For Latest
News. For earlier reports:
See the News Index for a list of all the Daily Reports. See the Home Page for Individual Stories.
Makalu 2000:
Dhaulagiri
2000: Lhotse 2000:Updated Cho
Oyu 2000:
Manaslu
2000: Kangchenjunga
2000: Updated Annapurna 2000: Updated
NEWSFLASH 5/7/2000
8:34PM EST
US
- Chris Boskoff and
Peter tried for the summit last night but were turned back due to high
winds.
- No Summits. Heavy
snow on the South Side.
- No real
"Summit News" on the North Side.
- Expect a long
update around 11:00PM EST US Tonight.
NEWSFLASH 5/6/2000
5:44PM EST
US
- Everest North Side:
Climbers moving Up !
Summit Attempts
planned for Sunday May 7th...
Little snow up high is
being reported on the North Side. Unclear if some of these teams are
establishing a "real" camp 5 & 6. The leaders of the pack are not
expected to use oxygen.
- New evidence on the
location of Irvine is being rumored.
We hope to talk with Graham Hoyland to see if true. If so we will let you
know, assuming he wants to talk.
- Many false reports
on Everest this year. Very
concerning.
EverestNews.com will consider posting some of these in June.
- Everest South Side:
Gavin Bate www.7-2000.co.uk
The
Millennium Seven Summits
Expedition
Dispatch:
Everest Base
Camp - 6th May 2000
Today saw the first
summit attempt of the year. One of the teams got as far as the Balcony, which is
about 6 hours above the South Col (Camp 4). Unfortunately, they had to turn back
due to waist deep snow. Several other teams are waiting on the mountain and at
least one of these teams is planning to attempt to summit tomorrow.
Our climbing team
reached Camp 2 yesterday and they have rested there all today, along with the
Sherpas. They are all in good spirits.
We sent off for a
forecast this morning from Bracknell which was due this evening. Late this
afternoon we were visited by Yolanda, a meteorologist studying weather in the
Khumbu region as a specialty. With her help we were able to access weather maps
on the Internet and have them interpreted by her. This information, combined
with the forecast from Bracknell, has led to the decision for the climbing team
to wait at Camp 2 for one further day, before leaving for Camp 3 on the 8th May.
This means that they should
be attempting the summit on the 10th May.
We all hope that the
weather window of the 10th comes to fruition. Noel Bristow
- Don't count Byron
and Tim out for an attempt on Sunday yet.
Keep EverestNews.com
free ! Click on One Ad each visit !
NEWSFLASH 5/6/2000
3:00PM EST
US
- Everest North Side:
Climbers moving Up !
Summit Attempts
"stated" for Sunday May 7th...
- Everest South Side:
Byron calling it a Night !
Byron Smith and his
cameraman Tim Rippel have decided not to push for the summit tonight. With a
combination of deep snow and high winds up top, the conditions just aren't right
for a summit climb.
Byron and Tim will
sleep on the South Col, on
oxygen, for the rest of the night and climb down to Camp II in the morning. From
there, they'll check weather reports and decide whether there is enough of a
'window' for another summit attempt, or if they'll come back down to Base
camp.
Check http://cbc.ca/everest2000/
for the full details and Byron's actual
audio from the Camp 4.
- "See what
happens in the morning"
NEWSFLASH 5/6/2000 2:44PM EST
US
-
Byron is waiting ?
Will he go ?
Holding out at Camp IV!:
Virginia Robinson, the Everest 2000 team doctor at Base camp reports that Byron
Smith and Tim Rippel are
now holding their decision for a summit bid.
Check http://cbc.ca/everest2000/
for the full details and Byron's actual
audio from the Camp 4.
- It is getting a
little late to leave Camp 4.
Therefore look for a decision in the next hour at the latest.
NEWSFLASH 5/6/2000 11:58AM EST
US
- Byron Smith to go
to the Summit tonight in heavy snow !
