Adventures in the Mountains

The final post for this adventure

2009-06-08T13:03:00.012+01:00

This will be my last posting for this adventure. Thank you for all the comments that have been left and please do not underestimate how much they all helped. I hope to see you all soon and maybe sink the odd beer or two.

I started with a photo of us in the plane from Kathmandu so I thought it appropriate to end with the plane back again.

A great summit party was had by all in the White Pod. This time there were no broken bones although the hangovers at altitude are from hell!

Some of the wonderful Sherpas who work tirelessly carry loads for up to 3 months and then climb with us on summit day. Always happy and smiling, never seeming to tire or feel pain these people make the dream possible.

Just as we are about to leave Base Camp the weather decides to have the last laugh. About 50cm of snow meant that we all had to dig ourselves out of our tents before we left.

Summit update

2009-05-25T23:17:00.024+01:00

I am sorry that this update has taken a little while to get through to you but what with the bad weather (little solar power) and everyone wanting time on the computer to send e-mails and reply to e-mails it has been a little difficult. Even now there is a queue of 5 or 6 people wanting to use it so I will have to keep this update slightly more brief than I would have otherwise liked.

Photo number:

1: Playing cricket at camp 2 (6,400m). If you remember earlier in the trip we had gone down to 5,000m to where 2 English teams had come to play the highest cricket match in the world. I don't think our game will count as we just had a knock around but it was great fun and it took our minds off the impending climb. It was fantastic to have a knock around with the Sherpas who really enjoyed it and relaxed a little before the next 4 days of hard work.

My trip from camp 2 to camp 3 was very difficult. I had a very churney stomach and felt very bloated. Half way up the Lhotse face I heard on the radio that Thomas, one of the Norwegians had to turn back due to a stomach upset - he found he had no energy at all. It was very worrying for all of us as a couple of people (including Chris Jones my tent mate) had only just recovered from a 36hr bug. At Camp 3 I had very bad wind problems and spent the whole day terrified that I had the bug and I would not be able to proceed to Camp 4 the following day. Everyone that had had the bug so far had not been able to climb for 36hrs!
When I woke at Camp 3 feeling good and less bloated the relief I felt was incredible. I had a poo into a poo bag (very difficult at -15C in a down suit on an ice cliff) and popped a couple of immodium. There was one other person who had had the same symptoms and again seemed much better this morning. I think we had both been very lucky and had only picked up a mild version of the bug going around.
Thomas tried again yesterday afternoon to get to camp 3 but failed half way. He then tried 36hrs later with the second group coming up behind us and failed again. It was very sad as he was one of the stronger members of the whole team. Likewise a member of the second team, Jim, was also struck down by the bug which led to him passing out just before the Lhotse face.

2: Picture from South Col camp 4 (7,950m). There are only 14 mountains higher than 8,000m so here where our last camp is we are sleeping higher than every mountain in the world arpart from the 14 that are in the Himalaya.

We started using Oxygen at camp 3 to help us sleep. We used a low flow rate of just 1/2 litre per minute but it enabled me to have a really good night's sleep. We left Camp 3 for Camp 4 on an oxygen flow rate of 2 litres per minute and for a few hundred metres it felt wonderful. After that it felt just as hard as without oxygen but I am sure we were moving much faster than we would have without it.

3: A couple of our tents at South Col with the large pile of oxygen bottles to the right. These, as well as tents, sleeping bags, roll mats and cooking equipment, had all been carried from BC to the South Col by the Sherpas over the previous days and weeks.

4: Edward on my tent at the South Col.

5: The sky finally getting light after around 4 hours of climbing. This picture was taken at the South Summit of Everest 8,700m

After arriving at the South Col we immediately set to work melting and boiling water to rehydrate ourselves. Chris Jones and I managed to eat a little salami and cheese as well as a tomato soup. We again slept on Oxygen at 1/2 litre per minute. We finally finished at 6:30pm and tried to get some sleep. I amazingly managed to sleep for 3hrs. We had to get up at 9:30pm to again start boiling water for our climb. We spent 2 hrs boiling water and getting ready and left at just after 11:30pm.

Our first objective was a place called the Balcony (8,450m) where we were to dump one of our oxygen bottles and continue on the other one we were carrying. We arrived after 3hrs still in the complete dark. There was very little light from the moon, although we did get some wonderful views of a thunderstorm over Nepal.

We then continued onto the South Summit.

6: Looking towards the Hilary Step from the South Summit. Taken at 04:33 in the morning.

7: Five minutes later, beginning to climb the Hilary Step.

8: On the final snow ridge to the summit.

9: Still on the final snow ridge to the summit but looking towards the sun rise.

10: Finally on the summit after 6hrs and 5 mins of climbing from the South Col. Note the shadow of Everest on the clouds in the background. The Top of the World - Fantastic!

11: Dad and me.

12: Kim, Harvey, Safia and me.

13: Harvey and me.

14: Safia and me.

As my father never met my children, I felt that there would be no better or closer place to introduce them to each other.

15: Everest's shadow on the clouds.

16 and 17: Pictures of me on top of Everest next to the prayer flags and little Bhudda.

18: Picture taken on my way back down from the Balcony looking down onto the South Col and our camp.

I expected to find summit day a day from hell which is what you read in most books, but due to the all the aclimatisation and training climbs that Russ made us do, the quality of the food and camps, plus the fact that I probably had more adrenalin pumping through me than I have ever had, I really enjoyed the whole day. I was lucky to have Phuba leading me up and on many occasions we unclipped from the fixed ropes to get past people, this kept us moving fast and warm and I think had a great deal to do with my enjoyment of the day. While it is not something I would want to do again, it will be a warm and fantastic memory of a great day's climbing with wonderful people. A day I will certainly never forget.

Thank you to Russ and all of his team for such wonderful support in every respect, this summit would not have been possible without all of them!

Thank you all also for all the supporting comments I have received during this trip. They have brightened the long, cold days spent at base camp and inspired me to achieve my best.

Look forward to seeing you all very soon.

Love Chris
xxxx

On top of the world!

