Tag Archive for: Union Glacier Camp

New Year’s Eve in Antarctica!

On the move from Vinson Base Camp to Low Camp

The Madison Mountaineering Mount Vinson expedition team is on the move after a fun New Year’s Eve celebration on the frozen continent! After celebrating the new year in Union Glacier Camp, the team hopped aboard their twin otter flight which transported them to Vinson Base Camp at the foot of the continents highest peak. After some skills review and one night in base camp, the team took to the route and climbed up to Camp 1. Expedition leader, Garrett Madison checks in with this dispatch from Mount Vinson:

Hello! This is Garrett and Aang Phurba Sherpa checking in for the Madison Mountaineering Mount Vinson (4892m/16,050ft) expedition – this is our third program of the season here in Antarctica on Vinson. We are up at low camp (2774m/9,100ft)!

We arrived in Vinson Base Camp (2140m/7,020ft) yesterday from Union Glacier (700m/2,297ft). (We) had a great New Year’s Eve there with all of the ALE staff, and we’re lucky enough to fly yesterday afternoon over to Vinson, settled into our base camp, had a good night there, and today climbed up to low camp. The team did great! We had a little cloud, and some sun, and it was a great day overall.

So we settled in, had dinner, and heading to bed here. Looking forward to a nice rest day tomorrow!

All is well here on Mount Vinson. We’ll check in soon!

Our Mountain Hardwear Trango tents set up in Mount Vinson Low Camp

Our Mountain Hardwear Trango tents set up in Mount Vinson Low Camp

Guide, Aang Phurba Sherpa posing for a quick photograph in the team dining tent

Guide, Aang Phurba Sherpa posing for a quick photograph in the team dining tent

Climbing between camps under beautiful, clear blue skies

Climbing between camps under beautiful, clear blue skies

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:

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On the ice again!

The team after landing on the blue ice runway in Union Glacier Camp

Another Madison Mountaineering Mount Vinson expedition team came together over the holidays to begin their journey to the highest point in Antarctica! The team met in Punta Arenas and has since landed on the frozen continent where they await their flight to Mount Vinson Base Camp. Everyone is psyched, doing well and looking forward to starting the new year in such a special place! Expedition leader, Garrett Madison checked in with this dispatch from Union Glacier Camp:

Hello! This is Garrett checking in for the Madison Mountaineering Mount Vinson (4892m/16,050ft) expedition, our third of the season.

Today, December 30th, we flew from Punta Arenas, Chile (34m/112ft) as scheduled to Antarctica to Union Glacier Camp (700m/2,297ft). (We) unloaded, had a great lunch and then settled into camp. We set up our tents, and we’re going to spend our first night here in Antarctica at Union Glacier Camp.

Hopefully, fingers crossed tomorrow, we get to fly over to Mount Vinson Base Camp (2140m/7,020ft) to start our climb, but we’ll see how the weather is. It’s pretty nice here at Union Glacier Camp. It sounds like a bit of fog at Mount Vinson that’s obstructing the runway from the pilot’s view. Hopefully we’ll get to fly over there, but everyone’s doing well. Beautiful, sunny, warm day here in Union Glacier Camp. And we’ll check in soon!

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:

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More summits on Mount Vinson!

The team together on the summit of Mount Vinson!

More great news from Antarctica over the weekend from the Madison Mountaineering team! Expedition leader, Benny Lieber sent word that the team stepped onto the highest point in Antarctica, Mount Vinson, on December 13 at 15:25 local time. The team embraced in celebration and enjoyed the summit all to themselves for nearly an hour before shouldering their packs once again, and descending back down the mountain. The team is safely back in Union Glacier Camp now awaiting their flight back to Punta Arenas, Chile. A huge congratulations and ‘thank you’ goes out to the team for a wonderful expedition on the ice! Expedition leader, Benny Lieber had this to say following a successful summit day on Mount Vinson:

Happy holidays from the bottom of the world!

We went to the top of Antarctica on December 13. Mount Vinson (4,892m / 16,050ft.)

It was my 6th time guiding climbers to the summit- wow I am pretty lucky to do this job!

