Final 2019 Training Courses On Rainier

August 9, 2019

: Weather at the Flats Camp on the Ingraham Glacier (Bernie Contreras)

: A beautiful day on the Emmons (Gray Griswold)

Mountain weather has a well-deserved reputation for being unpredictable. Forecasts can be helpful, but you often don’t know what you’re going to get until you’re in it. As always, preparation is key. Whether you hire a guide service or not, knowing and understanding the basics of mountaineering will make you a stronger, safer climbing partner. We have a few remaining spots on the following courses:

August 21
Mountain Day School
August 22
Advanced Mountain Day School
August 23-24
Crevasse Rescue School

Email office@mountainguides.com to sign up and look for our 2020 Rainier dates to be posted in early September!

Heather Garland

Bolivia Team Returns to La Paz!

August 7, 2019

: Road to Illimani with the mountain in the distance (Harry Hamlin)

: 2019 Bolivia Team at Illimani Trailhead (Harry Hamlin)

: Sunset at High Camp on Illimani (Harry Hamlin)

: Lights of La Paz from High Camp on Illimani (Harry Hamlin)

: Illimani Summit (Harry Hamlin)

The Team has made it back to La Paz for a well deserved shower, drink and a celebration dinner tonight.Â Congratulations to all of the climbers who went down to Bolivia for some great climbing.Â They enjoyed beautiful weather for all of the climbs and took advantage of the weather by climbing three great mountains.Â All that is left is to say thank you to our Bolivian Staff and get packed up tomorrow for early morning flights home.

Let us know if you would like to join the Team in Bolivia in 2020!

Greg Vernovage

Elbrus Trip Treks out, Moscow is Next!

August 6, 2019

: Perfect weather for hiking in the Baksan Valley (Jonathan Schrock)

: Don’t see that every day! (Jonathan Schrock)

Time in Terskol and the Baksan Valley is coming to an end.Â Team has been hiking in some pretty good weather and plans another sauna tonight.Â Moscow is just ahead and everyoneâ€™s looking forward to visiting a city which theyâ€™ve heard about since childhood.Â Exciting stuff.

Phil Ershler

Illimani Summits!

August 6, 2019

: Illimani summit (Luke Reilly)

: Illimani summit with Huayna Potosi in the distance (Greg Vernovage

: Illimani Base Camp with the mountain above

IMG Senior Guide Harry Hamlin just called from Base Camp on Illimani after some great climbing to the summit of Illimani (21,200â€™).Â Harry said the weather was perfect and the team did very well this morning.Â It is always great to hear that the Bolivia Team went 3 for 3 during the trip and even better news when we hear the team is now all back to Base Camp safe and sound.Â The team will celebrate and sleep the rest of the afternoon and evening before heading to the trailhead in the morning.Â Our staff in Bolivia always does a great job putting a little extra into the climb of Illimani by having a barbecue ready for when the team gets down.

Greg Vernovage

Illimani High Camp!

August 5, 2019

: Climbing to High Camp On Illimani (Adam Clark)

: Looking up Illimani from High Camp (Greg Vernovage)

: High Camp on Illimani (Greg Vernovage)

We just heard from Harry Hamlin at High Camp (18,500â€™) on Illimani.Â The team is enjoying near perfect weather and are getting settled into High Camp.Â The plan is to have an early dinner, get some rest and start climbing at 2am for the summit.

The climb to High Camp is not to be taken lightly.Â The Team leaves Base Camp and hikes up and over a beautiful moraine before gaining the rocky ridge.Â After a stop at lunch rocks, the team focuses on their footwork up the ridge to High Camp.Â This rock ridge is 3^rd class rock and is very manageable when we stick to the beaten route.Â Climbing 3^rd class rock up to 18,500 feet is very quick to get everyoneâ€™s attention!Â The team is doing great and is looking forward to taking in the views from the summit of Illimani in the morning!

Greg Vernovage

Bolivia Team makes it to Base Camp on Illimani

August 4, 2019

: Illimani Base Camp (Greg Vernovage)

: Trekking to Base Camp on Illimani (Adam Clark)

Harry and Roberto checked in early this morning to let us know the van was being loaded and the team is out the door for the climb of Illimani (21,200â€™).Â The weather is looking good for the next few days so they will spend the night at Base CampÂ (15,000â€™) and re-evaluate how everyone if feeling.

Once the team heads uphill from Base Camp, they will want to keep the momentum.Â High Camp is at 18,500â€™ and we donâ€™t want to spend any more time up there than we have to.

All is well from a beautiful Base Camp on Illimani!

Greg Vernovage

Tough but Successful Summit Day on Elbrus

August 4, 2019

Visibility was good for most of the day but got into the â€˜soupâ€™ on the descent around 16,500â€™.

No precipitation, but the wind tried to make the climb as difficult as possible. Tough summit day but 100% on top and down safely in spite of the conditions.

Congratulations to Jonathan, Sasha and team. Great, great job.

Phil Ershler

Elbrus Team Prepared for Summit

August 3, 2019

Jonathan checked in again today and reported that the acclimatization hike to the Pastukhova Rocks went well. Thatâ€™s about 15K feet.

: Pancake (Syrniki) and black coffee breakfast in the hut this morning (Jonathan Schrock)

: Half way to P Rocks. Skies stayed clear most of the morning. Closed in by noon. (Jonathan Schrock)

: Seattle Seahawks 12th Man is on the team… (Jonathan Schrock)

Theyâ€™re now prepped, packed and about ready for bed. Itâ€™ll be an early, alpine start for the summit. Breezy but clear. Letâ€™s hope it stays that way.

Phil Ershler

Elbrus Team Moves Up to High Hut

August 3, 2019

The team on Elbrus has moved up to their high hut. A little food packing first and then it was up the condoles and get settled into the hut there.

: Packing expedition food in Cheget (Jonathan Schrock)

: Loading up for the drive to the mountains (Jonathan Schrock)

Nice having a cook to take care of food preparation, leaving the team to concentrate on getting ready for their climb.

Another acclimatization hike and two nights at that high hut before it’ll be time to take that summit shot. Once well acclimated, itâ€™s all about taking care of yourself on the climb, and itâ€™s all about the weather. Fingers crossed.

Phil Ershler

Successful Kili Expedition is a Wrap

August 3, 2019

Time to say good bye to Africa for a bit and time for Phunuru to get back to Nepal, see his family and get ready to lead our post-monsoon Cho Oyu expedition. Safari ended with a visit to the Ngorongoro Crater, more animals, including the black rhino, and a final night at the Farm House. Time for flight home.

: Elephants on IMG’s African Safari (Kate Kishfy)

: Leopard on IMG’s African Safari (Kate Kishfy)

: Rhino on IMG’s African Safari (Kate Kishfy)

Everyone was a trooper and a successful summiter of Kilimanjaro. Nicely done, gang.

: Final team dinner (Phunuru Sherpa)

: Some more, please (Phunuru Sherpa)

Weâ€™ll be back in a month with more IMG climbers and see if we canâ€™t have another equally safe, successful and enjoyable trip up Kilimanjaro! Thanks to everyone who helped.

Phil Ershler