2009-05-22T08:39:00.006+01:00

After a fairly tense day yesterday knowing that 9/10 of the Himex team summited but no details of who, I received a call from Chris this morning from Base Camp reporting that he had reached the summit.

Those of you who know Chris well will not be surprised to learn that he was the first of his team to make it to the top and he did it in a remarkable 6 hours 5 minutes, when the more ‘normal’ time is around 9 hours. A superhuman effort!

He was looking forward to a shower and a good meal and intends to sink a few beers in the white pod this evening.

Love to you all from a very proud Dovell household.

Kim
X

The final push to the summit is on..

2009-05-20T20:41:00.005+01:00

Another update from Adrian Ballinger by satelite phone (May 20th).

Our team of 10 climbers, 3 guides, 1 Discovery Channel cameraman and 11 sherpas are now getting a few hours of rest before their summit attempt.
The members took between 4+1/2 and 6 hours to climb from Camp 3 to Camp 4 at the South Col, experiencing some delays on ropes as they waited for descending climbers who had summited yesterday, but no significant problems.
The present plan is to leave Camp 4 at 11:30pm tonight (that’s 18:45 UK time) for their push to the summit. Although the last two days have seen a significant number of people summiting, there are still plenty of others who — like our team — plan to make their bid tonight. Adrian has seen the team from Asian trekking, Henry Todd’s team, and teams from Asia and Russia. His best guess is about 65 people, plus the 25 from our team. It’s going to be a busy time on the ropes. To increase our margin of safety, each of our climbers will have 3 bottles of oxygen. That’s enough for 24 hours, so if a log-jam occurs somewhere they can wait it out without difficulty.
The weather is perfect, not too cold and no wind. Our thoughts are with them, hoping for a fast ascent and a safe and easy descent back to Camp 4. As well as the primary Discovery Channel camera, 4 of our team are wearing helmet cams, so there should be plenty of footage when they get back down! We will report as soon as we can.
Adrian Ballinger by Sat Phone.

At Camp 3

2009-05-19T17:25:00.002+01:00

A report from Adrian Ballinger - one of the Himex guides by satelite phone
Our adventurers are just settling down to sleep at Camp 3. 10 of our 11 climbers made it successfully to this 23,600ft altitude, taking between 4 and 7 hours to climb up from Camp 2. One of the team had stomach problems and is delaying, hoping to catch up with the rest shortly.
Tonight they start sucking on their supplementary oxygen, which will help their bodies keep warm and will give them more of a chance to get some restful sleep. At 5:30am May 20th local time — that’s about 4:45pm PST our May 19th — they will be up, starting on the next leg of the climb up to Camp 4 at the Col. They hope to arrive there around lunch time, giving themselves another opportunity for rest before a midnight start for the summit on May 21st.
Other news we have from Everest tells us that the weather today has been superb and over a hundred climbers attempted to summit today. This volume of climbers led to bottlenecks on some of the ropes, and some of the climbers are later coming back down from the summit than they intended. We hope this all turns out safely and we will continue to monitor their progress. Hopefully today and tomorrow will see most of the summit attempts by other teams, and our group will find the route less obstructed on the 21st.
More news just as soon as we get it!

Getting closer...

2009-05-16T19:23:00.005+01:00

Well by the time this hits the Blog there is a good chance I will be on my way to the summit. Our plan is to climb from Base Camp to Camp 2 (5,300m to 6,400m) in one go and rest there for a day. We will then climb up the Lhotse Face to Camp 3 (7,300m). This is as high as we have been on our training climbs and is where we will potentially start using oxygen for the first time. The following day we will climbing to the South col (Camp 4 7,900m - just below the death zone at 8,000m). This will be more of a rest than a sleep as we will set off from here for the summit 8,850m anywhere from late evening to midnight.

After (hopefully!) reaching the summit, we will, after a few minutes, head back down to Camp 4 and, if we are strong enough, on down to Camp 2 where it is much safer. The summit day will probably be somewhere between 14 and 18 hours and it is said we will use between 14,000 and 18,000 calories! Looks like I might loose some more weight!

The team has been split into two and I will go with the first team. The team will consist of 11 clients, 12 Sherpas and 3 Western guides. We have each been assigned a Sherpa who will assist us on summit day. I have been very honoured to have been asigned Phuba, Russ's most experienced Sherpa, who now has 16 summits to his name and has already summited Everest this year when he fixed the ropes two weeks ago. Our western guides have 6 summits between them.

Just one photo this time of Phuba and me in Base Camp. I hope the next blog will contain photos of the summit!

Waiting for the weather to clear...

2009-05-13T13:11:00.008+01:00

Since the last posting it has continued to be very quiet here in Base Camp. Russ was right about the weather and the few teams that did try for the summit all had to turn back at the South Col (camp 4 at 7,900m) or earlier due to high winds. We learnt this morning that there has been some slight damage to tents at some of the camps but nothing that can not be replaced fairly easliy. Our Sherpas who were given a few days off by Russ are back this afternoon and the final load carrying up to the various camps will be completed over the next 48hrs.

The one good thing about the bad weather (light snow and cloud) for the last 3 days is that the additional moisture in the atmosphere seems to have helped my cough and so I am now raring to go!

The Himex team which started at 28 clients is now down to 22 (5 withdrawls and David Tait summitting). Some of the other larger teams here have lost similar percentages or more. Hopefully everyone that is now left has a realistic chance of summiting.

I have to say that, personally, I can feel the pressure mounting and am very keen to get going. A few more days and we should be off......fingers crossed.

Photo1: Base Camp under full moon.

Photo2: Russ with Lachu and Tashi his two main staff around camp. Lachu is in charge of Base Camp and has been on 26 expeditions with Russ. Tashi is Lachu's No.2. Both are great and can never do enough to help.

Photo3: Weather has now cleared but you can clearly see the very strong winds on top of the ridge leading to Nupste.

Replies to some of the comments left......thanks for all of them.

Paul and Linh: Congratulations on your news, how fantastic. WELL DONE. Hope I might see you if you are over in the summer and if not maybe later in the year in Dallas. Keep the comments coming there are great.

Alain: Arms and legs seem to be fading away to nothing, it is amazing how quickly the body seems to eat itself up here! Pity it leaves the beer gut in place!

