Climb of Pico do Orizaba, Iztaccihuatl, and La Malinche in Mexico

[@docrjay]

You know I have given up on Orrizaba...but looking at this video it made me forget the 2 times I went there and failed. The last one suffering both HAPE and HACE. Looking back, I made some mistakes for which if I adequately prepared I should have summited. But just looking at you guys make it with all the smiles despite how difficult it was makes wanna do it again. I hope this September would be the 3rd and final time..lol..Thank you for posting this video, it actually cemented my will to conquer Orrizaba again. Great stuff...just great stuff..👏👏👏

[@BHarker75]

Thank you for the comments. When I summited Kilimanjaro in February of 2019 it was staggeringly difficult but I learned from my mistakes and applied those lessons to Orizaba which, because of those fixes, I found to be significantly easier. My first mistake for Kilimanjaro was that I did way too much Zone 3 & 4 training which was just wrong for high-altitude mountaineering; for Orizaba I backed off and did a bunch of Zone 2 training instead. My second Kilimanjaro mistake was acclimatization. For Kili we went from sea-level to summit in less than four days. For Orizaba I went from sea-level to summit in eight days. These two fixes had me feeling great on my Orizaba climb and I enjoyed every second of it. Get your training right and give yourself time to acclimatize and then send it! You can do it.

[@docrjay]

@@BHarker75 Thanks man! Do you recommend just doing zone 2 and no strength training? Ditto on the 8 days. I have only planned 6 days max from sea level on my 2 previous attempts after practice summiting 2 14eners in California. Its the reason why I failed.

[@BHarker75]

@@docrjay R Jay Ceasar Taguinod I strength train pretty hard year round regardless of my mountain goals so I forgot to mention that. But yes, in moderation, I think strength training is invaluable for mountaineering.

[@ChristopherJackson-er5wj]

Great video! You do a great job putting these together, keep up the good work. I am heading down to Mexico with RMI in February for the same trip you cover in the video. Any suggestions? I summited Rainier with RMI, as well as made an attempt on Shasta last year (weather had other plans). All that to say, I have a decent idea of what to expect, but I’m up for any pointers you may have. Once again, keep up the great videos, and I can’t wait to see you next adventure. PS: Loved your Shasta video too, very jealous of the gorgeous weather you had.

[@BHarker75]

Ixta kicked my butt, to the point I was having serious doubts about Orizaba coming up 3 days later, but I bounced back and had a great day on Orizaba. So just take each day separately. Have a great trip!

[@rainbowandrose]

Congrats to all on the ascents, Beautiful spots here in México. Well shot and compiled ty for sharing

[@BHarker75]

Thanks!

[@EmbracingDetours]

Awesome video, Brandon! Camera work was ON POINT, SON 🙂 Congratulations on the summits.

[@BHarker75]

There is no bigger compliment than 'ON POINT, SON'!!!

[@keithhuntsman5780]

Great video! Perfect coverage of the trip. Congrats on your summits.

[@BHarker75]

Thanks a ton!

[@bri123one]

Loved it!! Congrats on your amazing accomplishment! Nice job on the videography, I know the effort it takes to get those shots is more than a lot of people realize. Love being able to come along on these adventures with you and let you do all the hard work 😁

[@BHarker75]

Thank you! Running ahead of the group at 14,000ft to setup a video shot is exhausting :)

[@byelick]

Great video! My wife and I summited Orizaba 2 years ago. We did Nevado de Toluca instead of La Malinche, but a fairly similar itinerary. We were turned around on Izta for weather. Your video makes me want to go back...bad(that isn't what I was saying when we got back to refugio piedra grande ;-) )

[@BHarker75]

Thanks! It's crazy how fast we go from "why the hell am I doing this?" to scheduling the next sufferfest!

[@bradysaravanlife9371]

i wanna solo this is there water avaible on the trail if not how much water did u bring up?

[@BHarker75]

We didn't have water on the trail for Ixta so all water for the 2 day climb had to be carried in. For Orizaba the climb from the hut is short enough that we just carried what we needed. I don't remember what I carried but I typically start a climb day with 2.5 to 3 liters of water.