Personal April 24th Saturday
Thanks to all who have responded on the blog and I really appreciate all the kind words on the email. Tomorrow is a big day for me and I need all of your encouragement.
My address for personal email is sslaughter@uuplus.net Please only send text as I have scanning to block even large emails of text.
Danny – great story and appreciate the words
Cee- I hope all went well with the store specials. I can’t wait to come and see you guys sometime. I know it is tough with Lida on Vacation love ya Steve
Philippe- thanks to you for always checking on me
Graham- Thanks for your words from “Down Under” I hope all is going well in your business.
Toffee- we are so glad Ann is doing well enough now so she can translate for you again. Your friends have been worried about you and it was Ann who we should have been asking about and not you. Ann Thanks again for letting Martin come to spend time with Jim and me in the Himalayas. We miss him but we know we will see him again soon on a mountain and I hope to see you soon in Brisbane. Take care of yourself, Martin and Toffee but we really know that Toffee will be taking care of you too. Smile.
Claire- Great to hear from you. SO you got to the top of the “Big Granite “Kota Kinabalu. I hope it was drier on you than on me when I did it a few years ago in July. What a miserable up in the monsoon and a miserable trip down slip sliding away on that big granite stone in the monsoon. I hope you found some time to snorkel as I hear it is one of the top places in the world. Looking forward to climbing again soon Talk to Martin about PNG in Oct and see what we can do. I do not keep the phone on at all until I try to call someone. The batteries run down in no time due to the cold. When you get stationary let me know the number and I will call you. Start the number with the “+” sign then I shouldn’t have any problems calling. Take care and safe travels.
caroline- thanks for your comments i miss you and the little Leah take care of yourself
Saturday, April 24, 2010
prep day at base camp
April 24th Sat
Slept well but awoke to a pretty windy cold day. I had a good breakfast (pancakes and cheese and eggs) I quickly finished off the pancakes but sure didn’t want the eggs but Jim was not going to let me off the hook. He said that the next few days will be very tough to eat and I really needed to eat them. I begrudgingly ate them but sure didn’t like the feeling of them going down.
It is not that I do not want to eat. I have no urge to eat 3 meals a day and I never eat breakfast. For me to get up from bed and go straight to eat is just not easy for someone who never eats.
I came in and go on the computer and checked and replied to emails and actually spent some time on the internet to get caught up on the BKK situation and some news. I learned that they were moving my work friends out of the apartment/hotel where I lived for 4 years due to the intensity of the situation and the latest bombs to another location which is much further from the main intersection. I called K Bee to make sure she was ok and if she needed to move but she said she was ok. She was not very happy with the Red Shirts and now the government as it is now closing the sky train which makes it very difficult for Thais to travel without a hassle.
We had a great lunch which I actually ate, got the base station set up for radios, swapped out my sleeping bag for the porters early morning trek so the same thing doesn’t happen like last Monday and got all my stuff located in the right place for easy and efficient working in the morning. Jim wants to leave right at 430 to try and keep us out of the sun as much as possible so this is ok with me.
I am looking forward to it as I feel better today and I am sure I have more food in me than the previous trip. I am checking email one last time here at 5 pm because I didn’t want to get caught like last night in the 25 degree weather trying to type and my hands were frozen. I tried to go back and fix as many problems in that last dispatch but I will fix them all one when I am too old to do anything else. It is the story that I am trying to convey so cut me some slack on the grammar and spelling.
I hope all of you have a great Sunday and to my friends in BKK Please be safe.
Slept well but awoke to a pretty windy cold day. I had a good breakfast (pancakes and cheese and eggs) I quickly finished off the pancakes but sure didn’t want the eggs but Jim was not going to let me off the hook. He said that the next few days will be very tough to eat and I really needed to eat them. I begrudgingly ate them but sure didn’t like the feeling of them going down.
It is not that I do not want to eat. I have no urge to eat 3 meals a day and I never eat breakfast. For me to get up from bed and go straight to eat is just not easy for someone who never eats.
