Day Nine

Written By Joan Steelquist

Paige, Ian and Evan summited!

They reached the top (18,491’) at 11:30, spent about 45 minutes at the summit and were back at the hut at 3:20.

The full team started at 2:20 am in the dark—while moon rise was at 10:17 pm, the moon was waning crescent with illumination of 18%.

  • Mark reached his personal summit at 15,500’ and decided to descend due to very low energy, which can be a symptom of Altitude Mountain Sickness (AMS).

  • Dale reached his personal summit at 16,200’ and decided to descend due to gastrointestinal (GI) distress.

  • Frances reached her personal summit at 17,500’ and decided to descend due to fatigue.

Weather was good, clear skies and warm temps. Great views to the west of Ixta, Popo, and La Malinche, thunderheads over Veracruz and the Pacific coast.

“The team did great. Everyone made the right choice for them regarding climbing or turning around. This might be the first climb I’ve been on where everyone gave it everything they had. Lots of good learning and conversations coming out of this trip.”~Ian

Our celebratory dinner in Tlachichuca and all of us with our wonderful host family, the Canchola.

Joan Steelquist
Next

Day Seven