Mum: Thanks for comments. Feeling better now and as ready as I can be to get to the top. Being with Russ should give you some comfort, he is a strong leader and has the total and absolute support and commitment of his Sherpa and Guide teams. He is a class act.

MarkO and Sarah: I am slowly getting through the tunes, particularly the green chill-out i-pod. Will try and take the red one to the summit and take a picture although I have been warned that they can crash above 7,000m.

Tamsin: Another couple of days yet. By the way all the guides, Mark Whetu, Woody and Dean either know you or have heard of you. Apparently Tim used to work for Mark and he stole you from him!!!! Dean - I think you had your first Himalyan trip with years ago. Mark has now summited Everest twice I think and the other two 5 times each!

Catherine and Phil: Great to hear from you both. Thanks for the comments. Pls send love back to parents.

Peter and Nikki: Thanks for the comments, Montrachet sounds very good. what I would give for a nice glass of wine now!

Mark Seaton: Great to hear from you. Last time I was in the Himalya you guided the North Face of the Eiger. Anything as exciting this time?

Fresh salmon at 5,400m

2009-05-10T11:59:00.005+01:00

The last few days here have been fairly dull as the weather up high is not very good and therefore we have been forced to wait in BC for things to change (particularly the wind). Today we were issued with our oxygen regulators and masks and Russ exlained how they worked and how to use them. Unfortunately the weather forecasts look poor for another week or so and so we might have to wait quite a long time before we get to use them.

One very special thing that happened today - we had fresh Salmon for lunch!!!!!! David Tait, one of the climbers who summited for the 3rd time with the Sherpas putting in the fixed rope on Wednesday, chartered a helicopter from a little further down the valley to take him back to Kathmandu. Russ arranged for the helicopter to bring in some fresh Salmon. How amazing fresh Salmon at 5400m!

I attach 2 photos. the first shows Phuba, Russ's Sidar (most senior Sherpa), in the foreground and David Tait. Phuba has now climbed Everest 15 times and helped put in the fixed ropes to the top last Wednesday. David went with the fixing team and summitted with them. The cooks made a fantastic carrot cake to celebrate that evening!

The second photo is a couple of hours later when we were in the white pod celebrating. Russ and some of the senior Sherpas doing a traditional Sherpa dance.

Some messages back to you:

Nancy: Have passed on your best wishes
Mum and John: thanks for your continuing comments and support, please keep them coming.
Huw: Good to hear from you. I am looking forward to a couple of beers very soon after I get back!
Pete & Nikki: Thanks for comment. Doing well and the Bear is watching my back. C U when I return.

Khumba ice falls claims a life

2009-05-10T11:43:00.006+01:00

In the last update I said how pleased I was with my trip up the mountain and also how relieved I was to get through the Ice Fall in one piece. The pictures that I attached to that blog of the avalanche were taken just inside the ice fall but thankfully I was far enough away for it not to affect me. Half an hour earlier and it might have been a different story. Unfortunately, around 10:00am yesterday the same part of the Serac collapsed again, this time about twice as big. We immeadiately got on the radios to our collegues who were coming down from camp 2 and were pleased to learn that they were all out of the ice fall and walking back through BC. Due to the size of the fall they did get covered in a thin layer of ice but nothing else. Within minutes however it became clear that others were not so lucky. Obviously the exact events of those few seconds are unclear but the result was a guide and a client had been swept into a crevasse, the client on top of the guide. both were rescued after about an hour. The client was shaken but essentially OK, the guide was unconscious when extracted but recovered and was able to walk by the time they got him to BC. The terrible news was that a Sherpa was also swept into a crevasse and only his rucksack and one boot has been found. It is very sad that Everest has already claimed its first victim and the real climbing has barely began. Russ held a collection today for his family and has taken the money up to the camp where he worked - i hope other camps have done the same! It makes the money that i have raised through sponsorship seem very worthwhile now and I am gratefull to all those who gave so generously.

The trip to and from Camp 3

2009-05-05T22:45:00.020+01:00

I have completed the acclimatisation part of my climb and now have to wait for the right weather forecast before we can go for the summit. I also need at least 4 or 5 days rest after my recent trip to camp 3. Last Wednesday we left Everest BC at 2:30am. We walked in almost complete silence through Base Camp to Crampon Point where we attached our crampons and set off into the infamous Ice fall at just after 3am. It was pitch black and you could only see the area immediately in front lit by the narrow beam of the head torch. The sun was rising as we progressed through the Ice Fall, and we could see for the first time the real dangers all around us - from the towering pillars of ice that could come crashing down at any moment to the yawning crevasses hundreds of metres deep. Looking further up we could also see the huge hanging seracs above us that regularly come crashing down onto the Ice Fall. Thankfully because of our acclimatisation on Lobuche we all moved fairly quickly and by 7am were through it to camp 1. After a cup of tea most decided to remain at Camp 1 but a few, including me, decided to push onto Camp 2. The biggest problem believe it or not in the Western Cym is the intense heat which can reach 40C during the day and drain what strength you have left from you very quickly. I reached Camp 2 after another 3hrs and thankfully due to a very slight breeze the temperature never became overwhelming. I was very pleased to know that I now had 2 whole days at Camp 2 to relax before we tackled the famous Lhotse face at the end of the Western Cym, a climb of nearly 1,000m to Camp 3 at 7,350m.

Camp 3 was, as expected, miserable. You just feel awful, not wanting to do anything. Literally, getting up from a lying position to a sitting position to put another layer on or take a drink can sometimes take 30minutes to summon up the strength or willpower to do it. You just want to stay still and do nothing - I now understand why some people on summit day just sit down and give up! Anyway, we spent most of the time melting ice to drink or cook with. Each bowl of water take ages to melt and when it does it takes another age to boil and then it only boils at significantly below 100C so everything (even soup) takes ages to cook. After almost 6hrs of melting ice and trying to force some drink and food down me, I tried to sleep. This is where the real horror of extreme altitude gets me with little sleep and what sleep I did get coming in only 10min chunks and with weird repeating dreams. You just lie there waiting and praying for the cold dawn. Temperatures fell to -20C when we were there and we woke to winds of 40km/hr. Humans are not meant to be at this altitude for very long!