I came in and go on the computer and checked and replied to emails and actually spent some time on the internet to get caught up on the BKK situation and some news. I learned that they were moving my work friends out of the apartment/hotel where I lived for 4 years due to the intensity of the situation and the latest bombs to another location which is much further from the main intersection. I called K Bee to make sure she was ok and if she needed to move but she said she was ok. She was not very happy with the Red Shirts and now the government as it is now closing the sky train which makes it very difficult for Thais to travel without a hassle.
We had a great lunch which I actually ate, got the base station set up for radios, swapped out my sleeping bag for the porters early morning trek so the same thing doesn’t happen like last Monday and got all my stuff located in the right place for easy and efficient working in the morning. Jim wants to leave right at 430 to try and keep us out of the sun as much as possible so this is ok with me.
I am looking forward to it as I feel better today and I am sure I have more food in me than the previous trip. I am checking email one last time here at 5 pm because I didn’t want to get caught like last night in the 25 degree weather trying to type and my hands were frozen. I tried to go back and fix as many problems in that last dispatch but I will fix them all one when I am too old to do anything else. It is the story that I am trying to convey so cut me some slack on the grammar and spelling.
I hope all of you have a great Sunday and to my friends in BKK Please be safe.
Friday, April 23, 2010
trail walk to gorbakshep
Went to bed at 9 pm last night and it was a little less cold than the previous 2 nights. I crawled in the bed and it seemed like I slept all night. I peeped out of the sleeping bag and it was light. What a relief and I felt good.
I just laid there listening to the IPOD, relaxing and thinking about the trip today. Finally got up at 810am for the breakfast call and had pancakes with melted butter and some great scrambled eggs. This was only the 2nd meal, (1 being dinner last night) that I actually could look at the food and not feel like I was going to throw up. I don’t know if that was because I had been sick or the thought that Jim was going to make me shovel something down. Anyway it was a good breakfast and we had decided to leave at 930am so I went back to the tent to change clothes and get my back ready.
Jim was on the computer and finally came by about 930am and said let’s go. A dash through the snacks and I was out the door. In the meantime ( only mins) Jim got consumed looking through the stuff that the porters brought up late last night. He was going through the list and of course I was looking myself. I saw Kraft Thousand Island Dressing; I saw 4 boxes of Pop Tarts, French’s mustard, Heinz Ketchup and 2 more bottles of Heinz 57. This made my morning today. It was like in the old days when Mom would come home from the store and we would tear through all the packages to see what favorite we go this month. (Yes we only went to the store 1 time per month) Then I thought I saw something else when they started removing all the stuff and taking it to the kitchen and dining tent, it looked like a jar of pickle spears. I knew I had requested them but Jim never acknowledge that he got them on the list. Well when I saw them I thought of 2 things 1) I want one of them right now and I did eat one and 2) wouldn’t my friend Roger Williams want one of my Clausen Dill spears. He loves them as much as I do.
After this small celebration, we were off to Gorbakshep. We are on one end of the base camp so we walk across base camp for almost 25 mins meandering up and down and around to we finally get clear and on the trail. The walk was rather slow; Jim was very deliberate so not to let me overdo it. It was a nice walk and we made it down there in an about 2 hrs and I felt pretty good. The only thing today was the wind was there all day so I never really warmed up, which would have been really nice. Nawaan went with us so he could use the land line phone to call and check on his wife, who is having the baby in KAT and they said that it would be around the first of May. He mother had arrived in KAT a couple of days ago so he was checking on them. He is such a nice guy (30 years old) and very inquisitive in a learning type way so it is very nice talking to him. We had a few teas and a hot lemon, I had a few snacks and Jim and Nawaan had some noodles and we were on our way back.
We are stating about 320 meters lower in altitude than when we left base camp so we knew we were moving back uphill but still this walk is a classic “up and down” Khumba region walk. Trails, large boulders, small rocks, water, mud, and yak poop etc so it is not just get on the trail and walk. We were back home in about 1 ½ hours and I still felt pretty good. A little tired but overall pretty good after the 5 hour round trip. We met people along the trail and heard that 3 more people are on their way home by helicopter. One lady Wanda was a MS lady who had climbed 6 of the 7 summits but just could not get this one done. This was her 2nd try and her lungs just would not let her take the long times at altitude. She was being taken up by one of my friends I met at Mt Rainier many years ago. He had just let her off at the helicopter in Pheriche and he was on his way back to base camp.
