Entries By dave hahn

We’ve begun!! After so much anticipation and travel and preparation, today we finally started walking. Getting from Rivertrees to the Machame Gate of the National Park all went smoothly, as did the final steps of getting permitted for the climb. We began walking at 11 AM, following Freddy, one of our local guides, through cloud and light mist. The day was spent winding through big trees, at first in a rain forest. Over the course of six hours the trees got smaller and things got drier as we eventually climbed through the clouds into sunshine. At 10,000 ft we strolled into a perfectly constructed camp and moved right in. We even got a brief view of Kibo, Kilimanjaro’s central peak, just before the sun went down and the full moon rose. Our team was excited to sit down to a great dinner and then just as excited to hit the sleeping bags--folks are still feeling the jet lag of shifting all those time zones in short order. But somehow it is better to be feeling it in a camp under the stars, partway up a beautiful mountain. 

Best,

Dave Hahn

It wasn’t easy, but we got our Kilimanjaro climbing team together in Usariver, Tanzania. Today was meant to be an easy day of gear sorting and packing at the comfortable and quiet Rivertrees Inn—under the watchful eyes of curious monkeys. But with flight delays and reroutes, some of our team just barely made it into town in time for the climb—and predictably, the airlines lost their luggage. So it was a bit of a scramble—greatly aided by our Arusha-based outfitter, Barking Zebra—to come up with the required equipment on short notice. We think we’ve got it.

Dinner—our first face-to-face meeting for the complete team—was pleasant and relaxed despite the gear deficit. The hotel staff surprised Lisa, and all of us, by recognizing her birthday with a beautiful cake. Things are coming together, and we’re excited to get on the highest mountain in Africa tomorrow morning.

Best regards,
Dave

The Four Day Climb July 28 - 31 led by RMI Guide Dave Hahn reached the summit of Mt. Rainier this morning.  The teams enjoyed a perfect day on the mountain with clear skies and light winds.  They enjoyed a bit of time in the summit crater before starting their descent around 7am.  The teams will work their way back to Camp Muir, take a short break to repack and then continue the final 4,500' to Paradise.  They will conclude their program this afternoon with a celebration of their adventure this afternoon.

Congratulations team!

PC: Dave Hahn

At 5:45 am this morning, the Four Day Climb led by Dave Hahn and team successfully reached the summit of Mount Rainier. The climbers were greeted by clear skies and a stunning sunrise, making for a truly memorable moment at 14,410 feet.

The team reported encountering some wind while ascending the Disappointment Cleaver, but conditions improved as they neared the summit. By the time they reached the top, the winds had calmed, allowing for a peaceful and awe-inspiring views.

Currently, the team is on their descent, working their way back to Camp Muir. Congratulations to Dave Hahn and the entire team on a safe and successful summit!

Early this morning, the Four Day Climb teams, led by RMI Guides Dave Hahn and Dominic Cifelli, successfully reached the summit of Mt. Rainier!

They were treated to a stunning sunrise and clear skies as they stood at 14,410 feet, taking time to celebrate their achievement and soak in the incredible views. After savoring their moment at the top, the teams began their descent to Camp Muir around 7:00 a.m. and are now continuing down to Paradise.

We look forward to welcoming them back in Ashford later this afternoon and celebrating a safe and successful climb!

Congratulations climbers!

Friday, July 4, 2025 - 1:33 AM PT

After we got in the tents at 11k last night, there was a violent thunderstorm passing over with inches of hailstones. We awoke at 2:00 AM to fire the stoves, choke down some oatmeal and get ready for a big day. It was party cloudy but mostly clear, which led to easy  walking conditions. We were walking by 4:00 AM and and fairly soon, we’d reached the upper regions of Ski Hill and then our old camp at 8k. It only took us a further three hours to reach base camp. For late season, conditions were amazing. We never had to cross an open crevasse. We stayed busy at base camp sorting our own gear and helping others to load planes. Our flights came in around 1:00 PM and then we were headed to Talkeetna. Our team had donated pizzas in their mouths within 5 minutes of landing in Talkeetna. K2 Aviation did an excellent job bringing us home. In checking out with the National Park Service, we learned that we had been the absolute last team on the mountain and that the success rate for the season had only been 36%.

