March 25, 2002: Our team will depart Seattle on April 5th, 2002 en route to the Nepalese capitol of Kathmandu.

Itinerary / Dispatches, and the team departs !

Days 1 & 2 -- April 5-7: Fly from Seattle, Washington to Kathmandu, Nepal...

Day 3 -- April 8, 1:10 PM: Kathmandu: Kathmandu has been a visual, cultural, and logistical overload for the first 24 hours! Acclimatized now to this amazing place, let me try to describe it to you....

Kathmandu From Mike McGuffin:So finally we are ready to go. We leave for Arughat Bazaar tomorrow; from there it is all on foot. The highlight of my stay here in Kathmandu was an audience we had...

April 11: First full day of trekking From Mike: Incredible. The word for the day is incredible.  After reading so much about this experience, it seems surreal to actually be experiencing it.  I don’t think that what I saw today is much different than what went through the eyes of Hornbein, Unsoeld and company back in ’63...

April 12: Santi Bazaar to Labubeshi: From Dan: These pictures (not yet available) are from our second night on the trail at Shati Bazaar ...

April 17: Sama Gaon From Mike: So it’s been a while since I’ve last written.  We’ve been having technical difficulties with our solar panel and right now I’m writing from inside a stone building in Sama Gaon – the final town before Manaslu base camp.  Since the last writing we’ve stayed in the following towns: Laposhea, Dobhan, Philim, Bihi Phedi, Lihi, and now here we are in Sama Gaon... Click here for the full dispatch.

Well we're mountain climbers after all.  Had a big day today; humped it four thousand feet up to base camp. Wow, what a scene.  Jerome was still feeling a bit weak so he only went part way up, but the rest of us made it in fine form.  Everyone was feeling strong with no headaches despite the fact that base camp is one thousand feet higher than the summit of Mt. Rainier.... Click here for the full dispatch.

April 21 Base Camp: From Mike: We're all doing well and Jerome has recovered from his gastrointestinal problem. Some people from another team reached the summit today [note we have not yet confirmed this] and we're going to be able to use a lot of their fixed rope.... Click here for the full dispatch. 

April 22 Established Camp 1: From Tom:  This is a "great bunch of guys". Today we fully established Camp 1 and are very pleased with our progress. Tomorrow (Tuesday) will be a rest day for us at base camp. One of our projects on Tuesday will be to connect the solar panels. Click here for the full dispatch. 

April 23: Resting at Base Camp From Tom: Camp 1 now has four relatively tiny little tents on the prow of a ridge at nearly 19,000 feet. We established it yesterday through a very big push by both Sherpa and Team members. It took us nearly 8 hours up and back. While 4,000 feet elevation gain in the Cascades is not a problem, here in the Himalayas we are still acclimatizing... Click here for the full dispatch. 

April 28: The team members are all well and feeling fine. Scott is in really good shape and so is Mike. The Australian doctor was able to give Mike some drugs and he's good to go. Tom remains very positive and indicated that the route is straightforward and they still have plenty of time. The team is positioned very well -- all they need is two weeks of good weather! Click here for the full dispatch. 

May 1 From Camp 1: Things are starting to move again after the storms. Mike and Brian weathered a storm at Camp 1. They wore their Gore-Tex jackets and headlamps and had their knives ready in case the tent collapsed so that they could cut out and move if needed. Luckily the wind and snow did not end up being tough enough to require that. After that they moved back down to Base Camp. Click here for the full dispatch. 

May 5: Camp 3 Established: Tom reported that everyone is doing fine. Camp 3 now is established. Tom, Scott, Mike and Brian have come back down to Camp 1 to sleep (Sunday night). Tom said it is so warm this evening at 19,000 that they aren't able to sleep in their sleeping bags! Dan and Jerome are sleeping at Camp 3 at 21,700 (North Col) to further acclimatize. For the past several days they all have been carrying loads to Camp 3. Two of the Sherpas have gone back down to Base Camp to rest... Click here for the full dispatch. 

May 7: From Camp 3: Scott is still struggling a bit with altitude adjustment. At this point he is unsure about whether he will attempt the summit. The weather has been good, and if it holds... Click here for the full dispatch.

May 8: From Mike: Just back at Base Camp from a few days spent at 22,000'.  Right now we have enough sun to compose off of solar power so I thought I'd write a little note... Click here for the full dispatch.

May 9 Preparing for the Summit Push: From Tom: Hello all!: It is Thursday May 9th. After a great deal of experimentation and a marked increase in sun exposure Scott has been able to get the system to work here at Base Camp off of solar power. I have (along with the rest of the team) now been able to get and read all of the e-mails you have sent. Thanks to you all. I enjoyed them and only wish I could have responded in a more timely fashion! Click here for the full dispatch.

May 11 (7:30 AM): Summit Attempt Underway, From Scott at Base Camp: All are fine up on the mountain this morning. A storm rolled through yesterday dumping 3 to 8 inches of snow. Dan and Jerome at Camp 2 will now wait for Tom, Brian, and Mike to join them at Camp 2 later today (5/11), and they will all make the summit push together (with Kusang and Kan Cha as Sherpas). Click here for the full dispatch.

May 12 (9:15 AM): Summit Attempt Underway. From Scott at Base Camp: Tom, Dan, Jerome, Brian, Mike, Kan Cha, and Kusang headed out of Camp 2 early today. They are now at 22,500' and feeling great as they move to Camp 3 (~24,500'). If all goes as planned, they will reach Camp 3 early this afternoon, and then leave around 11:00 p.m. or so tonight for the Summit. Tomorrow is the big day. Click here for the full dispatch.

May 13 (7:00 AM): Summit Day: Today is the day.  Last night's 6:00 p.m. radio call had Tom, Dan, Brian, Jerome, Mike, Kan Cha, and Kusang all in their tents at Camp 3, cooking dinner, melting water, and having hot drinks. Plan was to leave for the summit this morning sometime around 1:00 a.m.  Click here for the full dispatch.

Summits!

May 15th: The Descent

American Manaslu Expedition "Seeking the Spirit", the summit report

Photos

More Pictures

May 24: Kathmandu/From Bangkok

Jim and Scott arrived safely back home.