We were up at 4 AM in the Yak and Yeti Hotel and we were packing. By 5:30 the team was at the Kathmandu airport and ready for some "hurry up and wait". The wait wasn't so long though, on this morning, before we were riding a little shuttle to our plane while watching the sunrise. We boarded the twin prop Dornier and took off in cloudless but smoky skies. Once through the thick smog layer it was possible to see a row of giant and jagged peaks out the port side windows. After a quick 30 minutes, the plane was in a steep descent toward the tilted Tarmac of Lukla airstrip. The landing was fast, flawless and loud as the pitch of the props was reversed to brake the plane. Within just a few moments we were out of the hectic 9,200-feet airport and in the quiet comfort of a tea house. The 2013 RMI Everest Expedition took its first steps at around 8:30 as we set off in perfect weather. The team only needed one rest along the way as we traveled through small farms and villages. The rock walls of our valley soared above and we could see a handful of glacier covered sharp summits floating over everything. "Traffic" was light on the trails - we leap-frogged a couple of teams we happened to know for a while, but for the last hour or so we had things pretty much to ourselves and could enjoy the quiet of the forest and the turbulence of the river. Shortly after noon Dan, James, Mark, Seth and myself, along with our Sirdar Lam Babu, pulled into Jo's Garden in the northern suburbs of Phakding.
We lunched, we napped, we ate again and now we are retiring to the rooms for the night, ready to complete the transition from airports and jet lagged city life to mountains and rivers and valleys and walking.
Best,
RMI Guide Dave Hahn
The RMI 2013 Everest Expedition has now officially started! Dave arrived late last night along with the last of our baggage. We are now set to head out from Kathmandu.
We had our first full team meal this morning at breakfast and after that we had an interview with Elizabeth Hawley. Miss Hawley is a fixture for Everest climbers. She has maintained a very thorough database of all ascents of the mountain ever since the first ascent of the mountain in 1953. It was a treat hearing her stories of climbers past and present. Now in her 90s she is still sharp as a tack and is absolutely interested in all of the expeditions on the mountain.
After that we spent the rest of the day packing for the trek into base camp. If all goes well we will fly into Lukla tomorrow and trek to the village of Phakding. We're all fired up to get that started.
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
I'm calling this the unofficial start to the 2013 RMI Mt. Everest Expedition. It can't be official yet because we are still waiting for Dave Hahn to arrive in Kathmandu after being delayed en route.
The rest of us have all arrived over the last two days and are doing great. We got together for dinner tonight in the district of Thamel, a crazy-maze of restaurants, shops, bars and hotels.
Tomorrow we'll spend the day picking up last minute items and getting packed for the trek into Everest Base Camp. We're all looking forward to getting started!
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
The February Mexican Volcanoes trip has officially wrapped up. This morning we all woke up out of our coma-like slumber and enjoyed our last meal together in Mexico. After a shirt and sweet wrap up celebration we hopped back in our trusty van for the three-hour drive back to Mexico City. We all said our final goodbyes curb side. It's been a a great trip with tons of excitement but now it's time to head home. Here's a photo from the summit of el Pico de Orizaba yesterday.
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
Orizaba summit! After yesterday I didn't know what to think. We had driven through a forest fire on the way to the mountain and the forecast was for a snow storm to move in during our planned summit bid. Things were getting interesting to say the least. But as it turned out our luck was impeccable. The forecasted storm actually did roll in, as a low level drizzle that put down the small fire whilst we climbed to the summit in perfectly clear conditions. We had a long and tough day for sure but everyone gave it their all. It was a great final climb on what's been a fantastic trip.
RMI Guides Seth Waterfall & Solveig Waterfall
Hey this is Seth calling from el Pico de Orizaba, third tallest peak in North America and tallest in Mexico. We had a long but beautiful climb, great weather and we are hanging out in great conditions on the summit. We'll check in again when we get back to Piedra Grande. That's it. That's all.
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall calls from the el Pico de Orizaba summit!
congratulations to the climbing team and their guides on the climbing and summiting of the two mountains in Mexico. I sure wish I was a few years younger as I would have enjoyed those climbs also. Cant wait to see the pictures and hear the stories about your trip.
Well, we're at the hut on Orizaba getting ready to climb tonight. It was an interesting drive up here, for sure. It's been very dry here recently and some forest fires have sprung up down low on the mountain. Normally this wouldn't worry me too much but one of the fires is within a mile of our access road. There are firefighters working in the area and our local logistics company is on top of the situation so at this point it's just a minor concern. One thing that's looking good is that there seems to be a weather system building which would help the fire situation out a ton. The downside of that is it will make climbing more difficult if we are faced with a storm.
So that's basically our situation... there's a few things that are out of our control, so we're just doing what we can to give ourselves the best shot at the summit. We're prepping to go up but not at the risk of climbing in a dangerous storm or getting stranded at the hut. We'll be making the safest call, of course. I'll call back early tomorrow and update everyone on our status.
Wish us luck, we could use it!
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall & Team
Hi from Puebla! It's just after 11 p.m. and we just got back from dinner. It was a long and great day. We woke up this morning before 2 a.m. and started climbing just after 3. The night was cool and crisp but windless which was really great for us. Everyone on the team was very motivated to climb and we made good progress up to the top of the Ayoloco Glacier. From there the good weather continued and just over 4 hours after starting we were standing on top of Ixta. It was a beautiful day for climbing. The walk down went very smooth. We had a light breeze on the lower mountain (that's the big weather story for us so far!) and when we got to the trail head we were greeted with tortas, cervesas and refrescos. Now we're all set up for a rest day in Puebla tomorrow.
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
Hey guys this is Seth. We're all on top of Ixta! All seven climbers and three guides made it. Beautiful weather. Had a great day. Here's the big cheer. [Team cheers!] We'll give a shout when we're back down safe and sound at high camp.
RMI Guide Seth Waterfall
Wow you met your goal!!!you must be on top of the world. We are thrilled for you Ryan. You are truly amazing.
Praying for you and the team..
Love you,
Proud mom&dad;
Posted by: nancy mccalley on 2/13/2013 at 9:22 pm
Congratulations to the entire team and guides for your summiting. I’m especially proud of Brandon, and I know this has been an awesome experience for him.
Looks like everything is going well. We are excited to track your trip. Climb on!
Posted by: Lance on 3/28/2013 at 9:29 am
We are thrilled to be able to track your progress. Great to learn that your journey has begun.
Posted by: Bob Bordignon on 3/27/2013 at 7:21 pm
View All Comments