I didn't sleep well last night possibly because I had been in the tent for some 14 hrs and was restless but when the call to get up at 5:15 am I for sure didn’t want to get up. I was warm in my sleeping bag, there was frost on the entire inside of the tent and every time I touched the tent frost would fall down onto my clothes. I am so big my head hits the top all the time so it is like it is snowing in my tent in the mornings when I get up before the sun dries it out. It was -4 degrees Fahrenheit and I did not want to get out of the bag. I had put my pullover and jacket inside my sleeping bag to keep them warm and dry but as I was putting stuff on the frost was being knocked down on me. It was cold and wet. I finally got my clothes on for my trip and then I had to put everything in my stuff sacks for the clothes that I was leaving at camp 2, stuff that was being left at camp 1 for next week and stuff that was going to base camp which is what I was taking down in my backpack. I finally had pushed everything outside to Nima and gang for the trip down and headed to the dining tent to get some breakfast, put on my harness and get my crampons. We finally walked out the door at 6:50am for our trip down and it included all 5 of us (Nima, Jim, Ngawang, Zhangbu (camp 2 cook), Steve) We all had our crampons on and I realized that I had left my sunglasses in the tent so Nima didn’t have his on so he went back to get them but told us to go on down and he will keep going. I left with Nawang and Zhangbu and Jim waited on Nima. We covered the 7 miles pretty quickly and when we got to camp 1 we dropped the stuff off and Nima told us to keep going. As I had told you on a previous day, there was 1 nasty vertical ladder in between camp 1 and camp 2. Well when we were going down it I got my crampons and the rope hung up and fell off the ladder. First it was a pretty quick deal. The carabineer (on my harness) attached to the safety rope caught me about the same time that the ground caught my shoulder. This was a wakeup call for me to be careful for the rest of the day to be more careful and also showed me how quick something can happen. It scared me to death. I got right up and tried to get loose of the rope that was attached to my harness and was a little dazed and then Jim yelled at me not to do it as I was standing next to a huge crevasse located right behind me. Well what a way to start the day but all is well. (BTW the shoulder is a little sore today (Friday April 30th) but will be ok) Then we proceeded to the Ice Fall where I was now dreading those first 2 sets of 3 ladders. It was hard work on the first one and we had a lot of traffic around them which makes it even more complicated with everyone trying to find a place to stand and get up and down efficiently. As far as I can tell in the 3 days I have been in the falls there are no common courtesies. People come down and go up at random rates with little regard for the others. I might be wrong but this is how I have seen it. While we were working hard, I became very hot and needed to take off a layer of clothing and I told Nawang. He told me we couldn’t do it here as it was too dangerous to stop and we would have to wait. I said ok but I didn’t know that meant 45 mins later. By then I had been overheated for that long and my energy had been sapped. We did finally stop and I drank almost a liter of water. I was smoking with the work but the stressed of those few ladders especially after what had happened to me earlier. After a few mins of changing clothes and drinking we continued on down the ice falls. I was moving steady but quite a bit slower. I was just drained but I knew I wanted to get down. Quite a bit of stuff of changed in the fall since I was there 4 days ago but something that didn’t change was it was steep and slick. The sun was now full on and I couldn’t take enough clothes off so I would have to just gut it out for the next 3 hours. We continued down and about 30 mins from the exit. We had some tea and a coke delivered into the ice fall. Zhangbu had gone ahead and had some of the guys bring us the drinks. It was perfect timing as I was out of water and needed a drink. We had our break gave them our backpacks and proceeded home and was there in the next 20 mins. We were tired and wanted something to eat as it was almost 12 pm. We had the done the run in about 5 hours, 1 hour less than what Jim and the Sherpa’s had predicted. For me, it was not a min too early. I was shot and needed to sit down for a while. When we got to the base camp, we went and sat in the dining tent for lunch and wait for Tracy (our base camp manager) to return from Gorak-shep. She had gone down to use the internet and was back within 30 mins of us arriving. She is nice and a friend of a friend of Jim’s who was looking for the neat trip. We sat around and talk and had lunch and I never left the tent until around 6 pm when all of a sudden I just went down and said I had to go to bed without dinner. Jim made me stay around a little while longer while they ate but I could barley hold my head up. I was tired getting cold and wanted to go to bed. I did finally get into bed with my hot water bottle and went to sleep very quickly and slept all night. It was nice not to have to wake up for anything. Posted on Steve’s blog - Thursday April 29th

A long way down… Camp 2 can be a very inhospitable place when the wind is blowing and it is snowing. Steve has been doing well despite the discomfort of Camp 2. We have accomplished what we came for… to spend a couple of nights at Camp 2. It is now time to head back to Base Camp to rest and re-energize ourselves. The next trip up through the ice fall should be quicker and we will only stop at Camp 1 for one night before heading up to Camp 2. After a nights rest we plan to climb the Lhotse Face to Camp 3 to test Steve’s fitness and familiarize him with the difficulties of climbing in the rarefied air. That is all for the next trip. Now it is time to get back to Base Camp. After a small breakfast we are off about 6 am. We make the first part to Camp 1 very quickly – 1 hour. Steve and Nawang Pasang head down after a brief stop at Camp 1. Nima and I stay a while to organize the camp for the return visit and then we are off. Things seem to go much faster than on the way up. The risks are the same. It is amazing how much has changed in 4 days. New ladders and sections that were solid a few days ago are gone. The descent goes quickly. We make it back to Base Camp in time for lunch. Tracy Wood our new Base Camp manager has taken a walk to Gorak Shep to send email that she has arrived. She gets back about a half an hour after we arrive. We sit in the dining tent and talk all afternoon… before we know it diner is ready. Steve is again challenged to eat as it will help with his recovery. After such a long day it is hard to “force feed” yourself but he does manage to get a bit of diner down before heading off to bed… a good night’s sleep awaits him. posted by the dozer

