Mount Kilimanjaro Cybercasts

Hello Everyone,

We had a great day with a wonderful group!  After getting checked in at the Park Gate and a light lunch we hiked up through the forest and clouds in perfect hiking weather.  The group was strong the entire 5 1/2 hours and 4,000ft of elevation gain to Machame camp at 10,000ft.  After arriving we did a quick camp tour and got moved into our tents.  We had a great first night dinner of steak, potatoes, vegetables, and spinach.  Most of the team slept well but still adjusting to the different time zone, so each night should get better.

Today we woke up to beautiful clear blue skies and waited until all the other groups left the camp before we started up the trail.  Today’s trail to Shira camp can be a little challenging because it’s pretty rocky but today only gaining 2,5000ft to Shira.  We made good time today, enjoying the views above the clouds and arrived to camp for a late lunch.  After some rest in the afternoon we came back to the dining tent for dinner and a briefing of the next day and heading off to bed.  Team Hazah!  Is crushing it!

Thanks for following along,

Ben Jones

Hello climbers,

It’s hard to believe, but the first week of August is almost finished! Climbing conditions throughout the state haven’t changed much since last week. Smoke has moved in the last couple of days throughout the area, but thankfully hasn’t impacted trips or teams up high. We expect a lot of the smoke to be pushed out of the mountains before the weekend. Clear and sunny is the long term outlook for the following week.  Climbers should expect normal freezing levels of around 14,000 ft with light to moderate winds from the west.  It’s a great combination for mid-summer climbing.

Mount Rainier (Tahoma)

Overall, not much has changed on Rainier in the last week.  The approach to the Muir Snowfield is full of wildflowers and is snow free past Pebble Creek.  Climbers should expect a couple hours of hiking in trail runners before boots go on.  The upper mountain continues to hold up well.  There is one ladder crossing directly above the Ingraham Flats camp.  The Disappointment Cleaver is almost completely snow free and can be climbed completely on trail and rock at this point.  Above the cleaver the route is holding up very well for August. The climb still traverses towards the Emmons Shoulder on a well-developed climbing path.  From there, it’s switchbacks up moving in a direct line toward the crater rim of the mountain.

Photos from a recent Emmons climb.

Mount Baker (Koma Kulshan)

The Easton route is still in wonderful shape for August. The route is still very direct heading towards the crater with only a few crevasses to end run along the way.  The Roman Headwall continues to hold up well with a very well established trail taking climbers up a mellow path to the summit plateau.  On the north side the road is still closed and climbers should expect a few hours of hiking to get to the Heliotrope Trailhead.

Across the Cascades

Climbing throughout the rest of the Cascades is continuing to hold up well.  On Shuksan, the Sulphide Glacier is starting to show some easily avoidable cracks.  The gulley on the summit pyramid is holding just a bit of snow that can be avoided and should melt out soon. Rock climbers have avoided the heat of eastern Washington by sticking around North Bend and cragging around Exit 38 to prep for multipitch climbing. Climbers reported great temperatures and climbing conditions this week on Poppy’s Peril and the Tooth.

Hello Everyone,

Our second Machame group (August 4th) of the season is about to head off to the mountain to begin this incredible journey.  The group is excited and full of energy this morning as we are checking out of the hotel and loading up the vehicles.  It’s always a fun first day hiking through the forest up to our first camp at 10,000ft.  I will be posting as much as possible here this next week along with some photos.

Thanks for following along!

Ben Jones

Friends, family & loved ones,

This morning was special – we woke up early and drove to Diskit Gompa, an incredible 15th century monastery overlooking the river valley.

We wandered up the stairs through the monastery complex and arrived just in time for the morning prayer ceremony.

We were the only visitors in the large prayer hall and were served butter tea by two young monks as we sat watching the older monks perform their puja.

After that, we started our drive back to Leh over the Khardung La, stopping along the way for my personal favorite local breakfast dish, aloo paratha (basically, grilled bread stuffed with a seasoned potato mixture).

Once back in Leh, we did some more eating and then had time to shop and explore the town before dinner. No one lost weight on this trip.

We’ve got an early flight back to Delhi tomorrow and then will continue on our way back home to you.

One more random photo from our excursion to see the Bactrian camels yesterday in Hunder:

Thanks for following us!

Carole Tejas

Friends, family & loved ones,

We’re back on the grid! We’ve seen and done so much this past week. It’s been an adventure- where to begin? First and most importantly, the Team is healthy and doing very well. We were blessed with mostly good weather and crushed it on the trek and crossing the pass. The first couple days of trekking were relatively mellow. We took it slow and easy and acclimatized well. We navigated many stream crossings, which were made more sporty because of high water levels from the rains of the previous week. We had time to soak up the scenery on the trail and at camp. Big views and stark beauty. We saw very few other trekking parties on the trail but we did see lots of wildlife- yaks and dzos, blue sheep, a wolf, many marmots and pikas, almost 40 species of birds (according to Konrad the official team ornithologist) but alas no snow leopard, The most exciting day was crossing the Lasermo pass into the Nubra Valley. What is normally a relatively straightforward climb and descent of a small glacier turned into an interesting logistical challenge for our pack horses, who could not have safely descended the soft, deep snow on the north side of the pass. We had anticipated this and arranged for reinforcements (4 cheerful young guys who served as porters for our gear) so that the horses could descend with no loads to carry. This operation took some time, but we ended up at a lovely stream side camp, feeling tired but happy with our accomplishment. Continuing down valley for two more days, we walked alongside the braided river and admired the beautiful wildflowers. We passed grazing yaks and herds of goats and checked out some isolated shepherds’ settlements and the village of Upper Hunder Dok along the way.

