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Logan Team Heading To Camp 2

May 17, 2012

King Peak near Mt. Logan

Mark Allen called in today to report that all is well on Mt. Logan.  They enjoyed the night at C1 and are en route to C2.  It’s a big day even after dropping a cache about halfway. They’ll pull into camp tonight around 10pm, not a big deal in the great white north this time of year.

Tomorrow they’ll sleep in and have a big breakfast before heading down to retrieve their cache.  An ‘active rest day’ we’ll call it.

All is well. Next scheduled call time is Saturday. Remember no news is good news in the mountains.

Tye Chapman

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Logan Team Lands Safely On Glacier

May 16, 2012

Mt. Logan

IMG Guide Mark Allen called in this afternoon to report that all is well on the US/Canada Border! The team flew in and were dropped off safely on the flanks of Mt. Logan, Canada’s tallest peak. It was a ‘bluebird’ day with views from the St. Elias to the Pacific Ocean.

Once ‘awe factor’ has worn off they plan to carry to Camp 1 (C1) this evening in one push. Then, they’ll head on up to C2 tomorrow, dropping a cache about half-way which they’ll double back and pick-up on their rest-day (Day 3).

That’s about it for now.

Tye Chapman

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Annapurna 4 Climbers Back In Kathmandu

May 16, 2012

On the road to Dana (Emily Johnston)
Emily and the bus (Eben Reckord)

Eben reports that the team survived their drive from Jomsom to Pohkara.  Sounds like a classic Nepal bus ride—bumpy and hairaising at times!  The team had a good dinner in Pohkara and enjoyed a beautiful sunset, but the day was not over. There was a “bandh” (strike) scheduled for tomorrow, which would cause more disruptions to travel, so the team decided to keep pushing on, and continued the drive to Kathmandu (on better roads)  where they have now safely arrived.

Good job, gang.  Sounds like a real adventure!

Eric Simonson

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2012 Rainier Season In Full Swing

May 16, 2012

Another Rainier season is here and already in full swing, but not without a little prep work beforehand.

In advance of our first climb we sent a crew up to Camp Muir to whip it into shape for the season.  On the to-do list was cleaning out the Gombu Hut, setting up the IMG Weatherport, carrying some loads up to The Flats and poking around on the upper mountain exploring the route. It was a busy week but the weather was absolutely making the work a little less painful.

Summit Board 2012
First Climb 2012 Descending From Summit (Photo by Carolyn Erickson)

First climb of 2012 celebrates on the summit. (Photo by Carolyn Erickson)
First Climb 2012

Meanwhile, our first climb met for the first Half-Day Orientation of the season. IMG Guide Erica Engle, fresh off of Mt. Bona, tore through the climbers’ packs during the gear check, hopefully lightening their loads a little bit.  On Sunday, they put their training to the test and made their way up to Camp Muir in some unseasonably hot conditions.  On Monday ,they broke in The Flats camp at 11,000ft. And on Tuesday everybody’s hard work was rewarded when they became the first IMG team to summit…and in perfect conditions!

The seal to the 2012 Summit Board has officially been broken!

Tye Chapman

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Annapurna 4 Climbers Get To Jomsom

May 15, 2012

View from Camp 1 with (L-R) Pisang Peak, Manaslu, A2 (photo: Eben Reckord)
Camp 1 (photo: Jarno Laiho)
Below Camp 2 (photo: Joe Piestrak)

Eben and the team crossed the Thorung La (17769ft / 5416m) today and descended to Muktinath, where they were able to send some nice A4 photos from the climb.  Then, they continued on to Jomsom.   Sounds like the flight schedules are disrupted, as predicted, so it’s going to be Plan B for the team tomorrow.  Phinjo has arranged seats on a bus to Beni and then we have arranged a van to meet them there for the ride on to Pohkara.

It should be a classic Nepal road trip!

Eric Simonson

 

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Mt. Logan Team On Its Way!

