Some of you will by now be aware that Andy has achieved his goal and is now returning to camp for a well-earned rest. Knowing him as I do, he'll have some cunning new challenge up his sleeve for his next project....
There is no truth in the rumour doing the rounds of Twitter that he has been involved with Jemina Khan and/or Imogen Thomas and fled to the Himalayas to escape the furore around the super-injunction.
Thursday 26 May 2011
Friday 20 May 2011
Summit Itinerary
Most of the team left BC on the 19th to either break the back of the journey and use intermediate camp or to give an extra rest day at ABC. My preference is to spend an extra day at BC, where I am sleeping and eating well. Since the Sherpas arrived down here I have been eating with them. I much prefer their Dhal Bhat (Lentil Curry, this won't surprise those of you who know I am a huge fan of beans and lentils) to the western food that we are normally served, and crucially also find it much easier to eats lots of it. Salam has also been joining me and we have been told we are now honourary Sherpas- hopefully this is a good omen!
After arriving at ABC on the 20th, I will rest for one day before climbing up the North Col on the 22nd. I have left a fair bit of kit at the North Col camp so shouldn't have as much to carry as last time and will be probably take around 4.5 hours. Although if some of this kit (eg. down kit) was lost in the storms I won't be climbing higher but since the critical stuff was in the group tent it should be OK.
Once we have left ABC there will be no more rest days as the body deteriorates more quickly the higher you go so we will climb to 7800m the next day. Most of this day (up to 7500m) will be spent on the North Ridge, which is a snow slope, and above 7500m the ground changes to mixed snow and rock. This will be a tough day, last year I didn't arrive in camp until 1930 and some of the team until after 2100 which made it difficult to refuel and hydrate properly. I went well up to 7500m a couple of weeks ago and am aiming to leave North Col earlier and make much better time this year.
The next day continues on mixed snow and rock up to 8300m. Like the previous day not massively technical but I strained my knee ligaments on this day last year so need to be careful not to repeat although am carrying a brace and a strapping. This should take 4 to 5 hours and get me to high camp around lunchtime/ early afternoon.
Once at 8300m, I will spend the rest of the day trying to melt snow/ice for water and eat as much as possible - both an absolute nightmare at this altitude!!
We have spoken a lot about summit day at BC and the team have all been allocated departure times based on expected speed. I am due to be the last to leave my tent at 2200 Nepal time (1745 UK time) on the 24th and all being well aim to reach the summit in around 8 to 9 hours, so by the time everyone in the UK wakes up on the 25th I should be on my way down.
Obviously it will be difficult for me to update this until I return so the Adventure Peaks website (link on the left on the main blog page in the new section, although I understand they have launched a new website since we have been out here so may not work anymore) is the best place to follow our progress. I also understand Stu is planning staying up in his lucky pants to update the team's progress through the night on summit night.
We are now back up to a full complement for the summit attempt so hopefully there will be good news all round in a few days.
After arriving at ABC on the 20th, I will rest for one day before climbing up the North Col on the 22nd. I have left a fair bit of kit at the North Col camp so shouldn't have as much to carry as last time and will be probably take around 4.5 hours. Although if some of this kit (eg. down kit) was lost in the storms I won't be climbing higher but since the critical stuff was in the group tent it should be OK.
Once we have left ABC there will be no more rest days as the body deteriorates more quickly the higher you go so we will climb to 7800m the next day. Most of this day (up to 7500m) will be spent on the North Ridge, which is a snow slope, and above 7500m the ground changes to mixed snow and rock. This will be a tough day, last year I didn't arrive in camp until 1930 and some of the team until after 2100 which made it difficult to refuel and hydrate properly. I went well up to 7500m a couple of weeks ago and am aiming to leave North Col earlier and make much better time this year.
The next day continues on mixed snow and rock up to 8300m. Like the previous day not massively technical but I strained my knee ligaments on this day last year so need to be careful not to repeat although am carrying a brace and a strapping. This should take 4 to 5 hours and get me to high camp around lunchtime/ early afternoon.
Once at 8300m, I will spend the rest of the day trying to melt snow/ice for water and eat as much as possible - both an absolute nightmare at this altitude!!
