They performed well. It was large team that included researchers from Brown University. At one point we had 30 people in base camp. The base camp staff, with Chhombga as the cook, were excellent as were the climbing Sherpas. All question were answered quickly. Guy was there and served as the base camp Manager and made sure that everything went smoothly. AC kept a full time cook at Camp 2 and at Camp 4 which was a great benefit after long days.
Q: Which route did you take and how were the conditions? A: The South Col. After the 30 mile trek from Lukla to base camp - acclimatizing along the way, we climbed through the Khumba icefall five times.
This was the most dangerous part due to the shifting glacier. It can move a foot a day and can release house-sized blocks of ice without any notice. There were four High Camps at 19,; 21,; 23, and 26, All towards the summit of 29, See the page on the South Col Route for a concise series of pictures and route descriptions.
It was Hot, cold and windy! It was warm in We regularly saw high temperatures above 80F. In the direct sun on the Western Cwm, it reached over F. We had to be extremely careful about severe sunburn. At night, temperatures reached F. The winds were one of the biggest problems that year and flattened many tents at Camp 2 during one storm. As happens every year, the jet stream takes a break in early May that opens a window for summit attempts.
Usually this is around May 10, but in it was around May In , it happened around May Q: How did you do in ? A: I reached about 27, feet m just under the Balcony. I developed a lung infection that dramatically reduced my ability to transfer the little oxygen available from my lungs to my muscles. I was out about three hours when I started to cough. My cough was continuous and extreme. At the end of each episode, I felt as if I wanted to vomit and I in fact dry heaved and gagged at the end of each coughing session.
I know this is distasteful, but it was what happened. I continued this way for about an hour. With a Sherpa behind me, I never felt in jeopardy. I did know, however, that my summit bid was at serious risk. Moving slowly, I was the last person of the AC team on the Hill. I drank some water and took some concentrated carbohydrates to see if it would revive me. I rested. But it was not to be. I thought deeply and carefully about turning around.
My decision was based primarily on not getting better and considered my ability to safely descend after gaining more altitude. Please see the Everest page for a complete trip report. The Climb Q: Why did you go back in ? Wasn't that too quick? A: Ahh, the question everyone asks and the one that is hardest to answer. The short story Everest - Unfinished Business tries to shed some light but I think it boils down to I just wanted to.
I need five stars to align for me to try something of this magnitude: support from my employer, time off, money, support from my family and a deep personal desire. They were there for the '02 attempt and re-emerged for ' I thought about the night of May 15, a lot. What went well, what didn't. What would I do different if I had another chance and so on. Q: Why did you choose Adventure Consultants in when they didn't get you to the top in '02 A: Interesting question of who is responsible for making the summit or not.
It is perfectly clear for me. The Guides are there to give you the opportunity but it is ultimately up to the individual climber. I appreciated their professionalism and attention to details. The group gear they provided was first rate and their Guides are world-class with all the experience you would ever need. They use the same Sherpas on each trip so there are few surprises.
On Everest '02, I saw many expeditions that were understaffed or seemed to have guides climbing for themselves. He is truly first class. I was overall pleased with Guy Cotter and the AC team in The logistic were very well done. The food at base camp was outstanding and the Sherpas second to none.
Q: So how did Adventure Consultants perform in ? A: We had a small team. In fact, Guy wanted to cancel the trip two weeks before we were to leave since the turnout was so low.
But another climber joined thus keeping the trip viable. All the Sherpas had stood on top of Everest at least once and Ang Dorge 8 times! I knew everyone one this trip except for my two fellow climbers. However, their performance was mixed. The Sherpas and base camp services were excellent as usual. The pre-trip interaction was not in AC's excellent tradition.
The expedition became difficult towards the end with the guide becoming abusive. All the climbing Sherpas made the summit but none of the clients or the Guide. I spoke with Guy after the trip and sent him a detailed letter with my concerns. He responded with sincerity and he made some changes to his operation based on my comments and from several other clients. A: I reached the same spot as in - about 27, feet m just under the Balcony. My body just did not perform well.
I had trouble with the altitude above C2. It started as we went to C3 on an acclimatizion trip. I returned to BC after spending the night at C3 or 23,' but never really got stronger. I suffered from a chronic cough and fatigue. I never felt I was in danger or was putting my teammates into danger so I continued with the expedition and climbed to the South Col at m. I left with the team for the summit and turned backed at m. The Climb Q: Why did you go back when you did not summit in and ?