Due to the weather, we stayed in our tents until about 8 am when the sun can shine brightly on them to warm them up. As I awoke early the entire tent on the inside was frozen. The sunglasses had a thick layer of frost on them and I just didn’t want to get up until the inside was thawed out. By 845am the ice was gone and I was able to get up and go to breakfast. Pancakes and bacon was on the menu and I ate about half of it and a couple of pieces of bacon. The wind had stopped during the night (Thank goodness) but it was still cold. The sun provided a good deal of warmth if you stood in the rays or was in your tent. After breakfast, we all went back to our tents. The sun was shining and it felt good for about 30 mins. After that I did everything imaginable to try and stay cool but the heat in the tent was unbearable. I finally had to get up around 11 am and went to the dining tent. We stayed in the dining tent until around 12 when we had lunch and then I went back to the tent due to the cold weather again. I thought we were going on a 2 hr hike around 2pm weather permitting but before I knew it Jim was making his 5 pm base camp call. The opportunity to move up another 1000 ft had been lost but the weather was just too bad to go. The snow had been falling for hours and the temperatures had been dropping and the sun was long gone. We would have another night of -0 Fahrenheit weather. It was a clear night when I looked out at the summit of Everest below a sky full of stars. The snow capped mountains were just unbelievable as the night looked like daylight inside the tent with all of the reflections off the snow. It is amazing how much one can sleep his life away up here. The altitude, the cold weather outside vs the warm weather in the sleeping bag and the hiking just takes its toll on your body and I am not a lazy person at all. One thing at this campsite that drove me crazy was the big rock in the middle of my tent. I could not find a way to keep my head up. I moved around every way I could in the tent (didn’t really care about where my feet pointed for religious purposes) and I couldn’t find a way to do it. The rock was perfectly placed right in the middle of my tent. I didn’t have the heart to tell the guys because they would have tried to fix the ground but I had seen the work they had done just to get it at this level which was not easy. The rock was right in my hip bones and it just worked on me all night. I was popping Aleve to help but it was not going to be helped until I got out of this tent site. What these guys accomplish on a “side” of nay terrain and on top of any surface (rock, snow and ice) is an amazing feat so doesn’t let it sound like I am complaining but did want to remember my 2 nights at ABC on my “teeter totter” rock in the middle of my bed. We got up about 630 for dinner in the dining tent. It was another good meal of chicken and rice but it was so cold I could hardly eat. I had my Mountain Hardwear jacket on and I was still cold. I drank a couple of cups of hot tea but nothing was going to get me warm but the sleeping bag. We went to bed at 715 pm and the wakeup call was going to come about 5 am for our trip back to home (base camp) and I was ready to go home. These 4 days were good for my acclimatization but I was smelling pretty bad and I needed a shower and I wanted the comforts of my bed in base camp vs these last 2 camps. Posted on Steve’s blog - Wednesday April 28th

Hard to rest at this altitude… Camp 2 is the highest ABC in the world at a little over 20,000 ft. It is like resting at the top of Denali in Alaska. We need to make these trips up this high to help our bodies adjust to the demands of living even for a short time here at this altitude and above. We will stay here for nearly 48 hours. This will give our bodies a chance to begin the process of becoming better at breathing and gathering what oxygen is available from the air. We will not use supplemental oxygen at this level unless medically necessary. Camp 2 is a cold and sometimes windy place. Due to the harsh conditions the area is probably the least clean area on the mountain. This year there is a real effort to clean up the Camp 2 area. A local Nepali company is offering sherpas 100 rupees per kilo of garbage they bring down. Most sherpas at this time are carrying supplies up to Camp 2 and returning empty. The hope is that sherpas will pick up some trash o heir way down. We will see how effective this campaign really is at cleaning up Camp 2. Steve and I got up with the sun and had a leisurely breakfast. The sun up here can either be extremely hot or if it goes behind a cloud it become cold instantly. Resting with mild exercise is the goal today. Our plan to walk up towards the Lhotse face was cut short by clouds that came in after lunch and brought with them snow showers. This will make for a long day of rest. Nima and crew brought up some fresh chicken and rice to help Steve find some food that would be appealing to him. The sherpas are worried that if he does not eat more he will become weak and unable to climb… they are worried that Steve’s legs will “run out of energy” so they are joining me in an effort to have food that can bring back the energy. Tomorrow we will get up early and head back to Base Camp for a rest. The next trip up here will go even higher – Camp 3 on the Lhotse Face!!! posted by dozer

