Apr30

team sleeps in camp 2

by Arnold on April 30th, 2012 at 3:10 pm
Posted In: blog

Today most off our team headed up to Camp 2 again at 6400m.
This means it was a 2 am wake up call again in base camp.
After some porridge and egg and toast everybody set off in the dark to scale
the icefall once more. The whole team made it in good timings to Camp 1 and
after a short tea break they continued to camp 2.

The last couple off days our team off Sherpa’s worked extremely hard to cut
ledges in the ice to pitch tents for us in camp 2. They even managed to sett
up a full kitchen and a small dining. This makes camp 2 our Advanced Base
Camp and a comfortable camp to hang out to optimize our acclimatization.

A few off us needed more time in Base Camp and heading up to Camp 2 tomorrow

Our plan is to spend some days up high and finally sleep in Camp 3 at around
7200m, but camp 3 is only partly pitched at the moment and we still have
some work to do there. This 2nd rotation will take about one week. Once
everybody slept in camp 3 our acclimatization is finished and we will head
back to Base camp for our final rest before the summit push.

Once I reached Camp 2 I will call in voice dispatches about our progress

High Altitude Greetings,

Arnold Coster, Expedition Leader

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Apr29

Staying Out of Trouble in Base Camp

by Arnold on April 29th, 2012 at 10:39 am
Posted In: blog

Dispatch from Sandra

All members of the team arrived safely back at base camp on 27 April, 2012.
Since then, we’ve been hard at work sleeping, making ourselves presentable
to the general trekking public – who, let’s be honest, deserve to see a good
show of rugged, handsome and clean mountain climbers, washing – in some
cases our two pairs of underwear, eating everything like there’s no tomorrow
and watching thriller movies on the big projector Arnold installed in the
mess tent.

More importantly, these last few days of sloth-like behaviour have been
critical in allowing us to recover from various small ailments, like the
Khumbu cough and colds. While at base camp, these ailments may seem
insignificant, but at higher elevations, they can quickly become
debilitating, forcing us to go down earlier than planned.

The team is now also smaller: Grace went down to Pheriche two nights ago to
meet up with a friend. Yesterday, Rob (a.k.a. Pumba), who is on a shorter
schedule to reach Camp 3, was feeling strong enough to head back up to Camp
2. Simon and Jess – who made it to base camp for a visit – left us to go
back to Kathmandu. Evelyn and Eric’s time was also up and they departed as
well. As a result, our meal gatherings are noticeably smaller. We make do
and huddle closely together, coughing in chorus under the soft glow of the
propane heater.

Tomorrow, in the wee hours of the morning, the majority of the team will be
heading back up the Khumbu icefall once more. This time, we’ll bypass Camp
1 and go directly to Camp 2 where we’ll be spending some 4-5 nights. Our
foray will also include a trip up to Camp 3 as the lines on the Lhotse face
are now fixed and ready. We’re all excited to be on the move again and to
continue our epic adventure.

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Apr26

Going back to basecamp after camp 1 and 2

by Arnold on April 26th, 2012 at 5:06 pm
Posted In: blog

Hello there at home.
Last night we had the second night at camp 1. stormy night but very warm. We
had to get up at 6 and tried to get going around 7. of course the speedys
from our group were gone before that time but we got away around 7.15 . was
still very stormy and cold to start up. Last day up to camp 2 was just going
steady up. We just stayed there for around 20 minutes and then headed back
to camp 1.
Going down to basecamp was not completely following the same route as we did
use the way up. Some avalanches had destroyed the original path set out by
the “ice doctors” a couple of days before. Some places were there was a
ladder to get over the seracs was still there but right next to that there
was a complete new pathe which everybody took. The group scattered down
because everyone has there own pace to get into which feels comfortable for
them. I use the slow way because I am not fully acclamitised yet and it
wears me out. Marlies also. But I get the impression we have a strong and
focused group. Both for Everest as wel as the two girls (Mia and Grace)
going to Lohtsy top.
Coming down in basecamp is like coming home to more luxury although its
still basic there. But food and drinks available.
Everybody bit happy with the fact we get two resting days.
Must say it’s a nice group of different caracters with the same goal.

If any mistakes in my English sorry for that.
Till my next opportunity to say something on this blog.
Cheers Joost

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Apr23

Rope Training, Abseiling, Ice Climbing, Chutes and Ladders.

by Arnold on April 23rd, 2012 at 2:49 am
Posted In: blog

By Dr. Jon Kedrowski for SummitClimb.com
It was an enjoyable day in the sunshine as the team headed into the lower
reaches of the icy and flat sections of the Khumbu Icefall near basecamp for
some enjoyable skill practice.

Some buzz-words were spoken often by members:
Super-califrag-alistic-expialidocious, Lethal Weapon, Vertical Limit, Ladder
Dancing, and a lot of laughs kept everyone focused enough to update their
skills, but still stay serious enough to respect the task at hand and the
dangers of passing through the icefall multiple times in the coming weeks.

It’s Wind Beneath My Wings, rappelling down an ice cliff, and the wind at
5400m feels good you know. I can’t wait, The “IceFall is Sexy”, exclaimed
once Female member of the team.

Mia Graffe was seen tap dancing across the ladders, and made them look easy.
This could be a sign of things yet to come for the young lady who is trying
to become the first Finnish woman to climb Lhotse, Everests neighbor at over
8500meters.

