Entries By kel rossiter

Mt. Rainier: Four Day Summit Climb Team on the Summit!

July 30, 2016

Posted by: Seth Waterfall, Kel Rossiter

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier

Elevation: 14,410'

The Four Day Summit Climb led by RMI Guide Kel Rossiter reached the summit of Mt. Rainier today. Kel reported clear and cool weather with light winds. The Four Day Summit Climb team left the crater rim at 6:50 am to return to Camp Muir. We look forward to seeing all the climbers at Rainier BaseCamp this afternoon. Congratulations to today's Summit Climb teams!

Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

Yah Mary Stewart! Made us all proud!

Posted by: Vicki & Dennis on 7/31/2016 at 7:24 am

Y’all are all rock stars! Way to go! Big hugs and love from Columbia, SC. Casey, you’re Wonder Woman.
Love,
Sally

Posted by: Sally Peek on 7/31/2016 at 6:57 am

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Mt. Rainier: Four Day Summit Climb Teams Reach the Summit!

July 23, 2016

Posted by: Mike King, Kel Rossiter

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier

Elevation: 14,410'

The Four Day Summit Climb July 20 - 23, 2016 led by RMI Guides Mike King and Kel Rossiter reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning with clear skies and winds around 15 mph. The team began their descent from the crater rim just before 8 am. We look forward to seeing them at Rainier BaseCamp later this afternoon. Congratulations to today's Summit Climb teams!

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awesome job brooke! can’t wait to hear about it and see pics!

Posted by: scott on 7/25/2016 at 12:56 pm

Congrats Mike! That should be your 50th summit right?

Thanks again for all you did on the seminar.

Matt

Posted by: Matt Voswinkel on 7/24/2016 at 1:11 pm

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Mt. Rainier: July 17th Team Summits!

July 17, 2016

Posted by: Kel Rossiter

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier

Elevation: 14,410'

The Mt. Rainier Summit Climb team, led by Kel Rossiter, reached the summit at 6:00 a.m. The team was above the clouds, with the cloud deck hovering around 11,000ft. After spending an hour on top, they began their descent. Congratulations to today's climbers!

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Way to go Eric! Amazing!! Now get back to work! :)

Posted by: Kim on 7/17/2016 at 6:48 pm

Congratulation Eric!!!

Posted by: Bob and Liz on 7/17/2016 at 6:14 pm

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Mt. Rainier: Four Day Summit Climb Teams Reach the Top

May 21, 2016

Posted by: Elias de Andres Martos, Kel Rossiter

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier

Elevation: 14,410'

The Four Day Summit Climb team for May 18 - 21, 2016, led by RMI Guides Elias de Andres-Martos and Kel Rossiter, reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. The teams only spent a short amount of time on the crater rim before starting their descent to Camp Muir. The teams will continue their descent to Paradise and return to Rainier BaseCamp later today. Congratulations to today's Summit Climbers!

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Awesome climb, Robert. We are in awe of you! Can’t wait to hear all about it. Love mom& ron

Posted by: Mom & ron on 5/22/2016 at 6:31 am

Way to go. I am so happy you all made it back safe. I bet it was crazy. I can’t wait to hear all about it. You are all incredible!!!

Posted by: Dean Peyerson on 5/21/2016 at 6:22 pm

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Mt. Rainier: May 14th - Summit!

May 14, 2016

Posted by: Casey Grom, Kel Rossiter

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier

Elevation: 14,410'

Our Four Day Summit Climb Teams led by RMI Guides Casey Grom and Kel Rossiter Reached the Summit of Mt. Rainier early this morning. The team reported moderate winds of 20 – 30 MPH and a bit of light Snow. The team was able to spend a brief amount of time on the Crater Rim before starting their descent. The team is en route to Camp Muir and will be back at Ashford Basecamp this afternoon. Today also marks the 200th Summit of Mt. Rainier for our lead Guide Casey Grom. Casey has been a guide with RMI Expeditions for over ten years, and has successfully reached the top of many peaks all over the world including Mt. Everest. Congratulations to Casey on a very successful climbing career, we look forward to sharing many more summits with you!

