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Mountain Experience Everest 2001
Expedition
The
Mountain Experience Everest 2001 expedition will have
3 guides and 6 climbers on the team.
The team, led by Jason
Edwards,will attempt to Summit Everest
from the South Side via the Standard Southeast Ridge
route. The expedition will attempt to put a Canadian
father and son team on the summit of Everest, with the
son being the youngest
Canadian to reach the Summit if successful.
April
15, 2001: Date: Easter, April 15, 2001 Time: 4PM
Location: Base Camp Temp: 66F in my tent; a bit cold
outside with some light snow.
Today:
We're celebrating Easter in BC by giving everyone a rest day!
Hello
from Base Camp!
It's
been snowing quite a bit lately, and we've accumulated
about 6-7" of snow here at BC. Tomorrow we're
headed back up the icefall for our second trip, to
stay at Camp 1 for 3 nights--to acclimate to the
altitude. It'll be our first extended stay above base
camp, so we're all excited to get going.
Our
first trip up the icefall went well, and the route in
pretty straightforward...but still a bit scary. At one
point the route ascends for at least 1.5 hours through
a jumble of blocks all situated to keep rolling, given
enough energy. Just before we topped out on the
icefall, we were hit by a blast of an avalanche that
had swept down from the West Shoulder of Everest. All
that hit us was the wind blast (about 30 MPH) and the
snow cloud that came with it. We dusted ourselves off
and kept up the pace to clear the area. All 8 climbers
arrived in Camp one, where we dumped our 7 kg. loads
in our four tents that make up the camp. The trip up
took around 5-5:45 for us, which was OK time figuring
it was our first trip. We're planning for faster
trips, naturally, as we further acclimate.
All
of us are feeling pretty well, but we've all had our
problems with upper respiratory issues that have
plagued the team for the past couple of weeks. One
climber pulled a calf muscle, but that appears to have
healed well. Our "Sherpas" are all going
well and are strong, and are enjoying 2 free days to
recover from their BC to C2 carries. They are a tough
bunch of climbers!
Our
second trek group arrive tomorrow, and we're sorry
that we'll miss them while we're up on the mountain.
It's a tough break and perhaps the weather will change
and our paths will cross.
The
attached photo is near the top of the icefall, and it
seems to show how convoluted our terrain between BC
and C1 can be.
That's
it for now from Mt. Everest Base Camp! I'll be in
touch again after our trip to Camp 1. All my best,
Jason Edwards
