Disabled
mountaineer Gary
Guller will attempt to summit Mt. Everest,
the highest mountain in the world at 8,850m,
in Spring 2001. While any attempt at Everest
is one of the greatest challenges one could
undertake, Gary's attempt will be especially
personal. In 1986, Gary suffered a spinal cord
injury in a climbing accident. His neck was
broken and the nerve roots going to his left
arm were pulled out of the spinal cord.
Despite experimental surgery, the paralysis
was irreparable and he made the decision to
have his left arm amputated.
May
16-18:
We continue to look at the skies every day and
wonder what the weather will do. The forecasts
for the next couple of days are not good, but it
could get better on 23 and 24 May. Ideally we
need a clear period of 3 or 4 days to allow
conditions to settle on the mountain, followed
by a similar period to allow us to climb safely
to the summit. Instead
we're getting a narrow window with most teams
intending to have a try for the summit.
"Summit
fever" kills on this mountain. We
will not jeopardize the safety of our
Sherpas and team members, and we will only
climb high on the mountain if we are sure
that the conditions are suitable. The
mountain will always be here next year.
Our final plans will materialize during
the next 48 hours and we will update all
our wonderful and supporting followers.
GG
here - On the 17th, myself, Nima Dawa and
Tenzing took a little one night holiday
(right!) to Gorak Shep for a short break
from base camp. During this time, we
constructed a memorial on behalf of a
young lady Marne Small who passed away a
couple of years ago. Marne really wanted
to visit the Himalaya but unfortunately
life did not deal her a fair hand. Now,
Marne's smile will be shared throughout
the Everest region. The Sherpas and myself
found an ideal spot for the chorten or
rock memorial, the sun shined through, it
was beautiful, simply beautiful!
With
a nice break in the weather we were able
to see Nuptse as we put the final touches
on the memorial.
So...
fingers crossed, I'll be heading back up
the hill to C2 on the 20th for what I hope
to be a realistic summit attempt. The
weather will control my/our decisions over
the next few days, so we'll see.
Hopefully, the next dispatch will be from
C2! My home is now lakeside - ha! Getting
a little too close for my liking as the
glacier shifts, melts and moves....