We have spoken a lot about summit day at BC and the team have all been allocated departure times based on expected speed. I am due to be the last to leave my tent at 2200 Nepal time (1745 UK time) on the 24th and all being well aim to reach the summit in around 8 to 9 hours, so by the time everyone in the UK wakes up on the 25th I should be on my way down.
Obviously it will be difficult for me to update this until I return so the Adventure Peaks website (link on the left on the main blog page in the new section, although I understand they have launched a new website since we have been out here so may not work anymore) is the best place to follow our progress. I also understand Stu is planning staying up in his lucky pants to update the team's progress through the night on summit night.
We are now back up to a full complement for the summit attempt so hopefully there will be good news all round in a few days.
On the road again
Finally we have some good news on the weather front and I will leave base camp tomorrow and aim to summit on the 25th.
It's been a strange few days at base camp, all the teams except for us and one other have been waiting at ABC for early weather windows which did not materialise. Consequently, there have still been no summits from the North although the CTMA team are heading to the summit today to complete the fixing of the ropes up to the summit. Conversely, there have been plenty of summits from the South (I have wondered many times if I should have gone that way and could now be relaxing in Kathmandu) although the weather on that side is now much worse and I understand that many teams have left the mountain.
The other Northside teams are aiming to summit on the 20th and 21st whereas we will wait. While it would have been easier to follow the other teams up to ABC I am pleased that we stuck to our guns and have stayed at BC where I think we will have eaten and rested much better than we would have at ABC. Hopefully, they can all summit on these days and leave us with a clear mountain on the 25th.
The only worry with our strategy is with acclimatisation, it is now two weeks since I climbed up to 7500m and normal thinking is that acclimatisation last around two weeks (although this is not an exact science). Personally, I will have spent two weeks at base camp (i.e. exactly the same amount of the time as last year) and walked up to around 5800m a couple of time so I expect it will be OK but won't know until I climb higher again.
The summit push itself will be five days of climbing, each consuming around 10,000 calories which, coupled with the appetite suppression at altitude making it very difficult to consume more than around 1500 calories a day, can be very debilitating. Especially when you also factor in the difficulties keeping hydrating.
In addition to dehydrated meals (which are not the best and very difficult to digest at the best of times), I will be carrying chocolate, peanuts, energy gels, beef jerky and energy powder. Hopefully these will be enough to keep me going but I will need to be very careful to make sure they don't freeze - particularly on summit day.
It's been a strange few days at base camp, all the teams except for us and one other have been waiting at ABC for early weather windows which did not materialise. Consequently, there have still been no summits from the North although the CTMA team are heading to the summit today to complete the fixing of the ropes up to the summit. Conversely, there have been plenty of summits from the South (I have wondered many times if I should have gone that way and could now be relaxing in Kathmandu) although the weather on that side is now much worse and I understand that many teams have left the mountain.
The other Northside teams are aiming to summit on the 20th and 21st whereas we will wait. While it would have been easier to follow the other teams up to ABC I am pleased that we stuck to our guns and have stayed at BC where I think we will have eaten and rested much better than we would have at ABC. Hopefully, they can all summit on these days and leave us with a clear mountain on the 25th.
The only worry with our strategy is with acclimatisation, it is now two weeks since I climbed up to 7500m and normal thinking is that acclimatisation last around two weeks (although this is not an exact science). Personally, I will have spent two weeks at base camp (i.e. exactly the same amount of the time as last year) and walked up to around 5800m a couple of time so I expect it will be OK but won't know until I climb higher again.
The summit push itself will be five days of climbing, each consuming around 10,000 calories which, coupled with the appetite suppression at altitude making it very difficult to consume more than around 1500 calories a day, can be very debilitating. Especially when you also factor in the difficulties keeping hydrating.
In addition to dehydrated meals (which are not the best and very difficult to digest at the best of times), I will be carrying chocolate, peanuts, energy gels, beef jerky and energy powder. Hopefully these will be enough to keep me going but I will need to be very careful to make sure they don't freeze - particularly on summit day.
Monday 16 May 2011
Day 6 in the Big Brother house
Sixth day (and counting) at base camp...I am saying this with a mock Geordie accent (a little like the one Jim and his brother adopt).
The weather forecast has not been very promising. That said, we are the only team still at base camp. There is a hint of good weather on the 16th/17th/18th, summit winds of 35-50 mph (not really what I would call good weather) so all the other teams moved up to ABC to try and grab an early summit.