In the heat of the day at Camp 2

As we expected, the Sherpa’s shook the tents at 6:30 am. (They had left base camp at 3:30 am and had scampered up the Ice Fall in 3 hrs, freaking amazing guys with 50+ lbs on their backs) Jim and I were just about ready to go when this happened so we continued to get our pads, sleeping bags and our other stuff in stuff sacks so the Sherpa’s could take our stuff up the mountain. After about 45 mins of getting stuff together the Sherpa’s were on their way and Jim and I was ready to start our trek to Camp 2. Jim had anticipated about a 4 – 5 hour walk (about 7 miles) but it just didn’t seem like it would take that long looking at it the previous day but he had reminded me to sometimes your eyes can play tricks on you when you just look uphill. Our starting altitude point was about 19000 feet. At 8 am we got started and were moving very well. This made me feel better as I was still frustrated about the 8 hour Ice Fall trip. The weather was good when the Sherpa’s left but by the time we were leaving Jim noticed the weather was getting bad from the west/southwest which he said was not a very good sign. We started and it was cold but we had made it to our previous day point about 30 mins quicker. One reason was because we had put on our crampons the 2nd day which made it a little quicker to move on the icy slippery slopes and we actually was feeling good after a good sleep. We had a few ladders (one pretty nasty vertical) and several “scary “crevasses that we had to navigate but after this was just one long continuous slope. I have thought over and over something I could use to describe the last 5 miles of walking but I could only describe a road in Tellico that I went for some training years ago on a recommendation by a friend Kevin Tumlin which was up as long as I wanted to walk that day or any day. I didn’t like it then and I didn’t like it this day either. We walked about 2 1/2 more hours and we finally made it. What a frustrated feeling to just keep walking up for 2 + hours and never having a break of anything thing but up and almost dead straight. Again the slope was not steep or high but it was truly like a “death march” and I was tired when we got there. I did have to remember we were actually moving up more altitude than the Ice Fall 8 hr day (about 2000 feet) but we were getting there in an entirely different way. Jim did stop and continued to give me more history of things that had happened in these mountains over the years which I always thought was interesting. We also moved through 2 large patches along the trail where it showed the remains of 2 very large avalanches where some very large rocks and pieces of ice were now in the middle of the valley. I am glad I didn’t see these happen or be here when they did. As we entered the camp, the weather started turning bad, the wind had really picked up so what Jim was saying early this morning was coming true. We were in for a cold afternoon and a miserable night. I was now sleeping at the base of Mt Everest about 8000 feet from the summit and I could see it from inside my tent. What a view???? When we got there, we went straight to the tent and waited for lunch call. After about 2 hours, we got up and went to the dining tent for lunch. Good lunch but wasn’t too hungry so Nima was again concerned about my eating habits. ABC- (Advanced base camp) this camp is similar to base camp with a dining tent and a kitchen. This is nice as you have someone else to go besides your tent to enjoy your food and conversation. After lunch we returned to the tent until dinner time due to the weather situation. I just listened to my iPod as it was too cold to do anything outside the tent unless it was an essential task. The snow began to fall and the temperatures continue to drop. When dinner was ready, Nima came to my tent trying to serve me dinner. I refused and said let’s eat in the dining tent. Honestly if I would not have gotten up then I would not have eaten the food. It was a good dinner of chick and rice but I do not know if the cold weather was worth the walk to the tent. Jim joined me but it was pretty scary with the wind just blowing the tent all over the place. Jim was actually worried that we might lose this dining tent if the wind got much stronger and blew the tent in a certain way and it would break the poles. After a quick dinner, we actually thought it would be safer in our individual tent. (Guys remember Berlin camp Aconcagua 2007; it was close to that but not quite) I was tired, it had been a better day and I was ready for bed. The next day would be yet another adventure as we are going on a hike towards camp 3. The temperature was -0 Fahrenheit and the wind continued to blow and it was snowing quite hard but in my bag with my hot water bottle it was pretty cozy. I could only think about those people, who had just moved up to camp 3 with this wind and the temperatures. Maybe tomorrow would be better or it would be a long day in the bag. We did hear that 3 people were killed on the mountain on the North side (China) by an avalanche but nothing was confirmed yet. We also have heard that the weather from that side has been a lot worse than our side. I hope all is well over there as that is where the 13 year old boy is and Nawang’s bother is also over there. Posted on Steve’s blog - Tuesday April 27th

Never ending up… The route to Camp 2 is not at all like the journey through the ice fall but rather would be a nice gentle uphill walk if it was not for the lack of air. This year the route walks over towards Nuptse and then back o the middle of the Cwm. There are very few ladders or crevasses that we have to go down into and back out. This makes the trip relatively easy. It is always amazing to me how tough the sherpas really are. They arrived this morning around 7:30 AM loaded with all there own personal gear to stay at Camp 2. They were cheerful and ready to take all our gear from Camp 1 to Camp 2. By 8 AM we were packed and on our way up the hill. The day before Nawang and Dawa had come by at 6:30 AM and were back by 9:30 AM but today we are all moving a bit slower as the loads are a bit heavier. It will take Steve and me between 3 to 4 hours just to get to Camp 2. The walk although not hard is a challenge as you can see the destination for nearly two hours; it never seems to get any closer. Finally you are in the midst of all the different Camp 2s and looking for our Camp. Our Camp 2 turns out to be high on the hill. We arrive and get settled into the dining tent for drinks and lunch. Camp 2 or Advanced Base Camp (ABC) as some call it is the staging point for the rest of the climb. From here all the gear for Camps 3 & 4 is collected before being carried up the mountain. We do our best to make it a comfortable camp with tables and chairs, a dining tent, a cook and just about all the same amenities as Base Camp - just higher. Camp 2 is for resting more than any other activity. This is the place where people come to regain some strength and recover from the trip through the ice fall and Western Cwm. It is from here that the summit bid begins. Above here there is very little chance to rest and recover. Once we have some lunch and plenty to drink we retire to our tents for a rest before dinner. Dinner is short and then back to our tents for a restless nights sleep. posted by the dozer

