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Staying
up high for a long time slowly wears you down,
enduring the long nights, a variety of coughs, and the
constant cold. It’s good to be here for a few days.
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the two days of light snow we finally got a break yesterday, so
Jack and I left Camp 2 early and made it to just below Camp 3 on
the Lhotse Face. Really felt good being up high and closer to
our goal. We had just planned to go part way so it was a
successful day. The rest of the crew stayed at Camp 2 for more
acclimatization. Camp
3 is in a very exposed area in the middle of the vast steep face
going up to the South Col. It is so steep that tent platforms
have to be chopped into the ice and ropes rigged between tents
for safety--anything dropped is gone forever! About half the
expeditions have tents at Camp 3 now. It’s an interesting
game, as there is a very real risk of anything taken to Camp 3
being lost in an avalanche. As has already happened to another
team 2 days ago after the recent snows. So it’s important not
to put too much stuff there too early in the season. Many groups
have stayed off the Lhotse Face the last couple days, but now
it’s in excellent shape and things can start rolling. Fixed
lines are going in today above camp 3 towards the Yellow Band. |
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Our
Sherpa team, lead by Phenden, will be pitching our tents
tomorrow into one of the higher areas of camp 3. All our oxygen
is being carried to Camp 2 today. So things are moving along.
It’s always a challenge to plan the team’s acclimatization
schedule to sync with the preparation the sherpas are doing
setting up and supplying the camps with food, stoves and oxygen.
Everything is looking good right now for us. This season has
been just a bit slow getting going for all the teams, so it
looks like we will be into the second week of May at the
earliest to start looking at the top.
We
plan to make another acclimatization trip up high for another 5
days before thinking about the summit. It is getting closer
though and the excitement and anxiety is growing. |
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Now
it's a process of staying healthy, even with doing
everything we can here at base camp, the high, dry air
and altitude are taking a toll on everyone. It's a
careful balance between staying high to acclimatize
and not burning yourself out spending too much time at
the higher camps.
Right
now, the focus is on some well needed rest and
recovery from a ragged high altitude cough. Stay tuned
for more reports as we get closer to the summit…
Scott
Woolums
Adventures International Inc.
 Dispatches
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