12, 2022
Posted by: Brent Okita, Dominic Cifelli, Dustin Wittmier, Seth Burns, Jess Wedel, Lauren Macklin
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 10,080'
What a difference a day makes. 40mph snow and wind at Camp Muir. A perfect day to train inside.
After a cloudy walk up the Muir Snowfield on Monday we enjoyed two gorgeous, sunny days of training on Tuesday and Wednesday, learning the basics of snow and ice climbing, glacier travel, crevasse rescue and ice climbing.
This morning the weather has changed! Blowing snow all night and day has us thankful for the shelter of the bunkhouse at Camp Muir where we're learning about avalanches - how to avoid them, use the tools of the trade and perform a rescue.
We'll continue with other topics of interest and get out for some hands on training if and when we can do it safely outside.
Everyone is doing great and happy we got so much training in even though our summit aspirations are no longer realistic after finding serious signs of avalanche hazard on the slopes leading to the summit.
We'll be headed down tomorrow morning after some training and packing up in the morning.
Thank you for all of the updates for those of us at lower elevations here in the Twin Cities and others! I am sorry to hear you won’t be able to summit but am glad you all are taking precautions. Enjoy the views from up there, it’s something not everyone gets to experience in their lifetimes. Good work team!!
Posted by: April Londo on 5/13/2022 at 4:34 pm
Yay burritos!!
Wishing you guys best of rest and best of power and energy for your journey.
Thanks for blogging, it makes it lovely to day dream about majestic Alaska. Be sure to look near Cassiopeia for the Andromeda galaxy, you can see it from up there with just your eyes, looks like a little smudge up there.
Posted by: Kasia Pawluskiewicz on 5/20/2022 at 6:44 pm
Hello there!!
Have d’un, enjoy a lot and record all the special moments you’re gonna live
Posted by: Beth on 5/18/2022 at 2:12 pm
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