Tomorrow we will make our way back to Leh.

Thanks for following,

Carole Tejas

Hello Everyone,

This morning at 6am we stood on the top of Kilimanjaro in perfect weather!  We were lucky enough to be ahead of most groups heading up tonight and were mostly by ourselves for most of the climb.  It was quiet, clear, and a calm night to summit Kilimanjaro.  The team was strong and did very well even when the altitude and cold were starting to affect us all.  They pushed through and made their dream happen!  Thank to our amazing Tanzanian crew, and the climbers for a successful trip.

It’s been a long day today and we have arrived to Mweka camp at 10,000ft for our last night on the mountain and will eat dinner soon and get a long sleep in tonight.  Tomorrow early morning we will descend through the forest to Mweka gate and celebrate with our crew before heading back to Arusha.

Thanks for following the adventure!

Ben Jones

Hello Everyone,

We woke again this morning to beautiful clear skies before tackling the Baranco Wall.  The team is doing very well with the altitude and feeling strong.  After breakfast we got prepared to leave but with the intention to wait until everyone else had passed through a couple choke points on the Baranco wall.  We ended up leaving at 10am and had the Baranco wall completely to ourselves which makes for a much more efficient and enjoyable climb.  It’s always fun to pass up the wall on our way to Karanga camp at 13,300ft.  The trail today does a series of ups and downs but is one of my favorite hikes as we pass through some unique and fun terrain.  We made good time and had a big late lunch after we arrived to camp.  The rest of the day we relaxed at camp and are now getting ready for dinner and a good nights sleep.  Tomorrow we head to high camp!  Stay tuned.

Thanks for following along,

Ben Jones

Hello climbers,

It’s been warm over the past week, but that is all hopefully about to change. A weather system will push inland over the weekend, bringing cooler temperatures and additional chances of showers to the mountains. Cooler temperatures will then persist through the first half of next week, making ideal climbing conditions again. Even though there has been some lowland smoke blowing in, the mountains have stayed generally clear so far.

Mount Rainier (Tahoma)

The standard climbing routes on Mount Rainier are showing classic late-July transitions, with snow melting rapidly on some aspects. However, routes remain in remarkably good condition. On the Disappointment Cleaver route things are still in stellar shape: after clearing the cleaver, expect a well worn climbing path and mellower terrain from the Emmons Shoulder all the way up to Columbia Crest. On the Emmons, climbing remains highly direct and in good condition. Teams are moving efficiently through the Corridor before traversing over toward the Winthrop Shoulder on the way to summit. Finally, the Kautz is holding in great condition for late July. There is good coverage on the approach to the Wilson Bench and the ice pitches are finally starting to steepen up a bit. This week’s 10-day course reported stellar conditions!

Mount Baker (Koma Kulshan)

It’s been warm the last few days on Baker but not much has changed when it comes to the route. A few more crevasses have opened up on the Easton Glacier, and teams are having no problems redirecting the route as needed to the summit. The north side routes are still climbable with no significant changes over the last week as well. Finally, the road is still washed out adding a couple hours to the approach to all the North Side routes.

Across the Cascades

Even though it was warm, climbers still got out and had perfect mid-summer climbing conditions throughout the rest of the Cascades. A team reported back that the Fisher Chimneys on Shuksan was climbing straightforward and found things haven’t melted out yet in the steeper snow portions of the climb. Glacier peak was relatively snow free almost all the way to White Chuck Camp. Guides commented that the track to the summit is the most direct and well-established trail they had ever seen. The glacier is in good shape still and there was just a bit of snow left on the summit ridge. Lastly, we had group climbing peaks all around the Eldorado zone. The approach trail is still kind of rough, but once up high they enjoyed stellar alpine climbing in one of the prettiest zones in the entire Cascades.

See you in the mountains!

Hello Everyone,

Today we woke again to beautiful blue skies after a good nights sleep.  The team is doing great with the altitude and enjoying the team and great weather we have had so far.  Our hike today brought us up to almost 15,000ft before descending down to Baranco camp at 13,000ft.  After a late lunch we have been resting and enjoying great views of the mountain towering above.  Shortly we will head back into the dining tent for dinner and then back to our tents for a nights rest.  Tomorrow we will head around the mountain a little to Karanga camp at 13,300ft, but first we need to climb the Baranco wall….

Thanks for following along,

Ben Jones