Hi Folks Well you might be wondering why no updates over the past week or so?
Two reasons mainly - firstly, all teams have been under communication restrictions (with a presence of Military at BC, and Camp II) in the lead up to the Olympic torch being carried to the summit of Everest, and secondly, all our team has been up on the 2nd push up the route to Camp II.
I spent a few days at Camp I, feeling a lot better for it, and returning up the ice fall with the Sherpas leaving 330am and arriving Camp I at 8am - a lot faster than the first time up the ice fall which was a good sign of moving more efficiently at the higher altitudes.
At Camp I, I joined Jamie, Andy, Marty, and Tim, and the following day (~26th April) we all made a leisurely 4 hour hike further up into the Western Cwm to Camp II, taking in the spectacular views.
An oversight made by myself was in stopping and balancing halfway across a crevasse crossing to take a photo, only to have a Sherpa point out that I failed to attach the safety line. One week prior, Zangbu Sherpa from our team was crossing one of the crevasses without a safety line (as the young confident Sherpas often do), and he lost his balance, the ladder toppled to one side, but he was most fortunate to be able to wrap his arm quickly around the fixed safety line to prevent a sure fatal fall. Both these incidents were a good reminder of safety as a priority at all sections along the route, no matter how exposed or exposed they may seem.
Camp II is located on rocky terrain on the edge of the glacier and sits at the foot of Everest 2,200m south west face. From Camp II the summit itself is now clearly visible, looming high above us, but at least now it seemed within striking distance.
Getting this far has been both physically and mentally draining, but with each descent and re-ascent we feel stronger in both capacities for the hard effort required in the final summit push.
About a further 2 hours on from Camp II at the end of the Western Cwm the Lhotse face is also clearly visible. The Lhotse face looks most intimidating - a 400m ascent in hard ice of 50-60 degrees. It is part way up the Lhotse face at 7,300m above the yellow rock band that Camp III will be precariously perched.
At Camp II conditions are marginally better than at Camp I. We have a basic kitchen set up, with food typically consisting of chapatis, cereals, eggs, and lots of noodle soups and pasta.
After spending 3-5 nights at Camp II we all returned to BC on Wed 30 April, again to rest, and recover before pushing back up the route again.
For the most part, all team members have adjusted well to the altitude and are in good spirit. Numerous team members (including myself) have developed a constant coughing known as the "Khumbu Cough" which results from breathing cold, dry air and the agitation this puts on the throat. The next few days will be critical for overcoming this ailment as best as possible.
As at today, 1st May, the outlook is as follows:
2-3rd May : there is a small weather window in which the Chinese may summit Everest with the Olympic torch. Everyone is hoping this will happen. (The past couple of days which we suspect is the Chinese)
5-6th May - a tropical cyclone is coming up from Bay of Bengal and expected to bring snowfall and high winds until about the 9th May
After 9th May weather forecast suggests near windless conditions for a number of days - creating, what looks at this time, to be favorable summit conditions
Tomorrow (2nd May) - Andy, and myself will descend on an 5 hour hike down to Dingboche (4,410m) for a couple of nights to recharge ourselves on the lower altitude, and also rebuild our energy reserves with a good food intake, and for myself to try and shake the Khumbu cough. We will then return to BC to rejoin the team (James, Anselm, Gina, Raphael and Jamie) and then make the ascent back up to Camp I & Camp II for what could well be either a slow, final summit push around 9th May, or a push up to touch Camp III, descend back to BC for rest and recovery an then make a final summit push later in May. It all really depends now on how quickly the Chinese summit, and how the weather situation unfolds.
Today (Thursday) is a rest day for everyone and a good chance to catch up on laundry (although after one month now, clothes still rinse dirty), play a few (more) games of cards, or perhaps to even indulge in a shower which has just been set up. Raphael was the first to use the shower yesterday and he reported at breakfast this morning he was not feeling so good/had a bad night sleep. We all agreed it was a likely allergic reaction to having a shower and being so clean!
Bye for now....David
