February 16, 2013
Blue skies on the trek (Tye Chapman)
Short and simple from Tye today – “Blue skies and sunshine as we watched a group of 10 condor fly overhead. Makes for an incredible day of trekking.”
Phil Ershler
February 16, 2013
The February Kili team on the summit (Mike Marker)
IMG guide Jenni Fogle called on the sat phone to report that 11 of 12 of her team were able to reach Uhuru Peak, the top of Africa! She said it was quite cold and windy today, and that they were very glad they had their warm parkas with them. After the long descent they were back to the thick air at Mweka Camp (11,000 ft) from where they were able to send us a summit photo. Great job, team!
Eric Simonson
February 15, 2013
The view of the Sudirman Range from the north, on the trek approach to Mt Carstensz. Semantri is on the left (Jason Edwards)
IMG guide Dan Zokaites called today to report that his team successfully climbed Ngga Pulu (Puncak Jaya). Â The weather was excellent when they started, and it lasted until they reached the summit, but deteriorated into the normal (wet!) conditions as they descended.
In 1936 when the Dutch first climbed in this area, Ngga Pulu was estimated to be higher than Semantri. Now, however,  the rocky summit of Semantri is a little higher (maybe 10m) due to the melting of the glaciers.  Dan mentioned that they climbed both the snow and rock summits of Ngga Pulu today, and that the snow peak is still a little higher, but will eventually melt to be lower than the rock summit. Great job you guys, that is quite an adventure!
Eric Simonson
February 15, 2013
Los Cuernos over Lake Pehoe (Tye Chapman)
Tye called in from Patagonia this afternoon. A little drizzle for an hour or so in the morning and then the skies cleared. Good views of Los Cuernos and a relatively easy day of walking. They’re lakeside now, at the Refugio Los Cuernos this afternoon just enjoying Patagonia and life in general.
Phil Ershler
February 15, 2013
This 1936 USGS photo shows (L-R) Semantri, Ngga Pulu, and Carstensz East (Carstensz Pyramid is to the right, out of the picture).
IMG guide Dan Zokaites reports that the West Papua team’s plan for tomorrow is to head up to climb Ngga Pulu or maybe Carstensz East, depending on how the route looks. The team needed crampons for their climb of Semantri, but for Ngga Pulu it is mostly a rock climb now, with just a small amount of glacier left on it.
If you want to climb Glaciers in Oceania, you better get moving!
Eric Simonson
February 15, 2013
Along Lake Nordenskjold (Tye Chapman)
Tye and team got a bit ‘damp’ yesterday. It is Patagonia, right? Longer walking day yesterday as they explored up towards the head of the Silence Valley. The gang did well but no one was upset after they accomplished the goal and spent a warm, dry night back at the Refugio.
They give the legs a rest today, relatively speaking, with a hike alongside Lake Nordenskjold and the night spent at Refugio Los Cuernos. Nice.
Phil Ershler
The Kili Team (Photo: Jenni Fogle)
February 15, 2013
Weather’s good, team’s good, high camp is good and it’s game day. Nice thing about spending 6 nights/7 days on the mountain is that the team has a fairly short day going to high camp at Barafu and they arrive just after noon. Gives them plenty of time to pack, eat and drink and rest prior to a VERY early wake up/start. Maybe that’s another one of the reasons why IMG has never had a team not summit. And that’s since our first trip in 1989. Jenni’s ready for number 3 and everyone in the group is ready for number 1. We’ll post the summit update when available.
Phil Ershler
February 14, 2013
Tyrolean Traverse on Carstensz Pyramid (Dan Zokaites)
IMG guide Dan Zokaites called on the sat phone to report that the team reached the summit of Carstensz Pyramid today. He said they had some rain along the way, and that recent snowfall had made the upper pitches a bit more complicated. Nonetheless, they made good time on the route and were up and down in about 12 hours.
Eric Simonson
February 14, 2013
Which way to the summit? (photo: Mike Marker)
February 13, 2013
Tye Chapman called in today from Patagonia. The first day on the trail for the team saw them walking up for their first view of Torres del Paine. Tye said a bit of low fog made for some ‘eerie’ views. Impressive, to say the least. Tonight is at the Refugio Chileno. Tomorrow’s the Silence Valley.
All is well.
Phil Ershler