Looking up at Camp 2 underneath Everest

We went to bed in the cold and wind and awoke in better weather. I felt better after a good night’s sleep and our plan was to get up and go for a 2 hour hike up the mountain in hopes of at least seeing camp 2 (ABC- advanced base Camp). We finally got up around 10 am and started walking towards the (ABC) to see how we felt and take pictures. We were at the base of the valley looking at Nuptse on the right, Lhotse face in the middle and the big one, Mt Everest on the left. What an amazing place to see in one’s life. (Jim got some pictures) We started our walk up the 7 mile journey and was actually moving pretty good with what we had been through the previous day and in about 1:30 mins we were at a great place with a view on ABC and we could even see the first of the tents being placed on Lhotse face at camp 3. The weather was pretty good and we got some outstanding shots of the summit of Mt Everest. We took some lunch up there on the trail admiring all the views and listening to stories of climbs Jim had done over the past 20+ years and I was just was in awe of where I was and what I was doing. I appreciate all the people who allowed me to do this adventure. When you see things like this in nature, it really gives you an appreciation for the world we live in and the opportunities we are afforded and that we must take more of them or we will die and never really have seen the world around us. After lunch, we decided to go back to the camp. We made it rather quickly and by then it was in the afternoon and the clouds and snow came back to welcome us into the evening. Again the main purpose when you return to the tent is to get warm. Jim and I both went to sleep with little conversation and you didn’t hear anything from either of us until about 9 pm and then it was too late to eat or try to cook and we just kept sleeping. We had to get up early in the morning for our trek into ABC and we knew the Sherpa’s would be up from base up around 6 am. It was a long cold night and you cannot sleep 14 hours so you end up turning over and over hoping it is daylight when you open your eyes. I can only sleep on my side and the hard ground (even when you have a sleeping pad) make your hips hurt so that adds to the anticipation of the morning sunlight. Steve’s blog - Monday April 26th

Day hike to see Camp 2 Today we stayed in our tents until the sun warmed us up. It was rest day today after our first long day in the ice fall. The goal is to eat and drink all we can today so that tomorrow we can move up to Camp 2. Early in the morning we watched as another team helped a disoriented member of yet a third team head back to Base Camp… the assisted climber seemed to be suffering from altitude illness and was not able to safely negotiate the ice fall ahead of him. The team brought the injured climber to their camp and with the help of the doctors at Base Camp got him stabilized and on oxygen before slowly and carefully taking him down through the tricky ice fall. The question is where were his team mates??? This is becoming a more common sight these days… individual climbers wondering lost, disoriented and abandoned by their team mates. It is the larger experienced teams that are all too often called on for help. In this case it most likely avoided an injury or possibly a death. One of the challenges that the large number of people climbing on Mt Everest presents is how to deal with human waste. As the number of climber and sherpas grow so does the problem. During the 2000 Everest Environmental Expedition we demonstrated that it was possible to collect and remove all human waste to Base Camp. From here all waste is carried off the glacier to a dump site. Unfortunately not until recently have expedition’s come to realize how vital this is to everyone’s ability to climb the mountain. This year we will be using “Restop 2” toilet bags – same as we do in Grand Teton National Park – to collect our personal waste. We will bring it all back to BC. This will help keep the mountain cleaner and cleaner in years to come. The sun was warm and in the early afternoon we went for short walk to look at Camp 2 – tomorrow’s goal. posted by dozer

Camp 1



Steve negotiating a ladder bin the Western Cwm



First view of Everest - up close!!!