The first few days of our trip the weather wasn’t great. But in the high camp the clouds cleared out and we had a nearly windless climb to the top in the warm sun! The views are just unbelievable. I really do not know how to describe it. You feel as though you are on top of a different planet- a frozen one. There is a nothingness about it. Endless ice only interrupted by occasional snowy rock spikes jutting up through it.

It is a really special place and I am so happy my team got to experience it.

Two of our team members, from Lithuania, finished the 7 summits on top of Vinson. Their journey to climb the highest peaks on each continent took them around the world and away from their homes for long periods of time. Perhaps it is something their loved ones will never fully understand, and of course dealt with the difficulties of their absence while they pursued their dream. But now the dream comes to fruition and they will return home changed for the better having seen it through to completion. They will be role models in their communities and inspire others to live a better life.

Climbing the 7 summits takes you through wildly varying landscapes, climates, geopolitical challenges, and many unforeseen hardships along the way. For them it finished on a pinnacle of frozenness at the bottom of the world. A long way from their home country of Lithuania where they are now the 3rd & 4th people from their country to complete this 7 summits journey. I am so happy for them!

The team looking psyched as they near the summit!

The team looking psyched as they near the summit!

All smiles atop Mount Vinson!

All smiles atop Mount Vinson!

Descending under sunny, clear skies!

Descending under sunny, clear skies!

Nearing the top of the fixed-lines that separate low camp from high camp.

Nearing the top of the fixed-lines that separate low camp from high camp.

Mount Vinson Base Camp

Mount Vinson Base Camp

Views out the tent door from High Camp.

Views out the tent door from high camp.

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:

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Greetings from Union Glacier Camp!

The team together after touching down in Union Glacier Camp!

The Antarctic season is officially underway! The first of our Madison Mountaineering Mount Vinson expeditions teams went wheels up out of Punta Arenas and have settled in on the ice. After a scenic flight, the team took their first steps onto the frozen continent, breathing in the cold air while welcoming excellent views of Union Glacier Camp and the surrounding areas. We look to move to Mount Vinson Base Camp tomorrow. Fingers crossed for clear and sunny skies! Expedition leader, Garrett Madison checks in with this dispatch from Antarctica:

Hello! This is Garrett checking in for the first Madison Mountaineering Mount Vinson (4892m/16,050ft) climb of the season.

Today is December 4th and we made it to Union Glacier Camp (700m/2,297ft) in Antarctica! We flew in from Punta Arenas (34m/112ft) on the Boeing 757, landed at Union Glacier, and settled into our camp here. We’re hoping to fly over to Mount Vinson Base Camp (2140m/7,020ft) tomorrow, so fingers crossed for good weather.

And we’re just enjoying Union Glacier Camp here! It’s bright and sunny, beautiful scenery, great food, nice people, and really magical to be here.

So all’s well in Antarctica! We’ll check in soon.

Looking out the plane window over the frozen continent.

Looking out the plane window over the frozen continent.

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:

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To the summit and back to base camp!

Summit photo on top of Mount Vinson!

We’re excited to share that the Madison Mountaineering Mount Vinson expedition team has safely and successfully climbed to the highest point in Antarctica, and descended all the way back down to their base camp in the same day! A strong team that brought the excitement all expedition, the team is now enjoying the comforts of their base camp and celebrating their achievement of climbing one of the famed seven summits, Mount Vinson! Congratulations to the entire team on a hard fought and well earned summit, and to all of our climbers this last season. It was another year for the books with 100% of our climbers and guides reaching the top! Expedition leader, Garrett Madison checks in with this dispatch from Mount Vinson:

Hello! This is Garrett calling in for the Madison Mountaineering Mount Vinson (4892m/16,050ft) expedition. This is our last trip of the season and we all summited Mount Vinson yesterday!

We had a beautiful summit day, perfect weather, and just wonderful route conditions all around. We climbed about six hours from high camp up to the summit, spent a good 45 minutes up there celebrating, enjoying the views, and then came all the way back down to high camp (3536m/11,600ft), and kept going! We packed up our camp and went all the way down to base camp (2140m/7,020ft)! Very strong crew and we just got down to base camp early this morning. We’re going to get a little rest and hopefully the planes will start flying later today and we’ll get back to Union Glacier Camp (700m/2,297ft)!