Returning to Camp 2 was a great relief and from there the following day down to Base Camp was even better. The air at base camp and the ease at which I can move around is amazing compared to just a few weeks ago when I arrived. I have picked up a bit of a cough but apart from that I feel strong and hopefully after a few days rest I get the opportunity to go for the summit!

Pictures 1 & 2 The infamous Ice fall

Picture 3 - Camp 1

Picture 4 - Edward in my tent at camp 2 6500m
Picture 5 - The Lhotse face going from around 6700m to 8000m. Bigger than it looks in the photos!

Picture 6 - picture of the summit of Everest from camp 3. Geneva spur can be seen on the right hand side followed by the South Col which is around 8000m and where camp 4 is.
Picture 7 - Edward at camp 3 with a harness and his own carabena.
Picture 8 - Me holding Edward at camp 3 in front of Everest.
Picture 9 - Edward on top of my tent at sunrise at camp 3.

Picture 10 - Me crossing one of the many crevasses
Picture 11 - Picture of 2 of the many ladders across the cravasses in the Ice Fall
Picture 12 - Picture of me in the Ice Fall. The block of ice in the top left hand of the photo will fall soon - thankfully not while I was there.
Picture 13 - A new ladder has been put in place as you can see the old one hanging below has been smashed by a serac fall.
Picture 14 - I have just got through the Ice fall and was having a drink when a serac fell causing an ice averlanche that covered the Ice Fall. My friends who were behind me got covered in a little ice but no-one was hurt.....just a little shaken!

Hope you enjoy the pictures and please keep the comments coming.

PS: Today some of our Sherpas and Sherpas from another team fixed ropes to the summit. It is the first time ropes have been fixed this early for 10yrs and so I hope it bodes well for an early season. Also David Tate, (has submitted twice before with Russ) went with the Sherpa team and summited today at about 12:30 after setting off at 3:00am. He is still on his way down as I write this blog.

Lobouche top camp

2009-05-05T21:23:00.003+01:00

Photo of Lobuche top camp from Everest BC using a telescope on my camera. Shows how exposed the camp was.

The Khumbu Icefall

2009-04-27T11:13:00.007+01:00

I am now enjoying a few rest days after sleeping near the summit of Lobuche. For those that like facts and figures here a few personal ones comparing my vital statistics between London, upon arrival at base camp and now.

Blood oxygen level 99+% / 80% / 85%
Heart rate 50 / 79 / 68
Weight 86.5kg / 83.5kg / 80kg

The next trip is likely to be up through the Khumbu Ice fall to camp 1 at 6,100m and then on to camp 2 at 6,500m. A large chunk of ice collapsed mid-week in the Khumbu Icefall while over 100 Sherpas were heading up to camp 2. No injuries were reported, but the route was blocked for most of the day. We will probably spend 2 nights at camp 2 before heading further up to camp 3 at 7,500m. I am expecting a very nasty and uncomfortable night at camp 3 from what everyone has told me, let's hope I am pleastantly surprised. After a night at camp 3 we will return to camp 2 for 1 or 2 more nights before returning to Base Camp. All being well we will then be in a position to wait for a weather window, strength and health to go for the summit. All plans can obviously change but it it is likely that the next posting will be after this aclimatisation trip and so not for another 8 or 9 days. Please keep the comments coming and I will try and reply to them as and when I can. (Particularly if they are from your school Harvey and Safia)

Paul and Linh : Thank you both for the stream of messages, I really appreciate the support and kind comments. Please keep it up.

Maggie and Francis (plus dogs): Hope you are both well and enjoyed your time in Chamonix. We do have one or two charactures that are begginning to fit the Epic Eddie mould - I will keep you posted.

Joe: Camera, charger and i-pods working well. Hope the new job is going well. If your kids want to ask any questions etc please let them, I try my best to answer them - no promises!

Sarah and Steve: Thanks for the comment. Glad to hear you had a good time in chamonix.

John: thanks for all the comments, please keep them coming. Have a great weekend with your new toy. HAPPY BIRTHDAY FOR TODAY. Your an old git like me now!

Dover: Thanks for the comment and jokes.....they don't get any better! The easy part is done the hard part of this trip ie climbing Everest is about to begin. Fingers crossed.
I have already lost 6kg and have been eating like a horse!

Chris: Thanks for the comment. Keep them coming.

Sleeping at the top of Lobuche

2009-04-24T22:00:00.013+01:00

Just arrived back from another training climb to the top of Lobuche. This time we had to spend the night on the mountain to help with aclimatisation. We left Everest Base Camp on Wednesday to walk down to Lobuche Base Camp about 2hrs 40 and a decent of 450m, where upon arrival we had dinner around 6:30pm and settled ourselves down for an early night around 7pm. We woke at 5:30 had breakfast at 6:30 and left just after 7am for the summit a climb of around 1,100m. We arrived at Lobuche top camp around 11:30 and had some lunch. I then went back to the summit (went there 5 or 6 days ago but did not stay) with Chris Jones and Edward (the children's teddy mascot) to take some pictures. We then returned to our tents had supper around 6pm and I was asleep soon after 7pm. I woke a few times during the night but otherwise slept fairly well in spite of the high altitude. We got up around 5:30am and had some breakfast before heading down to Lobuche BC and then on up the hill to Everest BC which is where I am now. I now have a few days of rest before some more training climbs next week.

It is my brother John's 40th birthday on Monday. Thanks John for all your encouraging words on the blog and I am sorry I can't be with you this weekend. Best wishes from this far off land - happy birthday mate and I will raise a glass to you from the white pod bar!

Photos:

1: Edward at top camp on Lobuche just outside my tent.
2: Top camp cut into the side of the hill. VERY EXPOSED! Turn right out of tent ok, turn left fall about 2km.
3: Summit ridge up from top camp to summit.
4 & 5 Me reaching the summit.
6: Look carefully......our camp is at the bottom of the picture.
7: Edward holding onto the summit flags on the summit.
8: Sunset on Everest taken from Lobuche top camp
9: Sun rise on Everest taken from Lobuche top camp

Anyone for cricket?