We arrived at the camp and went it to drink a little Mt Dew and Jim wanted some tea. We had a visitor from IMG to come over and pick up a violin that had been delivered by our porter last night. Vern Tejas who is accomplished violinist/guitaiarts/Fiddle player himself side he had a classical Violinist on his team and he wanted to hear some music so he had one sent up the trail but the case was also full of drugs (all legal) so we gave Vern a hard time about really wanted to hear music or did he need the drugs. I wanted a picture with Vern because I see about 5 to 6 guys here( all in mid 50’s) who are all starting to see that they cannot continue to be the leaders at the top of the mountains anymore and the guard is changing. These 5-7 guys were the leaders of making this place and others what is it is today and were the reason why people like I want to come here and try to climb this massive mountain. Vern has submitted 8 times in 14 tries. He is a great guy and is very well respected in this small circle of Professional mountain guides.
As he was leaving Russell Brice was walking up. All of you should know Russell Brice. He is the guy who started “Beyond the limits: Everest” on the discovery channel a few years ago. What a nice guy. He was collecting money ($100 per climber) for the fixed lines being installed up to the top of the mountain. ( they are installing 7000 linear feet of rope with 1000 carabineers help people like me get too the top safely) I got a picture with him also as I think he is a really nice guy vs what my impression was off the TV show.
I finally went to my tent to change clothes and get into something warmer and then to check email and write this blog. I am now going to dinner and then to bed and hopefully another good night’s sleep.
I hope all of you have a great Friday and a great weekend tomorrow will be a day off and I will write more.
I just laid there listening to the IPOD, relaxing and thinking about the trip today. Finally got up at 810am for the breakfast call and had pancakes with melted butter and some great scrambled eggs. This was only the 2nd meal, (1 being dinner last night) that I actually could look at the food and not feel like I was going to throw up. I don’t know if that was because I had been sick or the thought that Jim was going to make me shovel something down. Anyway it was a good breakfast and we had decided to leave at 930am so I went back to the tent to change clothes and get my back ready.
Jim was on the computer and finally came by about 930am and said let’s go. A dash through the snacks and I was out the door. In the meantime ( only mins) Jim got consumed looking through the stuff that the porters brought up late last night. He was going through the list and of course I was looking myself. I saw Kraft Thousand Island Dressing; I saw 4 boxes of Pop Tarts, French’s mustard, Heinz Ketchup and 2 more bottles of Heinz 57. This made my morning today. It was like in the old days when Mom would come home from the store and we would tear through all the packages to see what favorite we go this month. (Yes we only went to the store 1 time per month) Then I thought I saw something else when they started removing all the stuff and taking it to the kitchen and dining tent, it looked like a jar of pickle spears. I knew I had requested them but Jim never acknowledge that he got them on the list. Well when I saw them I thought of 2 things 1) I want one of them right now and I did eat one and 2) wouldn’t my friend Roger Williams want one of my Clausen Dill spears. He loves them as much as I do.
After this small celebration, we were off to Gorbakshep. We are on one end of the base camp so we walk across base camp for almost 25 mins meandering up and down and around to we finally get clear and on the trail. The walk was rather slow; Jim was very deliberate so not to let me overdo it. It was a nice walk and we made it down there in an about 2 hrs and I felt pretty good. The only thing today was the wind was there all day so I never really warmed up, which would have been really nice. Nawaan went with us so he could use the land line phone to call and check on his wife, who is having the baby in KAT and they said that it would be around the first of May. He mother had arrived in KAT a couple of days ago so he was checking on them. He is such a nice guy (30 years old) and very inquisitive in a learning type way so it is very nice talking to him. We had a few teas and a hot lemon, I had a few snacks and Jim and Nawaan had some noodles and we were on our way back.