Byron Smith,
Tim Rippel and the team's Sherpas are at
Camp 4.
On Saturday, around
10:30 p.m. Nepal time (which is a few minutes ago), they will leave Camp IV for the summit.
If all goes well, Byron is set to
report, for the first time in Canadian television history, directly from the
roof of the world, LIVE and
exclusively on CBC Newsworld, on Saturday, May 6 at 7:45 p.m. ET (approx.). [EXPECT
THIS TO BE LATER DUE TO THE SNOW...]
On
May 6, CBC Newsworld will be monitoring Smith's progress with regular updates.
Once his success is imminent, CBC Newsworld will bookend his summit report with
a special 90-minute edition of Everest 2000 starting at 7 p.m. ET (approx.).
EverestNews.com has
gotten to know Byron over the last couple of years. He
is a successful man like many who climb Everest.
We also found a caring man. When we asked for his help with finding Mike
Matthews body, he volunteered
without hesitation and asked what he could do.
Byron is a very strong
climber who many Everest veterans know well. Tim Rippel, an Everest veteran, is
the cameraman who will film Byron. Tim is NOT Byron's guide as some has
reported. (That is almost funny). Frankly, Byron
is his own man. Bryon
is his Expedition. Byron initially
had three members: himself, Tim (the cameraman), and a photographer. The photographer
left the expedition, which is not uncommon on Everest. (In fact it is uncommon
NOT to lose a member for one reason or another.) Byron has organized and planned
this expedition since his first attempt in 1998. Byron found his expedition
in 1998 unprepared for his second attempt at the Summit. Byron has excellent
sponsors including http://cbc.ca which we have found
to be a class company.
This year Byron is prepared.
Byron is trained. He will
need to be. It appears
Everest has heavy snow up high. The
Sherpas believe Everest is mad... We
will see... This is a strong team. It
will take
much to turn Byron around, but
he has been smart to date.
- No Summits last
night according to our sources. The Mexicans turned around due to heavy snow
at the balcony.
- Check http://cbc.ca/everest2000/
for today's update which will provide you more details.
- More NEWSFLASHES
WILL FOLLOW TODAY and ALL WEEKEND.
NEWSFLASH 5/5/2000 11:08PM EST
US
- Hugo Rodriguez
and we believe all the other climbers have turned
back at the balcony
due to bad weather....
- We will know more
in the morning. (EST US...)
Expect another report
around mid day EST US on Saturday.
NEWSFLASH 5/5/2000 5:18 PM EST
US
Dispatch: FRIDAY,
MAY 5th TOWARDS THE SUMMIT
The expedition "Mexico on top of the world" is in
camp 4, ready to begin their climbing up towards to the summit at 9:00 o'clock
at night, time of Nepal
(10:15 in the morning time of Mexico City), we are told that the weather at that
height is perfect for reaching the summit, however at base
camp, we are suffering a little bad weather consisting in little snow and low
temperature.
We wish the whole expedition
the best of luck in reaching the summit to the highest mountain of the world:
Mount Everest.
They have told us by radio
that other
expeditions are also ready and with the intention of reaching the summit,
we wish them also good luck.
We will be alert to
every step of all the expeditions.
Cristian www.everest2000.net
See early updates/NEWSFLASHES
for more below.
- EverestNews.com is confirming
other news. EverestNews.com will be updating all weekend.
NEWSFLASH 5/5/2000 12:07 PM EST
US
Climbers on the North
Side are moving up fast ! Climbers
are reported at Camp 4 and on
the move. Someone clearly thinks
the window is open...
- The weather
on the North is still reported as bad
by some. But the Eastern Europeans, Dutch, and others are moving !
- Hans van der
Muelen, former Summiter of K2, is at the head of the pack along with
many Sherpas from Asian-Trekking. Some of the best climbers in the world
helping to prepare the way for the others to follow.