We left camp about 6 am on our way to camp 1. It was Jim, Nima and I, who quite frankly was a little nervous for many reasons. The fact that I hadn’t done much in the last 6 days due to the sickness, the horrible experience that I had encountered the previous Monday trying to get to camp 1 and the fact that the Ice Fall scares me to death was enough to make me a little apprehensive about the day. I started good and we were making good progress as we progressed through the part called the “popcorn” but I felt myself start to slow down. We had been in the Fall about 3 hours and after we exited the “popcorn” section( 4 hrs) Nima left Jim and I to go on up to camp 1.I thought this was a good sign and we were making progress but then it seemed like it would never end. We kept moving and I saw 2 sets of ladders at the rim of the Ice Fall and Jim said we had those 2 sets left and then a “short” walk to camp 1. These ladders were both the same. They were 3 10’ alum ladders (30’ high) mounted completely independent of each other, with the middle ladder mounted offset about 4-5” and reinforced on the mountain face with rope (so they were flexible) with a good 1.5 ft overhang of snow and ice. (Don’t worry I will get pictures the next time through if they haven’t changed). They both were definitely not put there using any sound physics logic (just Ice Doctor knowledge of 20 + years of doing this) but it seem to hold all the other climbers I have seen go up so far but it still didn’t make me feel easy about being on them because where there were located meant some serious physical damage if you fell. Any way we finally made it out of the Ice Fall in 7 hours and I was happy we had only a short walk left (wrong). It was about a 1.5 mile winding through crevasses, ladders and hills. I had my doubts if I was going to make it. I kept looking for the trail ahead but I couldn’t see it and about that time I saw some people way in the distance and the people looked like they were ants (which mean a long way) but I saw no tents. At that moment of weakness, I thought it was no way that I could keep walking that much longer and then all of a sudden I walked on top of the ridge and saw tents in the valley. I cannot describe the feeling that I felt at that moment. I had only about 100 meters left and I would have a tent to sleep in for the next 2 nights. I got in to my tent and went right to sleep. Jim had got there just before me and he had gotten in his tent. We had finally made it after 8 hours of constant push. After a few hours I awoke and Jim made me some rice to eat and I ate it plus some coke. I had a “2 man tent” and Jim had the “3 man” because he had to cook for us. It was cold (below 0) and I just wanted to get warm in my sleeping bag. It was all I could do and I went back to sleep. What a day it had been and I was a bit disappointed in the time it took me to get to camp 1 because I had felt so good earlier in the day but we made it and that was all that mattered on this day. The night was good, I slept well and my health was still good but I was tired. Steve’s blog – Sunday April 25th 2010

The first ascent to Camp 1 This will be a big day for Steve. Earlier we tried to climb to Camp 1 but due to an unknown illness he was forced to return to Base Camp to recover for a few days. We are now rested, healed and ready to go. After an early morning wake-up we are off just as the sky is getting light. Nima and I are travelling with Steve through the lower and middle part of the Khumbu Ice Fall. Nima will leave us once we reach the upper half; he will go and make sure Camp 1 is ready for our arrival. The Khumbu glacier is a frozen river of ice that comes cascading over a huge cliff band and as it does so it breaks in to millions of pieces just like a slow motion turbulent waterfall. Although we can not see it move we are acutely aware that the entire Khumbu Ice Fall is in constant motion around us. Pieces of ice the size of giant boulders and as big as a small house are slowly cascading down towards BC. They melt back together before they get to BC so they are no threat to our home. However climbing up the 1,500 feet vertically through the ice fall poses some unique challenges. After the initial pinnacle section where we are sorting our way up and down small ridges and long pools of water we come to an area know as the “popcorn” Here the blocks are smaller – the size of a small car – but stacked like pieces of popcorn on top of one another. The trail weaves its way up through the maze towards the “football field”. The football field as it is now referred to, use to be called the “eggshell” as it resembled the top of a hard boiled egg that had just been cracked to be pealed. It has since broken into smaller – city blocks size pieces and is now called the “football field” by some climbers. It took Steve and me almost 3 hours to get to this spot. There is a feeling of safety here so we took a small rest and drank some water and had a small snack before we headed for the “big ditch” and the final ladders. The “big ditch” is where the upper glacier begins to fall away and break up into what will become the Khumbu Ice Fall. The pieces here can be over 100 feet high and 50 -75 feet thick – HUGE by any standard. This moving wall of ice presents the last barrier before gaining the Khumbu glacier of the Western Cwm – the long valley that is between Nuptse and Mt Everest with Lhotse at its head. Camp 1 lies just a short distance above the top of the “big ditch”. The trip through the ice fall is very simple this year compared with years past. There are no really long ladders or a difficult section to negotiate it is mostly straight forward climbing in a jumbled field of ice boulders!!! We reach Camp 1 after nearly 8 hours. Steve has made it. Into the tent we go; not to emerge until the next morning. One of the largest personal hurdles we all have to over come is lack of appetite due to the high altitude. It is a challenge for every high altitude climber. It is a must that we get as many calories as possible so that in the thin air our body has at least a fighting chance to recover and rebuild the energy and muscles spent during the day. Steve is finding eating to be his biggest challenge… nothing looks appetizing. The next few dispatches will be from Steve’s personal blog. I hope this will give you the perspective of what it is like to climb Mt Everest for the first time. posted by the dozer

Steve negotiating the popcorn



High in the icefall looking back at Base Camp



Top of the ladders!!!!

