Kili Team Arrives In Moshi

June 16, 2010

Kili in the distance. Photo taken from the JRO Airport.

IMG guide Adam Angel reports that the June Kili team has all arrived on schedule in Moshi and they are all doing well. Today is their free day to go through the gear and get all packed up, and also visit the Kilimanjaro Porters Assistance Project office in Moshi, which IMG supports.Â After a day of preparations and sightseeing, tomorrow morning bright and early they head for Machame Gate and the first day on the trail.Â Weâ€™ll keep you posted!

Eric Simonson

DC, Kautz and Emmons Teams On Rainier

June 15, 2010

Summit! Our Disappointment Cleaver (DC) team summitted quite early this morning due to cold conditions and the direct route up the Ingraham Glacier. After summitting around daybreak, they quickly made their way down to The Flats and into Camp Muir. After a nice break at Muir they cruised on down the snowfield for a quick chat with our uphill team, led by Phil Ershler, then they loaded up the IMG van and were back in Ashford by 2pm. Currently Phil and his team are at Muir enjoying dinner…They’ll head up to The Flats in the morning.

On the other side of the mountain is our Emmons team, led by John Race, who started walking this morning and are now at their first camp (7800ft) on the Inter Glacier. After some early training tomorrow they’ll head up to Camp Schurman. All is well – a little light snowfall on their approach, but overall they’re doing just fine.

And on the south side of the mountain is our Kautz team, led by Brian Warren, who just pulled into their first camp after some tough postholing on the the lower Nisqually Glacier this morning. A tough day for sure, but some good food and a good nights sleep will ready them for their move to High Camp tomorrow.

All is well on Mt. Rainier.

Tye Chapman

Rainier Team At ‘The Flats’

June 14, 2010

IMG Guide Greg Vernovage just radioed in from The Flats here on Mt. Rainier… All is well! A few teams summitted early today so it’s looking good for our guys in the morning. They’ll wake up nice and early and hit the route when it’s cold hoping to hit the summit around daybreak. They’re eating an early dinner now and plan to get some horizontal time before their midnight wake-up call.

Success Isn’t Always Measured In Summits

June 13, 2010

One of our annual Washington National Parks Fund (WNPF) climbs wrapped things up this afternoon after their 3-day climb on Mt. Rainier.Â They didn’t summit, but the $40,000 these Microsoft employees raised will still go to a great cause.

It was obvious that these guys did their physical homework and were well prepared to climb, but as many people have read over the past few weeks, the weather on Mt. Rainier has been a little problematic… So after the recent storms, followed by a spike in the temperature, our team opted to stay put at camp and err on the side of caution.

By digging snow pits, evaluating the conditions as well as past and current weather reports, and discussing the overall situation with the other guide services and Park Rangers everybody was in agreement that climbing last night, despite the perfect weather, was not in anybody’s best interest.

Everybody had fun, stayed safe and raised a good amount of cash for the Washington National Parks Fund…

Success can be measured in many ways!

Tye Chapman

The Sun Is Shining!

June 12, 2010

Just spoke with IMG Partner Phil Ershler who called in from The Flats on Mt. Rainier today – they took advantage of the sunny weather today and put in our camp at The Flats. A big thank you to AAI who also put in a good bit of work this morning putting in that camp!

Phil didn’t have any concrete plans when I spoke with him other than saying that they’re going to play it really close to the chest and very conservative given the warming trend after some recent snowfall.

We’ll have more on their decision tomorrow…

Tye Chapman

Guide Training – An Evening Event

June 11, 2010

On Wednesday evening we hosted the second part of a 4-part summer training series for guides and NPS Climbing Rangers. Close to 50 guides and rangers showed up for a burger and a beer and to listen to IMG Guide and Technical Director, Jeff Ward, discuss route and trip planning and whiteout navigation.

For several hours after the lecture, guides and rangers alike hung out and shared climbing stories. A good time was had by all.

No Go For Our Emmons Team

June 9, 2010

Our Emmons team woke up to some nasty weather and opted to stay put, erring on the side of safety.Â After a good nights sleep at Camp Schurman they decided to drop down lower on the mountain to avoid the wind and snowfall at Schurman. After descending the Inter Glacier they found themselves in the thick of a downpour of rain and instead of camping in the rain they made their way to the trailhead.

They were greeted with some refreshments and smile by our van driver Larry.

Tye Chapman

Emmons Team At Camp Schurman

June 8, 2010

IMG Guide Greg Vernovage called in from Camp Schurman on Mt. Rainier this afternoon to let us know they’re enjoying some good weather, albeit a touch windy.