- We expect
climbers on the North to
attempt the Summit on Sunday
. Could be Saturday, or
Monday. Our sources tell
EverestNews.com the best chance is Sunday.
- EverestNews.com is
going into NEWSFLASH mode
for the weekend. The
Daily Update will be dropped this weekend. NEWSFLASHES
will continue all weekend, when News arrives (news is normally slow on the
weekends...). If you are
new to EverestNews.com don't try to figure it all out in a day. Just sit
back and enjoy...
- On the South Side:
Climbers are on the move, with many moving up the mountain. Once
again the feeling seems to be the window is "open".
- Gavin Bate
http://adventurealternative.com
Updates: 5/4/2000 Everest
Base Camp, 18150' From: the
Everest Summit Team
Last night Base Camp echoed
with the sounds of revelry from our camp, late into the night. Twenty odd
people, us and our group of visiting trekkers, followed dinner with a high
altitude party that will be remembered for a long time, e.g. John Gillespie
'jiving' to the sounds of Bob Marley, on top of the dining table; John Barry
'jiving' with John Gillespie on top of the dining table; John Barry giving John
Gillespie a fireman's lift which resulted in nearly the entire mess tent being
pulled down around our ears; and so on - an evening which has resulted in some
long and drawn faces this morning !
We woke this morning to
fabulous blue skies and light winds. The forecast came through at 9am and is the
best we've had for weeks. A huge high pressure is sitting directly over Everest,
the jet streams have dropped and the winds are dropping steadily. In 3 days
there is an almost windless day on the summit forecast, and the following 3 or 4
days are expected to be good.
Suddenly plans are being
formulated, summit days being discussed and thoughts are turning to bits of kit
we need to take up for the last push on Everest.
At Camp 2 this morning the
Sherpas left early. We have just spoken to them on the radio and they have made
Camp 4 [Note this is May 4th.]
At last our supplies are being dumped at 26,000' in preparation for our summit
push.
The trekkers have also been
drawn into the excitement of the moment; small knots of people are discussing
plans and options. It is a very unique opportunity to be up here as part of the
whole climbing logistics. They have just gone up to the Icefall route to have a
look. Later Kevin Kahan, hairdresser extraordinaire from Bangor in Northern
Ireland, will be giving haircuts to the summit team ( in return for some funds
for charity).
This afternoon we will gather
together our bits of kit ( although most of it is already up the hill ) and
we'll plan for an early night. Tomorrow morning we'll be up at 4am for a 5am
start. Our plan is to get up
to Camp 2 tomorrow, rest for a day and get another forecast from Noel (
Expedition comms man at Base Camp ); then, if all looks favorable, we'll climb
to Camp 3 and go onto oxygen for the night before climbing up to the south col
Camp 4 at 26,000' ). We might then get one more 24 hour forecast from Noel and
try for the top - possibly for the 9th or 10th May.
We will be in constant radio
contact with Noel and as he receives our reports he will send out an update. As
time goes on and things get more critical, the updates will be more frequent. We
hope to keep you all in touch with our progress as it happens, and we thank
EVERYONE once again for their support. Speaking on behalf of the team we feel
strong and confident; we feel we have done all the right things in our
preparations, our acclimatisation and our approach to this mountain. We have
adopted a laid-back, humorous and practical state of mind to all our actions and
we have a very strong team of Sherpas working for us. We need just a week of
good weather, a bit of luck and the determination as a team to overcome this
last hurdle of the expedition. Obviously we all have our own thoughts and our
own worries, but once again the overall philosophy of the group is to take each
day as it comes, to give it our best and to do our best for ourselves, for all
our supporters out there and for our country. We are, after all, the only UK
independent team up here.
We also have Michele
Santilhano here who is representing South Africa, and we know that many people
across her country will be watching and following her progress. She is certainly
a great ambassador for her nation. John Barry, Andrew Salter, Chris Tiso, Polly
Murray, Michele Santilhano and myself all hope to do our best, and most
importantly to come down safely. About four or five other groups are all
planning to summit in and around the next week so we will not be alone up there.