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Congratulations to the team and to the guide for his superior performance on such a grueling mountain. Climbing it one time is a dream of mine.

Posted by: Kevin Stone on 5/16/2016 at 11:44 am

Congrats! Just curious, were ladders required or put in place over crevasses?

Posted by: Amanda on 5/15/2016 at 12:21 pm

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Know Snow - Getting Under Winter’s Blanket

March 3, 2016

Posted by: Kel Rossiter

Categories: Guide News Guide Grant

Before the big mountain bug bit me, I viewed snow as a blanket that came in the winter and lay quietly in place 'til spring's thaw. All that changed when I decided it wise to educate myself about avalanches. Taking part in the introductory Level 1 avalanche education course, I quickly learned how the snowpack, terrain, and triggers (like climbers or cornice falls) can transform that quiet blanket into a raging white dragon. Interested in learning more about this beast, I enrolled in a Level 2 avalanche course a few years later, and came to understand that each layer of snow that falls forms something of geologic record in that season's snowpack: if the snow falls warm, that layer will stay warm for a long time; if hail falls, it can be evident in the snowpack months later. Even more incredibly—similar to plates of geologic sedimentary matter—that seemingly silent white winter blanket is often actively undergoing radical metamorphosis due to vapor and temperature differences in the layers. This February—with the support of the RMI Guide Grant—I participated in a Level 3 course. It's something of a graduate level course in the University of Avalanches: A rigorous curriculum that explores the intricacies of snowpack dynamics and the techniques used to assess how stable the snowpack is. Our course took place in the Wasatch Mountains and it began a few days after one of that area's avalanche forecasters had declared it one of the weirdest snowpacks ever. An excellent classroom had been arranged! A key focus of the course was learning to quickly identify weak layers in the snowpack and then to assess the structure of that instability. One aspect of instability has to do with the kinds of snow crystals in between the layers. A Cliff Notes summary would be: square ones are bad, round ones are good. But how can you tell with something so small? Were they the good guys or the bad guys? First, I had to identify which layer to look at, a process of first poking the snow with my finger to determine layer interfaces, and then prodding it with a fist, four fingers, one finger, a pencil, or a knife to get some grip on the specific hardnesses. Once all that was established, it was time to sort out the good from the bad. Somewhat ironically, amidst all of the grandeur of the Wasatch, I was often peering into the little lens of a snow microscope looking at the edges of myriad little bits of snow to determine their personalities. Kel examines the universe of snowflakes with the hubble. Jake Hutchinson/American Avalanche Institute

Kel examines the universe of snowflakes with the hubble. Jake Hutchinson/American Avalanche Institute

Ultimately, beyond peering down a microscope, knowing the snow is a very sensory experience, incorporating sight, sound, and touch in order to determine its stability: windslabs are often squeaky like styrofoam, while faceted grains bounce off a gloved hand and make for a poor snowball. Of course, once stability is determined, the sensory experience is the pure enjoyment—how well does it ski? Through careful tracking of the Wasatch area over our week of study, we knew that north aspects were retaining the best snow. So, after our final exam, involving each person doing a complete analysis of the season's snowpack and weaknesses, we gathered together for a final run back into the front-country. We ripped our skins and then laid tracks down a beautiful bowl, each up us kicking up huge roostertails of powder joy—a reward for all of our diligent study. Jake Hutchinson of the American Avalanche Institute demonstrates an extended column test. Kel Rossiter

Jake Hutchinson of the American Avalanche Institute demonstrates an extended column test. Kel Rossiter

The pleasures of backcountry skiing and the benefits of big mountain climbing with skis are becoming increasingly known in the outdoor world and RMI is right out in front of the trend. Safely partaking of those pleasures and benefits involves really coming to know the snow. While in its essence knowledge of the snow is like knowledge itself, where “The more one knows the more one knows they don't completely understand,” coming away from the Level 3 avalanche course, I feel good in knowing that I'm keeping the learning edge sharp. That sharp edge will aid me whether cramponing up alpine routes on Rainier or schussing down couloirs in the North Cascades.

