Denali Prep Seminar Turns Above Beehive

April 30, 2010

Jeff Ward called in today from above the Beehive on Rainier to report good conditions early but as the team climbed higher on the mountain the snow conditions were less and less favorable.Â Safety first; summit second.Â They opted to return to Camp Muir where they’ll focus on crevasse rescue and navigation this afternoon.

After an afternoon of training they’ll spend their last night at Camp Muir before coming down in the morning to a comfortable pair of shoes and a well deserved shower!

All is well on Mt. Rainier!

Tye Chapman

Denali Prep Seminar Will Take A Look

April 29, 2010

IMG Guide Eric Gullickson reports from Camp Muir that the team spent the day training with a focus on fixed line ascent and descent. While the team trained, IMG Guides Jeff Ward and Austin Shannon scouted the standard route up the Ingraham Glacier. Their report: snow conditions not favorable for climbing.

Plan B is to check out Gib Ledges, a popular winter route, to see if it is a safe option. The team will eat an early dinner tonight, get some rest and wake up early to take a look at the weather, and then see if Gib Ledges is a viable option in these snow conditions… If not, the team will return to Camp Muir for some more training.

Current conditions: in/out of clouds with light precip and light winds.

More tomorrow…

Tye Chapman

Denali Seminar At Camp Muir

April 28, 2010

The Denali Seminar spent their first night at camp near Pan. Point but not without some excitement…Monday evening our team was notified by Mt. Rainier National Park of an accident near Camp Muir. Two independent climbers, attempting to get to Camp Muir on Monday, in near white out conditions, walked off a cornice near Anvil Rock and tumbled into a crevasse on the Cowlitz Glacier. The two climbers survived the night and were rescued early Tuesday morning by several NPS Rangers with backup from two of our guides from the seminar. More NPS Rangers and AAI guides hiked up from Paradise to provide support, but the weather broke enough for the rescued climbers to be flown off the mountain late Tuesday morning.

IMG Guides Jeff Ward and Austin Shannon, who left early Tuesday morning to aid in the rescue, were reunited at Camp Muir by fellow guides Eric Gullickson and Tyler Gimenez and the rest of the Denali Seminar Team Tuesday afternoon. The team spent today doing some training near Camp Muir. The weather forecast continues to be marginal, but that won’t stop the team from their training focus.

Mt. Rainier Forecast

Tye Chapman

Final Denali Prep Seminar At First Camp

April 26th, 2010

Just off the radio with IMG Guide Eric Gullickson who reports that the team has pulled into their first camp below Pan. Point. The freezing level is dropping and snow is starting to fall.

They’re dug in and ready for the weather if it comes tonight/tom,orrow… if not they’ll pull the trigger and head to Camp Muir (10,000ft) tomorrow morning.Â Either way they’ll learn some valuable lessons directly applicable to any climb of Denali.

Tye Chapman

Everest Update

April 22, 2010

Ang Jangbu reports from IMG Base Camp that Greg Vernovage and many of the sherpa guided climbers went to C1 this morning, and the Hybrid group moved up to C2. We expect the rest of the climbers to be moving up to C1 in the next few days, as the first Everest rotations continue… (Full Everest Expedition Coverage Here).

â€”Eric Simonson

P.S. Phil called in yesterday to say hello and relay a big “Happy Birthday” message to Natalie from Martin, one of our Everest Express climbers.

Expedition Updates: Rainier, Everest & Cho Oyu

April 19, 2010

Mt. Rainier Denali Prep Seminar Wrap-up

Our latest Denali Prep Seminar wrapped up on Saturday after several days of training out of Camp Muir. They covered ascending fixed ropes, crevasse rescue, snow cave digging, building proper anchor systems, sled rigging and use, as well as glacier travel and route finding. While the snow and weather conditions didn’t permit a summit attempt they had a blast and learned a ton which was crucial as severalÂ of them are heading north to Denali later this year! Nice work last week and good luck on Denali everybody!

Everest – Upper Mountain Rope Fixing Meeting at Base Camp

Ang Jangbu reports that everything is going well on Everest, with the IMG C3/Express/Lhotse climbers now back at Base Camp. The Sherpas have set up a practice ladder and rope course out on the glacier, and members have been training on this to make sure they have their gear and techniques all fine-tuned for when they hit the Icefall in a coupleÂ days… (Full update on Everest Expedition Coverage Page).

