South America Is Where It’s At

January 18, 2012

Cotopaxi. (Photo by Jorge Anhalzer)

Ecuador
Phil called in to report that the team tagged the top of Cotopaxi today! They’re safe and sound at the hacienda for the night.Â Tomorrow brings another market while they rest up for Cayambe later this week. All good things.

Aconcagua
Eben reports from C1 that all is well. They successfully carried to C2 today in phenomenal weather. It was so nice they opted for a nap in the col on their way back to camp. Warm and not a breath of wind. They’ll head up to C2 tomorrow then take a well deserved rest day on Friday.

Josh Tapp called in from lower down on the mountain. His team had a great hike to Pampa de Llenas, our first trekking camp along the trail.Â Smooth sailin.Â They’re still in shorts and approach shoes and are just about a week behind Eben’s team.

Tye Chapman

Kili Climbers On Their Way

January 18, 2012

Nearing the first camp (about 10,000 feet, which is about timberline on Kili) the size of the trees shrink and you are hiking through a beautiful moss jungle!

IMG guide Craig John called on the sat phone from Machame Camp to report that the team had a nicehike today up through the forest.Â They started in Moshi, then rode up to the Machame Gate (about 6000 ft), where they started.Â After about five and a half hours of hiking up through the forest, they have reached the camp at about 10,000 feet.Â The weather was good and everyone is having a good time.Â Craig reports they just finished up dinner and everyone is heading for bed, after a good first day on the trail!

Eric Simonson

Another Aconcagua Team Gearing Up

January 17, 2012

Each bag is a day's rations of food (Photo: Tye Chapman)

We received word from Josh Tapp early this morning.Â The team is safe & sound in Mendoza, where they continue to wait for one member’s bag.Â Â In the meantime, they spent yesterday packing food and checking gear, followed by an evening enjoying the local sights and sounds.

Today they’re lining up all necessary documents to move forward.Â We’ll be hearing from them again soon – stay tuned!

Becky Kjorvestad

Five Days In Ouray – It’s More Than Just A Climb

January 17, 2012

Our Veterans have another wonderful week climbing ice in and around Ouray, Colorado!Â Read on!

“Imagine an expedition with excellent climbing and access to a hot springs on the trip. No, I’m not talking about going to Ecuador and lounging in the Papallatca spa at the end of the trip. That trip only has one day of hot springs. What about FIVE DAYS? The Ouray Veterans program gives you a great chance to up your climbing skills and you have the opportunity to sit in a hot springs EVERY DAY! Â For those of you who haven’t been to Ouray, just try it. For those who have and are ready for the Veterans program, you need to join us next year. Why? Because it’s the PERFECT adventure vacation.Â

How can you not enjoy yourself on a trip like this? Our typical day: get up in the morning… have a cinnamon roll at the Artisan Bakery or a breakfast at Backstreet Bistro… head to the park with truly enjoyable guides with a great sense of humor… climb all day and end it by coming back to Mouse’s Chocolates for a strong coffee… spend an hour in the hot springs… join everyone for a beer and dinner at any of the great restaurants in town (Buen Tiempo, Ouray Brewery, O’Brien’s Pub, Bon Ton)… finish up the night with a visit to Mouse’s for an Ice Climber candy or Turtle sundae. Talk about AWESOME. The climbing is fantastic, but so is the surrounding experience. I’m always a little worried on climbing trips that I’ll come back tired and not having relaxed. However, every day in Ouray on the Veteran’s program was very relaxing – in additon to challenging.

: Scottish Gullies (Photo: Cale Hoopes)

: Chockstone Chimney (Photo: Cale Hoopes)

So, what about the climbing? Our week was awesome! The veterans program really lets the climbers focus on how they want to push themselves. There were four of us: Catherine, Marc, Stacey and I along with guides Justin Merle and John Race. By the end of the week, we were a full team. We started out climbing Water Ice 2-5 in the park then quickly picked a backcountry goal outside the park. It was awesome to do my first multi-pitch route – Dexter Slabs – which was south of Ouray 2 miles towards Ridgway. Then we did some leads and mock leading inside the park and finished on the last day near the Skylite area about 4 miles outside the park on Camp Bird Road. Some of the great out of park routes we chose included the Senators, Chockstone’s Chimney, Slip Sliding Away and the Ribbon (yes! It was in this year!) Talk about a great five days of climbing!

Be warned though, you’ll have to fight me for a spot next year if you want to join for the Veterans program… I’ll be there for sure!”

Â By Cale Hoopes , Ouray Veteran

A Rest Day In Aconcagua

Camp 1, Aconcagua (Photo: Tye Chapman)

January 17, 2012

Eben Reckord called to check in at 10am PST.Â The group has elected to take a rest day today.