A: Two reasons: 1 raise awareness and money for Alzheimer's research and 2 I wanted to. Now that I am retired different factors enter into my decisions but two are still critical: support from my family and a deep personal desire.
My 82 year-old Mother had Alzheimer's in and was in a full time care facility. Everest project. It was a 5 climb plan plus fund raising and public speaking. You can read more about it through this link. I know from my previous climbs that Everest draws much more interest than say Denali, for example, so it was the best climb for my Alzheimer's objective of awareness and donations.
I usually get over , hits a day on my website during my big climbs. But also, I really want to stand on top of the world! Q: Who did you go with? A: Mountain Professionals, led by Ryan Waters. Phil has a reputation of running a great BC and is an experienced Everest guide as well. HAD is a well known smallish logistics operator and guide service similar to Asian Trekking. But they are smaller and give more personal support.
Q: How did they all perform? HAD's base camp services were excellent. Outstanding food and tents. Their Sherpas were good. My Sherpa, Lam Babu was good. And I think the other team members were pleased with their support as well.
Ryan was more of a hands-off facilitator. While I own the fact i did not summit, I was disappointed that my summit night plan did not work out as I had extensively discussed and planned with Ryan. Q: I understand the Chinese closed the North side just before you were to leave.
Was that true and how did it affect you? A: On March 10th the Chinese sent a fax to all expeditions who already had been issued permits asking them to not arrive on Cho Oyu or Everest - North until May 10th. This was too late to acclimatize and summit Everest safely. The reason for the Chinese actions were to prevent any protest on Everest while they were taking the Olympic torch to the summit and doing a nationwide television broadcast.
Pure propaganda. Phil Crampton coordinated the change from north to south and without him, my climb would not have happened and I sincerely thank him for that. Q: What was the impact of all this during the actual climb? A: Significant.
You can read all the details in an extensive recap but the summary is the Chinese controlled the Nepal Government to such an extent that the Icefall ladders went in late, climbing restrictions were in place that prevented a normal year for acclimatization schedules, communications and censorship rules limited dispatches and climbers were threatened at gunpoint to comply with rules.
It was frightening at times, disturbing at other and annoying at a minimum. I will never trust the Nepal Ministry of tourism like I have in the past. Q: Why did you consider the North side this time even though you ended up on the south? A: I thought about returning to the south since I know it so well but I felt that my summit chances as well as my safety were better on the the north. The Khumbu Icefall has become so dangerous in recent years with falling seracs and deep crevasses.
Another consideration was that it seems the Icefall Doctors who manage the ladders have become a little sloppy. In , the Chinese were taking the Olympic torch to the summit as part of their Beijing games and have scared a lot of people away fearing over-control. They were right!! The camps on the north are higher than on the south thus making the climbing days a little shorter. The North Col is at 23,, the same as C3 on the south.
See the page on the North Ridge Route for a concise series of pictures and route descriptions. Q: What else did you do different this time? A: The plan was to have more bottled oxygen thus giving me the option of using it at a higher flow rate or from lower down. I had to be careful about this choice since either way it increases my risk if something goes wrong such as mask or regulator failure.
By depending on supplemental oxygen too much my body will simply die without it above 8,m if it is suddenly taken away and I cannot get down fast enough. Also,I had a personal Sherpa who helped me with the loads for example carrying my F sleeping bag to the north col. I still carried the majority of my own gear but he was there when I need additional help.
All in all, I felt very confident about this overall plan but it did not come together when it counted. Q: So, how did you do in ? A: I did not summit - again - I felt great the majority of the climb but felt it was too dangerous for me to continue and turned back just below the Balcony around 27,' which was feet short of the highest point on earth.
This was my highest altitude ever reached. In hindsight it was an easy decision but gut wrenching nonetheless. It was dangerous with large rocks being kicked by the conga line of people - we are lucky someone did not get killed that night. The weather was good - temps near 0F, clear sky and no winds. The masses moved pretty slow but faster than me! The bottom line was that I felt I was moving too slow to summit and return safely. However, I let too many distractions get to me and I counted too much on the western guide to help me when I hit the wall i new I would.
But the bottom line was that I needed to be tougher mentally. Q: Was there Internet coverage of the expedition? A: I posted extensive dispatches on this site but it was interrupted for several weeks when the Nepal Army imposed a communication blackout and confiscated our satellite phones.