After a nice approach hike yesterday to their first camp they woke up nice and early this morning to get a good start on the Inter Glacier while it was cold, arriving at Camp Schurman late this morning. They’re heading to bed for the night now (4:30pm)Â anticipating a 10:00pm wake-up call.Â At 10:00 they’ll assess the condition and evaluate the terrain and make a decision on if they’ll climb or not.

We’ll update the team’s progress tomorrow.

Tye Chapman

Avalanche On Mt. Rainier June 5th, 2010

June 8, 2010

Many of you have heard there was a significant avalanche on the Ingraham Glacier early in the morning Saturday June 5th. We have had some inquiries about this particular avalanche event and also about avalanche hazard on the mountain in general. Here are a few of the FAQs.

Was IMG involved in the avalanche?
No IMG clients or guides were directly involved in the avalanche. Our IMG climbing team had decided the night before not to make a summit attempt on June 5 due to high avalanche hazard.
IMG guides did respond to the avalanche accident and were involved in the rescue efforts along with other guides and NPS rangers.

What happened?
Early in the morning of June 5th a number of independent climbers were ascending the Ingraham headwall enroute to the summit. A relatively large dry soft slab avalanche ran more than 1000 vertical feet.Â 11 independent climbers were involved. There were several complete burials, but due to great rescue efforts, all were recovered alive with the exception of one unregistered solo climber. This person was well ahead of the other climbing teams and remains missing. Everyone else was moved to safety and were treated for injuries. The victims along with rescue personnel (including 2 of our IMG guides) were evacuated by helicopter.

Is this unusual?
Avalanche hazard is a primary concern on Rainier. This objective hazard is particularly our focus early in the climbing season, when the upper mountain still has winter snowpack conditions.
Following the El Nino weather pattern that dominated the Northwest this winter we have experienced one of the wettest May and early Junes we have seen in a long time. This weather pattern has resulted in numerous storm and avalanche cycles.

Will I be safe on my upcoming trip on Rainier with IMG?
IMG has a stellar mountaineering safety record. Additionally, our guides have extensive training and experience in avalanche hazard evaluation.
The best illustration of that skill can be seen in the recent avalanche event on Rainier. Three out of the four guides on our IMG climbing team that day worked last winter in avalanche forecasting and control programs. The snowpack and weather evaluation they made led to the decision not to make the summit attempt that day.
After the avalanche accident occurred they were in a position to use their avalanche rescue and medical skills to assist. This was the 3rd time in as many weeks that our IMG guides have responded to other climbers in need of assistance on the upper mountain. Needless to say we are very proud of our guides and our company safety record.

Is my Rainier trip still on schedule?
Yes. We did adjust the itineraries of some of our recent climbs due to avalanche conditions. This is normal and it affected only a few climbs. Our current climbing teams on the mountain are proceeding without issue.
That said, our guides are continually evaluating all mountaineering hazards, including avalanches. ALL IMG guides (and the IMG owners) will continue to make adjustments to a programâ€™s itinerary when deemed necessary for your safety.

What is the bottom line?
Avalanches remain one of the objective hazards that may be encountered on a climb of Rainier. No one can guarantee that a mountaineering accident will not happen and we are humble enough to recognize that it could happen to anyone.
The good news is that the current overall fatality risk in climbing Rainier is less than 2 per 10,000 climbers. Even though that risk is small the best way to further reduce that risk is to climb with experienced guides.
IMG stands by its safety record, which is second to none. We live by the adage â€œthe summit is optional, returning homeÂ safely is mandatoryâ€
The bottom line is there is nothing more important to IMG than your safety.

Where can I go from here to learn more?
For more information about this avalanche event check out a recent article in the Tacoma News Tribune.

For more information on avalanches here in the Northwest check out the Northwest Avalanche Centerâ€™s website

To learn about avalanche hazard evaluation and safe travel please consider joining IMG in an avalanche training course this coming winter

Please feel free to contact us at the IMG office if you have any further questions.

Bona Team Safely Off The Mountain

June 2, 2010

It turns out the team made it to within 250 vertical feet of the summit this time before being shut down by the weather. They descended back down to high camp in white out conditions. The group rested, packed up camp and headed down to base camp at 3:30 pm, arriving in the late evening. Mark says the whole team gave it their very best throughout the trip and all are in high spirits.

They awoke to clear skies this morning, called in to the IMG office with a weather report and we passed it on to Paul Claus our bush pilot via email. Paul emailed back at 9:42 a.m. Alaska time to let us know the group was safely off the mountain and in flight to Chitina. Theyâ€™ll drive the 4 hours from Chitina to Anchorage (hopefully stopping enroute for showers) and should arrive in Anchorage late this afternoon.

Congratulations to the Bona team for a job well done!

George Dunn

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