Mt. Rainier: August 12th Update

August 12, 2015

Posted by: Geoff Schellens, Kel Rossiter, Ben Liken, Eric Frank

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier

Elevation: 12,300'

The Mount Rainier Four and Five Day Summit Climbs, led by Kel Rossiter and Ben Liken, reached about 12,300 feet before thunder and lightning forced the team to turn. The team is safely back at Camp Muir and began their descent to Paradise at 9:00 a.m. The skies are currently hazy with a fair amount of smoke in the skies from various wildfires in eastern part of Washington. Geoff Schellens and the Expedition Skills Seminar - Kautz turned from their summit attempt yesterday at 13,300 feet. They will finish their day of training and be back at RMI Basecamp later this afternoon. The RMI Expedition Skills Seminar - Emmons, led by Eric Frank, checked in from camp this morning. Their team is doing well, training today, and preparing for their summit bid in the morning.

Mt. Rainier: August 7th Summit!

August 7, 2015

Posted by: Elias de Andres Martos, Kel Rossiter

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier

Elevation: 14,410'

RMI Guides Elias de Andres Martos and Kel Rossiter led our Summit Climb teams to the top of Mount Rainier this morning. Their views spanned out to Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Adams and other peaks in the Cascade Mountains. Both teams began their descent after 8:15 a.m. Congratulations Summit Climb Teams!

Mt. Rainier: Four Day Summit Climbs & Emmons Seminar Climbers on Summit!

July 2, 2015

Posted by: Eric Frank, Solveig Waterfall, Kel Rossiter

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier

Elevation: 14,410'

The Four Day Summit Climb teams led by RMI Guides Eric Frank and Solveig Waterfall reached the summit of Mt. Rainier early this morning. The teams enjoyed clear blue skies and warm temperatures. RMI Guide Kel Rossiter led the Expedition Skills Seminar - Emmons to the summit via the Emmons Glacier route. Congratulations to today's climbers!

Mt. Rainier: Four Day Summit Climb Teams Reach the Summit!

June 25, 2015

Posted by: Elias de Andres Martos, Kel Rossiter

Categories: Expedition Dispatches Mount Rainier

Elevation: 14,410'

The Four Day Summit Climb teams led by RMI Guides Elías de Andrés Martos and Kel Rossiter reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning. As of 7 am both teams were at approximately 13,400' on their descent. Elias reported clear skies and sunshine with a slight breeze and a very pleasant day. The groups will return to Camp Muir for a short break before continuing their descent to Paradise. Congratulations to today's Summit Climb Teams!

Leave a Comment For the Team (2)

Wohooo Sydney you did it!! You amaze me everyday! See you at the bottom.
Love,
Mom

Posted by: Cathy on 6/26/2015 at 7:56 am

Wow! So impressed, so relieved, so proud of you, Chris, my amazing daughter in law! You keep on meeting challenges with determination, grace and grit. Congrats to you and Jasmine both. Love you very much, DIL. Mama Carol

Posted by: Carol Waring on 6/25/2015 at 5:34 pm

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Entries By kel rossiter

Mt. Rainier: Four Day Summit Climb Team on the Summit!

Mt. Rainier: Four Day Summit Climb Teams Reach the Summit!

Mt. Rainier: July 17th Team Summits!

Mt. Rainier: Four Day Summit Climb Teams Reach the Top

Mt. Rainier: May 14th - Summit!

Know Snow - Getting Under Winter’s Blanket

Mt. Rainier: August 12th Update

Mt. Rainier: August 7th Summit!

Mt. Rainier: Four Day Summit Climbs & Emmons Seminar Climbers on Summit!

Mt. Rainier: Four Day Summit Climb Teams Reach the Summit!

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