Radios, updates and getting ready… Today is a rest and get ready day. We started by getting all our radios set up with the frequencies of other teams stored in memory so that if we need to communicate with others in emergencies we can do so. As of this dispatch we will be up to date; just to fall behind again as we spend a few days higher on the mountain. We got our food and gear packed for this trip up through the icefall…we even made small rice packets for Steve to eat in Camp 1. We have rice to cook in Camp 2… all we need now is butter!!! Tracy has made it to Pangboche and is having a rest day there. She will go visit Lama Geshe and get a blessing to help keep her safe as she proceeds up the valley to Base Camp. We will be getting up around 3 AM so we can be on our way by 4:30 AM. We are hoping to make it to Camp 1 in around 6 hours. If all goes as planned we will not be back for five days or so. We will fill you in on this experience once we return from the upper Camps. posted by the dozer

Check the recovery and see how we feel… Gorak Shep is the nearest place where trekkers come to spend the night in lodges before coming to Base Camp. For those of us who are living here in Base Camp it is a short two hour or less walk away. Steve is feeling better and better with every passing day. His appetite is SLOWLY returning. We decided that today we are going to walk to down to Gorak Shep and back to test Steve’s recovery and so that Nawang Pasang one of our climbing sherpa can call his wife. It turns out the Nawang’s wife is expecting a baby in the next two weeks. We made it down in two hours. We had a Hot Lemon drink and some egg chow mien and then headed back up to Camp. The round trip took us just under three hours. Steve was feeling fit and is ready to head back into the icefall in a couple of days. Nima has returned and brought chicken and fresh vegetables back with him. Tonight he surprised us with chicken and vegetable kabobs and apple pie. What a special treat. We have now found something hat Steve will eat…white rice with butter!!! We are going to see how that goes over at the higher camps. We will rest one more day and then start the trip up to Camp 1 and if we are strong enough we will head on to Camp 2. posted by the dozer

Rest, drink, learn to eat and feel better… The next few days are going by slowly. There is nothing to exciting to report. Steve slowly has been regaining his strength and after a house call by the HRA doc (Himalayan Rescue Association) he finally made it over to their office for a thorough check up. It turned out he had a low grade infection that was taking all his energy away. The doc’s put him on a course of antibiotics and in 24 hours he was on the road to recovery. Nima Tashi headed down valley to have a spring blessing for his home and animals. He will be back in a day or two. Tracy our soon o be Base Camp manager arrived in Lukla today and began her walk up the valley with Jetha. It will take her some 8 - 10 days to get here. By the time she arrives she will be well acclimatized. She will follow the same route we did on our trek into Base Camp a couple of weeks earlier. The sherpas and kitchen staff and I get creative to make food Steve will eat so that he can recover quickly from this infection. We work on getting camp organized snack food sorted, showers taken, and resting is on the agenda for Steve. The team leaders had a meeting followed by a meeting of all the Sirdars and it was decided that the ropes for the Lhotse Face above Camp 2 would begin to be fixed in place on the 22nd April depending on the weather. posted by the dozer

Climbing the Icefall with and illness… is hard!!! This morning we awoke at 3am to make our first trip up the icefall. Sleeping bags had to be packed and handed over shortly after we woke up so that the sherpas could carry them to Camp 1 and deposit them for us. It is cold in the early morning and neither one of us felt very well this early in the morning. Steve commented that if given a choice he would go another day. Since our bags had gone we decided to push on slowly towards Camp 1. We were slower than we had expected to be. Steve was running out of energy with every steep section or ladder we had to cross. It took us nearly twice as long to get as high in the icefall as he and Martin had gotten only a few days earlier. Finally around 9:30 am we called the effort to climb to Camp 1 off. Now the challenge was to get back to Base Camp safely no matter how slowly we were moving. After a short time Nima and Zhangbu came down from Camp 1 where they had erected the tents for us to stay in for the night… unfortunately we had not made it. The challenge now was to get Nawang Pasang and Dawa to pick up our sleeping bags on their way down from Camp 2. Nima took Steve’s pack and together we continued the long and arduous descent. Upon reaching BC Steve collapsed in his tent exhausted. He eats very little and slept through the night complaining of fever and chills. Being in the icefall is spectacular and dangerous. On this day we watch a huge avalanche come from the South-west shoulder of Nuptse and the dust cloud enveloped BC. The mass of these huge avalanches is only dwarfed by the magnitude of the mountains that start them. It reminds us of how small and helpless we are in the face of such greatness. The forces are awesome and frightening at the same time. posted by the dozer

Early in the morning Steve is climbing in the icefall



Huge avalanche from Nuptse dusts Base Camp



Out vof gas and headed down...

Photo exhibit at Base Camp They small town that develops at the base of Mt Everest on the Nepal side is always full of surprises. We have had concerts by professional musicians, flea markets, a cyber café, a bakery but this year we began the season with the opening of David Breashears’ Rivers of Ice Photo Exhibit. This is a collection of photos taken by different folks of the glaciers of Mt Everest. David and his crew worked hard to set up the exhibit here at BC. Several days ago we had the Grand Opening. It was a fun affair with David explaining all about the pictures and what he has learned while undertaking his newest photographic piece of journalism. Yes, based on the pictures the glaciers on Everest have become smaller and smaller over the years. The comparison is striking. If the exhibit ever gets out of Base Camp it is certainly worth seeing if you get a chance. The other interesting part of the gathering was who was in attendance. Although not all would agree but there were a great number of the folks who over the past twenty years have made climbing Everest what it is today – The Legends of Everest. The missing notables from me perspective were Pete Athens, Henry Todd, Phil Elshler and Kenton Cool. The sponsor of the Exhibit and the man most responsible for the “Seven Summit” explosion is due to arrive at the end of April. There is a great deal of excitement around Dick’s arrival. Good luck Dick… we are all looking forward to your arrival here in Base Camp. posted by the dozer

David is introducing the Photo Exhibit - Rivers of Ice



Jim Williams and 20100418 – Rivers of Iceern ejas are enjoying the pictures



A collection of "Legends of Everest" - old farts united!!!