Still no mention of the monsoon in the weather forecasts (traditionally the best summit weather is just as the monsoon system arrives and pushes the jet stream away from Everest giving a few calmer days) and to my mind waiting is the best strategy. Most teams appear to be using European weather forecast whereas we are using an American one (the same source that delivered excellent summit conditions for me last year and Cho Oyu) so I am pleased we all agreed to hold off and just hope it proves to be the correct decision, although a bit strange when the weather forecast is the most important part of the day (makes me feel a bit like an Australian cricket fan hoping the rain will save them again).
Since we made this decision, it looks like the Chinese have also began to lean towards a delay and are now saying the summit ropes won't be fixed until the 18th. I understand this has created panic amongst the teams at ABC who now have to decide whether to stay up there, come back down or try and fix the ropes themselves. There is a meeting this afternoon between the CTMA and teams to try and work things out but these "politics" appear to rear their head very regularly (this is very frustrating as today looked like a good summit day and no doubt many people made it from the South, although it is Friday the 13th so maybe people held back).
I am hopeful that we will be able to make our move on or around the 17th but best not to get a date into the head before the weather settles. Although, if we have to wait much longer we will have to start thinking about re-acclimatising (acclimatisation normally lasts around two weeks) which would be highly annoying.
Unfortunately, Stephen had to return to Kathmandu a few days ago. He had been very ill for a over a week and lost a lot of weight so this seemed the most sensible decision. The early signs are promising that he will be able to return to the team over the course of the next few days and hopefully be able to join up in time for the summit bid.
Without a firm departure date, everyone is just trying to keep their frustrations in check and keep themselves busy and healthy. I am trying to eat and sleep lots (up to over ten hours a night now), keep healthy and do regular exercise without wearing myself out although wandering round base camp feels like a prison exercise yard (not from first hand experience mind) so am trying to be creative and find new places to visit.....as well as doing 'things'.
Hopefully will have some more positive news to report in the next few days.
The weather forecast has not been very promising. That said, we are the only team still at base camp. There is a hint of good weather on the 16th/17th/18th, summit winds of 35-50 mph (not really what I would call good weather) so all the other teams moved up to ABC to try and grab an early summit.
Still no mention of the monsoon in the weather forecasts (traditionally the best summit weather is just as the monsoon system arrives and pushes the jet stream away from Everest giving a few calmer days) and to my mind waiting is the best strategy. Most teams appear to be using European weather forecast whereas we are using an American one (the same source that delivered excellent summit conditions for me last year and Cho Oyu) so I am pleased we all agreed to hold off and just hope it proves to be the correct decision, although a bit strange when the weather forecast is the most important part of the day (makes me feel a bit like an Australian cricket fan hoping the rain will save them again).
Since we made this decision, it looks like the Chinese have also began to lean towards a delay and are now saying the summit ropes won't be fixed until the 18th. I understand this has created panic amongst the teams at ABC who now have to decide whether to stay up there, come back down or try and fix the ropes themselves. There is a meeting this afternoon between the CTMA and teams to try and work things out but these "politics" appear to rear their head very regularly (this is very frustrating as today looked like a good summit day and no doubt many people made it from the South, although it is Friday the 13th so maybe people held back).
I am hopeful that we will be able to make our move on or around the 17th but best not to get a date into the head before the weather settles. Although, if we have to wait much longer we will have to start thinking about re-acclimatising (acclimatisation normally lasts around two weeks) which would be highly annoying.
Unfortunately, Stephen had to return to Kathmandu a few days ago. He had been very ill for a over a week and lost a lot of weight so this seemed the most sensible decision. The early signs are promising that he will be able to return to the team over the course of the next few days and hopefully be able to join up in time for the summit bid.
Without a firm departure date, everyone is just trying to keep their frustrations in check and keep themselves busy and healthy. I am trying to eat and sleep lots (up to over ten hours a night now), keep healthy and do regular exercise without wearing myself out although wandering round base camp feels like a prison exercise yard (not from first hand experience mind) so am trying to be creative and find new places to visit.....as well as doing 'things'.
Hopefully will have some more positive news to report in the next few days.
Tuesday 10 May 2011
Title: Acclimatisation complete, waiting for the weather again...where is the Little Chef when you need one ?