From the south col we will have an eighteen hour day to accomplish - 12 hours to
the summit and 6 hours back down. Each of us will have 3 bottles of oxygen to
breathe from, and each bottle will last us six hours at a flow rate of 2 liters
per minute. There is precious little room for error, so we will be relying on
Noel at Base Camp to advise us of the time lapsed and the amount of oxygen we
have left.
Enough talk now. Wish us luck
and God speed and be sure that your support will spur us on. I hope to report
success. With all best regards and especially from all of us we send our love to
our families. Gavin Bate and the Everest Team
Update: Everest
Base Camp - 5/5/00
The
day started at 4:30AM with a blast on Dawa's whistle for breakfast. The team
duly assembled in the Sherpa kitchen (much warmer than the mess tent at that
time of day) for a breakfast of porridge and toast, washed down with plenty of
milk tea (of course!). By 5:00 they were ready to leave for the Icefall and the
first step of their journey to the summit. They were waved off by Amanda and
myself, and the whole of the Irish trekking group - an unusual send-off at that
time of the morning.
After
waiting by the radio for most of the day, we eventually received a radio call
from Polly at Camp 2 to say that they had all arrived safe and sound. They had
reached Camp 1, at the top of the Icefall, by late morning. They spent an hour
and a half there, resting and drinking to replace lost fluids. This also gave a
chance for the skies to cloud over, therefore avoiding an exhausting walk in the
baking heat of the Western Cwm. They reached Camp 2
at 3:30PM and, after radioing
down to Base Camp, they have settled down to a meal and a well-earned rest.
In
the meantime, the Sherpas have taken another double carry (~30kg each) from Camp
2 to Camp 4 on the South Col. This completes the
carries to Camp 4, and everything is now in place for the summit attempt. The
Sherpas will now have two rest days at Camp 2, before returning to the South Col
for the summit attempt.
We
said goodbye to the Irish trekking group late this morning. They were a blast of
entertainment and we very much enjoyed the Craic.
Tomorrow the climbing
team will rest at Camp 2, and we will send off for a
weather forecast from Bracknell. If
the forecast is favorable, the climbing team will continue up to Camp 3.
Otherwise they will be forced to wait at Camp 2 for better weather. We will keep
our fingers crossed and keep you all informed of our progress. Noel Bristow
For much more on The
Millennium Seven Summits
Expedition.
NEWSFLASH 5/5/200 9:42 AM EST
US
- At about 8:00PM
Nepal time EverestNews.com
learned Hugo Rodriguez
and the other climbers from the Mexican Everest Expedition (along with his Sherpa
climbers) are possibility
going to make a Summit
attempt tonight.
- Details and
"plans" were made and discussed, but frankly do those plans mean
much at this point ?
- Byron Smith is
being open about his plans, see below...
- Hugo has two
summits of Everest (1997 and 1999). Hugo almost died in 1997. Babu Chiri Sherpa,
nine time Summiter and now world famous climber, is his Sirdar.
EverestNews.com believes, but has not confirmed Babu is with them...
- Or
will Hugo and everyone wait
to go with Byron on
Saturday night? Byron, Tim, and his Sherpa group are very strong...
- As
night falls in Nepal... One
weather forecast calls for snow Saturday and Sunday, another forecast calls
for snow just Sunday. Winds are expected to be low Saturday and Sunday,
but picking up the first of the week. Then again the forecasts were wrong
earlier in the week. Many climbers are staying low. Byron appears
to be playing it slow and
smart. Folks, this is a
dangerous sport, not for the weak at heart... First
up is tough...!
- As
Hugo folks say " until the will of God and the generosity of the mountain
allows him to attempt the
summit; however we dont
know the exact date that he will go for the top, only the nature knows
it."