We are stating about 320 meters lower in altitude than when we left base camp so we knew we were moving back uphill but still this walk is a classic “up and down” Khumba region walk. Trails, large boulders, small rocks, water, mud, and yak poop etc so it is not just get on the trail and walk. We were back home in about 1 ½ hours and I still felt pretty good. A little tired but overall pretty good after the 5 hour round trip. We met people along the trail and heard that 3 more people are on their way home by helicopter. One lady Wanda was a MS lady who had climbed 6 of the 7 summits but just could not get this one done. This was her 2nd try and her lungs just would not let her take the long times at altitude. She was being taken up by one of my friends I met at Mt Rainier many years ago. He had just let her off at the helicopter in Pheriche and he was on his way back to base camp.
We arrived at the camp and went it to drink a little Mt Dew and Jim wanted some tea. We had a visitor from IMG to come over and pick up a violin that had been delivered by our porter last night. Vern Tejas who is accomplished violinist/guitaiarts/Fiddle player himself side he had a classical Violinist on his team and he wanted to hear some music so he had one sent up the trail but the case was also full of drugs (all legal) so we gave Vern a hard time about really wanted to hear music or did he need the drugs. I wanted a picture with Vern because I see about 5 to 6 guys here( all in mid 50’s) who are all starting to see that they cannot continue to be the leaders at the top of the mountains anymore and the guard is changing. These 5-7 guys were the leaders of making this place and others what is it is today and were the reason why people like I want to come here and try to climb this massive mountain. Vern has submitted 8 times in 14 tries. He is a great guy and is very well respected in this small circle of Professional mountain guides.
As he was leaving Russell Brice was walking up. All of you should know Russell Brice. He is the guy who started “Beyond the limits: Everest” on the discovery channel a few years ago. What a nice guy. He was collecting money ($100 per climber) for the fixed lines being installed up to the top of the mountain. ( they are installing 7000 linear feet of rope with 1000 carabineers help people like me get too the top safely) I got a picture with him also as I think he is a really nice guy vs what my impression was off the TV show.
I finally went to my tent to change clothes and get into something warmer and then to check email and write this blog. I am now going to dinner and then to bed and hopefully another good night’s sleep.
I hope all of you have a great Friday and a great weekend tomorrow will be a day off and I will write more.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Another day of recovery at base camp
April 22nd Thursday
Finally went to bed @ 830 pm on Wed night. I didn’t eat much as the smell of mo mo’s Jim had almost made me throw up. I went to the dinning tent just to try and stretch the day as long as I could to try and regain some strength. I just sat in front of the heater after I went in to help Curly and Larry try and light it. Think about “lost in translation” with me and 2 Sherpa’ s who do not speak any English nor do not have any mechanical skills ( no that it takes much to start a heater) but it was quite comical to a point. I was trying to be nice but really was in the mood to let 3 people with 3 different ideas try to start this heater( although I have been starting it every night so I knew what needed to be done). I was cold, tired and after the few moments of “humor” I told them “thank You” and I could just do it myself. They left the tent in all smiles and I started the tent and then almost collapse in the chair in front of it. That episode just about wore me out at this altitude.
I went to bed with a slight cough and Jim thought that this was more of an exhaustion cough than anything. I think he was right as I did it for about an hour and then fell asleep. I think I did pretty well later in the night as I awoke about the time the sun came up which is about 530 and I would just lay in the bed until it hit my tent about 745am( snoozing on and off) when the warmth of the sun would make my tent feel good. Jim’s tent is only a few feet away and we started discussing the day’s events and the even Sat’s event.
We both thought about my eating and we thought maybe I could eat something every hour instead of trying to force some big massive meal down me 2-3 times a day. We have done that pretty regular today and it seems to have worked some. I have been drinking water pretty good today including cokes and Mt dew just to add to the calorie intake.
We also both thought about taking a “test ride” hike tomorrow back down to Gorashep which is about a 2 hr walk done the mountain, have a hot lemon drink and walk back home just to see how the body does. I thought this was a great idea and look forward to it because I am still a bit shaken mentally after what happen to me on Mon and I want to know I can do this with some sort of certainty, Damn I lost an entire week due to some infection that if I would have had it at home I probably wouldn’t have missed a step but up here took me down to me legs. I have to admit I am mad about what happen but understand “stuff happens” and I will move on from now.