2009-04-22T17:43:00.037+01:00

I am feeling very well and strong on the mountain and have been put in the first team out of three which is good but they are all very strong and I have to work hard. We started the first of our training climbs this week by climbing a peak called Lobuche (6,050m). We walked from Everest Base Camp to Lobuche Base Camp then the next morning climbed up to Lobuche camp 1. The following day we summited at around 9am after starting at 6am. I stayed on top for around 50 minutes before desending all the way to Lobuche BC for some lunch and then a long long walk back to Everest BC. It was a long tough day but it was good to be climbing.

Whist in Kathmandu, we heard that Lords was sending out a couple of cricket teams to Gorak Shep (just down from Everest Base camp) to set the world record for the highest game of cricket. As a joke, I bought a cricket bat, stumps and balls in Kathmandu and brought them up to Everest BC. Russ then took over and provided 2 uniforms for 2 cricket teams - 1 sherpas and 1 westeners. We dressed up and carried our cricket stuff down to Gorack Shep and challenged the Lords team to a cricket match at camp 2 on Everest (some 1200m higher than their game) They took it very well and luckily for us did not take up the challenge since none of us can actually play cricket. We exchanged caps etc. and Russ offered to take one of thier official cricket balls to the summit so that they could auction it off to help their fund raising.

1:Adrian, one of our guides, leading the climb up through the rock band up to camp 1 on Lobuche.
2: David Tate just completing the rock band.
3: Lobuche camp 1 (5,400m)
4: Edward at camp 1 on Lobuche
5: View from the summit of Lobuche looking down the final ridge.

6. Picture taken from the ridge looking back up to the summit of Lobouche.
7: View of Everest from the top of Lobuche. Everest is tucked behind the Nuptse / Lhoste ridge, base camp is in the bottom left hand corner of the picture.
8: View from the summit of Lobuche looking back down to camp 1
9: Russ playing Scalectrix in the White Pod at Everest base camp.
10: Some of the Sherpas playing Scalectrix in the white pod.
11: Picture of the Sherpa cricket team - the Khumjung Tigers - with cricket bat and stumps.
12: Russ with one of the captains and the organiser.

Base camp blog

2009-04-14T20:18:00.008+01:00

A number of people have been quite ill over the last 6 or 7 days with a mixture of coughs, upset stomachs and altitude sickness. Two people have had to desend to Lobuche Base Camp and others have had to use oxygen. Thankfully most now seem to be recovering.

Temperatures vary wildly from night to day. My tent has been getting down to around -10C at night so that all my breath freezes on the inside of it. Then when I start to move in the morning I get a shower of ice down my back! After that I have to put on clothes that have become stiff with the frost. The sun hits camp about 7:30 at the moment and things quickly warm up from then on. Yesterday at midday a little thermometer I have showed a temperature of 35C in my tent!

Yesterday Chris Bonnington, the very famous British climber dropped by the camp to say hi to Russ and today Mons, the Danish asmatic, who has appeared on the last couple of Discovery programs dropped by the camp to say hi to a few people. He is climbing with another party this year and is again going to attempt it without oxygen.

I think that that is about it for now. Having a rest day today and tomorrow and then potentially going to try and climb Lobuche. I will post another blog once I am back from that trip so probably a week or so.

1: Puja ceromony, the picture shows the pile of equipment that all climbers and Sherpas bring to the ceromony to be blessed. The smoke is juniper that is burned as an offering and of also burnt when any climber goes high on the mountain.

2: The food and drink offerings at the Puja.

3: Me after the Puja ceromony with flour on him. This flour was put on by the Sherpas and is meant to bring good luck in the mountains.

4: The whole team of Sherpas

5: The whole climbing team. (clients.....or members as Russ likes to call us)

6: Me standing on a nearby hill which overlooks the Base Camp and onto the ice fall and up to Everest. Everest is still a number of Kilometers away and is the black mountain in the background. Some of the other mountains in this photo look bigger but they are a lot closer. In real life it looks massive!

7: If you look closely Russ's Base Camp can be seen in the middle bottom of this picture the main base camp is further to the left at the bottom. Everest is the black monster in the background.

Home sweet home

2009-04-13T18:01:00.012+01:00

I am now at Everest Base Camp 5,300m. We arrived on Thursday and are now having a number of rest days. Yesterday I spent most of the day lifting my tent up and re-doing the floor to try and make it a little flatter and more comfortable as it will be home for nearly 2 months. Today a number of us walked into the traditional Base Camp a little further up the valley. It really is a dump. One team almost on top of another, Mess tents next to toilet tents, trekkers walking right through the middle of the camps and a general smell of dirt and grim not to mention the Yak poo! Our camp by contrast is set up away from the rest and is so clean and nice. Russ certainly knows how to set up a good camp!

We have the Puja ceremony tomorrow. This is very important for all the Sherpas where they ask for a blessing from the gods before going high on the mountain. It starts very serious with lots of chanting, then continues with chanting and rice and flour throwing and then ends up with drinking and dancing. All the Sherpas have the day off.

Monday we will be off to a small peak of around 5,500m and from which there are supposed to be great views.

Pictures:

1: Lobuche Base Camp 4,910m - This is the first time we will be in tents. We will walk back to this camp from time to time from Everest Base Camp to climb on Lobuche for our aclimatisation. The idea is to try and avoid going up through the Ice Fall as much as possible as this is one of the most danderous sections of the whole climb. Tents can be seen at the bottom of the picture as tiny yellow and red dots.

2: On our way to Lobuche we passed an area with lots and lots of memorials to those that have died on Everest. Both Westeners and Sherpas.

3: Memorial to Scott Fisher who some of you who have read 'Into Thin Air' will remember died in 1996 along with Rob Hall and a number of others who were caught high up on Everest in a storm. These memorials were a poignant reminder of what we are trying to do and to make sure we minimise the risks at all times.

4 and 5: Pictures of Russ's Everest Base Camp. Notice the large white pod as it is known. We have a TV, and Bar in it! Unbelieveable, I was sitting there last night with my first beer since Kathmandu watching a film!

