Everest North Side Expedition
St. Petersburg Everest - 2003 Jubilee Expedition

Dispatch Four: April 07, Tom Masterson: Greetings from Tibet! I am with a Russian expedition from St. Petersburg: 8 climbers and one doctor. Our goal is the north side of Everest in honor of the 50th anniversary of the first ascent of Everest and the 300th anniversary of the founding of St. Petersburg. There are 3 climbers from St. Petersburg, 1 from near Moscow, 2 from Irkutsk, 1 from Germany (Nurenberg), and myself from Canada (Quebec).

 We have made our way slowly from Kathmandu to the border of Nepal with Tibet where the mini-bus was not allowed across the border. All the baggage was put into a truck and we continued by jeep. Kathmandu is low, only about 1300 m, the border town is called Zhang Mu and is perched on a very steep hillside at about 2200 m or 7200 ft. The 4-star hotel had certainly had the bed sheets changed within the last millennium... We went for an evening walk in pouring rain a few hundred meters up the road. The next morning we continued on and up a very impressive road carved out of the mountainside, sometimes even overhanging cliffs, and probably an average angle greater than 45 deg. to a small town at about 3600 m called Nyalam. We walked up a local "Hausberg" to 4250 m. The next day we walked up a nearby hill to 4700 m with spectacular views. The next day we continued on to Tingri at 4400 m and we walked up to 4900 m for an afternoon walk. Tibet is incredibly dry and windy. Tomorrow we will head onto Everest base camp at about 5200 m. I have walked each day with a Russian who lives in Germany (Volodya) and who is very strong! (Timeline: 1 April Kathmandu, 2 April Kathmandu, 3 April Zhang Mu, 4+5 April Nyalam, 6+7 April Tingri, 8 April Everest Base camp) More as time and access to laptop/satellite cell phone  permits
Love to all, Tom

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