Garrett, Mike, Sam, Iñaki, and Todd are safely off Mt. Vinson and arrived in Union Glacier Camp after a quick ride on a Twin Otter today. It is located in the Heritage Range in the Ellsworth Mountains, on Union Glacier. Today they descended from Camp 2 to Vinson Base Camp after the weather conditions improved. After the flight to Union Glacier Camp the team enjoyed a nice warm dinner. The camp is positioned near Union Glacier Blue-Ice Runway that allows our flight out on a Russian Ilyushin Il-76 aircraft back to Chile. The team is doing really well and enjoyed an extra 4 nights on Mt. Vinson with 5o knot winds and -50 to -70 degree temperatures, but had a fun time staying warm with a complete success on the expedition.
Great job team!
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Audio Dispatch from Garrett Madison ~ Thursday December 10
https://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpg00Andrewhttps://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpgAndrew2015-12-10 17:41:342015-12-10 17:41:34Safe arrival into Union Glacier Camp
Today Garrett, Mike, Sam, Iñaki, and Todd took a rest day at high camp after their summit ascent yesterday. The team had a beautiful summit day with gorgeous views and no wind, allowing the whole team to make it to the top. Once Garrett and team arrived back at Camp 2 the winds picked up considerably and the team decided to enjoy a rest day instead of making the descent with high winds. Depending on tomorrow’s conditions the team will climb down to Mt. Vinson base camp, but could end up staying 2-3 additional days in order to make a safe descent. Our team has plenty of food and fuel and will be checking in tomorrow!
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Audio Dispatch from Garrett Madison ~ Monday, December 7
https://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpg00Andrewhttps://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpgAndrew2015-12-07 21:52:492015-12-07 21:53:06Rest day at High Camp due to strong winds
Today Garrett, Mike, Sam, Iñaki, and Todd reached the summit of Antarctica at 4,892 meters (16,050 ft). With clear skies our team enjoyed spectacular 360 degree views! A truly “magical” experience. Mount Vinson is more than 750 miles (1,200 kilometers) from the South Pole, making it the most remote of the Seven Summits. It was also the last discovered, last climbed, and last named of the Seven Summits. Mount Vinson is named for U.S. Representative Carl Vinson of Georgia, who served in Congress from 1935 to 1961 and was the former chairman of the House Armed Services Committee. He was a influential lobbyist for government funding of American exploration in Antarctica. After an early morning summit push, Garrett and team were able to make it to the summit and enjoy the stabilized weather conditions which the team took advantage of. Now resting at Camp 2 with moderate winds, the team is preparing for tomorrows continued descent toward Union Glacier Camp.
Great job team!!
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Audio Dispatch from Garrett Madison ~ Sunday, December 6
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Garrett and team approaching the highest peak in Antarctica, at 4,892 meters (16,050 ft)!
Today Garrett, Mike, Sam, Iñaki, and Todd reached the summit of Antarctica at 4,892 meters (16,050 ft). With clear skies our team enjoyed spectacular 360 degree views! A truly “magical” experience. Mount Vinson is more than 750 miles (1,200 kilometers) from the South Pole, making it the most remote of the Seven Summits. It was also the last discovered, last climbed, and last named of the Seven Summits. Mount Vinson is named for U.S. Representative Carl Vinson of Georgia, who served in Congress from 1935 to 1961 and was the former chairman of the House Armed Services Committee. He was a influential lobbyist for government funding of American exploration in Antarctica. After an early morning summit push, Garrett and team were able to make it to the summit and enjoy the stabilized weather conditions which the team took advantage of. Now resting at Camp 2 with moderate winds, the team is preparing for tomorrows continued descent toward Union Glacier Camp.
Great job team!!
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Audio Dispatch from Garrett Madison ~ Sunday, December 6
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Garrett and team approaching the highest peak in Antarctica, at 4,892 meters (16,050 ft)!
Garrett, Mike, Sam, Iñaki, and Todd are currently climbing to the summit of Antarctica! Mount Vinson is the highest peak in Antarctica, at 4,892 meters (16,050 ft). It lies in the north part of Vinson Massif’s summit plateau in the south portion of the main ridge of the Sentinel Range. Yesterday our climbing team set up Camp 2 as their staging point for the summit push. Waking up at 7am Garrett and team prepared to depart for the summit. Weather reports show terrific weather conditions and clear skies for our team. To the top!
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Audio Dispatch from Garrett Madison ~ Sunday, December 6
https://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpg00Andrewhttps://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpgAndrew2015-12-06 10:42:382015-12-07 00:46:31Climbing to the summit of Antarctica!
With a change in weather, Garrett, Mike, Sam, Iñaki, and Todd have successfully made the ascent to Camp 1 at 9,154 feet! After two days at Vinson Base Camp, the team was very excited to push onward. Garrett and team made the eight hour push through cold and breezy conditions before arriving at Camp 1. Other than the wind, todays weather report on Mount Vinson was clear and sunny. Quickly after arriving the team set up camp and started warming up with a hot dinner prepared by Garrett.
Tomorrow our team will enjoy a rest day and let their bodies recover and continue to acclimatize to todays elevation gain. Garrett, Mike, Sam, Iñaki, and Todd will work together tomorrow to develop a strategy for reaching Camp 2, with factors including weather and overall route conditions. Everyone is doing well and in high spirit!