6: View from the back of my tent of the massive ice fall which we will have to climb up through to get to camp 1 and higher. I have to say it looks even more terrifying than I ever thought it would. I am glad that Russ's plan should mean we only have to go up and back through it twice.

7: This is a picture of the base that I laid the first day I was in BC. I lifted my tent and removed all the rocks and then re-layed them to make a flat surface on top of the glacier upon which we are situated. I thought that as we will be here for nearly 2 months it was worth sorting it out straight away. Some of the others have done the same today!

8: Picture for Harvey and Safia of Daddy in his tent with Edward and the 'DAD' sign above him that they gave me for my BC tent.

Thank you to MarkO who kindly gave me 2 i-pods to keep me company. Now that I am at BC I have started to listern to both of them.

2009-04-06T09:50:00.008+01:00

We arrived at Khumjung (3,780m) on Thursday 2nd April and stayed at Phurba's house. Phurba is Russ's head Sherpa and has summitted Everest 16 times! This is also the village where Sir Edmund Hillary founded a school and hospital. We spent 2 nights here and left on Saturday morning after Phurba's father had given us all a good luck prayer scarf to take with us.

Photos:

1. Phurba, his children and father.
2. Inside the region's largest and most holy monastery at Tenyboche 3,860m. (Sat 4th April)

3. First photo of Everest. Only the very top triangle can be seen in the photo. Most of what you can see is the Nuptse - Lhotse ridge. You can clearly see the summit being ravaged by the jet stream with spind drift coming off to the right. Everest is still 17km away in this photo.
4. The next morning. Close up of the Everest triangle on a calm day. Still in this picture the majority of what you can see is the ridge in the foreground. Everest is some 4km behind the ridge.

It is now Monday 6th April. I have not showered or washed apart from the odd wet wipe for 7 days! I really hope to get a shower this afternoon once the water has warmed a little in the sun. We head to Lobuche base camp 4,910m tomorrow and tonight will be tha last night in a bed. Tents from now on!

Lukla to Namche Bazar

2009-04-04T22:25:00.013+01:00

With porters and yaks helping us ferry our heavy equipment, we start the long walk up through the foothills, passing through some wonderful Sherpa villages on the way. A long wooden suspension bridge takes us across the gorge. It bounces well when you walk across but is more secure than it looks. We reach Namche Bazar from where we can walk up the valley to get our first view of the mountains. Unfortunately Everest was hidden by clouds but we managed to get a good view of Ama Dablam (a mere 6,000'er).

Arrived safely in Kathmandu

2009-04-04T21:53:00.008+01:00

Arrived safely in Kathmandu, where we spent most the day checking over our kit. Pleased to see some familiar faces from my Cho Oyo trip in 2006 and looking forward to getting to know the others.

Managed to squeeze in a bit of sightseeing at Sawabunath Stupa, Kathmandu's most important Buddhist shrine. The sleepy, all-seeing Buddha's eyes that stare out from the top of the shrine have become the symbol of Nepal. They are painted on all four sides of the stupa's spire, represent the eyes of the Buddha and face the four cardinal directions--east, west, north, and south.

A quick spin of the prayer wheels which are set into the walls leading up to the gate. Inside the wheels are thousands of Tibetan Buddhist prayers and it is believed that when each prayer wheel is spun, all the prayers inside are recited and sent heavenward.

From Kathmandu we took an exhilarating flight to Lukla, from where it is all uphill (and by foot).

Everest - take 2!

2009-02-05T11:38:00.001Z

Almost exactly a year ago I wrote on this blog saying that I should be off to Everest at the end of March. Well as most of you know due to the problems in Tibet that trip did not take place. The good news is that it is all systems go for this year.

My approximate itinerary is as follows:

29 March Arrive Kathmandu (1,317m)
30 Kathmandu
31 Kathmandu – Lukla (2,840m) – Phakding (2,610m)
01 April Phakding – Namche Bazar (3,440m)
02 Namche Bazar – Khumjung (3,780m)
03 Khumjung
04 Khumjung – Tengboche (3,860m)
05 Tengboche – Dingboche (4,410)
06 Dingboche – Lobuche (4,910m)
07 Lobuche
08 Lobuche
09 Lobuche – Everest BC (5,140m)
10 Everest BC

11 April – Everest Climbing
29 May Everest Climbing

30 May Everest BC
01 June Everest BC – Lobuche
02 Lobuche – Pangboche (3,930m)
03 Pangboche – Namche Bazar
04 Namche Bazar – Lukla
05 Lukla – Kathmandu
06 Kathmandu
07 Depart Kathmandu

I will write to this blog and post pictures as often as I can but this is unlikely to start before 10th April when I am due to reach Base Camp.

Happy reading and i look forward to your comments.

Elbrus June 2008

2008-08-10T09:44:00.000+01:00

After the postponement of the trip to Everest I decided I needed to use my new found fitness for something. After discussing various options with Kim I decided on Elbrus (5642m) which is officially the highest mountain in Europe and is on the Russian / Georgian boarder. I approached my good friend and neighbour, Russell Brice, and a plan was made for a trip leaving at the end of May for 2 weeks.

Photo 1 shows Elbrus from the refuge. It is the left hand peak.

We had to dig down to find our toilet hut (photo 2) after is had been buried under snow.

We climbed on skis sometimes, and on foot at other times.

Until both Russ and I reached the summit.

The coming down was easier and the final walk home was positively hot!

Everest - the countdown

2008-02-09T12:45:00.000Z

Postings for my Everest trip should begin from the end of March. I will try and make sure that the blog is updated once a week but it will obviously depend on where I am on the mountain and my access to a computer. Dates for the trip are: 29th March 2008 to 8th June 2008

Back in the UK - final post for Cho Oyo

2007-10-22T16:27:00.000+01:00

A little later than I had hoped but here are a final few comments.

A number of people did attempt to go back up the mountain the day we left for Base Camp but were beaten back by the weather again. This time they did not even make it to camp 1 before they had to return to ABC.

The climbing season on Cho Oyo has reputably been the worst for many years with only a handful of early climbers making the summit and most of these suffering in some way from frost bite. In normal years well over 100 people will make the summit.