Apologies as it has been a while since my last update, everything still going well but either haven't had anything interesting to say or don't seem to have been near a computer anytime recently.
Have now been up to 7500m so my acclimatisation is now complete and we are back at base camp resting and waiting for the weather to settle and allow us an attempt on the summit. We are currently in our third day at BC and after a two week wait last year it is beginning to feel like Groundhog Day already, albeit it without Bill Murray's dry wit.
Despite being our second time, the North Col climb was pretty tough as the weather was extremely hot. We went up with a full pack (all my food, kit and clothing is now up there to try and preserve energy on the summit bid) so was hard work but made it in good enough time.
In the past, I have found both sleeping and climbing above 7000m for the first time difficult with headaches and loss of appetite. I didn't have the best night's sleep but I still managed to race up the North Ridge to 7400m the following morning without any difficulty which was a pleasant surprise. The North Ridge is a long steep snow slope, really not very interesting without any convenient stopping places (unless you want your pack to slide into oblivion) but there are amazing views of Cho Oyu, Pumori, Changtse and other stunning peaks.
The last hour up to 7500m was very hard work, as the wind dropped and I was battling severe heat in down salopettes and jackets designed for much colder temperatures so was tough going. Four of us reached 7500m around lunchtime with the rest of the team reaching altitudes between 7100m and 7400m. I won't have to climb above this altitude without oxygen again on this trip and had reached 7500m very quickly overall so was happy with the way things had worked out (particularly as last year the weather had prevented any of us reaching 7500m on acclimatisation).
It is also above 7000m where we begin to collect snow and ice to melt, unfortunately my regular tent mate had a chest infection so stayed at ABC and I tented solo above 7000m for the first time which, while it made it easier to cook and make water, was incredibly cold through the night. Melting ice and snow is a laborious task which gets harder the higher you get, we need to do this to drink and eat. Food consists of rehydrated or boil in the bag meals, I will probably write more about food later this week,and drinking water is either boiled or just melted with iodine tablets (which don't taste too good) - either way with the complete loss of appetite up there not particularly pleasant.
The following day I returned to ABC and then back to BC, which feels like a five star hotel compared to the higher camps. Although I have just finished reading a book about the Foreign Legion so find it difficult to feel too sorry for myself but my trekking boots are nearly dead so I hope they have one more BC to ABC trip and back left in them as I don't feel like going through the full Foreign Legion experience.
Some of the team were unwell and had delayed their final North Col run for a few days to try to recover so while we were back at BC the jet stream came very close to Everest and there was a huge storm high on the mountain, destroying five of our seven tents on the North Col. We had been aware of the storm risk and most of the critical kit had been stored in central storage tent, which fortunately had escaped,but there was a lot of kit and supplies in the individual tents. I had left my food pack in my tent, which while it wasn't blown off the hill was destroyed so while we think it has survived I am not completely certain what is left and will have to carry more up the last time just to be sure.
In the meantime, we wait at BC trying to keep ourselves busy doing 'things'. There have been some summits from the South already but the ropes will not been fixed to the summit on the North side until around the 14th and there is talk of a summit window around 16th/17th and some teams are heading up for then.
The CTMA have not fixed the ropes to the North summit yet (sometimes they make the Labour party look efficient!) but hopefully this will happen in the next few days. Our latest weather forecasts indicate that it will be windy on the summit until at least 18th/19th so guess we just have to be patient but maybe things will change.
Have now been up to 7500m so my acclimatisation is now complete and we are back at base camp resting and waiting for the weather to settle and allow us an attempt on the summit. We are currently in our third day at BC and after a two week wait last year it is beginning to feel like Groundhog Day already, albeit it without Bill Murray's dry wit.
Despite being our second time, the North Col climb was pretty tough as the weather was extremely hot. We went up with a full pack (all my food, kit and clothing is now up there to try and preserve energy on the summit bid) so was hard work but made it in good enough time.
In the past, I have found both sleeping and climbing above 7000m for the first time difficult with headaches and loss of appetite. I didn't have the best night's sleep but I still managed to race up the North Ridge to 7400m the following morning without any difficulty which was a pleasant surprise. The North Ridge is a long steep snow slope, really not very interesting without any convenient stopping places (unless you want your pack to slide into oblivion) but there are amazing views of Cho Oyu, Pumori, Changtse and other stunning peaks.