All is well here – 100% success for this Vinson expedition and all three of our Vinson expeditions this season! So, big congrats to all of our climbers on all of our teams. (We’re) very happy to be here in Antarctica and looking forward to next season!

Climbing up high on Mount Vinson!

Climbing up high on Mount Vinson!

Beautiful, blue sky day in Antarctica!

Beautiful, blue sky day in Antarctica!

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:

 

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Another Vinson climb is underway!

Hello, from Vinson Base Camp!

The Madison Mountaineering team is back at it again on the highest peak in Antarctica, Mount Vinson! After some delays due to weather, the team boarded their flight en route to their base camp which presented otherworldly views of the frozen continent. Now ready to begin their climb, the team is psyched and ready to go! Expedition leader, Garrett Madison checks in with this dispatch from Mount Vinson:

Hello! It’s Saturday, January 4th, 2025. Happy New Year, everyone! This is Garrett Madison calling in for the Madison Mountaineering Mount Vinson (4892m/16,050ft) expedition team.

We have arrived in Mount Vinson base camp (2140m/7,020ft)! After a delay due to some foggy weather, the twin otter took us from Union Glacier Camp (700m/2,297ft) today over to Mount Vinson base camp. It was a beautiful, scenic flight. We saw many beautiful mountains along the way, many unclimbed peaks, and vast expanses of Antarctic ice.

Upon arriving in base camp, we unloaded the twin otter, set up our camp, moved into our tents, cooked a fun dinner with pepperoni pizza, empanadas, green beans and french fries! We’re just having some hot drinks now before heading to bed.

Tomorrow, our plan is to pack up and move up to low camp (2774m/9,100ft)! It looks like some good weather in the forecast, so we’re excited to get the climb underway. All is well here at Mount Vinson!

Settled into Base Camp!

Settled into Base Camp!

On the flight from Union Glacier Camp to Vinson Base Camp!

On the flight from Union Glacier Camp to Vinson Base Camp!

Blue skies and all smiles for the team in Antarctica!

Blue skies and all smiles for the team in Antarctica!

Biking around Union Glacier Camp a few days back.

Biking around Union Glacier Camp a few days back.

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:

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All boots on the summit!

The team on the summit of Mount Vinson!

We are excited to share that the Madison Mountaineering Mount Vinson expedition has safely and successfully reached the summit of Antarctica’s highest peak! All boots landed on the summit over the weekend under clear skies and with much excitement, embraced with hugs and high-fives at the roof of one of the most remote and pristine places on the planet. Now back in Union Glacier Camp after a swift descent and scenic plane flight, the team will enjoy a few last days on the ice before boarding the plane back to Punta Arenas, Chile and then on to their home countries. Nice work, everyone! What a great way to start the season in Antarctica. Expedition leader, Benny Lieber checks in with this dispatch from Union Glacier Camp:

We made it to the summit of Mount Vinson (4892m/16,050ft) on December 14. The highest peak sticking up amongst the most frozen landscape on Planet Earth at 16,050ft. And positioned at 78°S in Antarctica.

There wasn’t a cloud in the sky and as we climbed up the last few hours we covered our faces and hands to stay warm in an Antarctic wind. On the top the wind faded to nearly nothing. We smiled and hugged and looked out at the endless ice in every direction. A surreal view unlike any other in the world.

I’m so proud of our team for their hard work and commitment to standing on the top together- which is a memory that will stay with us all forever.

Clear Antarctic skies!

Clear Antarctic skies!

Descending down the mountain with Mount Shinn behind.

Descending down the mountain with Mount Shinn behind.

Mount Vinson's summit ridge.

Mount Vinson’s summit ridge.

The team on their way up with the expansive Antarctic landscape stretching as far as the eye can see!

The team on their way up with the expansive Antarctic landscape stretching as far as the eye can see!

Ascending fixed lines on the way up the mountain!

Ascending fixed lines on the way up the mountain!

Ascending fixed lines toward high camp!