Martin is heading down valley… we are working on BC Sadly Martin is on his way down the Valley today after a successful trip to Base Camp with Steve. Martin is a bit of a celebrity after having been part of the Baruntse climb as well as the Trek to Base Camp. The staff on both trips has been the same and the friendship is well established. We are all sad to see Martin go. His presence will be with us the rest of the time in on the mountain. We hope Martin will be able to return for his attempt on Mt Everest in 2011. Martin and Jetha will blast out of the Khumbu over the next three days. Martin is going to visit the family of the children he sponsors in school once he is in KTM. Jetha will pick up Tracy who is coming to Base Camp to help keep things organized while we are on the mountain. She has already been shopping for Kraft Ketchup, French’s Mustard, Kraft Thousand Island dressing and Pop Tarts among other things to make life comfortable here at Base Camp. We are looking forward to her arrival. Base Camp is our temporary home for the next several weeks. We are now setting up our communication tent, dining tent and our personal living tents. We need to position solar cells to power batteries that will give us access to the internet as well as charge our gadgets and shine light on dinner!!! All our tents are Marmot tents… I am still using big Swallow tents Marmot made many years ago as sleeping tents as they are easy to get in and out of without crawling through a vestibule. The Communications and Dining tents are the big Lair dome. We will share with you more on Base Camp in the next few days. posted by the dozer

Martin is off down the Valley



Exploradus Base Camp

Ropes, ladders, crevasse up, up ,up… Today is a special day for Martin. Last autumn season he joined a 45 ay trek and climb in preparation for this years climb of Mt. Everest. All was on track when some unforeseen complications made it so that Martin could only come to Base Camp this year. It was a special treat for Steve to have his climbing buddy accompany him to Base Camp. Now it is our turn to give Martin a special treat. Nima Tashi will take Martin and Steve to practice walking on ladders and climbing through the icefall while I stay and get more and more of Base Camp set up. Here in Steve’s words are the experiences of today: As I went t bed last night I was as nervous as I have ever been in my climbing life. For the first time in my life I was facing something that I could not imagine in my mind what to expect. I had read the books. I had seen pictures but everyone had told me that you will not know what it is until you get there because it is always changing. Nima Tashi, Martin and I left for the falls around 10 am. By 11:15 we had encountered our first ladder. On the way up we were moving fairly quickly as we moved up down sideways etc. It reminded me of the first time I took my kids to the “Jungle Jim’ in Chattanooga. (You know how you climb stairs, crawl through tubes, slide down into balls, and climb the rope to the lookout point.) Well that was what this was like but I was 20 something then maybe early 30’s and I am 48 years old now and the stakes are considerably higher with crevasses everywhere you looked and the potential that the ice fall could reshape at any minute. Nima told us about half way up our climb that what we see today especially as we get higher will be totally different than what we will see in the next few weeks and I totally believe what he is saying because base camp 2010 is totally different than 2009. It is not even close to the same shape and size. I just hope most of these changes are when I am not in the Ice Fall and surly while I am not on the ladder. Anyway I wanted to give you something t hat most of you have seen or done with your children or grand children and if you haven’t then look next time you are at one of those places and imagine you are on ice/snow doing it. Ok back to the story. This ladder was a 10 foot alum ladder standing straight up an ice wall. It really was not too bad but remember I have spikes on my feet , 2 poles in my hands and a assist rope to get down this ladder all the while you are trying to see the steps hold the rope and keep your poles from digging in somewhere where they don’t need to be and hope you don’t fall. Funny huh? Well Go get on you step ladder and try it Ok on to the next ladder. This was about 15 feet across a crevasse that I never saw the bottom, but bear in mind I was not looking either. So this was (2) 10’ alum ladders tied together with straps so the first 5 foot was a double ladder so this made me feel good since I am not the little Sherpa that I just saw almost run over it weighing about 50 kilos( 100 lbs) and didn’t seem to care much about the bottomless crevasse. Any way it was my time to go and we have about 10 people waiting to come down and up and the pressure was on and I was just bearing sweat. You have 2 ropes to help you balance. Right?? These ropes are lying on the ground when you get to the ladder. They are not stretched tight so you could hold on to so you could then just worry about your steps. We all know that would be too easy and the “Ice Doctors” couldn’t keep them up like that because of the glacier movement so you have to provide your own stability. So you pick up the ropes and lean forward to bring tension on the ropes and then you begin your journey. Again I have spikes on my feet, poles dangling from my wrist and me( big ole Steve leaning forward with these ropes) trying to walk on this alum ladder and not trying to think about falling and worse yet, what if the ropes give way I go face first and take a terrible tumble for a long way. (Now I am tied in to these 2 ropes with my harness around my waist connected by 2 carabineers at the end of a rope so there is an element of safety but it the rope anchors fail then you know the answer. Again if you want to know how this feels just go outside and try it on level ground and I bet it will still give u a little scare. ) Well none of us fell, (Thank Goodness) even as we went over several more ladders of varying degrees ( lengths, heights positions) even to a point of having gaining some confidence in doing this that this might not be so bad after all but remember too that this was in the daylight. The next time I see these ladders on Sunday it will be in the dark. Funny it seems like climbing this damn mountain always has some more to offer than any other one I have climbed but I will continue on for another day. I hope I gave you a good picture of what we did for 4 hours today. It was one of the scariest moments but also one of the greatest moments of my life especially having my friend Martin here. He was like a kid in a candy store. He loved it! Remember Martin is 62 years “Young” and did it without any hesitation and he gave me the confidence that I needed to overcome this crucial point in my journey. I have to make it through this Ice Fall 4 times if I have the chance to get to the top of this damn mountain so today left me wanting more and I want to see the changes. posted by the dozer working at base camp