The last hour up to 7500m was very hard work, as the wind dropped and I was battling severe heat in down salopettes and jackets designed for much colder temperatures so was tough going. Four of us reached 7500m around lunchtime with the rest of the team reaching altitudes between 7100m and 7400m. I won't have to climb above this altitude without oxygen again on this trip and had reached 7500m very quickly overall so was happy with the way things had worked out (particularly as last year the weather had prevented any of us reaching 7500m on acclimatisation).
It is also above 7000m where we begin to collect snow and ice to melt, unfortunately my regular tent mate had a chest infection so stayed at ABC and I tented solo above 7000m for the first time which, while it made it easier to cook and make water, was incredibly cold through the night. Melting ice and snow is a laborious task which gets harder the higher you get, we need to do this to drink and eat. Food consists of rehydrated or boil in the bag meals, I will probably write more about food later this week,and drinking water is either boiled or just melted with iodine tablets (which don't taste too good) - either way with the complete loss of appetite up there not particularly pleasant.
The following day I returned to ABC and then back to BC, which feels like a five star hotel compared to the higher camps. Although I have just finished reading a book about the Foreign Legion so find it difficult to feel too sorry for myself but my trekking boots are nearly dead so I hope they have one more BC to ABC trip and back left in them as I don't feel like going through the full Foreign Legion experience.
Some of the team were unwell and had delayed their final North Col run for a few days to try to recover so while we were back at BC the jet stream came very close to Everest and there was a huge storm high on the mountain, destroying five of our seven tents on the North Col. We had been aware of the storm risk and most of the critical kit had been stored in central storage tent, which fortunately had escaped,but there was a lot of kit and supplies in the individual tents. I had left my food pack in my tent, which while it wasn't blown off the hill was destroyed so while we think it has survived I am not completely certain what is left and will have to carry more up the last time just to be sure.
In the meantime, we wait at BC trying to keep ourselves busy doing 'things'. There have been some summits from the South already but the ropes will not been fixed to the summit on the North side until around the 14th and there is talk of a summit window around 16th/17th and some teams are heading up for then.
The CTMA have not fixed the ropes to the North summit yet (sometimes they make the Labour party look efficient!) but hopefully this will happen in the next few days. Our latest weather forecasts indicate that it will be windy on the summit until at least 18th/19th so guess we just have to be patient but maybe things will change.
Tuesday 3 May 2011
Over 7000m at last but still not broken the back of the journey
Finally there was a break in the snow on Monday afternoon and night and we set off for the North Col first thing on Tuesday morning in bright sunshine.
The sunshine lasted until the North Col headwall came into sight when both the headwall and approach were bathed in cloud. The North Col would be the first time we would actually climb on Everest and for most of the team this would be their first time and which was obviously very exciting.
The Col itself is a series of steep snow slopes, ice walls and crevasses and is around 400m high rising to just over 7000m above sea level at the top (higher than anywhere in the world outside of the Greater Himalayas). The ropes had only just been fixed by the CTMA and the route was similar to last year, I think some of the crevasse ladders have not yet been put in place and the crevasse at the top had widened since last year and now required an extra ladder which made things interesting.
Geordie was really flying and was up there first despite suffering from a severe bout of Royal Wedding fever. I climbed with Ben (who despite being called Ben and being from Leeds is a sound chap) and we both reached the top in under three hours (a couple of hours before turn around time) which is very good going for the first time up especially as there was still a fair bit of snow on there which made some sections more tiring. Overall five of our team (plus both leaders) reached the top with the others all getting within 150m of the top this was sufficient height to complete this phase of the acclimatisation programme so was a good result all round.
I was pleased with the way the climb had gone, I didn't really struggle with the altitude and felt stronger than last year. We estimated that approximately 10,000 calories per person would be burnt throughout the day, I probably hadn't eaten or drunk enough (Porridge and Omelette breakfast; Bounty bar; Snickers and about a litre of water) although the terrain is quite tricky and the weather windy and snowy so there were not many opportunities so I was especially pleased thatＩdidn't feel at all tired once back at ABC and felt I could have easily gone back up (I was pretty shattered last year once I got down the first time).