May 15, 2012

Mt. Logan

IMG Guide Mark Allen posted his last text message from the transportation van on its way to the airstrip in Chitina at 1:30 PDT on Monday. Chitina is about a 5 hour drive from Anchorage.

The team is all set and ready to go, gear all packed and loaded. The weather is doubtful, so the team may spend the night in tents at the Chitina airstrip waiting for improvement. If possible, they will fly to the Ultima Thule lodge, a 45 minute flight from Chitina. It is another hour’s flight from the lodge to the Mt. Logan landing site.

The good news is the small town of Chitina has both beer and pizza, so the team will likely do OK tonight.

We’ll keep updating as the team is able to fly in to the mountain.

George Dunn

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Annapurna 4 Climbers Heading For Thorung La

May 14, 2012

Dhaulagiri (7th highest at 8167m) from near Muktinath (Charlotte Austin)

Eben called this morning to say they had made it to Manang yesterday, and that they enjoyed food, showers, and entertainment (they watched “Vertical Limit” last night).  Pasang Nuri and Sante are headed back down to Besisahar with gear/porters and today the Sherpas are meeting the climbers at Yak Kharka and then they are headed to Phedi. Then, tomorrow, they cross the Thorung La (5,416m/17,769ft; La means pass) and descend to Muktinath and Jomsom, with the hope of flying back to Pohkara on the 16th.  We had some sad news overnight — it sounds like one of the local Jomsom flights crashed today, so it is unclear how that event might affect the teams’ departure plans.   If necessary, they can depart Jomsom by vehicle (it is a very rough 12 hour drive or a 20 minute flight back to Pohkara).  Either way, they should be back to Pohkara in the next couple days.

Eric Simonson

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Annapurna 4 Climbers Retreat

May 12, 2012

Annapurna 4 from near Humre

IMG guide Eben Reckord called on the sat phone from Camp 3 to say that they were hoping to get a pre-dawn start on their summit bid this morning, but that a snowstorm came in overnight.  So, they were electing to bail out from C3 instead.  Now Eben called back to say they made it down to Base camp, and were glad that they bailed, as it snowed hard all day during their retreat to BC.  Better safe than sorry—they did not want to get pinned down up there.

These guys have had a real Himalayan experience the last month, making their own route up a beautiful peak.  Now they are headed home via Thorung La trek and Jomson flight.  Their goals for tomorrow are hot showers, lots of food, and emailing friends and family in Manang.

Eric Simonson

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Nepal Update – One Up, One Down

May 11, 2012

Annapurna IV Camp 3 and the route to the summit (photo: Craig John)
Everest and Ama Dablam (photo: Eric Simonson)

Eben Reckord reports that the A4 team moved up to Camp 3 yesterday (about 21,000) and the Sherpas were able to break out a trail further up the ridge during the afternoon.  The plan is to start about 11pm tonight and head for the summit.  Weather is looking good right now, and they are going to give it their best shot.

Over on Ama Dablam, Liam O’Sullivan reports that the team took a shot at the summit yesterday, but the mountain said “no”.  They got hit by snow, and also had some lightening.  Several members of the team got very close (within about 50 meters of the top) but they were unable to make the true summit.  The team has now descended to BC and everyone is doing well.

Eric Simonson

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Mt. Rainier: Climb It. Now.

May 10, 2012

Mt. Rainier

You may have noticed this weekend’s current forecast – unbelievably perfect weather to kick off our first Mt. Rainier summit climb of the season.  If you’re tired of the same old barbecues and looking for something new and exciting to do, we still have room for 2 more climbers to tag along on the Mt. Rainier Classic 3.5 Day Summit Climb starting this Saturday, May 12-15.  Join our Guides – Erica, Nick, Austin and Josh for an adventure of a lifetime.  Call our office today to claim your spot on the roster!

Can’t make it this weekend?  Give us a call for updates on cancellations and available dates – (360)569-2609.

Might as well – it’s one more thing to scratch off the bucket list.

Becky Kjorvestad

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