I spent quite a bit of time in the tent today trying to regain my focus. I begin to reorganize my stuff for the next couple of days, while listening to my iPod and generally trying to get back in the game mentally. The weather has been quite nice today with just a little wind. I know there is still a lot of time left to make this thing work out. If some of the guys I saw at the hospital yesterday think they still have a chance to make it then I for sure still have a chance. I saw some very sick people yesterday struggling in and out of that tent and I have seen those faces high on the mountain before so I know what altitude can do to you and I am lucky that that was not me.
Wally came and visited several times today and it was fun catching up with him His guys are heading up to camp 2 today. His main guy had a bad cough early in the week but Wally confirmed he was doing much better. Wally sounded awful with his cough but as I have said everyone at base camp gets sick it is how you minimize it that allows you to win or not.
I laughed at Jim as I heard him try to program the radios He talks to himself a lot so it was funny to hear his expressions which I cannot print in this blog because mine are bad enough but he sure made me chuckle a few times today. He finally got them done and we should be good to go. He also work with the Sherpa’s on the antenna’s which was funny but not a funny as the radios.
My face around my cheeks and the bottom of the chin began to peel today. I got burned on the way down on Monday I applied at 4am but never did again the reflection off the snow can just burn you up. MY nose which is usually the first place I get it was pretty much left unscathed but the other places are peeling deep. I will start the use of 50 SPC on Sat in lieu of the 30 I have been using. I have already seen some horrific faces on the mountain and I do not want to look like I did when I came off Aconcagua 2008. I know my little Leah remembers and it looked bad.
It is 530pm on Thursday and today has been good. I do feel better and I look forward to the walk tomorrow.
Couple of interesting things that did happen today.
There was a collapse in the Ice Fall today in the area called the “popcorn”. According to the information that we have heard no one was injured and we heard the Ice doctors have already got the trail remapped out so it will be interesting to see the differences when we go back in there on Sat.
This was also the first day in the last 3 days that I did not hear the helicopter fly someone out so that is always a good thing.
I am sure soon Jim will be chasing me around trying to shovel food in my mouth and I will be like the child who doesn’t want to eat but I am sure in the end we will come to some compromise.
Have a great day
Finally went to bed @ 830 pm on Wed night. I didn’t eat much as the smell of mo mo’s Jim had almost made me throw up. I went to the dinning tent just to try and stretch the day as long as I could to try and regain some strength. I just sat in front of the heater after I went in to help Curly and Larry try and light it. Think about “lost in translation” with me and 2 Sherpa’ s who do not speak any English nor do not have any mechanical skills ( no that it takes much to start a heater) but it was quite comical to a point. I was trying to be nice but really was in the mood to let 3 people with 3 different ideas try to start this heater( although I have been starting it every night so I knew what needed to be done). I was cold, tired and after the few moments of “humor” I told them “thank You” and I could just do it myself. They left the tent in all smiles and I started the tent and then almost collapse in the chair in front of it. That episode just about wore me out at this altitude.
I went to bed with a slight cough and Jim thought that this was more of an exhaustion cough than anything. I think he was right as I did it for about an hour and then fell asleep. I think I did pretty well later in the night as I awoke about the time the sun came up which is about 530 and I would just lay in the bed until it hit my tent about 745am( snoozing on and off) when the warmth of the sun would make my tent feel good. Jim’s tent is only a few feet away and we started discussing the day’s events and the even Sat’s event.
We both thought about my eating and we thought maybe I could eat something every hour instead of trying to force some big massive meal down me 2-3 times a day. We have done that pretty regular today and it seems to have worked some. I have been drinking water pretty good today including cokes and Mt dew just to add to the calorie intake.
