Safe and Well

Dear Friends and Supporters,

Heather is now safe and well back at Advanced Base Camp after what can only be described as making a very very difficult decision of turning around and abandoning her attempt somewhere by Camp 2. I'm yet to find out more information, but the reports from the Adventure Peaks website is that she is now helping with radio communications at ABC for the teams summit attempt tonight.

The Final Push!

All,

I'm pleased to confirm Heathers final big push is well under way! She's departed Advanced Base Camp today to start the long arduous climb to reach the top of the world... If all goes to plan she will summit on the 26th of May.

Base Camp - Acclimatisation Profiles - Special Thanks to the Altitude Centre!

The team has been enjoying the comforts of the Hilton that is our 5200m Base Camp for about 10 days now ‘recovering’ (eating everything in sight and sleeping 10 hours/day) from our last move to 7500m (above the North Col). Everyone is in good spirits - ready and waiting for the allusive weather window. Besides the usual ‘hot topics’ at lunch and dinner - weather windows, rope-fixing dates, and what exciting condiment will eaten at dinner today- a recent new ‘element of complexity’ has resurfaced entering an old, all-too-familiar bit of vocabulary back into our conversations - acclimatisation.

Base Camp - CHUCS and Mount Everest

Two of my most prized pieces of ‘mountain attire’ at Base Camp (where striking the delicate balance between mountain fashion and function is clearly a priority!) are my 
(1) ultra light down jacket and 
(2) Chucs sun cap. 
Having said that, fashion is relative… If I walked into the Base Camp mess tent in an Alexander McQueen gown and my high altitude boots I’m fairly sure that the boys would ask why I was wearing high altitude boots at Base Camp…. 

Base Camp - Weather Window Update & Special Thanks

The massive white plume of spindrift blowing from the summit provides every indication that the allusive weather window is still a way off. The wind is ripping into the North East Ridge of Everest as I type. We are still the only team left at Base Camp as the other teams moved up to Advanced Base Camp over a week ago to chase a rumoured weather window. We heard the news today that the Chinese Tibetan Mountaineering Authority (CTMA) rope fixers would leave to start fixing the ropes between 8300m and 8848m on the 18^th of May. 

Things We Won’t Miss about climbing Everest (initial list)

1. Getting dressed on your knees in a tent.....

Base camp - The Waiting Game

Waiting for the weather window feels a lot like Groundhog Day. The weather is generally the same every day (blue sky, sunny), we eat meals daily and regularly at 8:30, 12:30 and 6:30 every day, and conversations generally revolve around the summit window, or summit day generally or the ever popular weather forecast. Somehow these conversations always degenerate into one or another toilet joke or a ‘silent but deadly‘ fart by a member of the team where the next 20-minutes are spent arguing over ‘who-dunnit’.