Although I did not make the summit my main objective was to experience high altitude climbing in the Himalaya and to come back with all my fingers and toes. To that extent it was a success and allows me to better judge other possible climbs. I would however be lying if I did not say that I was a little disappointed to have had such bad weather that it was not possible to make an attempt on the summit.

First picture is of one of the docile Yaks that do most of the carrying up to ABC. The second is of safely back in Kathmandu having pizza and beer!

Storm on the mountain

2007-09-26T23:22:00.001+01:00

Well I am back from the mountain at ABC. We had a terrible storm and only got to camp 2 again but at this stage I am just glad to be back at ABC and in one piece with all my fingers and toes! Camp 2 lost a number of tents over night and camp 1 lost between 20 and 25% of all the tents including 4 of Russ's. Of the 4 tents that Russ lost one was the tent I was in the night before. As I have said we are now back at ABC and the decision has been made to try and rescue some of the equipment from the mountain before we pull out back to Base Camp and then Kathmandu. I will fill you in with the whole story once I am back but at the moment power is very low on the computers as there has been very little sun for the batteries and so we have been asked to keep things short and sweet.

Home sweet home

2007-09-26T23:16:00.000+01:00

Morning after we got back showing all the snow that had fallen at ABC. It was much worse up on the mountain. Very glad to be back home at ABC!!!!!

Getting down safely

2007-09-26T23:14:00.000+01:00

Back safely on the moraine, a picture of Neema carrying most of my equipment.

Changing back to normal boots

2007-09-26T23:12:00.000+01:00

Changing from high altitude boots to normal boots for the decent down to ABC. The winds were gusting up to 100km/hr

Carnage at camp 1

2007-09-26T23:10:00.000+01:00

Carnage at camp 1 on our way back down from Camp 2. The second picture shows in the foreground a few stakes in the ground which is all that is left of my tent from the previous night!

Me with my sherpa

2007-09-26T23:07:00.000+01:00

Me and Sherpa (Neema) for summit day.

Departure morning...

2007-09-26T23:03:00.000+01:00

A beautiful sunny morning on the day of our departure from ABC to camp 1.

Camp 2

2007-09-23T14:40:00.000+01:00

Camp 2 is at 7100m is certainly the highest I have ever been and certainly slept at! When I say slept I mean I went into my tent at 5:45pm and lay there listening to the wind and watching the snow blow in through every tiny hole and crack until 6:00am. I did not feel as if I slept at all and it was certainly one of the most uncomfortable nights I have ever had. Picture is of the zips of the inside of our tent at camp 2. The whole inside of the tent was covered in ice. Everytime the wind blew or we turned over in bed we were covered in ice. Not a very comfortable night.
It took 2hrs to boil water and pack up camp, something that would take 10 minutes down at sea level. We left from camp 2 just after 8:00am, got back to camp 1 at 10:30am and ABC just before 1:00pm. I think it is fair to say I was completly exhausted! All the teams with Russ have now completed their climatisation and to celebrate Russ threw a little party with red wine, beer and wiskey. A great way to relax and I certainly had a headache for a different reason in the morning!

We now have 2 rest days at ABC before we go for the final push to the summit which is currently scheduled for 25th Sep. We should reach the summit around 8 or 9am which is 3 or 4am UK time.

The Ice Cliff on the way to Camp 2

2007-09-23T14:36:00.000+01:00

Jim, one of the other clients with Russ traversing the ice cliff.

Adrian, one of the guides with Russ just starting the steep section of the ice cliff.

Towards Camp 2 and the ice cliff

2007-09-23T14:20:00.000+01:00

From Camp 1 we set off along the ridge, rising slowly and leaving the tents of Camp 1 behind.

It is a challenging climb with a huge ice cliff looming in front of us. It does not look much but at nearly 7000m it is very tough

Overnight at at Camp 1

2007-09-23T14:14:00.000+01:00

Pictures taken from Camp 1 where we stayed the night of 17th. The first looking down into camp where all the other teams have their tents and the second looking up the hill to the summit. These were both taken at approx 6:30am.

Leaving ABC

2007-09-23T14:02:00.000+01:00

As scheduled, I went to camp 1 on 17th to spent the night before going up to camp 2 on 18th. Pictures taken while on a walk from ABC camp to Poo Na La pass (not sure of spelling) This is where last year the chinese shot at some people they expected of people smuggling. We were not shot at nor did not see any soldiers although were told plenty were around.

Morning on the mountains

2007-09-17T21:12:00.001+01:00

07:00 ABC. The Sherpas come round to all tents with a hot cup of sherpa tea. There is nearly always a dusting of snow first thing (outside and somehow inside the tent as well!) Typical temperatures have apparently been very mild at -4 to -10C at night.

09:00 Sunrise over Cho Oyo this morning.

I had my best night's sleep last night. I woke at 3:30am with a slight headache rather than one that felt as if it was going to split my head apart and it was gone but 4:45am. I was almost crying with joy that I might finally be past the worst of it.

The outline schedule for next week is currently

Monday 17th: Up to Camp 1 with final stuff (most of it now in tents up there). Spend night. (6400m)
Tuesday 18th: Camp 1 to Camp 2 with some equipment. Spend night at camp 2. (7100m)
Wednesday 19th: Camp 2 back to ABC for rest
Thur 20th and Fri 21st: Rest Days

Chocolate cake, whisky, wine and chips!

2007-09-17T21:07:00.000+01:00

Spoke to Kim and the children today. When Russ found out it was our 11th wedding anniversary he got the sherpas to make a chocolate cake. We all had red wine with our meal and a shot of whisky over the cake and everyone toasted us on our 11 years of marrage. First alcohol on 10 days. Very nice and a bit of fun and a lot of what Russ does is to try and keep spirits up and everyone focused on the hard work ahead of us.

Food has been very good at camp. Yak burgers, steak, lots of soups, eggs, lots of spam, various home made breads and tinned fruits. Most of this would not fill me with excitement back in London but up here it is very very good. We also had chips the other day!

Testing the equipment

2007-09-17T21:04:00.000+01:00

With the boss (Russ) - just testing that the oxygen masks works.

