Dispatches

Manaslu 2022.08.31

First Views of Manaslu!

Photo from Madison Mountaineering archive. Photo: Terray Sylvester

While continuing their acclimatization in preparation to continue up to base camp in just a few days, the team had their first views of Manaslu today! Expedition leader, Terray Sylvester, checks in with today’s dispatch:

Hello! This is Terray calling in for the Madison Mountaineering Manaslu (8156m/26,759ft) expedition – it’s September 4th.

Today we hiked part way up to base camp (4859m/15,944ft) as we continue to acclimatize before we actually move up there. It rained all night, but as we were eating breakfast, the clouds began to clear. As we walked out of Samagaun (3530m/11,581ft), we got our first views of the upper mountain of Manaslu – beautiful views of the summit and the Manaslu Glacier below it. That was a real treat! The hike was fantastic. We had partly sunny skies throughout, went up, relaxed in the sun for a little while, and then returned to Sama village.

We’ve just spent the rest of the day resting and we’ll continue to acclimatize tomorrow!

Beautiful views in the Nupri Valley above Samagaon. Photo: Terray Sylvester

Climbing towards base camp with Manaslu towering above. Photo: Terray Sylvester

Our climber, Nancy, hiking toward base camp with Aang Phurba Sherpa. Photo: Terray Sylvester

In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

– Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions. Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

September 4, 2022/0 Comments/by Garrett

Manaslu 2022.08.31

Acclimatizing in Samagaun!

A Buddhist monastery above Samagaun, and below Manaslu. 📸: Terray Sylvester

The team spent today acclimatizing around Samagaun at over 3,530m/11,500ft. During their acclimatization hikes, our team visited a glacial lake at the foot of the Manaslu Glacier, as well as an ancient monastery in Samagaun. Expedition leader, Terray Sylvester, checks in with today’s dispatch from Samagaun:

Hello! This is Terray calling in for the 2022 Madison Mountaineering Manaslu expedition – It’s September 2nd.

This morning we had breakfast, then hiked up to Birendra Tal (3,691m/12,110ft), which is a glacial lake just below the bottom of the Manaslu glacier, a little ways above the town of Sama where we’re staying. It’s a beautiful glacially tinted lake – bright green! So we rested there for a bit, then came back for lunch.

In the afternoon we walked down towards Shala, which is the next town below Samagaun. The weather was really nice this morning, just partly cloudy with some sunny skies.

We’re looking forward to another day of acclimatization here in Samagaun tomorrow! We’ll be in touch.

Birendra Tal. Photo: Terray Sylvester

Aang Phurba Sherpa lighting butter lamps in a Buddhist gompa in Samagaun. Photo: Terray Sylvester

Exploring the ancient monastery at Samagaun. Photo: Terray Sylvester

Acclimatizing in Samagaun. Photo: Terray Sylvester

In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

– Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions. Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

September 3, 2022/0 Comments/by Garrett

Manaslu 2022.08.31

The Journey Continues into the Mountains!

Photo taken from Madison Mountaineering archive.

Today, the team departed from the lowlands of Kathmandu Valley and arrived at the next stop on their way to Manaslu (8163m/26,781ft)! The helicopter flight to Samagoan (3530m/11,581ft) followed a beautiful river up through a gorge, passing many waterfalls along the way. Expedition leader, Terray Sylvester, checks in with today’s dispatch from Kathmandu (1400m/4,600ft):

Hello! This is Terray calling in for the 2022 Madison Mountaineering Manaslu expedition – today is September 2nd.

Today we took a helicopter from Kathmandu to the village of Samagoan at about 11,500 feet. It was a beautiful flight with fantastic views of waterfalls and the spectacular gorge of the Budhi Gandaki River. We’ll spend a few days acclimatizing here and then we’ll move up to base camp (4,800m/15,750ft) – just a days walk away from us.

So, all is well here! We’ll be in touch.

In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

– Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions. Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

September 2, 2022/0 Comments/by Garrett

Manaslu 2022.08.31

The Adventure Begins in Kathmandu!

