Summit Denied to Weather

After a terrible few days weather-wise, the Logan team has decided to pull back and begin their descent from the mountain. There will be no second push for the summit. Please keep the team in your prayers.

Onwards and upwards...finalizing plans for Dykh Tau in Russia for July.

Minor Setback but Things Still Good on Logan

From the IMG Blog...

IMG Guide Mark Allen reports some pretty cold conditions on Mt. Logan. They were not able to get their cache in up on Prospector’s Col yesterday, but that’s not the end of the world. The plan now is to move up to the col today, to take advantage of the forecasted weather window coming their way.

Expedition Going Well...

From the IMG Blog as of May 19th...

Mark called in late this afternoon to report that all continues to go well on Logan. They’re at C2 now “right in the middle of King’s Trench” with great views of their objective (Logan) and King Peak. Tomorrow they’ll carry to C3 and double back to sleep at C2. Climb high, sleep low works as well in Alaska as it does in the Himalayas.

If the weather holds they’ll move into C3 on Monday.

No scheduled check in for a couple days so as always: “no news is good news”.

Tye Chapman

Going Well So Far...

From the IMG Blog...

Mark Allen called in today to report that all is well on Mt. Logan.  They enjoyed the night at C1 and are en route to C2.  It’s a big day even after dropping a cache about halfway. They’ll pull into camp tonight around 10pm, not a big deal in the great white north this time of year.

Tomorrow they’ll sleep in and have a big breakfast before heading down to retrieve their cache.  An ‘active rest day’ we’ll call it.

All is well. Next scheduled call time is Saturday. Remember no news is good news in the mountains.

Tye Chapman

Dr. Botha has landed!

From the IMG website:

IMG Guide Mark Allen called in this afternoon to report that all is well on the US/Canada Border! The team flew in and were dropped off safely on the flanks of Mt. Logan, Canada’s tallest peak. It was a ‘bluebird’ day with views from the St. Elias to the Pacific Ocean.

Once ‘awe factor’ has worn off they plan to carry to Camp 1 (C1) this evening in one push. Then, they’ll head on up to C2 tomorrow, dropping a cache about half-way which they’ll double back and pick-up on their rest-day (Day 3).

That’s about it for now.

Mount Logan - Here We Come

It's time to keep battling the seven second highest summits. Dr. Botha had originally planned to do the infamous K2 this July, but has since decided to do Mt. Logan. Today he set off on his incredible adventure making time for a quick middle-of-the-night phone call to me (his daughter Natasha) in Thailand. He sounds in great spirits as he heads towards Anchorage, Alaska. I'll keep you updated on his progress if you promise to keep him in your prayers for me :) Onwards and upwards!!

Thailand Times Two!

It's been a long time since any posts in this blog and it's about time I get it up and running again! A lot has happened in the past year, but I'll keep the recap short.

I went to Thailand twice over the past two months to visit my daughter, Tasha. She moved to Phuket in October and is the Director of Marketing & Communications for Tiger Muay Thai & MMA - the world's largest Muay Thai gym. It's an incredible place and famous fighters from all over the world come there to train. They have been profiled in TV shows and publications around the globe and it's like no place else on Earth.

I used the opportunity to reconnect with Tasha but also to train for my upcoming adventures. No, I didn't do any Muay Thai (didn't want to risk an injury this close to the climb) but I hammered it out in the bootcamps, spin and weight classes.

Runs to the Big Buddha and intense beach workouts added a lot of variety and additional functional movement training to my current regime.

I am going to Mount Logan in May with a trip to K2 planned for July. K2 will obviously be something else. It's going to be incredibly difficult, but I'm ready for the challenge.

Here are a few pics from Thailand...

A big thanks to Richie Lattin - Tiger Muay Thai's AV Manager for making me a mini-documentary about my adventures in an effort to help me find sponsorship. Richie is an incredible artist who's work smashes it out of the PARK! Seriously, the guy's incredible. Check out this video he did for fighter Paul Daley.

Richie and his fiancé Becky hung out with Tash and I a lot and are top notch people. They are moving to Japan after their wedding in June and I'm sure they'll find adventure wherever they go! Richie's video will be posted here and on Facebook.

Can't wait to see it!

Above: Wat Chalong (Chalong Temple) is incredibly beautiful and peaceful.

I LOVE tiger cubs!! I couldn't wait to give this one a bottle at the Phuket Fantasea show entrance. Tash loves animals too and was especially impressed with the goats in the show...yes, the goats. She's always been a bit strange! HA!

Getting a kiss from "Tasha's elephant" Lucky!

And so the adventures continue. I'm back in Grimshaw training hard and looking forward to new things to come. Thanks for reading :)

Ojos del Salado Summit Successful!

Dr. Botha has reached the summit of Ojos del Salado. It was an extremely difficult climb but he managed to meet up with some great guides to help him make it happen. They had to try it twice, but the second time was the charm!

