November 21, 2011
Heading for C1 (Photo: Phil Ershler)
Once they started flying, they kept on flying.
Mike Hamill reported that the team made it to Vinson base camp on the 20th, got a good camp established and made a carry on the 21st to C1 at around 10,000 ft. Nice. They’ll be doing a lot of wall building when they make the move to C1 as it has a tendency to get a bit breezy there and they’ll be using the camp for at least 3 nights.
Best to get it done right.
Phil Ershler
November 20, 2011
IL 76 on the Ice in Antarctica (Photo: Phil Ershler)
Bad news is that the team was delayed 3 days before they were able to fly onto the Ice. Good news is that they made it in Saturday evening and that the delay won’t affect their climb. They’re off and running!!
IMG guides, Mike Hamill and Chris Meder and our team of 7 climbers were excited to board the IL 76 and get strapped in for the 4 hour flight to the Union Glacier at close to 80 degrees south latitude. The next flight leg is about an hour hop in a Twin Otter to get to Vinson base camp on the Branscomb Glacier at about 7000 ft. Mike will call once they arrive, get camp established and are settled in.
With some expeditions, getting there is the toughest part. Not that climbing Vinson is easy but we have some control over how that goes. It’s the flying that’s always the question mark. Weather, visibility, snow conditions on the runway – all have to align to make a safe flight possible. Now, it’s up to the team. Still need a bit of help with the weather from mother nature but now it’s game time.
Phil Ershler
November 20, 2011
Pass the sunscreen (Photo: Greg Vernovage)
Team and all their luggage arrived on schedule Thursday evening, the 17th. They were met at the airport by IMG Senior Guide, Greg Vernovage and our Ecuadorian partner and guide, Romulo Cardenas. First order of business was a few introductions. Second order of business was several hours of sleep.
Romulo met Greg and team again Friday morning and took everyone on an escorted tour through old town Quito. Afterwards, the crew jumped into the bus and headed north, past the equator and to the town of Otavalo. An afternoon visit with our friend and weaver, Jose Cotacachi, before a fun ‘pizza’ evening in Otavalo. Otavalo is famous for the folk art market held each Saturday.
Back to Quito that afternoon to pack and prep, getting ready to head out towards Cotopaxi.
All’s good, everyone’s psyched and anxious to get to the mountain. BTW, so far, weather has been excellent!
Phil Ershler
November 18, 2011
The Otavalo Market is great place to pick up some gifts. (Photo by Phil Ershler)
And they’re off. Everyone arrived last night and with all luggage intact. Nice. Greg Vernovage, IMG’s lead guide on the trip, arrived a day earlier to wrap up some last minute errands. Early this morning, the team met Romulo Cardenas, who is our Ecuadorian friend and partner. Then, all headed to old town Quito for a tour with Romulo and then it was into the bus and head north for Otavalo. Obligatory stop at the equator on the way plus a lunch stop at a very typical Ecuadorian restaurant for lunch. Lunch for us here is always locro de queso (thick cheese and potato soup) and meat or cheese empanadas. Tomorrow’s market day in Otavalo. No way we want to miss that.
Phil Ershler
November 16, 2011
If you ever plan on climbing Denali then you’ll have to take on Mt. Rainier in the winter. Winter mountaineering experience is required by all Denali guide services and Mt. Rainier, with its world record snowfall and Denali-like conditions, is the place to do it.
Even if you don’t have your eyes set on Denali you’ll have a new appreciation for Mt. Rainier after a 6.5 day Winter Expedition Ascent or 6.5 day Denali Prep Course.
Are you up for the challenge?
November 15, 2011
In the spirit of last week’s “From A Guide’s Perspective” features, longtime friend of IMG, Viki Tracey, took a few minutes to give us a few pointers from her point of view.
‘5½ Tips’ From An Atypical Mountaineer
By Viki Tracey
Viki on the summit of Illimani in Bolivia.
