Entries By ben luedtke
Posted by: Dominic Cifelli, Ben Luedtke, Michael Murray
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua
Elevation: 9,000'
Greetings from Pampa de Lena's! We awoke this morning at the rustic Hotel Ayelene eager to start our way up Aconcagua. We busily made final adjustments to our packs as questions about readiness filled our minds. Are we trained enough? Do we have the right gear packed? Will those croissants from this morning make it till break tomorrow? Will present Chris get in the way of past Chris helping future Chris pack?
But as we started walking questions like these fade away. Fueled by sweet bell peppers as we arrive at camp in style.
Climber Jon Honda
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Aconcagua Expedition January 12, 2024
Posted by: Dominic Cifelli, Ben Luedtke, Michael Murray
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua
Elevation: 9,000'
Welcome to the Blog! This first one will be written by me, Dominic Cifelli, but throughout the trip we pass the torch to all the climbers in order to gain different perspective on the day in/day out of the trip. Keep a lookout for your loved one's name on the blog and please enjoy!
We're off! Landing in Mendoza, we were greeted with the warm temps and long days of the South American summer. A far cry from the cold snap our loved ones are experiencing in the U.S.A. The day was filled with long lunches, a siesta or two, and perusing the local markets for gifts and very late Christmas presents.
The first days of an expedition are exciting and quite hectic as we prepare, check, and recheck our equipment for the journey ahead. I always find that once we start walking, everything gets simpler because we can no longer quadruple check that we packed that favorite pair of socks or brought the right mittens. What's packed is packed and the job will become putting one front in front of the other.
That's for tomorrow's enjoyment, however. The rest of the day will be filled with prepping the duffels and food for the rough ride they take on the mules to Basecamp.
We do this in the "town" of Penitentes, close to the entrance to Aconcagua Provincial Park.
Stay tuned and wish us luck as we try to finish up the monstrous task of packing for a three-week trip.
Adios!
New Post Alerts:
Aconcagua Expedition January 12, 2024
Posted by: Casey Grom, Ben Luedtke, Ellison Boord, George Hedreen, Bailey Servais, Robert Whyte
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 11, 200'
The Four Day Climb with RMI Guides Casey Grom and Ben Luedtke climbed to Ingraham Flats early this morning. The team enjyoyed the sunrise and a beautiful morning soaking in all the views. They are back at Camp Muir and will be starting their descent to Paradise soon.
Amazing!!!! Congrats guys!
Posted by: Carol Wiesner on 8/19/2023 at 9:56 am
Posted by: Ben Luedtke, Jackson Breen, Joey Manship
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Expedition Skills Seminar - Paradise August 8 - 13 team met last Tuesday at Rainier BaseCamp for their first day of Technical Skills training. On Wednesday, led by RMI Guides Ben Luedtke, Jackson Breen and Joey Manship they headed to Paradise and hiked to their first camp. The team spent the next several days learning and practicing glacier travel skills, crevasse rescue and expedition style climbing. Yesterday they bumped camp to 10,080' Camp Muir and with an alpine start this morning they reached the summit of Mt. Rainier. The team is safely back at Camp Muir where they will have a short break to repack and re-fuel for the remaining 4,500' down to Paradise. They will conclude their program with a celebration at Rainier BaseCamp this afternoon.
Congratulations to the team!
Posted by: Casey Grom, Ben Luedtke, Jess Wedel, Erika Birkeland, Mitch Valaitis, Will Nash
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Four Day Climb led by RMI Guides Casey Grom and Ben Luedtke reached the summit of Mt. Rainier and were greeted with Snow! A summer storm with clouds, snow, and low visability kept the team from spending too much time on the summit. The team is on the descent, and in route to Camp Muir where the weather is currently a mix of rain and sleet.
Congratulations Team!
Posted by: Steve Gately, Ben Luedtke, Ellison Boord, Will Nash, Tom Skoog, Raymond Holt
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Four Day Climb led by RMI Guides Steve Gately and Ben Luedtke reached the summit of Mt. Rainier early this morning. RMI Guide Ben Luedtke captured the team in this photo on the upper mountian as they were ascending under clear blue skies. They are on the descent in route back to Camp Muir.
Congratulations Team!
Looking to be added to waitlist for a 4 or 5 (perferable 5) day Raineer trip.
hoping for 2nd half of August or September
website is not letting me sign up to waitlist
Look forward to hearing back from you folks
Posted by: Jay Salus on 4/23/2024 at 2:48 pm
Posted by: Mike Haugen, Ben Luedtke, Charlie Harrison, George Hedreen
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
RMI Guide Mike Haugen and the Expedition Skills Seminar - Kautz team reached the summit of Mt. Rainier via the Katuz Route early this morning. Mike reported great climbing, clear skies, and light winds. The Kautz Route is a great adventure for physically fit climbers ready for a slightly more technical adventure on Mt. Rainier, and today's team climbed strong! The team will be descending the Disappointment Cleaver Route, taking a short rest at Camp Muir before returning to Paradise.
Congratulations Team!
Posted by: Abby Westling, Ben Luedtke
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Five Day Climbing team with RMI Guides Abby Westling and Ben Luedtke climbed last night and reached the summit as the sun was setting. The team spent their first day on the mountain with an acclimatization climb to Ingraham Flats. On day two they took advantage of a full night’s rest and chose to do a sunset climb, a rare and special treat for the climbers to see the stunning alpenglow on Mt. Rainier.
Congratulations Team!
Congrats on a spectacular summit!
-Nick
Posted by: Nick R on 7/11/2023 at 8:45 pm
Posted by: Hannah Smith, Ben Luedtke, Roland Scott, Joey Manship, Will Nash, Ben Thorneycroft
Categories:
Elevation: 14,410'
The Four Day Climb July 3 - 6 led by RMI Guides Hannah Smith and Ben Luedtke enjoyed a beautiful morning on Mt. Rainier. The teams reached the summit at 6:15 am under clear skies and great route conditions. The team enjoyed an hour in the crater before starting their descent. Once back at Camp Muir the climbers will have a quick break and then continue the remaining 4,500' down to Paradise. We look forward to seeing them at Rainier BaseCamp later this afternoon.
Nice work team!
Posted by: Casey Grom, Ben Luedtke, Mike Bennett, Will Nash, Leif Bergstrom, Evan Redman
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Four Day Climb with RMI Guides Casey Grom and Ben Luedtke were on top of Mt. Rainier at 6:30 am. It was windy morning, but a good 6 hour and 15-minute climb of the Disappointment Cleaver route to reach the 14,410’ summit. The team is on the descent and in route to Camp Muir.
Congratulations team!
Congratulations everyone! It looks absolutely gorgeous up there. Can’t wait til I get the details from Joseph Rodriguez “Joey”
Again congratulations.
Posted by: Lisa on 7/1/2023 at 7:01 pm
Get it! Wishing you all enjoyable and safe travels. You all trained and prepped so diligently, now it’s time to enjoy the trek to the top. Prayer and encouragement from Seattle.
Posted by: Ed DaPra on 1/16/2024 at 6:18 am
Good luck! Praying for a safe summit!
Posted by: Michelle DeMers on 1/15/2024 at 4:38 am
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