Nima and Martin on asteep section in the ice fall



Martin on a ladder

Blessing for all the climbers We are now on a new schedule here at Base Camp. The mornings start with a cup of tea deliver to your tent just before the sun hits the tent. Just after sun shine is on the tent breakfast is served in the dining tent. Pancakes, bacon, eggs, cereal and just about anything you could want. Then off for the day’s activity. Today after breakfast we all took a shower and that really felt good to put on clean cloths after the long trek to BC. The Lama who is doing Base Camp puja’s came at about 11 AM. Here at Base Camp and in the Khumbu the Sherpa people are Buddhists. They strongly believe that blessings are needed to keep all of us climbing above Base Camp safe. We bring our crampons, ice axes, harnesses and pictures of families to the alter here in Camp. All things are prayed over and blessed. About half way thru the service the pole that holds all the prayer flags is placed in the alter. This is a very special event and must be done by someone with both parents still living. Here is our Base Camp that was Nima Tashi’s son Dawa Tsering. So while Dawa pours blessed rice on the hole the pole is put in place and flags are strung across camp in all directions covering the corners of our camp. Steve, Martin and I sit patiently through all the activities and then the final sharing of food, tea and Mountain Dew for Steve and chang for the Lama happens. We all get a small smearing of blessed barley flour called Tsampa on our cheeks, chin and forehead. Now we are ready to go into the icefall with the blessing of the spirits that resides in high places. We are fortunate this year as there is really no reason for anyone to walk through our camp as we back on to a lake and there is no way across them. This keeps others out and our camp safe from people looking for items that are not theirs. We have a great view of the icefall from our tents. Steve and Martin will head into the icefall for a practice run with Nima Tashi in the morning. posted by the dozer



Getting ready for the puja. All in order before we start.



Dawa Tsering - Nima Tashi's son putting rice in the hole as it is put up.



Nawang Pasang, Lama, and the entire crew at the puja

Please be patient... We are heading into the icefall in the morning so the back log of dispatches ill get longer. I promise to get caught up when we return. Setting up Base Camp is a great deal of work. We have all been working hard to get everything unpacked and set up as well as move things up the mountain to set up amp 1 and 2. We will be back on line with a full report as soon as we can. posted by the dozer

The Dozer leads the way… Another snowy night followed by a spectacular morning. We are off to Base Camp. The Dozer is setting a slow but steady pace. The objective is to never breathe hard when walking even uphill. This is a big challenge at nearly 17,000 feet. As we approached the first big hill to climb up onto the glacial moraine there was a traffic jam of trekkers and yaks going up and coming down. We just kept on plowing along and luckily made it through the jam without having to stop. We were in Gorak Shep in just 2 hours – a really good pace. Gorak Shep in a popular place as it is located at the base of Kala Pathar – one on the most popular view points of Mt Everest. We did not stop nor did we climb Kala Pathar but we kept on jugging along to Base Camp. We passed a group of yaks that had earlier in the morning brought some more things to our Base Camp. Nima Tashi’s oldest daughter was herding them back to Pangboche. We had passed her a couple days ago as we were leaving Pangboche heading to Chukung. She has packed up the yaks and walked to Base Camp and is heading back in less time than it has taken us just to make it to Base Camp…oh well she does live up here. Base Camp stretches for quite some distance this year. Apparently when the Chinese closed access to Everest from China for the Olympics many of the long time operators in Tibet moved over the South side here in Nepal. They have some huge camps nearly half an hour from the cluster of smaller camps like ours. We start seeing signs for a photo exhibit “Rivers of Ice – Vanishing Glaciers of the Greater Himalaya” being displayed for the first time right at Base Camp. The premier opening / gala event will be the tomorrow. We stopped by and saw Wally Berg and the Champion / Hainesbrand camp before heading into our Base Camp. The Dozer had kept a steady pace with only two water breaks and we were here in just 4 hours from Lobuche. Nima had camp all set up when we arrived. Our dining tent, kitchen, sleeping tents, toilet tent and shower were all up and ready for us to walk right in. After a light lunch we started getting organized in out tents where we will live for the next month and a half. Dinner was hard to stomach even though it was spaghetti which we all usually eat at home. Being at an altitude of nearly 17,500 feet is taking its toll on all of us. We will spend the next several days getting camp better organized, gear sorted and acclimatizing. Martin and Steve are both glad to be here. This has been a dream for both of them for some time. Martin is a bit of a celebrity as he has been with this crew last autumn on the Baruntse climb. They were all looking forward to his return. posted by dozer

Beautiful moring in Lobuche



Steve and Martin on the way to Base Camp



Exploradus Everest Base Camp