I like to think that I am a somewhat atypical mountaineer. Not really naturally blessed with good balance, a strong head for heights or even much in the way of coordination, I am, frankly, a Guides’ nightmare. However, not one to let physiology hold me back, 5½ years ago I decided I wanted to climb Kilimanjaro. At the time, I weighed about 215lbs (I am 5’6â€) and getting out of a car was about the most challenging part of my ‘exercise regimen’. Undaunted, I lost weight, did some exercise and summitted Kili. And, in so doing, found a passion for the mountains and for climbing that has brought a better ‘balance’, good health and some wonderful friends into my life.
I am by no means an expert, but in recognition of those 5½ years, here are my 5½ tips for having fun in the mountains…
5 ½.   One for the gals. Pee funnel. Get to grips with it. Mastering this means a lot less time spent evaluating your need to go against the (internationally recognised?) cold arse to desperation rating scale… and, in all seriousness, in my case, means I stay better hydrated (I drink more liquid because I am not so worried about holding up the group).
I hope our paths will cross in the mountains one day. Happy climbing!
Viki Tracey
November 13, 2011
Goodbye Mexico. (Photo by Ken Curchin)
Today’s fly day. Gang got into Mexico City about midday on Saturday and headed straight out for a bit of sightseeing and last minute shopping. Hard to get a ride home from the airport without a few gifts in hand. And, as always, everyone got together for dinner and a chance to make a few toasts and say thanks to one another for being great, supportive teammates and for a job well-done.
To the guides – George Dunn, Mike Haft and Fernando Posada, way to keep everyone safe, help them be as successful as possible and to make sure people had a good time and learned a few things along the way. And to all of our climbers – thanks for being such positive, competent and contributing team members. And, of course, to Mexico – for supplying a great couple of objectives, wonderful people and some very good weather. It all has to come together but it’s sure nice when it does.
Mexico trips are great in that flights aren’t too long and time zone changes are minimal. Makes it easy to do this trip in one work week and get able to hit the ground running at work on Monday morning.
Next Mexico blog dispatches begin in early December when a 3 member private team head down with IMG guide, Greg Vernovage, to get a little sun and cerveza.
Phil Ershler
November 11, 2011
Part 5 of our week long series “From A Guide’s Perspectiveâ€, IMG Guide Max Bunce talks about some key components to any successful outdoor adventure.
Max Bunce
1. Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate
Many times in my life I have failed on a climb almost certainly because I was dehydrated. Hydrating comes in three phases. Pre-hydrating, hydrating during the climb and post-hydrating. Pre-hydrating starts the night before, usually tapering down at night so that I am not up all night going to the bathroom. In the morning I start back up again with at least a liter before the climb starts. During a climb, I usually drink no more that 2 liters of water, keeping in mind that water is heavy and drinking takes time. You might be dehydrated by the end of the day, but something’s gotta give! Hydration bladders are nice because you can drink water more continuously but they don’t work in all situations. The number one reason not to use a bladder in the mountains is that they freeze. The second reason is that they seem to leak more often than a regular water bottle. During a classic rock climb called the Petit Grepon in Rocky Mountain National Park our party decided to bring most of our water in one 100 oz. bladder. Two pitches up, I felt a wetness on my back and to my dismay I found that our water drained into my backpack because the hose got pulled off. We climbed the rest of the day with no water causing us to move slower and make less than ideal decisions. We made it out safely but that little mistake could have cost us! Post climb is also a very important time to hydrate. Downing a liter in the 2 hours after the climb increases recovery and may make the difference for the next days climb. Remember beer is not a substitute for water but if you have to, drink light beer!
2. Eat!
Tell me if this sounds familiar? You have been hiking all day with friends or a loved one and sometime later in the day you get in a fight about the most trivial thing. This is almost certainly due to a lack of blood glucose. It happens to everyone and it is caused by burning through all your food energy. Simple solution, eat more! The problem is many people aren’t hungry so they don’t eat. As a guide this is one of our “red flagsâ€. It’s a complete no brainer, if someone is not eating and they are burning calories, eventually they will crash. A good rule of thumb is to eat at every break. One common question is what to eat? The short answer is whatever you like best. I would go with foods that you eat on a regular basis, things you know that you like. Here, weight is less important than finding quality food that you like. Finally eating lots of high sugar food right after a climb is a good idea. It has been shown in many studies that eating or drinking so called “fast†carbohydrates immediately after exercise helps recovery. This is when I go to my favorite candy, sour patch kids.