The brilliant costumes of Hindu ascetics known as "sadhus" at Pashupatinath Temple in Kathmandu. (📸: @terray_s)

The team spent the day relaxing and visiting some of the sites in the beautiful city of Kathmandu (1400m/4,600ft)! With good weather tomorrow, the expedition will continue to the next stop of Samagoan (3530m/11,581ft), the gateway to Manaslu (8163m/26,781ft). Expedition leader, Terray Sylvester, checks in with today’s dispatch from Kathmandu:

Hello! This is Terray calling in for the 2022 Madison Mountaineering Manaslu expedition – it’s September 1st.

Today we spent the morning exploring some of the sites here in Kathmandu Valley. We visited two of the valleys seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites. We started off the day at Boudhanath Stupa, which is one of the biggest Buddhist stupa’s in the world. Then we went over to Pashupatinath Temple which is very sacred to the valley’s Hindus. Then we got a great lunch at Fire and Ice, now we’re just relaxing until we hopefully fly out tomorrow. If the weather allows, we will fly to the village of Samagoan, just to the northeast of Manaslu tomorrow morning.

So, all is well! Beautiful weather here in the Kathmandu Valley at the moment. We’ll be in touch.

Monkeys at Pashupatinath Temple. 📸: Terray Sylvester

Boudhanath Stupa, one of the world’s largest Buddhist stupas. 📸: Terray Sylvester

A Ganesh statue at Pashupatinath Temple. 📸: Terray Sylvester

A thangka painting demonstration at Boudhanath Stupa. 📸: Terray Sylvester

Boudhanath Stupa. 📸: Terray Sylvester

In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

– Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions. Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

September 1, 2022/0 Comments/by Garrett

Manaslu 2022.08.31

2022 Manaslu Expedition Kicks Off!

Picking up our climbing permit at the Nepali Ministry of Tourism!

The 2022 Madison Mountaineering Manaslu expedition has begun and members of our team have started to arrive in Kathmandu (1400m/4,600ft), the capital city of Nepal! Today the team went through a gear check and enjoyed a nice dinner at a local restaurant. Expedition leader, Terray Sylvester, checks in with today’s dispatch from Kathmandu:

Hello! This is Terray calling in for the 2022 Madison Mountaineering Manaslu expedition – it’s August 31st.

Today, our first climber arrived here in Kathmandu. We spent the day doing a gear check, then we went out for a nice welcome dinner at Mezze – not too far from our hotel, the Yak and Yeti.

The weather is beautiful here in Kathmandu right now! The monsoon is tapering off and the temperature is perfect, with just scattered showers and beautiful, clear air. We plan to do a city tour tomorrow and then hopefully fly to Samagoan (3530m/11,581ft) where we’ll start our trek the following day.

So, all is well here and we’ll be in touch!

In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

– Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions. Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

August 31, 2022/0 Comments/by Garrett

Ecuador 2022.07.25

Cotopaxi Summit Success!!

Today our Ecuador Volcanoes team capped off the expedition with a fantastic summit climb of Ecuador’s second highest mountain, Cotopaxi (5897m/19,347ft)! Lead guide Estalin Suárez calls in with the happy news:

Hello, this is Estalin calling in for the Madison Mountaineering Ecuador Volcanoes expedition. I’m very, very happy with the news that today, July 31st, we got the summit of Cotopaxi volcano, which is 19,400 feet in elevation, with Mr. Kevin Gary!

Yesterday we started at midnight, and it took us about eight hours to reach the summit and then a little bit more than three hours down. We had an amazing, amazing view of all the volcanoes around. The weather was incredible – almost no wind, very clear, a little bit cold (but just that, it was okay). The condition of the snow was perfect. So, we had a great, great experience on the mountain. Mr. Kevin is very happy that we were able to reach the summit of Cotopaxi! With this, we finish our expedition.

Again, I’m very, very happy to announce the news of our summit success on Cotopaxi and we’re ready for the next expedition!

Okay, bye.

Alpine start on Cotopaxi

Dawn on Cotopaxi

Beautiful climbing conditions on Cotopaxi

Climbing Cotopaxi on a bluebird day

Heading up Cotopaxi

Amazing views from high on Cotopaxi

Nearing the Cotopaxi summit

Climber Kevin G. celebrates reaching the summit of Cotopaxi

Happy climbers on the summit of Cotopaxi!

