SIBERIAN TIME:    
dispatches
Rob DesLauriers 
John Falkiner 
Frederik Jacobi 
Kit Katzenbach 
Ace Kvale 
Kasha Rigby 
Scot Schmidt 
Jim Zellers 

Index of Altai Expedition Dispatches


Bliss and the Blues Back in Moscow
Friday, April 9, 1999 — 2:07pm (PST)
"We're also singing a little bit of the blues because every good trip has to come to and end, and it's sad to see this one go..."
— Rob DesLauriers

Bacchanalian Feast and Sauna Fest
Thursday, April 8, 1999 — 9:41am (PST)
"I think they're yelling at me to hurry to get to dinner, but they're yelling at me because I'm putting my clothes on..." — Kasha Rigby

Hitting the Road
Wednesday, April 7, 1999 — 9:20am (PST)
"There's about probably 1000 pounds of gear and 17 of us on a bus hardly bigger than a mini van, and we're just sleeping everywhere..." — Ace Kvale

25-Mile Trek Out
Tuesday, April 6, 1999 — 9:10am (PST)
"Today we had to cross a pass; we covered around 10 miles today and 15 miles yesterday..."
— Scot Schmidt

Rolling on the River
Monday, April 5, 1999 — 8:30am (PST)
"We were getting over the snowbridges as they collapsed..." — Jim Zellers

Good Karma on an Incredible Journey
Sunday, April 4, 1999 — 8:56am (PST)
"Everybody seems to be kind of at peace with the whole trip and with themselves here..." — John Falkiner

Not Over Yet
Saturday, April 3, 1999 — 6:50am (PST)
"We've got away with no incidents, no accidents in quite a delicate situation concerning crevasses and cold..." — John Falkiner

Aprés-Summit, Living Large
Friday, April 2, 1999 — 6:40am (PST)
"We learned that we're maybe some of the few or first Americans on this mountain..." — Ace Kvale

Barrels and Moonshine
Thursday, April 1, 1999 — 9:06am (PST)
"We made a push for it and came down, had maybe four or five pitches of rappels on ice today with our skis on our packs as part of the descent...." — Kit Katzenbach

Over Ice and Rock to the Summit
Wednesday, March 31, 1999 — 7:20am (PST)
"The weather was good when we started and it got very harsh toward mid-day and it was very nasty on top...." — Scot Schmidt

Recon from the Snowcaves
Tuesday, March 30, 1999 — 5:41am (PST)
"We weren't really sure which was the summit — there's so many peaks out here..." — Jim Zellers

Hello America from Alec
Monday, March 29, 1999 — 6:04am (PST)
"We have one of our Russian friends here, his name is Alec...and he wants to say hello to you guys..." — Ace Kvale

Moonrise Over Mongolia
Monday, March 29, 1999 — 4:41am (PST)
"Hopefully we've got enough food and fuel to last another three or four days..." — Ace Kvale

Snowed in by the Apex of Four Corners
Monday, March 29, 1999 — 4:37am (PST)
"We are in the four corners here of China, Mongolia, Kazakhstan and Russia..." — Scot Schmidt

Scoping Out Killer Snow
Saturday, March 27, 1999 — 5:55am (PST)
"We'll spend the night here and then move on tomorrow and get within a little bit closer to the summit..." — Jim Zellers

Higher Temps, Higher Up
Friday, March 26, 1999 — 3:16am (PST)
"Finally it warmed up, the high today probably getting in there at about 35 degrees..." — Jim Zellers

Preparing for the Summit
Thursday, March 25, 1999 — 7:29am (PST)
"The altitude isn't that high, but it's very difficult, so we're starting to realize that it's quite a project..." — Scot Schmidt

Skiing Frozen Waterfalls
Wednesday, March 24, 1999 — 6:46am (PST)
"We did that for about 3,000 vert, once in a while hitting a little snow, but most of the time on this ice..." — Kasha Rigby

Pork Fat Snickers Anyone?
Tuesday, March 23, 1999 7:03am (PST)
"These mountains are huge, enormous in size for a 15,000ft peak..." —Kit Katzenbach

Karate, Guitar and Vodka
Monday, March 22, 1999 6:39am (PST)
"We were denied a sauna because that would make us too sluggish..." —Jim Zellers

Whipped After 15 Time Zones
Sunday, March 21, 1999 7:27am (PST)
"And in the sauna, they're whipping us with some birch branches..." —Ace Kvale

Far Out and Tubular
Saturday, March 20, 1999 5:27am (PST)
"We're staying in some classic Russian barrels— these Siberian tube-like huts..."
—Rob DesLauriers

Arrival in Moscow
Friday, March 19, 1999 12:00pm (PST)
"Everyone has arrived safely in Moscow. We're calling in from Red Square..."
—Rob DesLauriers





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