3. Pace Yourself.
Layering can be tricky. During a typical climb I am both extremely hot and very cold in the same day. The key to efficient layering is to pay attention to your surroundings so that you can “forecast†the weather for the next section of the climb. Let’s look at a few examples: 1. It has been bitterly cold before the sun comes up but you notice that there is no wind or clouds, obviously we would want to dress lighter leaving a rest break if the sun is about to hit you. 2. You have been climbing in a protected couloir and you are about to hit the ridge, you notice a plume of snow coming off the ridge due to wind. The smart move would be to layer up before you get to the ridge so that you don’t waste precious energy trying to layer up in the wind and cold. 3. Finally, on your descent you notice the sun just went down and it is getting colder. It would be wise to layer up right away before you get cold, saving yourself from getting cold in the first place. Keep in mind that from an energy standpoint it is a lot easier to stay warm than to warm yourself back up.
November 11, 2011
The final steps to the summit of Orizaba. (Photo by Ken Curchin)
Two mountains and now two summits. IMG partner, Georg Dunn, called from the summit of Orizaba at 7 am. He had just finished shaking hands with all his team mates. One climber stayed in Tlachichuca to take care of a respiratory issue but all other members began the climb this morning and all reached the summit. We’re very pleased and proud. What a great example of all climbers coming prepared, taking good care of themselves during the trip and then keeping their eye on the prize. There will be 8 very tired but very excited climbers having dinner with the Reyes family tonight in Tlachichuca.
Well done, team.
Phil Ershler
November 10, 2011
Part 4 of our week long series “From A Guide’s Perspectiveâ€, IMG Guide Greg Vernovage lays out a few simple but effective tricks of the trade.
Greg Vernovage
Tricks Of The Trade
By Greg Vernovage
I have been around a lot of guides over the years and what I’ve noticed is that we all have some things we do that help us keep our sanity and allow us to be more a little more comfortable in what can be an uncomfortable environment. I’m no different, my tricks tend to focus on comfort, speed (read efficiency) and warmth. As always, these ideas may not work for everyone but with enough time in the mountains, you’ll come up with some of your own.
My first recommendation to anybody is always based on food and water. We all know that we need to eat and drink at every break even if we’re not be hungry. A simple trick is to store your food and water in the same place in your pack every time you climb so it’s easy to find at every break. Often times I’ll put a snack in my pants pocket or the pockets of my puffy jacket so they’re easy to access at the breaks, and a touch easier to eat since they won’t be as frozen as some of your other food buried in your pack.
Another simple trick is to keep some food and water near you at night, sip on water after you go to the bathroom (hint: don’t confuse your water bottle and pee bottle) and have a few snacks handy as well. You may wake up in the middle of the night hungry; if you’re hungry – eat! Keep your stuff sack and water next to your at night so you won’t bother your tent mate as you rummage through your pack that’s conveniently outside the tent. Remember, bring your favorite foods, if you don’t like something at sea level, you won’t eat it up there. Swedish Fish!
And a big one for me; change those socks! After you have rolled into camp, worked hard all day and dug in, take a minute and put on a fresh pair of dry socks. We rely on those feet so it’s in our best interest to take care of them. You will feel refreshed and a little lighter on your feet. You can put the socks you have been wearing all day in you jacket near your core and they will dry out for the morning. They might stink a little but at least you will be comfortable.
And lastly, stay warm in camp. It is much easier to stay warm than it is to get warm. Put that extra layer on when you get to camp. Keep stokin that fire with food and water and stay dry.
It’s the simple things.
Greg Vernovage