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Audio Dispatch from Garrett Madison ~ Wednesday, December 2
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Climbing across glaciated slopes on Mount Vinson.
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Looks pretty similar to “The Wall” from Game of Thrones! This gorgeous shot was take during the ascent to Camp 1. Onward!
https://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpg00Andrewhttps://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpgAndrew2015-12-02 22:44:532015-12-02 22:44:53Change in weather allows ascent to Camp 1!
Antarctica’s Mount Vinson base camp population is beginning to grow as multiple teams wait for the heavy winds and below freezing temperatures to pass. Winds today were recorded at 30 knots, or roughly 35 mph, with the temperature down to -20 degrees fahrenheit. Beyond the weather, the team had a very productive day. Garrett, Mike, Sam, Iñaki, and Todd worked together to fortify their tents by creating snow bricks of sort, then creating a wall to deflect the wind. Afterward, Garrett and team enjoyed an exploratory climb to a local peak in the Ellsworth Mountains. The team is doing well and enjoying the opportunity to spend time on this secluded continent.
Dispatch below from our Expedition Leader ~ Garrett Madison
Note: It appears that the weather conditions or the connection with the satellites breaks up the call for the first 5-10 seconds. After this time the quality improves.
Today our climbing team in Antarctica spent the day settling into Base Camp on Vinson Massif and prepared for the ascent to Camp 1 in the coming days. Mike, Sam, Iñaki, and Todd woke up to a breakfast feast this morning, including pancakes, eggs, and bacon! Garrett’s mountain culinary skills are some of the best on the mountains 🙂 After a delicious breakfast the team did a quick ascent and strategically moved food, gear, and other personal items further up the mountain in preparation for the team’s push to Camp 1. The team is now waiting on the weather conditions for tomorrow before determining the days agenda. Depending on the wind and temperature, our climbing team may spend another night in Base Camp. Our team has a exciting opportunity to interact with other Antarctic explorers as well as scientists doing meaningful research in their fields while they make their journey across the frozen continent. To the top!
This article written on Mashable shares additional photos of Thrusday’s historic Boeing 757 landing on the blue-ice runway.
Dispatch below from our Expedition Leader ~ Garrett Madison
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Unloading gear and setting up base camp on Vinson Massif.
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Camp 1 on Vinson Massif
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Beautiful shot of the Ellsworth Mountains from Base Camp.
https://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpg00Andrewhttps://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpgAndrew2015-11-29 23:12:222015-11-29 23:12:22Settling into Base Camp on Vinson Massif!!
Today our climbing team in Antarctica spent the day settling into Base Camp on Vinson Massif and prepared for the ascent to Camp 1 in the coming days. Mike, Sam, Iñaki, and Todd woke up to a breakfast feast this morning, including pancakes, eggs, and bacon! Garrett’s mountain culinary skills are some of the best on the mountains 🙂 After a delicious breakfast the team did a quick ascent and strategically moved food, gear, and other personal items further up the mountain in preparation for the team’s push to Camp 1. The team is now waiting on the weather conditions for tomorrow before determining the days agenda. Depending on the wind and temperature, our climbing team may spend another night in Base Camp. Our team has a exciting opportunity to interact with other Antarctic explorers as well as scientists doing meaningful research in their fields while they make their journey across the frozen continent. To the top!
This article written on Mashable shares additional photos of Thrusday’s historic Boeing 757 landing on the blue-ice runway.
Dispatch below from our Expedition Leader ~ Garrett Madison
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Unloading gear and setting up base camp on Vinson Massif.
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Camp 1 on Vinson Massif
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Beautiful shot of the Ellsworth Mountains from Base Camp.
https://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpg00Andrewhttps://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpgAndrew2015-11-29 23:12:222015-11-29 23:12:22Settling into Base Camp on Vinson Massif!
Greetings from Mount Vinson Base Camp, Antarctica! Garrett, Mike, Sam, Iñaki, and Todd have flown safely from Union Glacier Camp to base camp today. The team enjoyed a crystal clear day while preparing their gear for departure. From a Douglas DC3 in Union Glacier Camp, the team made the quick flight to a closer staging area near Vinson Massif. After which they boarded a DHC-6 Twin Otter that transported the team closer to the mountain. The day was sunny and provided spectacular views of the Ellsworth Mountains for our team. Garrett, Mike, Sam, Iñaki, and Todd worked together to build a large snow wall to protect their camp from the expected 50mph winds tomorrow. After setting up camp our team enjoyed a delicious dinner of pork chops and settled in for the night. Tomorrow the team will review rope travel, ice axe arrest, and crevasse rescue techniques in preparation for the next push to Camp 1. Onward!
Audio Dispatch from Garrett Madison ~ Expedition Leader
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Our team’s arrival into Union Glacier Camp on the first ever 757. Business class seats all the way to Antarctica! Photo captured by: Adventure Network International.
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Union Glacier Camp, Antarctica.
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Beautiful photo on this sunny day!!
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Douglas DC3 at Union Glacier Camp, Antarctica.
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Union Glacier Camp Tent
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Union Glacier Camp with the Ellsworth Mountains behind.
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Gorgeous shot of Union Glacier Camp!!
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Our climbing team preparing for the ascent!
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Visual of Antarctica. North is straight up. Images by Google Earth.
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Visual representation of our climbing team’s flight travels today. Starting below at Union Glacier Camp our team flew up to Vinson Massif base camp. Images by Google Earth.
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