For the rest of the team the drama was only just beginning. After I had returned to ABC, we heard a radio message which said help was required, get some food and water inside him and get him moving. At first we had no idea what was happening and were worried that one of our team was in trouble but it turned out that Greg saw what looked like a body lying in the snow. This body was in fact a Chinese climber who was a member of the CTMA rope fixing team and was exhausted descending from 7800m and had collapsed. The rest of our team had managed to get some food inside him and get him moving under his own steam while we sent some sherpas out to help him back to camp.
Despite my earlier reservations about our schedule I think we are now ahead of most (if not all) teams. Tuesday was the first opportunity to climb the North Col and I was expecting it to be very crowded so was quite surprised when there were only a handful of Western climbers on there and indeed many teams were only making their way up to ABC while I was descending.
The following day I made my way down to base camp and with all the recent snow the trail looked completely different to anytime I had seen it in the past and I was lucky enough to see some Himalayan deer (I am sure they have a different name but they look like deerand we are in the Himalayas) for the first time.
After a week at ABC it is instantly noticeable how much thicker the air is at BC, you don't really realise how tough life at ABC is until you descend. It is generally agreed that the human body deteriorates above 5500m and spending the next few days at BC should be ample to prepare me for the next stage.
It was also great to have my own tent again the first night I slept right through without disturbance and felt totally refreshed the next morning. The only downsides are that my cold still won't shift and I seem to have picked up some sunburn on my face, it is nothing too dramatic (I hope) but I think caused either by the reflection off the snow on the way down to BC coupled with the fact thatＩhave no beard to protect myself this time.
The current plan is to stay at BC until Monday when we will return to ABC and then move up to the North Col to sleep before climbing up the North Ridge to 7500m, generally agreed as the highest point at which the human body can acclimatise. This would be our final acclimatisation stage and seems to be coming around very quickly and while this will be less than 1500m from the summit it will still not feel like we have broken the back of the journey.
I was pleased with the way the climb had gone, I didn't really struggle with the altitude and felt stronger than last year. We estimated that approximately 10,000 calories per person would be burnt throughout the day, I probably hadn't eaten or drunk enough (Porridge and Omelette breakfast; Bounty bar; Snickers and about a litre of water) although the terrain is quite tricky and the weather windy and snowy so there were not many opportunities so I was especially pleased thatＩdidn't feel at all tired once back at ABC and felt I could have easily gone back up (I was pretty shattered last year once I got down the first time).
For the rest of the team the drama was only just beginning. After I had returned to ABC, we heard a radio message which said help was required, get some food and water inside him and get him moving. At first we had no idea what was happening and were worried that one of our team was in trouble but it turned out that Greg saw what looked like a body lying in the snow. This body was in fact a Chinese climber who was a member of the CTMA rope fixing team and was exhausted descending from 7800m and had collapsed. The rest of our team had managed to get some food inside him and get him moving under his own steam while we sent some sherpas out to help him back to camp.
Despite my earlier reservations about our schedule I think we are now ahead of most (if not all) teams. Tuesday was the first opportunity to climb the North Col and I was expecting it to be very crowded so was quite surprised when there were only a handful of Western climbers on there and indeed many teams were only making their way up to ABC while I was descending.
The following day I made my way down to base camp and with all the recent snow the trail looked completely different to anytime I had seen it in the past and I was lucky enough to see some Himalayan deer (I am sure they have a different name but they look like deerand we are in the Himalayas) for the first time.
After a week at ABC it is instantly noticeable how much thicker the air is at BC, you don't really realise how tough life at ABC is until you descend. It is generally agreed that the human body deteriorates above 5500m and spending the next few days at BC should be ample to prepare me for the next stage.
It was also great to have my own tent again the first night I slept right through without disturbance and felt totally refreshed the next morning. The only downsides are that my cold still won't shift and I seem to have picked up some sunburn on my face, it is nothing too dramatic (I hope) but I think caused either by the reflection off the snow on the way down to BC coupled with the fact thatＩhave no beard to protect myself this time.
The current plan is to stay at BC until Monday when we will return to ABC and then move up to the North Col to sleep before climbing up the North Ridge to 7500m, generally agreed as the highest point at which the human body can acclimatise. This would be our final acclimatisation stage and seems to be coming around very quickly and while this will be less than 1500m from the summit it will still not feel like we have broken the back of the journey.
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