The Sherpas seemed to be enjoying the progress of the team as well, and even
took time to make some funny faces in a cut-out hole in the vertical ice,
much like a cut-out hole at your local carnival. While crossing a double
ladder, team members were critiqued by Jangboo Sherpa, who is an 11 time
Everest Veteran, and looking to make it a cool Dozen times to the summit.
He would giggle, laugh and give his “thumbs-up” approval for each member
after a successful ladder crossing.

Arnold Coster expressed the importance of backing yourself up at all times
with your safety line, then attaching your Jumar to the rope. “Efficiency
is key, and when we go through the Icefall, we leave very early, 3am.”
Hopefully we will be acclimatized well enough to go fast at a good steady
pace because being fast and going early lowers risk”.

Preferably we want to leave Basecamp, make it through the Icefall in 4 hours
or less, and be up to Camp 1 above the Icefall before 10am. Getting there
before 9am would be even better. Some members will take 4 hours the first
time, while some will take up to 6 hours, but Arnold says that he wants
everyone to be up there in less than 6 hours, before 10am. The Icefall and
hanging Seracs of the West Shoulder of Everest stay frozen the best before
the day’s warmth hits by 10am. Any later in that area and you are asking
for trouble in the form of falling blocks of ice and snow avalanches.

After resting tomorrow the 23rd of April, we will leave basecamp on Tuesday
the 24th of April at 3am and go up to Camp 1 which is at roughly
6000m/20000 feet. On the 25th, If you feel well enough you can day/morning
hike for 2 to 3 hours up to Camp 2 at the base of the Lhotse Face up through
the Western Cwm. This camp is at about 6400m/21,400 feet. Once touching the
Camp 2 for a brief Lunch, then we will return to Camp 1 for a second night
before descending back through the Icefall very early on Thursday the 26th
and then rest in Basecamp for 3-4 days after that. This upcoming rotation
will help a great deal with acclimatizing and stimulating Red Blood Cells in
the body. We will update again following this upcoming rotation. The
team is doing well, and most members are feeling strong, including myself,
looking forward to getting up on the mountain and into the icefall! Stay
Tuned!

Jon Kedrowski

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Apr21

pumori ABC

by Arnold on April 21st, 2012 at 5:24 pm
Posted In: blog

April 20 and 21, 2012

This is Grace McDonald with a dispatch for the Summitclimb, Everest, Lhotse
and Everest Training Climb Expedition 2012.

We had a leisurely 8:00 am breakfast and then we were all off to our tents
to sort out our packs for our trip up to Pumori Advanced Base Camp at
approximately 5,900 metres. This would be our next step in our
acclimatization plan. We had nice weather and after a few rest days I think
we were all ready to get in a little exercise. The group stayed together as
we moved out of Everest base camp and then we all fell into our individual
paces as we began the steep walk and eventual scramble up to Pumori ABC.
Three of us arrived in about 2 hours with one of our Sherpas, Pasang and we
were feeling pretty good so we took a few minutes to hydrate and helped set
up a bunch of tents. People continued to arrive and more and more tents
went up. Eventually we were all settled in, two to a tent and we relaxed
and continued hydrating. We had amazing views of Lhotse, Everest, Lingtren,
the Khumbu Icefall and down to Everest basecamp. Unfortunately cloud
eventually started closing in so we took dinner in our tents and some of us
visited other tents for cards and music but most were off for an early night
of sleep. Me, Jon and Richie hung out for a while socializing and ended up
serenading our neighbors with a rendition of Bob Marley’s Redemption song -
perhaps not as appreciated as we thought but good fun. We stretched the
night out as long as we could but eventually it was time to call it a night
and the three of us headed off to bed. Most of us found it was actually a
fairly comfortable evening. I think we all managed to get at least a few
hours of good sleep – some had their best night of sleep yet. Being up so
much higher, the sun hit us earlier and many were up and wandering around
before 7 am, taking lots of pictures, snacking on oatmeal and noodle soup,
packing up and helping the Sherpas take down the tents. There was a pretty
cool looking ventricular cloud over Everest that attracted a lot of photo
snaps. Everyone seemed to be in good spirits and some people planned to
head over to Gorak Shep for their Internet fix before heading back to
Everest base camp. Before everyone started heading down we watched Rob tape
a few shots for his ongoing Pumba video and we managed to surprise bomb him
with a bunch of snowballs during his last take. We had a great laugh and
Rob enjoyed it as well. I’m sure it will make his outtake reel. A few of us
walked down a longer path over towards Pumori basecamp to send off one
member to Gorak Shep and then we wandered off back towards Everest basecamp
where we caught the rest of the group heading down. It was actually a nice
day for walking and once everyone got back into camp plans started hatching
for showers. We were also all very happy to meet David, who is also joining
us for the Everest climb. Sadly the snow has started falling so it’s a bit
chilly and people have been removing themselves from the shower line and
instead taking to their tents for an afternoon nap. We’ll have everyone up
a bit later for dinner and a movie – tonight R.E.D. (hopefully we have
enough battery power!)

While we were heading out to Pumori ABC, one of our Everest Camp 3 climbers,
Evelyn, took an early morning trip through the Khumbu Icefall and stayed at
Camp 1. She got back just before we did and is doing quite well. She and
Eric are hoping to head back up to Camp 1 in a couple of days. They are on a
slightly accelerated schedule.

We are planning on having a training day tomorrow to show off our hopefully
amazing cramponing, jumaring and abseiling skills! Should be lots of fun.
After that we’ll make plans for our first trip up the Khumbu Icefall.

Thank you for following our adventure here on the South side of Everest. We
all appreciate your support.

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