Daily News: 5/5/2000 Report
A team of eight climbers
and over 20 Sherpas will climb to Camp
4 on Everest this spring to attempt to bring down hundreds of discarded
oxygen bottles and tons of trash left by other climbers in the past. Besides
performing this necessary task the group will also attempt to summit Everest. Members include Robert
Chang, Expedition leader Robert Hoffman of Belmont, CA, (his fourth expedition
to Everest), Deputy Expedition leader is Robert Boice of San Francisco. The
expedition trek leader is Jamling Tenzing Norgay, the son of one of the first
Everest summiteers, Tenzing Norgay. In addition, Sherman Bull, 62, of Stamford,
CT, is a physician member. The lead Sherpa is Appa
Sherpa.
Dispatch:
May 4, 2000: Well, we just came back down from Camps 1 and 2 over the past
week we spent above 20,000 feet. It was tough for me as the temperatures
go very hot to very cold and having very little body fat its been a battle. We
made a carry of our gear from camp 1 to 2 and camp 1 is effectively taken down,
as it has only two small gear/supply tents.
The trip thru the
icefall is very different as the temperature get hotter things get melted out,
at one point, the one section at the top of the icefall that has five ladders
tied together - the bottom two legs of the ladders were not in contact with the
ice or ground and the ladders had become twisted sideways, making for some
excitement. The trip to camp two is up and down in the western cwm with some
large crevasses so we have to go side to side and then there are some ladders.
At times it blows freezing cold and then the sun blazes like your in a desert so
it can be miserable.
We made it into camp 2
with the intent to eventually go up to camp 3 but after a week of trying (two
times, three times if you count our last trip thru the icefall) the weather kept
on deteriorating. We got up at 4am one morning and the wind blew so hard,
snow sideways and frigid cold at 21,000 +feet we didn't even get out of our
tents until later in the day.
Our second attempt was
a few days later, we actually headed out after a previous day of snow fall and
we got to about 22,000 feet - 7 Sherpas including Apa Sherpa broke trail for us
to the Lhotse face headwall, but the winds picked up and half our team members
turned back early and I and 2 others went a bit farther with the Sherpas... When
Apa turned to me and said it was cold, I read that as a turn around point being
his great experience with 10 summits, so we turned back singing o mick farmer
had a farm-ei ei o... I taught the Sherpas as we went back down. I had one
mishap when coming down one of my trek poles collapsed and I fell face forward
on the snow slope but was able to catch my self. We stayed 2 more days at camp 2
but had no luck with weather and came
back down on May 4-the weather just cleared today as luck has it....our
plan is to rest for 5 to 7
days and the next time we go up is our summit attempt! My
stomach is better, but now my left knee is banged up a bit.... I have time to
heal in base camp. Apa and Pemba, the two star Sherpas are becoming good
friends, summit or no summit
its been pretty legendary to see these guys work and climb.
Even our high altitude
camera man Jeff Rhoads, who
summited twice in a week a few years back -
has commented that Chomolungma, or Everest is making everyone earn every step.
all the Everest veterans on the team feel the same way when looking at the route
condition, the icefall, the weather... It
is the most humbling thing I have ever been around and
no wonder it takes an average of 3 attempts (expeditions) per climber before
they get to the top..... I am happy for my accomplishment to date and am glad to
be alive, relatively healthy and motivated to go for the top on the next
push.... take care and let all read.
Rob Chang. Everest
Base Camp...
See www.everestcleanup.com for
more on this Expedition.
EverestNews.com will
feature full dispatches from Jagged Globe in Spring 2000. Jagged Globe was
founded by Steve Bell. Steve has more than 20 years of mountaineering
experience including winter ascents of the north faces of the Eiger and
Matterhorn. He claims "Britain's first guided expedition to an 8,000m peak
and was the first Briton to lead clients to the summit of Everest." He has
climbed all of the continental summits and is a fully qualified UIAGM mountain
guide. Steve and Jagged Globe
are known as one of the best guiding companies in the world.
