March 28, 2010
George Dunn called in from Lone Pine this afternoon to report that they had 11 of 12 on the summit yesterday morning!
Weather was great! Pizza and beers for everybody!
Tye Chapman
Whitney Team At High Camp
March 26, 2010
IMG Partner and Whitney Program Director George Dunn called in from High Camp on Whitney – all is well! The weather is good and the team is looking forward to a short break this afternoon before heading for the summit early tomorrow morning. Should have another report on Sunday when they get back down to Lone Pine.
Tye Chapman
And They’re Off…
March 26, 2010
Our Everest guides are on their way to Kathmandu, we are rolling now! This morning we saw Expedition leader Justin Merle, Hybrid team leader Mike Hamill, and Sherpa guided team leader Greg Vernovage off at the airport. They are heading to Kathmandu ahead of the surge to get boots on the ground over there and get ready to receive the group. Eric Simonson and Phil and Sue Ershler leave tomorrow. Most of the climbers will be hitting Kathmandu on the 29th or 30th. The plan is to get everyone together on the night of March 30th at our welcome dinner at the Radisson Hotel, always a festive evening. Then, starting the next day, the group flies to Lukla and starts trekking, in three waves…Â Here we go!
Eric Simonson
Everest Expedition Coverage
March 25, 2010
With IMG Partners Eric Simonson and Phil Ershler along with guides Justin Merle, Mike Hamill, Greg Vernovage and Eben Reckord leaving for Nepal later this week the Everest Season is upon us! We’ll update this blog occasionally but for full Everest coverage be sure to check out the dispatches on the Everest page.
Tye Chapman
Like Horses To A Barn…
March 19, 2010
It’s a beautiful day here in the Northwest so what do two legends of Mt. Rainier do – like horses to a barn they went to Camp Muir!
IMG Partners George Dunn and Phil Ershler along with Sue Ershler left HQ about 8:30 and were walking uphill by 10:00am. They pulled in to Camp Muir at 1:30 and said hello to our Denali Seminar which is up there for its last day of training today.
Just spoke to Geo on the radio and they’re at 8000ft on their way down having a great day!
Both George and Phil are leaving next week – George to Whitney and Phil for Nepal… See, these guys do train!
Tye Chapman
Everest Rope On The Move
March 18, 2010Â
Ang Jangbu in Nepal reports that we have sent another MI helicopter charter load (3495 kg) to Shyangboche this morning, in preparation for the Everest expedition.  Ang Pasang and Ang Tshering at Shyangboche received the loads which will be heading up to Everest BC soon. Â
Among the loads is a large quantity of climbing rope (several thousand meters or a few miles!), which we have purchased on behalf of a group of the Everest operators. We hope to work together this year with as many other climbers as possible, to get a good route fixed up the mountain. Prior to sending the rope up to Khumbu, our Sherpas stripped it off the spools and stacked it into bags, so it is easy to deploy without kinking.Â
Eric Simonson
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Denali Prep Seminar At Camp Muir
March 16, 2010
After a beautiful day yesterday our Denali Prep Seminar broke camp early this morning and made short work of the Muir Snowfield given the conditions – arriving at roughly 1:30 this afternoon. The GPS’s came in handy today as the forecasted winds & snow came in right on time – as Greg put it when he called in (via radio) “we couldn’t see much of the snow field so I really can’t tell you what it looked likeâ€.
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Hot cocoa and tea are first in order this afternoon – after that the team will settle in and do some “classroom†work inside the hut at Camp Muir. I think citrus pork loin and mashed potatoes are on the menu tonight before a good night’s sleep.
Tomorrow’s forecast isn’t much better but it looks like the winds will die down and the weather will be improving later this week. Perfect training conditions for these guys!
Tye Chapman
Denali Seminar Has Pulled Into Camp
March 15, 2010
After a busy day of sorting gear and some on-site training here at HQ yesterday our Denali Prep Seminar loaded up the van this morning and headed up to Paradise to officially start their 6 days on Mt. Rainier.
Lead Guide Greg Vernovage just called in from their first camp (~7000ft) to report all is well! They’ve got their tents dug in for the night and spent some of the afternoon training.
It was warm walking in today but the forecast calls for some cooler weather over the next couple days which is perfect for these climbers who all have their eyes set on Denali.
More on this crew later this week…
Tye Chapman
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Up Next: Mt. Rainier Denali Seminar
March 12, 2010
Busy weekend here at IMG with our next Denali Prep Seminar coming through headquarters! I just spoke with the lead guide Greg Vernovage who’s fresh off an Aconcagua trip and a short vacation in Argentina and he’s fired up to get back on Rainier! He’ll be joined by fellow guides Jenni Fogle and Eric Gullickson who both ski patrol over at Crystal Mountain this time of year and their knowledge of the snowpack will really come into play this week as we’ve had some recent snow activity here in the Cascades.
 
Mt. Rainier Recreational Forecast
Either way Greg, Jenni and Eric are excited to get out in whatever weather Mt. Rainier decides to provide them with – good, bad or ugly there’s plenty to learn from and teach the folks on board this seminar!
Tye Chapman
Operations ManagerÂ
Everest Oxygen Arrives In Nepal
March 10, 2010Â
Good news, our shipment of oxygen cylinders has now arrived in Nepal and cleared customs. Just getting them halfway round the world requires special documentation and packing, since they are considered dangerous goods for flying by the FAA and the airlines. These high tech aluminum/carbon fiber composite cylinders were tested, valved, and filled in California, then specially packed for their long journey.  And since the yaks do not read the warning labels, our Sherpas will be wrapping them in additional foam to protect the cylinders for the trip to Everest Base Camp!
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Eric Simonson  Â
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