Cho Oyu – The Expedition Puja

Hello to everyone following IMG’s 2010 Spring Cho Oyu expedition. We just completed our 2nd full rest day here at Advanced Base Camp (ABC), and everyone is doing well. This morning we had our Puja, which is a Buddhist ceremony to bless our team and allow us safe passage in the days ahead. It was wonderful to watch our Sherpa team get everything ready this morning which included making Tsampa cakes and decorating our puja alter. You can tell they are really excited about all of this, and everyone pitched in as we strung out prayer flags in three directions from theÂ Stupa.Â (Full update on the Cho Oyu Expedition Coverage Page).

Denali Prep Seminar Having Fun

April 14, 2010

IMG Guide Erica Engle called in this afternoon to report that the team had a good day training today. They pulled into Camp Muir earlier this week and will base out of there for the rest of the week. Today they took advantage of the nice weather by taking a walk up to the Beehive to check things out and train along the way.

Tomorrow, they plan to jump into some crevasses…to practice the crevasse rescue skills they’ll learn! Nothing like hanging in the “blue room” while somebody puts their recently learned rope skills to work.

That’s all for now…

Tye Chapman

Everest, Cho Oyu & Mount Rainier Updates

April 12, 2010

Climbs and expeditions have rest days but they don’t take weekends off… Here’s a snapshot into a few expeditions over the weekend.

Everest

IMG’s Ang Jangbu and Mike Hamill report from Base Camp that the Hybrid team and remainder of the Sherpas all arrived yesterday and they are doing well. We have our 2010 climbers and Sherpas at the spacious and clean IMG Base Camp site, which is a 10 minute hike below the traditional campsite in a place with good tent sites and good cleanÂ water. (Full update on the 2010 Everest Expedition Coverage Page).

Cho Oyu

IMG leader Eric Remza reports that the team had a good acclimatization hike yesterday, climbing to over 15,400 feet on a ridge above Tingri. From there they had great views of Everest and Cho Oyu.

(Full update on the 2010 Cho Oyu Expedition Coverage Page).

Mt. Rainier

After a solid gear check and some training on site here at HQ yesterday, the Denali Prep Seminar loaded into the van and headed up to Paradise today. From Paradise they’ll make their way to their first camp near Panorama Point where they’ll set up a Denali style camp, and time permitting, they’ll do some Avy Beacon training this afternoon.Â If the weather holds they’ll head for Camp Muir tomorrow… Stay tuned.

Tye Chapman

Himalayan Teams Report In

April 9, 2010

Reports from Nepal and Tibet.

Everest -Â Icefall route now open, Camp 1 and 2 sites claimed.

Ang Jangbu reports from Everest Base Camp that the Icefall Doctors set the last five ladder sections today and that the route is now open. When that happens, it is like dropping the green flag at a Nascar race, with everyone putting peddle to the metal to get good camp sites! Â Jangbu had Mingma Tenzing and Karma Rita, two of our fastest Sherpas, lined up to lead the charge for our team up to C1 and C2, and they have now claimed our sites at those camps. The plan now is…(Read the full dispatch on the Everest Update Page).

Cho Oyu – Team Reaches Nylam

IMG leader Eric Remza reports that the team has now reached Nylam, and are doing well.Â After coming up the famous Bhote Kosi valley road from Zhangmu (with its thousand foot drops down to the river), Nylam makes the very beginning of Tibetan villages and farming.Â At over 12,000 feet,Â Nylam is a perfect elevation for a couple acclimatization days, with some nice hiking in the area to stretch the legs…Â (Read the full dispatch on the Cho Oyu Update Page).

Eric Simonson

Cho Oyu Team In China

April 8, 2010

Eric Remza reports that the Cho Oyu team is nowÂ in Zhangmu.Â EverybodyÂ made it over the boarder without issue and everyone is doing well. The team enjoyed a delightful dinner this evening (local time) and will depart for Nylam early tomorrow morning.

Full Cho Oyu Expedition Coverage

Tye Chapman

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