This year's expedition
will be lead by Australian guide, Andrew Lock (having been on two previous
Everest expeditions and reached the Summit
of K2), supported by Tim Bird. Tim has led expeditions for Jagged
Globe for many years including successful trips to Elbrus, Stok Kangri, Mera and
Island Peak, Aconcagua and Gasherbrum II. A highly regarded professional
instructor (MIC), Tim directs their Scottish Winter Courses, and provides their
UK technical support for training and advice to all their group expeditions
licensed through the Adventure Activities Licensing Authority. They are using
the same Sherpa team as last year. This is another
international team, comprising: Jack Culley (UK), Joe Wolf (USA), Jeff
Magee (UK), David Spencer (UK), Curt Peterson (USA), Timothy Gregg (USA) , Paul
Giorgio (USA).
Dispatch: Well
its Thursday, 4th May and the Jagged Globe team are all safely back in base camp
after a successful acclimatisation climb to camp 3.
On April 28th, we set out at
5am for the climb to camp 2. The trip through the icefall is quicker each time,
as we acclimatize and become more familiar with the route. Still it's no place
to hang around and camp 1 is a welcome place to stop and rest for a while.
We prefer now to climb direct
to camp 2, as the energy expended in collecting and melting snow, cooking meals
etc. at camp 1, is greater than pushing on to the higher camp. Our advance base
Sherpa staff occupies camp 2 throughout the expedition, so it's well maintained.
We took a rest day on Saturday, to recover from the one vertical kilometer climb
from base. Sunday dawned fine and not too windy, so we headed off at 6am for our
second attempt on the Lhotse face. The long slog up the final section of the
Western Cwm saw the team spread out below the imposing ice wall.
Once onto the Lhotse face, the
ropes were found to be in good condition and the slope
less threatening than rumor had predicted.
The ice was hard but our crampons gripped well and we made slow but consistent
progress up the face. The first members arrived about 11.30am and spent the
afternoon cutting ice for the stoves and digging out buried tents.
The thin air and cold early
morning wind took its toll on the team and the final members didn't arrive until
6pm. A fairly sleepless night was endured, during which the winds strengthened
until by dawn the tents were being buffeted continuously. We waited for the sun,
then descended quickly to the cwm and back to camp 2. The following morning the
climbers descended to base.
Our Sherpas remained in camp
2, to await an opportunity to ferry some loads to the south col. This is where
our camp 4 will be located. Having completed their load carries, the Sherpas
will descend for a rest at base camp, prior to the whole team ascending for the
summit attempt.
Whilst we wait for them, the
team has an opportunity to rest and regain strength for the big push. Tim B. and
Joe will head down to one of the local villages to spend a couple of days in the
thicker air. Paul and Tim G. prefer to remain in base camp. Andrew will also
stay in base to liaise with the Sherpas and to watch the weather for the best
summit opportunity.
Sadly, Jeff has chosen to
depart the expedition, as he suffered some minor frostbite to his fingers on the
climb to camp 3 and with medical advice feels that the risk of serious injury
would be too great if he continued the climb. The injury should heal quickly
back at home and he will depart today for Kathmandu.
The weather today is clear,
though a little windy. Our
Sherpas are at this minute en route to camp 4 with a load. We wish them well. It
will be a few days before we can consider a summit attempt,
so plenty of opportunity to catch up on sleep, reading and perhaps a little socializing
with the other expeditions.
Cheers from base camp. Andrew
Lock
- Latest Updates
Direct from Everest from Graham and the BBC
 |
Adv.
Base Camp
May 2nd |
We
dash down the snow-slopes, running our hands down the fixed ropes. It's
so fast! We can go down in about 30 minutes what takes over three hours
of sheer hellish slog going up. |
 |
Adv.