Ascending fixed lines toward high camp!

Dinner time!

Dinner time!

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:

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Ready to fly!

The first of our Mount Vinson expedition teams for the 2024 / 2025 season!

The Madison Mountaineering Mount Vinson expedition team is packed and ready to go! In just a short time, they’ll be boarding another plane. This time en route to Union Glacier Camp in Antarctica! So much time, preparation, and training has gone into getting here and the team is psyched to finally be flying onto the ice with an epic expedition ahead of them. This marks the start of our 2024 / 2025 Antarctic season! Stay tuned for more from the team as they travel to the edge of the Earth to climb Antarctica’s highest peak and one of the famed ‘seven summits!’ Expedition leader, Benny Lieber checks in with this brief dispatch from Punta Arenas, Chile:

The team is all packed and ready to fly onto the frozen continent to climb to the roof of Antarctica: Mount Vinson (4892m/16,050ft).

For the last few days we have been getting organized and enjoying the sights & sounds of Punta Arenas, Chile (34m/112ft). The bustling city is full of life and beautiful architecture and a stark contrast from the vast icy landscape of Antarctica.

Exploring Punta Arenas before we take off for the frozen continent!

Exploring Punta Arenas before we take off for the frozen continent!

The team enjoying sunny Punta Arenas, Chile!

The team enjoying sunny Punta Arenas, Chile!

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:

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Another Vinson Expedition Underway!

Photo pulled from the Madison Mountaineering archive (Photo by Ted Hesser)

The final Madison Mountaineering Mount Vinson expedition of the season is off in Antarctica! The team has arrived in Vinson base camp after several days spent in Union Glacier Camp. When the skies cleared and allowed them to fly to their next camp, the team was gifted with spectacular views looking down on Antarctica below and the many mountains in all directions. With good weather ahead, the team plans to start their ascent on Antarctica’s highest peak! Expedition leader, Garrett Madison checks in with this dispatch from Antarctica:

Hey! This is Garrett calling in for the Madison Mountaineering Mount Vinson (4892m/16,050ft) expedition number three – last one of the season! Today we arrived in Mount Vinson base camp (2140m/7,020ft) after a couple of days delay at Union Glacier Camp (700m/2,297ft). We finally had good weather to fly in by twin otter with the team and arrived at Mount Vinson. It was a beautiful flight over, clear views, great views of mountains all around Antarctica, and now we’re reunited with my colleague/co-guide, Benny Lieber. So, happy to have the team together.

We got our camp set up and did some training today, some review, and organized our group loads. We’re getting ready to move up to low camp (2774m/9,100ft) tomorrow assuming it’s good weather. (There’s) a little bit of wind in the forecast the next few days, but hopefully not enough to prevent us from moving up!

Everyone’s doing great! We’re really happy and excited to be here, and looking forward to getting our final expedition here of the season in Antarctica underway! All is well and we’ll check in soon.

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:

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Mount Vinson Expedition #2

Photo pulled from the Madison Mountaineering archive (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

The Madison Mountaineering Mount Vinson expedition team arrived in base camp after a few days of anticipation while they waited out the weather in Union Glacier Camp! After touching down in the Ellsworth Mountain Range, the team excitedly got settled into their camp, ate dinner, and prepared for the move up to Low Camp. The team is in high spirits and ready to get the climb underway! Expedition leader, Garrett Madison checks in with this dispatch from Mount Vinson Base Camp:

Hello! This is Garrett calling in for the Madison Mountaineering Mount Vinson (4892m/16,050ft) expedition number two of the season.

Today, our team arrived at Vinson Base Camp (2140m/7,020ft) and we got settled in, built our camp, had some dinner, and checked some of our gear, our equipment for the climb, and now we are off to bed. We had a beautiful flight over from Union Glacier Camp (700m/2,297ft), got to see lots of peaks on the way!

Everyone is in good spirits, feeling strong, happy to be here after a delay of a couple of days. But all is well here and we are really excited to get our expedition, our climb underway here. So hopefully we will be moving up to Low Camp (2774m/9,100ft) tomorrow. All is well here and we’ll check in soon from Mount Vinson!

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:

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