Tomorrow (Jan. 19) they will carry to Camp II and return to Camp I, and on the 20^th, they will likely take a rest day.

The plan at this point is to move to High Camp on the 21^st, and if all goes according to plan their earliest summit day would be January 22. This, of course is all subject to the weather and the strength of the group and may change at any time.

For now, progress is going well and according to plan!

George Dunn

Aconcagua Team At C1

January 17, 2012

One of the many vistas along the way.

Eben called in yesterday afternoon with an update on the team; they have successfully moved to Camp 1 @ 15,000ft on Aconcagua.

It is breezy and cold, but clear and the team is happy and healthy. Today they’ll carry to C2.

All is well.

George Dunn

Kili Team Getting Ready to Kick Off

January 17, 2012

Craig John and the entire Kili team have arrived in Moshi to begin preparations for the climb.Â All bags have arrived too!Â Nice to start things off smoothly.Â After a tour of Moshi, the team made final packing decisions and hauled their duffel bags one last time before handing them off to the porters.Â From here on up, “light is right.”Â Everyone is excited, and we are ready to kick off another great year on the mountain.Â Tomorrow they’ll drive up to the Machame Gate to begin their climb.Â Everything is in place!Â Stay tuned….

Adam Angel

On the way to Machame Gate. (Photo by Adam Angel)

Weekend Update

January 15, 2012

Things don’t always go as planned, if they did this job would be boring.

The sun setting on Camp 1. (Photo by Tye Chapman)

Aconcagua
Eben called in with good news on Aconcagua, despite the recent snow, they were able to make their carry to C1. Tomorrow they’ll make the move and establish camp, tonight it’s back to Plaza Argentina for what everybody hopes is a better nights sleep.

Josh Tapp called in from Mendoza. He’s preparing for our next Aconcagua expedition. He’s one duffel bag short, but it sounds like the airlines are straightening things out.

IMG HQ/Denali Prep Training Grounds

Mt. Rainier
Greg makes it all the way from Antarctica without a hitch and what happens…? You guessed it, a storm on Mt. Rainier that forced the park to shutdown uphill traffic at Longmire. No worries, the Denali Prep crew hung tight here at HQ and did some training. Sled rigging, crevasse rescue (self-extraction), rope travel with sleds, etc. Probably easier to digest this stuff in a controlled environment anyways.Â Tomorrow they’ll head up to Paradise for the remainder of the program.

Ecuador
Phil called in yesterday to report that all is well in Ecuador. Their acclimatization continues today with a hike up Pasachoa (13,780ft).Â Then it’s off to our favorite little hacienda – Tierra del Volcan ( Volcano Land) which sits at just about 12,000ftÂ -a perfect place to sleep and continue the acclimatization.

Tye Chapman

All Is Well In South America

January 13, 2012

Ecuador Team on the Equator

Ecuador
Phil called in from Otavalo. The team enjoyed some urban acclimatization with a tour of Old Town Quito. Remember Quito sits at roughly 10,000ft so just getting around town is an adjustment. After their tour they loaded up and made their way to Otavalo, but not without a quick stop at the Equator (see photo). This evening they’ll check out some local weavers in a small town called Peguche. Tomorrow they’ll visit the Otavalo Indian Market.

Argentina
Eben dropped us a line from Aconcagua Base Camp (Plaza Argentina). All is well, though the precipitation theme continues. About an hour of snow fell this afternoon followed by some lightning and thunder; the sun also made an appearance. Their job now is to rest up and prepare for the climb. Burritos tonight and rest day tomorrow.

Chile
Greg’s route from Antarctica to Mt. Rainier continues. He’s made it to Santiago and if all goes to plan he’ll be in Seattle tomorrow afternoon, Ashford tomorrow evening and on Mt. Rainier Sunday morning.

Tye Chapman

Vinson Climbers In Punta Arenas

January 12, 2012

IL-76

We received a voice mail from Greg late last night (3am in Antarctica) as they were boarding the IL-76 bound for Punta Arenas, Chile – “We’re coming home”.Â Schedules are hard to keep given the nature of the terrain, but this time it all went according to plan.

After a quick siesta Greg Skyped in from his hotel room to say that all went smoothly – just a long flight.Â They’ll clean up and head out for one last dinner to celebrate, then it’s time to jump on another long flight.

No rest for the weary… we’ve got Greg booked on our next Winter Seminar here on Mt. Rainier which starts Sunday.Â We figure 18 hours is plenty time for Greg to get things in order before he heads back into the field.

Tye Chapman

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