We also both thought about taking a “test ride” hike tomorrow back down to Gorashep which is about a 2 hr walk done the mountain, have a hot lemon drink and walk back home just to see how the body does. I thought this was a great idea and look forward to it because I am still a bit shaken mentally after what happen to me on Mon and I want to know I can do this with some sort of certainty, Damn I lost an entire week due to some infection that if I would have had it at home I probably wouldn’t have missed a step but up here took me down to me legs. I have to admit I am mad about what happen but understand “stuff happens” and I will move on from now.
I spent quite a bit of time in the tent today trying to regain my focus. I begin to reorganize my stuff for the next couple of days, while listening to my iPod and generally trying to get back in the game mentally. The weather has been quite nice today with just a little wind. I know there is still a lot of time left to make this thing work out. If some of the guys I saw at the hospital yesterday think they still have a chance to make it then I for sure still have a chance. I saw some very sick people yesterday struggling in and out of that tent and I have seen those faces high on the mountain before so I know what altitude can do to you and I am lucky that that was not me.
Wally came and visited several times today and it was fun catching up with him His guys are heading up to camp 2 today. His main guy had a bad cough early in the week but Wally confirmed he was doing much better. Wally sounded awful with his cough but as I have said everyone at base camp gets sick it is how you minimize it that allows you to win or not.
I laughed at Jim as I heard him try to program the radios He talks to himself a lot so it was funny to hear his expressions which I cannot print in this blog because mine are bad enough but he sure made me chuckle a few times today. He finally got them done and we should be good to go. He also work with the Sherpa’s on the antenna’s which was funny but not a funny as the radios.
My face around my cheeks and the bottom of the chin began to peel today. I got burned on the way down on Monday I applied at 4am but never did again the reflection off the snow can just burn you up. MY nose which is usually the first place I get it was pretty much left unscathed but the other places are peeling deep. I will start the use of 50 SPC on Sat in lieu of the 30 I have been using. I have already seen some horrific faces on the mountain and I do not want to look like I did when I came off Aconcagua 2008. I know my little Leah remembers and it looked bad.
It is 530pm on Thursday and today has been good. I do feel better and I look forward to the walk tomorrow.
Couple of interesting things that did happen today.
There was a collapse in the Ice Fall today in the area called the “popcorn”. According to the information that we have heard no one was injured and we heard the Ice doctors have already got the trail remapped out so it will be interesting to see the differences when we go back in there on Sat.
This was also the first day in the last 3 days that I did not hear the helicopter fly someone out so that is always a good thing.
I am sure soon Jim will be chasing me around trying to shovel food in my mouth and I will be like the child who doesn’t want to eat but I am sure in the end we will come to some compromise.
Have a great day
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Personal
Toffee Please come back I have heard from many of your fans that your words of wisdom are truly inspirational.
All thanks for all of your comments it really helps
I am posting now here at 6 pm wed night it has turned very cold and I am ready to get in my bed.
have a great day
All thanks for all of your comments it really helps
I am posting now here at 6 pm wed night it has turned very cold and I am ready to get in my bed.
have a great day
Feeling better and went to Hospital
April 21st Wed.
I awoke with my favorite fragrance again this morning, the smell of pee. I am sure all of you would like to smell this when you wake from a good night’s sleep. Well I hope this will be my last. The last time I went this morning I was able to be regular and was able to hold it until all was in place so I was pretty happy with that process.
I was able to get up and go to breakfast and eat pretty well and then went in the communications tent to read email and talked to Mark Dale in Australia and it looks like we finally got a big deal we needed and some warranty issues cleared. So Life was getting back to normal mentally but the body is still shot. The weather finally cooperated and I was able to get those nasty clothes off (even Jim was talking about it) on me, took a nice shower (well as nice as it can be in 40F degree weather and I put on my favorite pair of long underwear (Thanks Sybil) they are best wearing and the thinness is perfect for what I need on the climbing trips. I am off to eat lunch now and then over to the hospital. Jim and I have been going through every detail of the last couple of days to try to nail down what really happen but at this point there is no real conclusion. I have been climbing 8 years and Jim has been doing it for 38 years and we cannot put a series of things that happen that point to a clear conclusion. I will update this letter before I post it if the Dr has anything else to add. Well we went to the doctor and guess what he gave me for the next 3 days, Cipro, surprise for you guys in the medical field. He said I could have a little bit of a kidney infection, (yes not normal for a man my age) but that is what we are treating. The lungs are still good but we had to wait on several who are not in good shape. I am so glad that is not my problem because that is something that is hard to overcome as you get higher.