2007-09-17T21:02:00.000+01:00

Chris and Shaun at Camp 1 for the first time on 14th September. This was the first time up and I carried and left my big boots, crampons and ice axe. Further equipment will be carried up by Sherpas and myself over the next week. It took 3:45 to get up from 5700m to 6400m and 2:05 to get down. We spent a total of 1:15 up at Camp 1. The next time up we go up we will be spending the night.

Puja ceremony

2007-09-17T20:56:00.000+01:00

The Puja ceremony is carried out by the Sherpas before they go very high on the mountain. It consists of a lot of chanting, incense and then drinking and dancing. No-one works on Puja day.

It can not be under estimated the amount of work the Sherpas do for us. The loads they carry up the hill in preparation of the summit push is incredible. All the tents, sleeping bags, roll matts, stoves, oxygen, etc., etc. The speed they go up the mountain is incredible but the speed they come down is truely amazing, often runnning pushing and joking with each other while us and other westeners stagger with fatigue!

It's as easy as ABC..

2007-09-17T20:39:00.000+01:00

We are at Advance Base Camp now and the group seems to be in good spirits. Here we aclimatise further and during the days climb up to Camp 1 to deposit some of our serious mountain kit, then back to ABC for the night. The pictures are of the team at ABC and then a view of the valley after ABC but before the climb up to Camp 1.

Hygene is a very important part of camp living. We are told to wash our hands every time we enter the dinning tent and as many other times during the day as is possible. There are a few cases of upset stomachs so far but nothing too bad.

Arrival at ABC

2007-09-13T21:39:00.000+01:00

I have not been so good since my arrival at ABC, although I have been sleeping better than most i.e. 2hrs at a time but for a least 3 or 4 times during the 12 hr nights. Bedtime is 8pm and the Sherpas bring you tea at 7am when there is always snow on the outside of the tent and ice or condensation on the inside of the tent, which certainly wakes you up. Nights have been tough with really bad headaches. I have been on Dimox, neurofen and paracetamol all at the same time and it does not seem to be having much effect. The doctor seems happy with my progress but did not allow me to go for a walk with the rest of the team today. It is now the 3rd consecutive rest day for me. One girl on a treck to ABC was carried down to BC today as she was too unwell to walk and one of the Norwiegen girls has returned to BC to try improve her condition. I hope this will not be necessary for me.

I have a lovely red tent which will be my home for the next few weeks. As you can see, I have been woring hard on perfecting the crazy paving patio ouside of the tent.

Safe arrival at base camp

2007-09-13T21:28:00.001+01:00

After 36hrs in a truck on some of the worst roads I have ever seen we arrived at Base Camp (BC) 5,000m. It was good to finally arrive and apart from being very tired I felt very well. It was also very good to meet with the rest of the team who had been there for 2 days after travelling slowly over 7 days from Kathmandu.

The following day I was allowed to join the rest of the team for a small walk up behind BC to practice using various pieces of equipment. We climbed 180m and it took nearly an hour. In Chamonix I was able to do 600m in an hour! Russell said that the team were leaving for ABC camp the following day and that it would probably be better for me to stay down at BC for a couple of days but he would reserve judgement until after the doctor had given me the once over. Doctor gave me the once over and said that my blood pressure was as if I were at sea level which was exceptional. My oxygen saturation level was 82% which was also very very good for 5,000m (although with anything under 90% in the UK you would be sent to hosital straight away), and my resting heart rate was 80 which again was very acceptable. They therefore gave me the option of starting the journey with the rest of the team to Advance Base Camp (ABC) which I obviously took as I wanted to continue to bond with the rest of the team wih which I will be climbing with over the next month.

We set off in a truck from BC to interim BC camp (approx 1hr and 400m rise). From here on it will all be by foot. We walked for 4 1/2hrs rising a total of 500m and falling by 200m i.e. it was a lot of up and down. As I arrived in ABC, I was beginning to get a headache but other than that I had a good appetite. It was from here that we gor out first good view of the splendour of the mountain that we are going to get to know very well over the next few weeks.

The journey to Base Camp II

2007-09-13T21:24:00.000+01:00

We then transferred to a larger lorry. The water had gone down by a foot or so and after a 3/4 hrs delay and after seeing 4 other lorries make the high speed dash across the torrent, we gave it a go. The picture taken from the cabin of the lorry where seven of us were crushed in. I don't scare easily but this might be the scariest thing I have ever done!

The journey to Base Camp

2007-09-13T21:01:00.000+01:00

For those who have been logging in the hope of seeing some news for me - apologies that it has taken so long for me to get something to you. The communications that we all take for granted evapourated soon after leaving the major metroplois of Kathmandu.

Russell and I knew before we set off that there had been problems with the access road from Kathmandu to Cho Oyo base camp. The road in fact had been washed away in parts by heavy flooding and rainfall and repairs were underway allowing us only to travel during the nightime hours when the workmen were resting. We were prepared for the worst and it certainly lived up to expectations.

On the way from Kathmandu, a swollen river had come across the road and no traffic could cross from either side. On the far side of the river, the previous night, a rock had fallen from the steep sided valley and killed the driver of a lorry and injured another man. A rescue attempt was underway when we arrived and they had backed up two lorries as far as they dared to try to breach the river and transport the injured from the far side of the river. They had made a makeshift bridge with some planks of wood bridging the gap from the back of one lorry to the back of the other and on a couple of occasions the force of the river was so great that it seemed that the lorries would be washed away. Despite the instablility of this arrangement, they then proceeded to walk the injured man accross from the far side so that he could be taken to hospital. The body of the deceased was ceremoniously burned by the river in front of us all.

Count down to Cho Oyo

2007-08-30T17:53:00.000+01:00

I finished my training with a 5 hour walk yesterday which included over 1000m of vertical. I feel as fit as I have ever done but whether this will be enough only time will tell. 3 days before I leave, time for some good food and quality time with the family.

Climbing with Harvey

2007-08-30T17:40:00.000+01:00

Today I went up to Brevent with Harvey and Mark Seaton. This was Harvey's first multi-pitched climb and we completed a 2 and 3 pitched climb before the weather turned. Harvey had a great time.