Entries By mike king

We got a casual start from Lago Dickson this morning around 11:15. The hike was about 5.5 hours and the Los Perros camp is in a colder and more humid area. So instead of rushing there we hung out this morning. The hike took us mostly through a dense forest and along side some beautiful glacial rivers with narrow canyons and a nice waterfall view at lunch. Shortly afterwards we began climbing a lateral moraine and got some nice views of the Perros glacier and surrounding peaks. There has not been much direct sunlight this trip and there also has not been much rain. The overcast skies have not made for the best pictures but the temperatures are good for hiking and everyone is enjoying the beautiful scenery.

Tomorrow we head up through John Gardner Pass, the highest point of the trek at 1200 meters.

Our 12 mile hike from Seron to Lago Dickson was an enjoyable day that consisted of rolling hills, tall grass and sporadic forests. We started paralleling the Paine River, “Paine” means blue in the native language. We were moving for about seven hours today, stopping often to take pictures and take in the views of glaciers and mountains that were covered with dark clouds from time to time.

Besides a few birds we didn’t see much wildlife. As we climbed a small hill between two knolls we got a good look at the Dickson Glacier that extends into Argentina and creates Lago Dickson, Rio Paine and Lago Paine. The camp is located on a large flat that has nice river access, large trees to act as a wind break and great mountain vistas.

We continue to eat well, have fun conversations with in our team and other hikers. Once at camp the charcuterie board and vino appeared and our team enjoyed some showers, time in the sun and kicking a soccer ball around. The dinners have been good, a salad, soup, meat and rice typically. Tomorrow we walk to Los Perros Camp. Life is pretty, pretty, pretty good out here.

RMI Guide Mike King

Today we got a casual start with a two hour drive to the Torres del Paine National Park. On the way we saw 20+ guanacos, which is a wild cameloid, similar to a llama. As we got closer to the park, flamingos and rheas where sighted.

The weather was overcast but we got some views of the glaciers and rock towers that this area is known for. Our hike to Campamento Seron was 5.5 miles and consisted of nice trail and beautiful Patagonia scenery. The tall grasses, wind bent trees and milky emerald green rivers kept people taking photos and enjoying conversations. We are in camp for the night, music in the background, good food being prepared and a charcuterie board with a few bottles of Chilean red wine to kick this trip off right.

RMI Guide Mike King

This is Mike, checking in for the Torres del Paine trekkers here in Punta Arenas. Everyone arrived after a long two days of travel. We got an early start to head to Isla Magdelana located in the Strait of Magellan to see a colony of Magellan penguins. The Strait of Magellan is protected from the weather of Cape Horn and one of the most important passages between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The hour and half boat ride was calm with nice views of the fractured land that makes up Southern Patagonia. Arriving to the island we had some ground rules laid out to not impact the penguins who are raising their near grown young. The young penguins are shedding their feathers in preparation for a northern migration along the coast of Argentina, Uruguay and even Southern Brazil. 

After an hour of walking and taking in the mix of penguins, gulls and brown skua we loaded up to head towards a sea lion colony. From the idling boat we took in these animals that number around 2,000. The smell traveled across the water while the young ones played in the water and swam close to the boat out of curiosity. On our return to Punta Arenas we saw a few Peale’s dolphins swimming alongside the boats. The remainder of the day will be spent in transit to Puerto Natales where we will pack for the start of our Torres del Paine trek. Thanks for following along.

RMI Guide Mike King

We had sunshine and calm conditions at 7 AM in highcamp today... which was better than the forecast called for.  There was still plenty of cloud about, but we decided to go for the summit.  It took until 9:50 to get fully fueled up and geared up for climbing, and by then a few more clouds had rolled in though we still had a good feeling about the day.  Vinson put up a fight, of course, and a few of the team were feeling effects of the altitude and so not everybody topped out.  Those that did, made it up in about 8 hours, spent nearly an hour on the summit and came down in just a couple more for a respectable round trip under 11 hrs.  The conditions swung between sunny and calm, breezy and cloudy and everything in between... all at temps of about -20 to -25 Fahrenheit, so our rest breaks were short and business like so as to keep fingers and toes flexible.  We enjoyed views of the tall and jagged peaks to Vinson’s north, and when the mountains were obscured, the sculpted cloud formations covering them were spectacular.  On top of Antarctica’s highest mountain, the team lucked out with calm and sunny “gloves off” conditions for photos, fist bumps and flag waving.  By 8:30 PM the gang was all back together at high camp.  We spent a few hours brewing up, eating, drinking and laughing.  A most memorable New Years Day was had by all. 
Best Regards
RMI Guides Dave Hahn

