Splitter Weather & High Passes For The Huayhuash Trek

July 13, 2019

: Huayhuash-Tucllapampa to Carhuacocha camp – Carhuac Pass 15,252′ (Betsy Dain-Owens)

: Laguna Carhuacocha Camp 13,700′ (Betsy Dain-Owens)

IMG Lead Guide, Betsy Dain-Owens, reports the team has traveled over Carhuac Pass to their camp at Laguna Carhuacocha. The weather has been splitter for the team, so they’re reaping the gorgeous views offered by our spectacular Huayhuash trek. Bestsy noted they celebrated a team birthday last night, complete with a special cake prepared by our cook in Huaraz, and secretly transported to camp for the special occasion. Happy Birthday, P!

Tomorrow, the team will continue their trek as planned. So far so good!

We still have room on our Aug 31 – Sept 9 Salkantay Trek! Email office@mountainguides.com for details!

Jason Edwards

Full Day At The Naadam Festival

July 12, 2019

Sukbaatar Square during the Naadam Festival (Ang Jangbu_Sherpa)

Ang Jangbu checked in after another great day at the Naadam Festival. The team started off the day by heading out to watch the horse race in the outskirts of Ulaanbaatar. Now, this horse race is not what we would typically envision when we read the text. This is a long distance horse race in the open area. Take it even further by this horse race being done mostly bareback and the riders are kids and is 13 miles in length! For anyone who had a dream of being a cowboy as a kid, this would be a dream come true!

: Naadam Festival Tour Guide teaching the Ankle Bone Game (Ang Jangbu Sherpa)

: Children racing horses (Ang Jangbu Sherpa)

After the horse race, our tour guide exposed the team to a traditional game with Ankle Bones. I had to look it up as well! After the Ankle Bone Games, the team had an opportunity to taste the fermented horse milk. This is an â€œinterestingâ€ tasting drink with a small amount of alcohol content. After all of the fun, the team returned back to the hotel and Ang Jangbu took a short walk down to the City Center wear there was live music and the Parliament Building was lit up in beautiful color. Jangbu said he thought â€œall of Ulaanbaatar was gathered to listen to music and enjoy the warm summer night.

Greg Vernovage

Day 1 Of The Naadam Festival

July 11, 2019

Panorama of the Central Stadium (Ang Jangbu Sherpa)

Ang Jangbu checked in after a great day at the Naadam Festival in Mongolia.Â The team spent the first day at the Central Stadium in Ulaanbaatar taking in some archery and walking around to see the traditional clothing people are wearing.Â The day was finished with a great dinner and some dancing by some of the team members!

: Archery at the Naadam Festival (Ang Jangbu Sherpa)

: Interesting mask and clothing at Dinner (Ang Jangbu Sherpa)

: Traditional Clothing at the Naadam Festival (Ang Jangbu Sherpa)

All is well in Mongolia!

Greg Vernovage

2019 Mongolia Team In Ulaanbaatar

July 10, 2019

2019 Mongolia Team Arriving (Ang Jangbu Sherpa)

IMG Lead Guide, Ang Jangbu Sherpa, checked in from Ulaanbaatar this morning to let us know the 2019 Mongolia Team is arriving with all of their bags. This year, our Mount Khuiten Expedition lands at the end of the Naadam Festival in Mongolia so a number of our climbers decided to join the 4 day extension at the beginning of the expedition to take in the festivities.

The festivities for the team start tomorrow morning and we will be looking forward to getting some great photos from Ang Jangbu!

Greg Vernovage

Views of the Cordillera Blanca Range

July 9, 2019

: New trail with views for days (Betsy Dain-Owens)

: The Cordillera Blanca Range in Peru (Betsy Dain-Owens)

Got up to around 12,900â€™ and had a great view of the Cordillera Blanca Range.Â The trail is new – the municipality built it this past February!

Everyone is doing great!

Betsy

First Day In Huaraz

July 8, 2019

: The group’s first day in Juaraz (Bestsy Dain-Owens)

: Taking in the view in Peru (Betsy Dain-Owens)

Had a nice hike to Wilcacocha earlier today, everyone is doing great! Just finished gear checks, off to dinner soon. Tomorrow we will go to Laguna Radian.

All is well!

Betsy

Safari Team Wrapping Up

July 5, 2019

The team is wrapping up their trip to Tanzania.Â Yesterday was their second day in the Serengeti and today they visited the Ngorongoro Crater. Â They sent so many great photos, it was hard to choose which ones to post.Â So weâ€™re just going to post a bunch.Â Theyâ€™re heading to bed now and will be sleeping in tomorrow, grabbing a hot lunch before departing for Arusha, then the airport and flights home. Â Once there, we hope each of the team members takes a bit of time to celebrate their success and share their experiences with family and friends. Â IMG says thanks to all for their efforts on behalf of the team weâ€™re looking forward to seeing them again on another trip.

Good-bye from East Africa, for now.

Phil Ershler

Safari Update

July 4, 2019

: Tree climbing lion (Phunuru Sherpa)

: First night on Safari (Phunuru Sherpa)

The great news just continues to come in. Team flew to the Serengeti and saw most everything on their way to their safari camp. â€˜Most everythingâ€™ included a tree climbing lion.Â es, there is such a thing and yes, it is a very rare sight. Imagine climbing Kilimanjaro and 48 hours later sitting around a campfire in the middle of the Serengeti. A pretty amazing way to spend two weeks!

Happy 4^th of July to everyone following our blog!

Phil Ershler

Summits On Rainier!

July 4, 2019

: All smiles on the 2019 Rainier Women’s Climb (Lara Ralich)

: Training on the Glacier Skills Seminar (Nate Sievert)

It has been a week of celebrations for our Rainier climbs with summits on the DC, Fuhrer Finger, and Kautz routes. Additionally, our Glacier Skills Seminar and our Women’s Climb both topped out for an overall excellent transition from June to July!

: Working hard on the Fuhrer Finger (Nickel Wood)

: Fresh snow on the upper mountain on the Kautz Route (Jonathan Schrock)

If you’re thinking about climbing Rainier or taking a training course this summer, now is the time to sign up!

Available programs:

3.5 Day DC
July 11-14

4.5 Day Emmons
July 14-18

Mountain Day School
July 25
August 8
August 21

Advanced Mountain Day School
July 26
August 9
August 22

Crevasse Rescue School
July 27-28
August 10-11
August 23-24

We still have room on our Mt. Shuksan Women’s Climb!

Email office@mountainguides.com for more info on climbs and schools.

Heather Garland

It’s Safari Time!

July 3, 2019

: Two on top (Phunuru Sherpa)

: Celebration Banquet (Phunuru Sherpa)

Phunuru reported too much beer and too much fun as the team ended their climb of Kilimanjaro. Everyone safe and sound, 100% on top and maybe just a bit of fun in the process. Think thatâ€™s the whole package.

The Entire Crew (Phunuru Sherpa)

After hiking out to Mweka Gate and signing out with the Park, everyone got together to tip the Chagga staff who contributed so greatly to the teamâ€™s success. Always fun to watch everyone participate. But then itâ€™s time for showers and dinner and a bit of â€˜re-packingâ€™ for safari. All the climbing gear gets thrown into one duffel and just stays with our safari company. Time now to travel light as theyâ€™ll be jumping into their plane for the flight to the Serengeti. Pretty soon, Phunuru will be checking in with stories of how many animals they saw between the landing strip and their camp site. Itâ€™s safari time!

Phil Ershler