Base Camp
May 1st |
Oh,
to be at home with Sarah! England must be lovely just now, whilst here
it seems to get colder and the snow keeps falling. |
 |
Adv.
Base Camp
April 30th |
Sabotage
is in the air. One of our Antarctica tents is seen flying off the Col
and crashing into a crevasse. |
 |
Adv.
Base Camp
April 29th |
Acclimatization
on the North Col |
 |
Adv.
Base Camp
April 28th |
Mount
Everest stands accused of murder- and of concealing the evidence. |
For early updates see
our Mallory
& Irvine 2000: Graham and the BBC returns Page
- Everest Spring
2000: Byron
Smith
Current Status: They're
on their way! Byron Smith,
Tim Rippel and the team's Sherpas are all at
Camp II. After consulting his
experienced sirdar, Lhakpa Tshering, Byron decided to move plans ahead by a day.
He and Tim climbed Thursday with the Sherpas to Camp II where they'll stay one
night, moving to Camp III on
Friday.
On Saturday, around
10:30 p.m. Nepal time, they'll leave Camp IV for the summit.
If all goes well, Byron is set to
report, for the first time in Canadian television history, directly from the
roof of the world, LIVE and
exclusively on CBC Newsworld, on Saturday, May 6 at 7:45 p.m. ET (approx.). On
May 6, CBC Newsworld will be monitoring Smith's progress with regular updates.
Once his success is imminent, CBC Newsworld will bookend his summit report with
a special 90-minute edition of Everest 2000 starting at 7 p.m. ET (approx.).
Virginia Robinson, the
expedition doctor at Basecamp, is monitoring the weather and Bryon's fitness.
Keep track of the vitals on the Everest 2000 website. http://cbc.ca/everest2000/dailydispatch/
Virginia is also working on the education program. Here's her first
education log: May 3, 2000 "Pulse Oximeter": When Byron and Tim leave
Basecamp for their summit push they carry along a pulse oximeter. The oximeter
measures arterial oxygen saturation, that is, how much oxygen the hemoglobin
molecule (in the red blood cell) is carrying. The pulse oximeter is able to make
this measurement without actually taking any blood. (Look in Phase 3 of the
education website, Energy and the Human Body section, for an explanation of how
this is done) http://cbc.ca/everest2000/education/phase3/theme3oximeter.html
For dispatches, video
updates, background information, interactive maps and more on check
his diary entry for more http://cbc.ca/everest2000/
- Alan Hinkes on Kangchenjunga
Alan Hinkes has
reached the main Kangchenjunga Base Camp on 30th April, 18 days after leaving
Kathmandu. He had encountered snowfall virtually everyday. The porters he hired
in Kathmandu have done a miraculous job ferrying loads from Oakthang to base
camp.
Alan hopes to go to
Camp I on the 5th or 6th of May weather permitting. Munching on his Kanch size Potato
Chips and Spam Meat Lunch, Alan speaks out that the weather has not been very good
around the Base Camp, no sign of the grassland as well, all covered under the
snow.
Alan is surprised to
see so many Expeditions on south side of the mountain this season. Normally
expeditions would be climbing Kanch from the North Route. There
is an Indian Expedition team also this time, having massive supplies still being
ferried to the Base Camp. The Base Camp is rather noisy this season as Indian
Team has electrified their dining tent with a powerful generator running till 10
'O' clock at night.
Alan is having good
time at Base Camp making new friends with Indians, Koreans, Brits and the Swiss
teams.
Early Pictures
Reported by Himalaya
Center Kathmandu
5/4/2000 The
reports from MAI-2000 expedition to Lhotse, April, 30th and May, 2nd... details
EverestNews.com will follow the
attempt on Annapurna of the "International Annapurna 2000Expedition":
Update 5/1/2000
Title : he
German Route: Impossible
Location of Expedition: CI and
BC
Next Objective: Study a
new route.
Dispatch:
