Passing Ships in the Night

February 15, 2019

Happy in Patagonia (Jonathan Schrock)

Charlotte and her team were in El Chalten last night, Johnny and crew in Calafate.Â Today they’ll do a flip flop and pass on the highway to give each other high fives.Â Charlotte’s team woke up on a beautiful bay yesterday and walked the 12 miles back into El Chalten.Â This was the first time IMG has done The Huemul Circuit and it was a big success.Â Keep an eye out for a trip report from Charlotte and dates for next year.Â They enjoyed final meal and beer together last night and are getting ready for their flights home this afternoon.

Jonathan has wrapped up the first portion of his trip on the Torres del Paine “W” trek and part of the team is headed back home.Â A couple of the trekkers decided to join our Fitz Roy Extension to the trip.Â They’re heading over to Chalten as we speak to start exploring the Fitz Roy Massif.Â Fitz Roy must feel pretty special with as many photos as IMG groups have taken and will take of it this year.

Luke Reilly

Calming Winds on Aconcagua

February 14, 2019

Camp 2 on Aconcagua (Luke Reilly)

Winds have finally calmed down on Aconcagua and Rob was able to get the crew up to Camp II.Â The ball is rolling now.Â They’re going to take advantage of the good weather tomorrow as well, and make a carry up to Camp III.Â Once the carry to Camp III is completed, it will be a waiting game to squeak in a summit push.Â They need a decent day to move to High Camp and an even better day to head to the top.Â I’ll be following weather forecasts closely over the next several days and relaying them to Robert.Â We will be looking for the best window possible.Â Team is healthy and strong.

Luke Reilly

Kili Climbers Head To The Serengeti

February 14, 2019

Kilimanjaro climbers after landing at the Serengeti Airport (Phunuru Sherpa)

Phunuru reports that the Kilimanjaro team successfully made the transition yesterday from climber mode to safari mode. All the stinky clothes and dirty gear are safely packed away and stored for the trip home. Comfortable safari clothes are now on, and binoculars and cameras are ready. The 40 minute flight from Arusha to Serengeti is like a trip back in time. After landing the team was met by their safari drivers and the animals (sometimes the latter are also on the runway, and the plane needs to “buzz” them off!).

Maasai Giraffe on the Serengeti (Phunuru Sherpa)

On the way to their first luxury safari camp the team immediately had their first wildlife sightings. Wildebeest, giraffe, zebra, cape buffalo, and countless other critters are seemingly everywhere. Today the team saw lions, leopard, and cheetah as they continued the safari moving east across the Serengeti on their way to the Ndutu area, where they are staying at another luxury safari camp. The team will likely hear animals tonight near their camp, as the Ndutu area is in the heart of the short grass plains, where countless wildebeest and zebra are giving birth this time of year.

: Cheetah on the Serengeti (Phunuru Sherpa)

: Pride of lions on the Serengeti (Phunuru Sherpa)

Phunuru reports that they have now seen four of the “Big Five” (cape buffalo, lion, leopard, rhino, elephant). The only one missing is the rhino, and they are hoping to see them Â tomorrow in the Ngorongoro Crater (where they are protected by the wildlife rangers).

With all the snow and cold here in the Pacific Northwest these days, baking out in the sun a few degrees south of the Equator sounds pretty good!

Eric Simonson

Moshi Celebration!

February 13, 2019

: Certificates & Smiles! (Phunuru Sherpa)

: Dinner celebration with the Chagga guides (Phunuru Sherpa)

Quick report from Moshi â€“ all is good. Great, actually.Â The hotel is always welcome after seven days on the trail. Showers, clean clothes, cold drinks and a big celebratory dinner with our Chagga guides is ALWAYS in order. Certificates get presented and a good time is had by all.

Our bus takes the team to Arusha in the morning for a bit of shopping, a bit of lunch, and a flight to the Serengeti. Itâ€™s time for safari!

Phil Ershler

Storm Update!

February 13, 2019

Digging out! (Heather Garland)

The power is back on here at IMG HQ in Ashford and after four days of non-stop precipitation, we saw a little bit of blue sky today! We are working hard to clear the walkways and our inboxes and ought to have all of that accomplished just in time for our Denali Prep Seminar that begins this weekend.

Oh, and more snow is on the way!

IMG HQ is available Mon-Fri 8:00-5:00 (PST)
Call: 360-569-2609
Email: office@mountainguides.com
Be sure to follow us on Instagram and Facebook!

Heather Garland

Malbec in Mendoza

February 13, 2019

Final Team Dinner

Cheers to Rikki and his Aconcagua expedition.Â The group had their final meal together in Mendoza last night and are now making arrangements to head back home.Â Aconcagua weather wasn’t exactly cooperative for their expedition, but everybody is happy and healthy and that’s what counts.Â Nice work to this team for hanging tough and doing the best with the hand that they were dealt.