We sorted gear for the afternoon and then celebrated with a dinner at the brew pub. We celebrated a safe and enjoyable climb that didn’t reach the summit. That seemed appropriate given how much we enjoyed the effort of simply trying to get up the mountain.

RMI Guide Dave Hahn and Team   

PC: Dave Hahn

Wednesday, July 2, 2025 - 10:43 pm PT

There are amazing views every step of the way from the crest of the ridge, but with heavy packs and steep terrain to negotiate, we didn't take so many pictures. Sure enough, the wind was still blowing and the slope was still loaded when we woke at 17,000' this morning. We packed up and started down the West Buttress at 11AM. The fixed rope section went smoothly and we were digging up our 14,000' cache by 2PM and continuing our descent by 3:30. Much snow had fallen on Windy Corner since we'd last been there and the walking and sled pulling was a little challenging as a result. We persevered on down the Polo Field, Squirrel Hill and finally down the reflecting oven that Motorcycle Hill tends to be in late afternoon. At 11,000' we got right to work building a hasty camp and running the stoves. We'd been in blazing hot sun but as soon as we sat down to an outdoor dinner, a spectacular hailstorm hit. But we were hungry and sat through it. 

Folks are getting a few hours rest now. We'll get up in the night and make a push for the airstrip in the early morning hours.

RMI Guide Dave Hahn

Tuesday, July 1, 2025 - 10:04 pm PT

Today was windy from start to finish, which we weren't quite expecting from the forecasts. There was plenty of sunshine though and so it wasn't uncomfortable. But we mostly hung in the tents, just coming out occasionally to look at the world stretched out below. And to look at the route to Denali Pass, over and over. The avalanche hazard still exists and we can't will it away by staring at the slope. The team is agreed that we'll look at it one more time -tomorrow morning- but then, without some dramatic change, we'll descend, as the teams around us have done.  The forecasts are calling for strong winds up high now in any case. 

It is a tough situation.  Luckily we are climbing with tough people.

RMI Guide Dave Hahn

Monday, June 30, 2025 - 11:04 pm PT

Perfect day for moving on up.  We took advantage and climbed to 17,200. The team was already roped and moving toward the headwall at 8:30 AM when the cold shadows still covered the entire basin. We got much needed sun at the first rest break. It was a pleasure as always to top out the ropes at 16,200.  We broke into our cache for a few essentials... just to make sure the guide packs were heavy enough for climbing the West Buttress. The spectacular walk up the crest went smoothly for us and we rolled into 17,000' Camp at 3:15. As usual, it was tough to build a solid and safe camp at such a high elevation just after arriving. But we got it done and sat down to a nice dinner inside our dining tent. Snow conditions on the route to Denali Pass are still unstable so there is no chance for us to go for the summit tomorrow.

We'll keep evaluating to see whether we get a chance on following days.

RMI Guide Dave Hahn

Sunday June 29, 2025 - 10:49 pm PT

It was the ultimate luxury to lie in until the sun came around this morning. We ate our last bagel breakfast and lounged about in the sunshine. We rested, but we also schemed and plotted our ascent for the next few days, and that scheming got tougher as the day progressed. We became aware that the teams at 17K had turned around from their summit bids after finding avalanche conditions on the "autobahn". Of course we will need some improvement in that condition by the time we reach the same terrain, so the team will have the challenge of trying to remain optimistic and positive while acknowledging that a problem lies ahead. We said goodbye to Dom's RMI team as they descended through 14 camp, we ate our dinner and we prepared to climb. 

- RMI Guide Dave Hahn