On The Map

We woke to the same thick blanket of cloud concealing the mountaintops and the sun and the blue sky.  The good thing was that blanket held in a little more heat than normal, so getting started wasn’t particularly mean and cold.  We ate breakfast, caught the forecast passed on from the meteorological folks at Union Glacier, and debated what to do about it.  Our decision, since we had no sign or signal that the wind was blowing, was to push up into the cloud and make our move to high camp.  It took until 1:00 PM to bust camp and be packed, but that worked just fine.  There were occasional snowflakes falling, and we were certainly on the lookout for deteriorating weather, but all-in-all, conditions were stable and we pressed on.  We took a short break at yesterday’s high point and then moved higher up the steep snow slope without much at all for views.  It was a little like climbing inside a milk bottle.  Our boldness was rewarded when we topped out the ropes to find calm and easy conditions (although still cloudy) on the plateau.  We pulled into high camp at 6:30, for a respectable five and a half hour push to 12,500 ft.  The gang found it tough going... it worked us in about 12 different and mean ways, but everybody set to building camp with good energy and enthusiasm.  By that point we’d put on all the big and puffy clothing -down coats and down pants- which seemed just right for our cold new home.  We filed into ALE’s good, strong cooking and dining tent and had a deluxe session of hot drinks, dinner, and strategizing for tomorrow.  We hope the calm holds and that we can take a good shot at the top to start 2020 off right.  
All of us want to wish our friends and loved ones the very warmest and best wishes for their own celebrations.  Happy New Year!

RMI Guide Dave Hahn

On The Map

The sun came around the mountain at 10 AM today, which was also about the time we got out of our sleeping bags and unzipped the tents.  There was a faint breeze keeping things cool, but we clambered into the dining tent for a leisurely breakfast/brunch/lunch.  By the time we waddled out and suited up for climbing it was 2 PM.  Yesterday, although we were roped to one another for glacier travel, it was just walking with ski poles.  Today, we had on crampons and carried ice axes.  It only took a few minutes to get to the base of the fixed ropes where we paused briefly to rig up and review techniques for climbing steep snow.  The goal was “lunch ledge” about an hour up the lines.  We were starting to get some pretty good views of our surroundings -including a cloud bank pushing in from the northwest.  By the time we’d descended, the clouds were covering the summits and blocking out the sun.  Luckily there wasn’t any wind to go with this change in our weather.  We were back in camp by 5 PM and set in for an evening of snacking and rehydration.  Dinner was fashionably late at 8:45 PM and we were back in the tents by 10 PM.  The plan is to move to highcamp tomorrow if the weather holds and everybody has stayed healthy.

Best Regards
RMI Guide Dave Hahn

Yesterday’s perfect weather became today’s perfect weather.  Strong sunshine, not a cloud in the sky and no sign of wind.  We got good rest last night to make up for all of the travel nights and didn’t roll into breakfast until 9 AM.  Murph took excellent care of us with eggs, bacon, pancakes, fresh fruit and coffee.  Then we dug into our many packing and organizing chores.  It is no small thing to shift from jet-setting in a sleek Gulfstream IV to old fashioned walking on a glacier with a week of supplies on our backs and in our sleds... but we managed just fine.  Five rope teams of three set out at 1:50 PM.  An hour later, at the first rest break, we all agreed that it was too darn hot in Antarctica.  This was partly an illusion.  The air temps were still well below freezing, but without a breeze and with plenty of hard work, we were sweating.  Conditions were perfect for travel though.  We had a well-packed and generally smooth trail in the snow without any open crevasses to negotiate.  We took a second break at the start of a 90 degree turn in the glacier and a third under the 2,000 meter great western escarpment of Vinson.  By then we were getting good looks at the sharp and dramatic summits north of Vinson.  We had great views of Epperly, Gardner and Shinn -the fifth, fourth, and third highest peaks of Antarctica.  We pulled into 9,200 ft Low Camp in 4.5 hours time and set to building tents and moving in.  Lakpa, Pachi, and Namgya hosted a great dinner of chicken curry with rice in their spacious dining tent.  We sat to sip hot drinks and chat for a bit but as we each began to feel the cold, we retired to warm sleeping bags.  The tents are good and comfortable with sun projected to be on them until 3 AM -it then goes behind the mountain and we expect the big chill to take over.  We’ll rest and do a little training and acclimatizing tomorrow. 

Best Regards,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn

On The Map

Our night in Punta Arenas was short and loud... to be honest.  It was Friday night and the town square was chock full of partiers and demonstrators beating drums and waving flags.  We were out of the hotel by 5 AM and bound for the airport -sleep or no sleep.  The team filed through security in an empty airport and then we walked out to our trusty Gulfstream IV to load up.  At 6:40 we launched and left South America.  We had fine conditions for flying, and the Gulfstream has plenty of windows, but for the most part, clouds blocked our view of Tierra del Fuego.  Many of the team dozed or read over the Drake Passage, but all began to come alive when we first spotted icebergs... and then ice flows, ice shelves, and finally the glaciers of mainland Antarctica.  During our final half hour in the air, we had ridiculously clear views of the Ellsworth Mountains and Mount Vinson’s less traveled Eastern flank.  Then our all star pilots, Fred and Curt, had the G4 on final approach at Union Glacier.  We were all paying pretty close attention as the wheels touched down on hard ice and the plane rolled along at high speed.  Reverse Thrust did the trick nicely and the roll turned into taxiing into position for disembarking and unloading.  Our first steps in Antarctica were a thrill.  We were each a little surprised at how pleasant the weather was.  No wind and relatively mild temperatures meant we were comfy in light down coats.  Handshakes, fist bumps and highfives all around seemed the appropriate first order of business.  But then we got the plane unloaded and said goodbye to Fred and Curt who rocketed down the ice and into the air again on their return to Chile.  Our “ground team” of ALE staffers scooped us up in a bus with enormous wheels and brought us via ice highways to Union Glacier Camp.  Our flight had taken 3.5 hours (by comparison, the “normal” Ilyushin 76 ride is about 4.5 to 5 hours). 
We toured the camp around noon and then basically had some time to kill.  Our Twin Otter flight to Vinson was planned for about 5:30 PM.  We ate, played soccer, rode fat tire bikes and messed with electronics.  Finally, we loaded onto two ski equipped airplanes and enjoyed a spectacular cruise through progressively bigger ice covered mountains.  The Canadian pilots, Monica and Russ, flew alongside one another for much of the hundred miles.  We landed going uphill at 7,000 ft on the Branscomb Glacier and hopped out at Vinson Basecamp.  Things were quite busy for a few minutes as the planes were emptied of our gear and then filled by a team leaving the mountain.  Once the Otters were in the air again, Vinson Base got extremely quiet and calm.  We met our ALE staff and fellow guides, Pachi Ibarra, Namgya Sherpa and Lakpa Rita Sherpa (who, between them, have 32 Everest summits).  We had an amazing dinner by Chef Murph who crushed it with Lamb Shanks and Broccoli.  Then we settled into our tents and sorted a little gear.  The travel is complete, the climb starts tomorrow. 

Best Regards
RMI Guide Dave Hahn

Twenty four hours of flying high and fast brought our team of 12 to the end of the conventional planet.  We’re now assembled in Punta Arenas, Chile... ready to go the final leg of our journey to the unconventional planet.  Things look good for firing up the Gulfstream tomorrow morning to jump on down to Union Glacier in Antarctica.  With luck, we’ll then make the hop out to Vinson Basecamp in ski-equipped Twin Otters. 
 
We landed in Punta near mid-day today and got settled at the venerable old Cabo De Hornos hotel on the town’s central plaza.  We walked the streets for a bit, finding lunch and making our way to the headquarters of Antarctic Logistics and Expeditions for a briefing.  ALE is our partner and outfitter for the expedition and they got us up to speed on environmental safeguarding procedures and current weather predictions.  We then went back to exploring town.  There was the obligatory stop for pisco sours in the Shackleton Bar of one of the old, stately hotels on the plaza.  Then we found the perfect grill -a Parrilla-for a hearty patagonian dinner.   Finally, we watched the sunset light up clouds over Magellan’s Strait as we walked home.  Early start tomorrow.  Perhaps we’ll finish the day on Mount Vinson. 

Best regards,

RMI Guide Dave Hahn