Camp II on Aconcagua (Luke Reilly)

While this team is enjoying the luxuries of Mendoza, Rob and his team are still up high on the mountain.Â Rob checked in via satellite phone an hour ago and gave me the scoop.Â They made a successful carry up to Camp 2 today and the trip is back in motion after their rest day.Â Winds have calmed down as predicted and the plan is to head up to Camp 2 tomorrow morning.

Luke Reilly

Hanging Tough at Camp I

February 12, 2019

Rob setting up a tent on Aconcagua.

The Robert/Leo Aconcagua team hunkered down at Camp I today and took a rest day and were able to regroup after the heavy winds yesterday and the day before.Â Winds are still being a little stingy but things are supposed to calm down starting tomorrow midday.Â They will take advantage of the hopeful break in the wind and make a carry up to Camp II in the morning.Â Could be a little bit blustery but it’s always good to keep moving up the mountain if conditions allow.Â Getting into position for a summit push is always a bit of a chess match, and I think this team is doing a great job.Â Let’s hope they can put Aconcagua in check mate.

Luke Reilly

Kayaking in Patagonia

February 12, 2019

Tandem Kayak on Lago Grey (Jonathan Schrock)

Sometimes it’s just too darn windy in Patagonia to go kayaking, but not for this group.Â The contrast of colors while out on the water is simply incredible and the immensity of the glaciers is breathtaking.Â Jonathan took the team out on a kayak around Lago Grey and explored the shoreline.Â A few of the trekkers decided to take a little walk out on the glacier this morning as well.Â Glacier Grey has a total area of 100 square miles and is 17 miles long, that is downright impressive.

View from the back seat (Jonathan Schrock)

Fun fact: moulin, the french word for “mill,” are holes in glaciers that are formed by a constant dripping of ice melt.Â These holes can be as deep as the glacier is thick, which for Grey Glacier is about 100 feet.Â The group donned their crampons and had a walk around the glacier and kept a safe distance from these moulins.Â No slipping!Â This is the last night of the trek and a boat ride across the lake will take them to their private transport back to Puerto Natales.

Charlotte and her team are doing well on the Huemul Circuit.Â She checked in today and said that the weather is gorgeous, the river crossing went super well and that the crew is really strong.Â They had incredible views of the southern Patagonian ice field today, sounds pretty cool to me, no pun intended.Â They’re currently finishing up a tasty backcountry meal at camp and will hit the trail first thing in the morning.

Luke Reilly

Patagonia Weekend Update

February 11, 2019

: Lago Nordenskjold (Jonathan Schrock)

: A Happy Team (Jonathan Schrock)

: Sampling Patagonia’s Finest (Jonathan Schrock)

: Above El Chalten

Although I had a great weekend of skiing with all the fresh snow in the PNW, I’m still a little jealous of our two trekking teams down in Patagonia.Â The great photos just keep rolling in and there are a lot of smiles.Â Jonathan and his crew made a trip up into the Bader and French Valleys over the weekend in Torres del Paine.Â Weather has improved, which means so have the views.Â I guess the photos depict that.Â They’ve made it to Refugio Grey where there may be a little bit of kayaking and glacier hiking on the horizon.

Charlotte and her team cruised around El Chalten and did a couple of day hikes to some lookouts of the Fitz Roy Massif and the surrounding area.Â They also spent a little time dialing in gear for the final leg of their trip, the Huemul Circuit.Â This is a four-day trek that leaves directly out of El Chalten and is going to cover some incredible terrain that is a little bit more “off the beaten path.”Â I don’t expect that this private trekking group will be sharing the trail with too many people, super sweet.Â Charlotte said that they hiked “…11 miles to a gorgeous campsite at Lago Torro.Â Team is strong and healthy, weather is gorgeous.”Â Did I mention I’m just a little jealous of this?Â Wow, nice work to everybody down south of the equator this weekend.

Luke Reilly

Wind Keeps up on Aconcagua

February 11, 2019

A Stormy Night at Camp I (Luke Reilly)

The wind is being persistent on Aconcagua.Â Rob and crew have made it to Camp I at approximately 16,400′ and they’re getting a good dose of high winds but are hunkered down for the night.Â The forecast is calling for the winds to start calming down tomorrow and we will hope this holds true.Â Tomorrow will either be a “wake up and wait it out” kind of day or they’ll attempt a carry of equipment and food up to Camp II.Â Good job to this team for staying strong and establishing camp in tougher conditions.Â They’re doing well.

Luke Reilly