Cotopaxi summit with perfect conditions

Cotopaxi from the air

In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

– Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions. Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

August 1, 2022/0 Comments/by Kurt

Ecuador 2022.07.25

Summits on Iliniza Norte (5126m/16,813ft)

Today our Ecuador team topped out on the 16,813 ft. (5126m) summit of Illiniza Norte as they continue their acclimatization. Here’s lead guide Estalin Suárez with a recap of the day:

Hello to everybody! This is Estalin calling in for the Madison Mountaineering Ecuador Volcanoes expedition. Today we got the summit of Iliniza Norte, which is 16,800 feet.

We got a great, great day – beautiful weather, very clear. We started very early in the morning. We could see the sun rise along the avenue of volcanoes in Ecuador. Very, very happy we got finally good weather on this expedition. Now we are at the lodge just resting after our good lunch as well and yeah!

Tomorrow we are going to just have a rest day and then get ready for the big one!

Okay, bye!!

Climber Kevin G. ready to head out

Sunrise climbing on Illiniza Norte

Sunrise on the Avenue of Volcanoes, Ecuador

Morning alpenglow

Sunning views of Ecuador’s volcanoes

Climbing on Illiniza Norte

Summit success on Illiniza Norte

In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

– Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions. Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

July 29, 2022/0 Comments/by Kurt

Ecuador 2022.07.25

Corazon Cumbre!

Today, the team climbed another eroded and extinct volcano, “El Corazon,” located about 40 km southwest of Quito. The name Corazon means “heart” in Spanish and is said to refer to the two gullies on the north west slopes which, when seen from the distance, appear to join together in the shape of a heart. While the weather has been challenging thus far, the team has kept high spirits and looks forward to the days ahead! Lead guide, Estalin Suárez, check in with today’s dispatch:

Hello! This is Estalin calling in for the Madison Mountaineering Ecuador volcanoes expedition – today is July 27th.

We, Mr. Kevin Gary and I, climbed El Corazon volcano which is 15,700 feet. We didn’t have much luck with the weather – it was cloudy, a little bit rainy, and even some snow, which is very very weird for this mountain! We actually got a lot of snow on the way up, but it was okay! It was challenging and we had to push a little bit harder, but finally we got the summit! It was a nice climb – a little bit different with the snow. We’re still motivated. Hopefully the weather improves the next few days.

Now we’re at the lodge just resting and waiting to have dinner! Hopefully tomorrows weather will be better. Bye!

Ascending the snow covered slopes of Corazon.

Rope team navigating the challenging weather on Corazon.

Climber, Kevin Gary approaching the summit!

Cumbre!

In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

– Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions. Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

July 27, 2022/0 Comments/by Mike

Mt. Rainier 2022

Summit Success on Mt. Rainier!

This last Tuesday at 5:55 AM, the Madison Mountaineering Mt. Rainier expedition team reached the the summit of Tahoma at 14,417 ft (4,394 m) – the highest point in the state of Washington! We had 100% success rate for the team and everyone is now safely down from the alpine. All went well this week on Mt. Rainier!

Sunrise on Mt. Rainier!

Summit push in the early morning hours on Mt. Rainier!

Crevasses on one of the glaciers this last week on Mt. Rainier!

Beautiful day on Mt. Rainier!

Members of the team at camp in Ingraham Flats.

Descending the disappointment cleaver route after reaching the summit on Mt. Rainier!

In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

– Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions. Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

July 26, 2022/0 Comments/by Garrett

Ecuador 2022.07.25

Ecuador Volcanoes Expedition is Underway!

Acclimatization hike in Ecuador! Dark, but beautiful skies up above!

Our Ecuador volcanoes expedition has begun! Today, the team started the acclimatization process, reaching the summit of Pasochoa at 13,779 feet. Lead guide, Estalin Suárez, check in with today’s dispatch:

Hello! This is Estalin calling in for the Madison Mountaineering Ecuador Volcanoes expedition – today is July 26th.

We just started the acclimatization process with the summit of Pasochoa volcano (4200m/13,779ft) which is 13,800 feet. So, we had a nice hike, even though the weather wasn’t that good – a little bit cloudy and we got some rain at the summit. But, it was good, it was good.

Now we are in a nice lodge just resting and getting ready for tomorrow. So, that is it for today!

Guide, Estalin and climber, Kevin on the summit of Pasochoa!

Climber, Kevin on Pasochoa.

Among the clouds during todays acclimatization hike in Ecuador.

In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

– Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions. Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

July 26, 2022/0 Comments/by Mike