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Up to
a meter and a half we had to dig, until we reached
our equipment and the completely collapsed tents.
Fortunately, the fresh snow wasn't all too heavy,
and damage to our tents was limited.
With
the help of Qudrats and my repairing-routine acquired
on Nanga Parbat, at 3:30pm we had nine of ten
tents ready to be used. Juergen's and Albert's tent
was unsecured for a moment after we had dug it out -
a gust grabbed it and lifted it up like a balloon,
so it is now probably on its way to Tibet across the
skies. A tent from Camp III acts as a
replacement.
May
2 came as a day of incredible team performance:
1000m in altitude are left to Camp II, which had
reached before, but where we had never slept. That's
1000m of trail breaking. First, the snow was only
knee-high.
The
higher we ascended, the deeper the snow got and the
more strenuous the trail breaking. Sometimes, the point man
could only break trail for 10m in hip-high snow,
then the second in row had to step up and continue
for the next 10m.
After
a uncomfortable night for most of us, the descent to
Base Camp started in the early morning. Gianni,
Sepp, Qudrat and me, however, as well as a parallel
Man-Woman-Team - her Austrian, him Italian - wanted
to scout the route to Camp III (7450m). Although we
started strong, a powerful storm and our
insufficient acclimatization stopped us at 7150m.
Thus far our highest ascent.
After
the return to Camp II we spend an entertaining
afternoon there with Buendner Bacon, cheese from the
Dolomites, and traditional Tyrolean bread. Everyone
contributed a delicatesse - whatever they were
carrying - and a small feast ensued. Unfortunately,
Qudrat didn't take well to the mixture of European
food and after a terrible night for him we descended
the next morning at the break of dawn to base camp.
That's
where we are now - Qudrat is doing much better - and
we're hoping that the weather will be friendly
towards us in the next days. We'll relax for a few
days in order to be prepared to make the summit
attempt with hopefully good weather.
Cross
your fingers - we will report soon.
Best
wishes from Manaslu Base Camp, the expedition team
and the crew of AMICAL alpin.
 Dispatches
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