June 18, 2010
Barranco Camp (13,000’) with the Breech Wall in the background.
Adam Angel reports that the entire team had a good day of hiking today. From Shira Plateau they climbed to over 14,500’ below Lava Tower, then dropped down to Barancco Camp (about 13,000 feet) where they are now situated. Tomorrow they climb up the steep trail over Barancco Wall to Karanga Valley, a delightful section of hiking. So far so good!
Eric Simonson
June 18, 2010
Phil Ershler descending from the North Col after summiting Everest in 1984
We’re happy to announce a new partnership with JanSport, the original outdoor gear brand that equips people globally with quality backpacks, travel gear and collegiate apparel.
While our official partnership with JanSport might be new, it’s no secret that we’ve known Skip and the JanSport team since the 1970’s. JanSport built the very first dome tents, some of the first modern backpacks, and crafted our first down suits for our expeditions on Everest in the early 80’s.
JanSport has a strong and storied connection to Mt. Rainier and we’re happy to continue that connection with the 38th annual JanSport Climb. We’ll actually have two separate teams on the mountain (June 19-23) – one team will be on the Disappointment Cleaver route while the other will be on the Emmons route. These two teams will reach the summit on different days but exit on the same day ensuring plenty of stories at the annual JanSport Party here in Ashford.
These two climbs can be followed on IMG’s and JanSport’s Blogs.
June 17, 2010
Our Rainier teams reported in this morning…
Phil and his team summitted on the DC, but the Kautz and Emmons teams turned around. Low visibility and tough navigation for the Emmons team and some unstable snow condition for our Kautz crew, but all are back at their camps safe and sound. They’ll take advantage of the day and do some training before descending tomorrow morning.
Moving uphill today is another DC team, this time led by Mark Allen. Cooler than normal temps are foretasted along with some precipitation… but that’s nothing new for this spring if you’ve been keeping up with the Rainier weather!
That’s all for now…
Tye Chapman
June 17, 2010
Climbers en route to Shira Plateau camp among the moss covered scrub trees at about the 11,000 foot level.
IMG guide Adam Angel called in on the sat phone to report the entire team is doing well. Yesterday they started their climb of the Machame Route at the Machame Gate (about 5900’) and overnighted at the Machame Camp (about 9800’ near the top of the forest zone). After a good night, today the team today entered “the zone of weird plantsâ€, climbing to their second campsite at Shira Plateau (about 12,500’). So far everything is going smoothly and the team is looking forward to trekking to Baranco camp tomorrow.
Eric Simonson
June 16, 2010
Kili in the distance. Photo taken from the JRO Airport.
IMG guide Adam Angel reports that the June Kili team has all arrived on schedule in Moshi and they are all doing well. Today is their free day to go through the gear and get all packed up, and also visit the Kilimanjaro Porters Assistance Project office in Moshi, which IMG supports. After a day of preparations and sightseeing, tomorrow morning bright and early they head for Machame Gate and the first day on the trail. We’ll keep you posted!
Eric Simonson
June 15, 2010
Summit! Our Disappointment Cleaver (DC) team summitted quite early this morning due to cold conditions and the direct route up the Ingraham Glacier. After summitting around daybreak, they quickly made their way down to The Flats and into Camp Muir. After a nice break at Muir they cruised on down the snowfield for a quick chat with our uphill team, led by Phil Ershler, then they loaded up the IMG van and were back in Ashford by 2pm. Currently Phil and his team are at Muir enjoying dinner…They’ll head up to The Flats in the morning.
On the other side of the mountain is our Emmons team, led by John Race, who started walking this morning and are now at their first camp (7800ft) on the Inter Glacier. After some early training tomorrow they’ll head up to Camp Schurman. All is well – a little light snowfall on their approach, but overall they’re doing just fine.
And on the south side of the mountain is our Kautz team, led by Brian Warren, who just pulled into their first camp after some tough postholing on the the lower Nisqually Glacier this morning. A tough day for sure, but some good food and a good nights sleep will ready them for their move to High Camp tomorrow.
All is well on Mt. Rainier.
Tye Chapman
June 14, 2010
IMG Guide Greg Vernovage just radioed in from The Flats here on Mt. Rainier… All is well! A few teams summitted early today so it’s looking good for our guys in the morning. They’ll wake up nice and early and hit the route when it’s cold hoping to hit the summit around daybreak. They’re eating an early dinner now and plan to get some horizontal time before their midnight wake-up call.
More on the team in the morning…
Tye Chapman
June 13, 2010
One of our annual Washington National Parks Fund (WNPF) climbs wrapped things up this afternoon after their 3-day climb on Mt. Rainier. They didn’t summit, but the $40,000 these Microsoft employees raised will still go to a great cause.
It was obvious that these guys did their physical homework and were well prepared to climb, but as many people have read over the past few weeks, the weather on Mt. Rainier has been a little problematic… So after the recent storms, followed by a spike in the temperature, our team opted to stay put at camp and err on the side of caution.
By digging snow pits, evaluating the conditions as well as past and current weather reports, and discussing the overall situation with the other guide services and Park Rangers everybody was in agreement that climbing last night, despite the perfect weather, was not in anybody’s best interest.
Everybody had fun, stayed safe and raised a good amount of cash for the Washington National Parks Fund…
Success can be measured in many ways!
Tye Chapman
June 12, 2010
Just spoke with IMG Partner Phil Ershler who called in from The Flats on Mt. Rainier today – they took advantage of the sunny weather today and put in our camp at The Flats. A big thank you to AAI who also put in a good bit of work this morning putting in that camp!
Phil didn’t have any concrete plans when I spoke with him other than saying that they’re going to play it really close to the chest and very conservative given the warming trend after some recent snowfall.
We’ll have more on their decision tomorrow…
Tye Chapman
June 11, 2010
On Wednesday evening we hosted the second part of a 4-part summer training series for guides and NPS Climbing Rangers. Close to 50 guides and rangers showed up for a burger and a beer and to listen to IMG Guide and Technical Director, Jeff Ward, discuss route and trip planning and whiteout navigation.
For several hours after the lecture, guides and rangers alike hung out and shared climbing stories. A good time was had by all.