Although the organizer wasn't very organized, these other people opened their homes and their hearts so that Dr. Botha managed to achieve his goal! Of course, he managed to make friends wherever he went with his adventurous spirit and sense of humour! Congrats! Congrats! Congrats!

The Highest Volcano in the World

Dr. Botha left for Ojos del Salado in Chile yesterday and will be starting his expedition on March 4th. The expedition will take about 10 days. This mountain is the second highest in the Western Hemisphere and the highest volcano in the world. It's 22,608 ft and sits about 600 km north of Aconcagua. As many of you may remember, that is the highest in the Western Hemisphere and Dr. Botha reached the summit of that mountain in the early 2000s.

Please add your messages of support and encouragement here! Oh and prayers are always encouraged. Thanks so much!

Good luck Dr. B!!!

Summit!

Dr. Botha has reached the summit of Mt. Kenya!! It was a LOT more difficult than predicted, but successful none-the-less. He said the climb was very technical and they reached the actual summit - not the false summit most aspire to. The Batian summit is only 11 metres or so from the the Nelion summit - but translates into FOUR hours of grueling extra work. Most people just go to Nelion and call it a day. We are just happy he's okay and that he reached his goal!!! He sends lots of thanks for all the well-wishes and prayers. He really, really appreciates your support!

Two Hours or So!

Dr. Botha is doing very well and is at Nelian at the moment. It about two hours until he reaches the real summit of Mt. Kenya. He is feeling good and excited to be this close to the finish!

Doing well in Kenya!

Dr. Botha is enjoying his climb in Kenya and is finding all the animals incredible. He is going to high camp today and hopes to summit on Thursday. He's feeling great, but it's very cold at night. He sends his hellos and love to all his friends and family!

Climbing Mt. Kenya

Dr. Botha has arrived in Kenya to tackle Mt. Kenya! We are very excited and will keep you updated on his progress as we get his reports.

Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers!

Some photos from Puncak Trikora...

SUMMIT!!!

Dr. Botha has reached the summit! He called in today and said it's probably one of the most dangerous climbs he's ever done. The ridge was paper thin in many places. Even the guides were unsure of the path to take because no one they'd every accompanied had gone that far before!! Congratulations Dr. Botha!!! Thanks to everyone for their support.

All Set in Indonesia

Dr. Botha arrived in Indonesia just before flights were once again canceled thanks to volcanic eruptions. He's had a nice couple of days training, sleeping and eating great food! Dr. Botha, along with his climbing partner Carsten, will head out today for Wamena. Keep them in your thoughts and prayers!

Pancakes and Puncak Trikora

A big thanks to the Town of Grimshaw for putting on such an awesome pancake breakfast for Dr. Botha this past Saturday! It was a delicious spread and we are so appreciative to all the people for dropping by and for their contributions! My dad was really touched.

It was really neat for my brother and I to see how our dad's adventures have inspired you to achieve your own. Some of the senior citizens in Grimshaw are taking up hand-gliding and white water rafting! What an impressive group! An especially big thanks goes out to Tracy Halarowich and Debbie Langford for their hard work with the breakfast(I'm sorry if I spelled your names wrong).

After a breakfast indulgence, it's back to the hard work for Dr. Botha. He's leaving for Puncak Trikora in Indonesia on Thursday morning. With all the natural disasters happening there right now, you can imagine that we're feeling a little apprehensive about his departure. As usual, however, he's taken every procaution possible and this space will be updated as much as possible to keep everyone in the loop regarding his progress.

Please post your well-wishes on the blog or email him directly at anbotha@telus.net He always appreciates every message (as does his family :)

FINISHED!

What an exhiliarating few minutes!! Dr. Botha has finished the Furnace 508! This is an absolutely incredible accomplishment! WOW!

I asked Arlene to text me just before he crossed the finish line so that I could watch live on the website's webcam and it was incredible to see him finish! He walked over to the camera and waved. I was able to watch him get his medal. I could not be more proud! GO DAD!

Woooooooooooooooohoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!

Here are a couple of pics from the finish line courtesty of Chris Kostman and the Furnace Creek 508 website.

Finally at the Last Stage!

Dr. Botha is at the beginning of the final stage of the race! This is so very exciting! Thanks for all your support!

Stage Eight Around the Corner...

Although he's exhausted with an extremely sore rear end, there is no thought of stopping for Dr. Botha! He is nearing the end of Stage seven and the final stretch is (THANKFULLY) downhill! I've been sending his messages of support to Arlene via text message and she says they are helping his resolve. He has just had a big burst of energy. Whether it's the messages or the energy gel packs, we'll never know ;-)

Butterfly (also known as Andi Ramer) is still nearby and looking for her first 508 finish as a solo cyclist!

Both of you can do it!