Entries By dustin wittmier
October 29, 2024
Posted by: Dustin Wittmier
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Ecuador
Elevation: 15,696'
Tuesday, October 29, 2024 - 6:20 am PT
We had a lovely acclimatization trip to the summit of Rucu Pichincha yesterday. We caught a bit of light rain, not enough to stabilize the electrical grid, but enough to keep us cool for our nice day hike. On the way down, the clouds opened up a little and were treated to views of surrounding valleys, which includes the city of Quito.
Today, we are heading for the Illiniza refuge and hopefully a summit of Illiniza Norte tomorrow morning! While this is labeled as an "acclimatization" hike, it's definitely fun in it's own right. The route from the hut goes up a steep ridgeline that occasionally requires some class 3 scrambling. The views from the summit are astounding and the movement enjoyable.
We will check back in tomorrow with an update as we head towards Cotopaxi!
RMI Guide Dustin Wittmier
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October 28, 2024
Posted by: Dustin Wittmier
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Ecuador
Elevation: 9,350'
The whole team has arrived in Ecuador and we spent our first day of acclimation touring around Quito. While the activities were the standard preplanned trips to the indigenous equator museum and the old town of Quito, the feel is a little different this time. The country of Ecuador is experiencing it's worst drought in sixty years. Their power grid is based about 70% on hydroelectric power and as such, blackouts are a regular part of life right now. Fortunately for us, the hotel has generators that keep the power on throughout the day, but most residences and businesses in Quito have power for only 10-14 hours per day. This brings some moderate uncertainty to everyone here and it is felt in our interactions with our local friends and service providers. Nonetheless, life goes on and local businesses are happy to have the continued support that tourism brings. All that being said, everyone is doing their best rain dance! It feels like one of those moments where if it begins raining, everyone in the street will stop what they're doing to celebrate and honestly, even if it turns us around on Rucu Pichincha today, it will bring a smile to my face as well.
Dustin
Sign Up For Cotopaxi Express, October 26, 2024 Emails
September 8, 2024
Posted by: Dustin Wittmier, Seth Burns, Drew O’Brien, Will Ambler
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Expedition Skills Seminar - Muir September 4 - 9 led by RMI Guides Dustin Wittmier, Seth Burns, Drew O'Brien and Will Ambler reached the summit of Mt. Rainier today. The team has spent the last several days training on the mountain and enjoying the views. Today they put their work to the test and made their summit attempt, reaching the crater rim around 7:30 am. After enjoying a bit of time on the summit the team is descending to Camp Muir where they will spend the night. Tomorrow they will descend the remaining 4.5 miles to Paradise. A team celebration will be in order tomorrow afternoon before they conclude their six day program.
Nice work team!
August 23, 2024
Posted by: Dustin Wittmier, Robert Whyte, Avery Stolte
Categories: Expedition Dispatches North Cascades
The Mt. Baker Easton Glacier Team led by RMI Guide Dustin Wittmier were unable to climb due to thunderstorms in the area. The team is hanging in their tents doing their best to stay dry!
Congratulations team on a real mountain adventure!
August 20, 2024
Posted by: Dustin Wittmier, Bailey Servais, Layne Peters
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The six day Expedition Skills Seminar - Paradise August 15 - 20 led by RMI Guide Dustin Wittmier has enjoyed several days of climbing and training on the mountain. From glacier travel to camp life and crevasse rescue training the team put all of their skills into play and launched a summit attempt from Camp Muir early this morning. The team reached the summit of Mt. Rainier just before 7 am and spent a bit of time on top. They are now descending to Camp Muir and will pack up and return to Paradise later today.
Nice work team!
August 13, 2024
Posted by: Dustin Wittmier, Raymond Holt, Mitch Valaitis
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Four Day Climb led by RMI Guide Dustin Wittmier reached the summit of Mt. Rainer early this morning. The team climbed above the heavy marine layer, and Dustin reported clear skies and calm winds. It took the team 6 hours and 35 minutes to reach the summit from Camp Muir, and they are now on the descent.
Congratulations Team!
August 2, 2024
Posted by: Dustin Wittmier, Daniel May, Nicole De Petris, Evan Redman, Layne Peters, Jack Ritterson
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Four Day Climb led by Dustin Wittmier and Dan May reached the summit early this morning. Dustin reported 30 mph winds and sun on the Summit. As the team has started their descent it has gotten quite hazy and clouds are rolling in.
Congratulations Team!
Good Morning,
After waiting for the rain to stop, which really didn't happen until afternoon, we were too late to depart for an attempt on the North Ridge. So, we left camp at 2:30pm for a sunset climb of the Coleman-Deming route, which was still enjoyable and quite scenic. The team went 100% to the top and is back in camp for a good night's sleep!
RMI Guides Dustin, Ray & Team
July 9, 2024
Posted by: Dustin Wittmier, Lacie Smith, Mitch Valaitis, Robert Whyte
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
The Expedition Skills Seminar - Kautz July 5 - 10 led by RMI Guides Dustin Wittmier, Lacie Smith, Mitch Valaitis and Robert Whyte reached the summit of Mt. Rainier just before 8 am today. Dustin reported a beautiful day and warm temperatures. The team was going to spend a few minutes in the crater before starting their descent. They will return to their high camp for one more night on the mountain and some additional training. Tomorrow they will retrace their steps to Paradise and conclude their program at Rainier BaseCamp in the afternoon.
Congratulations to today's Kautz team!
Nice!
(Although I am totally jealous. Lol.)
Posted by: Some guy from Puyallup on 7/9/2024 at 12:06 pm
Awesome job, team!!
Posted by: Scott on 7/9/2024 at 9:08 am
July 4, 2024
Posted by: Dustin Wittmier, Jackson Breen, Roland Scott, Will Ambler, Avery Stolte, Rosie Hust
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier
Elevation: 14,410'
RMI Guides Dustin Wittmier and Jackson Breen reached the top of Mt. Rainier this morning around 6:20am. They enjoyed the sunrise before starting their descent.
The team will take a break at Camp Muir before starting their final descent back to Ashford for a celebratory dinner and certificate ceremony. Nice work team!
Way to go Jake and Dalton!!! So proud of you!
Posted by: Carman Dice on 8/4/2024 at 7:45 pm
Yeehaw! Great work everyone.
Posted by: Benjamin G on 8/2/2024 at 2:40 pm
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