The dispatches can be read on the dispatch page. This was the main page for all the dispatches for all my recent climbs. Q: Any regrets on turning around? A: A few. As I wrote this two years later and I feel could have done several things differently. While I trained hard, planned for most everything but in the end my mind said no at the extreme altitude. However, I feel good about the awareness and money I raised but I feel better than I am back home with my family to write about this. I returned in and summited with IMG.
Everest Facts. Q: Exactly where is Mt. A: On the border between Nepal and Tibet China. It is in the Himalayan mountain range which stretches miles from Northeastern Pakistan to Bhutan. There are over thirty mountains higher than 25, feet. Of the fourteen 8, meter peaks, nine are located in the Himalayas making it clearly the top of the world. Q: How do they know the altitude? Fifteen years later using trigonometry and measurements from 12 different survey stations around the mountain 'Peak XV' was surveyed as the world's highest mountain at 29, feet.
In it was re-named Mt. Everest and is called Sagarmatha by the Nepalese and Chomolungma in Tibet. In , the height was adjusted to 29,'. Using a second Trimble GPS receiver at the 26,' South Col they could make an extremely accurate measurement by running the two receivers simultaneously. The new altitude was 29, feet or 8, meters.
However, the Nepalese still use 29,' as the official altitude. Q: What were the standout climbs? It is still unknown if they made the summit, but both died on the mountain. In , Japanese Junko Tabei became the first woman to summit the hill. But in , 16 Sherpas died in the Khumbu Icefall when an ice serac released on top of them.
And in , 19 people were killed from an avalanche off Pumori Ridge that was triggered by a 7. Q: How many people have summited and how many people have died trying? A: The Himalayan Database reports that through August there have been 10, summits 5, members and 5, hired on Everest by all routes by 5, different people. Climbing Mount Everest is hard. Historically, less than 30 percent of people who attempted to make it to the summit succeeded. Nowadays, this figure has increased to about 50 percent, in part due to restrictions by the Chinese and Nepalese governments on who can climb.
In order to successfully summit Everest, you must be incredibly physically fit; most people spend at least one-year training to climb the mountain. You should also be comfortable on AD-rated climbs with previous experience at high altitudes.
The biggest risks for climbers on Everest are generally avalanches, heart attacks, exposure during storms, frostbite, and falls. However, statistically speaking, you are more likely to die climbing Mont Blanc or riding a bicycle in London than on Mount Everest. Climbers attempting to summit Mount Everest should have previous experience climbing on fixed lines; have previous rock and steep snow climbing experience on exposed terrains, and be familiar with crevasse travel techniques.
It is also helpful to have summited at least one 6. However, you do not need to be a grizzled veteran in order to make it to the top. Both the Chinese and Nepalese government require you to hire a guide in order to summit and both have put considerable infrastructure ropes, camps, etc.
The best time to climb Mount Everest is in late April and May. This is the window of opportunity when the summit is most hospitable for humans. It is after the brutal winter and before the monsoon season.
Climbing from the Tibetan side generally means better weather conditions than from the Nepalese side. Regardless of which side you climb from, weather can change quickly. In a matter of minutes, clear days can turn into blizzards. Even outside of monsoon season, wind speeds can reach kilometers per hour. Summit day, usually a date in mid May when temperatures are warmer and winds milder, actually begins at around midnight. Climbers aim to be on the summit in the morning, with plenty of daylight left to get down before nightfall.
Almost all of those who now climb Everest use the services of commercial expedition operators. These vary quite widely in price. This will include the services of a western guide who lead the expedition and a high ratio of support climbers, usually Sherpas, to clients.
In recent years, new local operators have been offering Everest for much less than this, raising concerns about levels of pay for Sherpas and safety standards. All expeditions are required to pay for helicopter insurance for their staff as well as mandatory life insurance, which was recently increased, although not sufficiently in the eyes of many high-altitude workers.
A significant cost on Everest is government taxes and fixed charges. Each team requires a liaison officer LO most usually provided by the tourism ministry. They are often civil servants from other ministries without the training or experience to cope with high mountains. Since the early s, a debate has raged about the use of bottled oxygen. In the modern era, most ascents of Everest are done with bottled oxygen. They also climb ropes fixed in place by high-altitude workers, who carry tents and other equipment and supplies, including oxygen bottles up the mountain.
In recent years there has been concern that inexperienced climbers are being allowed on Everest. The BMC hopes that lightweight, alpine-style climbing will remain an option on Everest and other 8,m peaks. The BMC believes that climbers should be sufficiently experienced to join an expedition on Everest. BMC travel insurance is loaded with the essential cover that you need for adventure.
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