Jim went and got oxygen for us to go up to camp 3 today so that made me feel good. This is a pay to play type deal when you pay for it is yours unless you are lucky to unload it at a fire sale. The cost was about $2500 so it is not cheap. These are refill bottles which we will use below but he did not spend the big money for the summit (new) bottles yet. He will wait and see how I do in the next few days of climbing which hopefully will be day 3 from now. I have to get food liquids and rest over the next couple of days so I can be ready to go again. I feel so much better but am still tired and have little energy but after the last couple of days I will take anything better.
I spent the day trying to reorganize worked a bit and saw the doctor so it was a pretty full day. The one thing is that I got up at 8 and am still up at 5:30 which is has been 4 days since that has happened.
Have a good day and may tomorrow be better than today.
I awoke with my favorite fragrance again this morning, the smell of pee. I am sure all of you would like to smell this when you wake from a good night’s sleep. Well I hope this will be my last. The last time I went this morning I was able to be regular and was able to hold it until all was in place so I was pretty happy with that process.
I was able to get up and go to breakfast and eat pretty well and then went in the communications tent to read email and talked to Mark Dale in Australia and it looks like we finally got a big deal we needed and some warranty issues cleared. So Life was getting back to normal mentally but the body is still shot. The weather finally cooperated and I was able to get those nasty clothes off (even Jim was talking about it) on me, took a nice shower (well as nice as it can be in 40F degree weather and I put on my favorite pair of long underwear (Thanks Sybil) they are best wearing and the thinness is perfect for what I need on the climbing trips. I am off to eat lunch now and then over to the hospital. Jim and I have been going through every detail of the last couple of days to try to nail down what really happen but at this point there is no real conclusion. I have been climbing 8 years and Jim has been doing it for 38 years and we cannot put a series of things that happen that point to a clear conclusion. I will update this letter before I post it if the Dr has anything else to add. Well we went to the doctor and guess what he gave me for the next 3 days, Cipro, surprise for you guys in the medical field. He said I could have a little bit of a kidney infection, (yes not normal for a man my age) but that is what we are treating. The lungs are still good but we had to wait on several who are not in good shape. I am so glad that is not my problem because that is something that is hard to overcome as you get higher.
Jim went and got oxygen for us to go up to camp 3 today so that made me feel good. This is a pay to play type deal when you pay for it is yours unless you are lucky to unload it at a fire sale. The cost was about $2500 so it is not cheap. These are refill bottles which we will use below but he did not spend the big money for the summit (new) bottles yet. He will wait and see how I do in the next few days of climbing which hopefully will be day 3 from now. I have to get food liquids and rest over the next couple of days so I can be ready to go again. I feel so much better but am still tired and have little energy but after the last couple of days I will take anything better.
I spent the day trying to reorganize worked a bit and saw the doctor so it was a pretty full day. The one thing is that I got up at 8 and am still up at 5:30 which is has been 4 days since that has happened.
Have a good day and may tomorrow be better than today.
long day at base camp sick
April 20 Tues
I got up around 8 am when the hot sun had hit my tent and it felt good. I got up and had a good breakfast of eggs, bacon and potatoes and my pop tarts. While I was sitting there discussing yesterday with Jim I also managed to drink 3 ½ liters of water and did not have to go to bathroom so that certainly told me something about hydration.
We chatted on until about 11 am and then I needed to go to the bathroom and I never got out of the tent again.
Now when I went back to the tent I had no blanket or sleeping bad (remember I had peed on it and they were washing and drying it for me so I was laying on my sleeping bad on the ground which was pretty cold not to mention every rock was piecing every bone on my body no matter which was I was able to turn.
Once again I thought I could shake it off and finally around 1ish I called Jim over and told him if he could go and see a doctor for me as I know I am sick and not just dehydrated. He went over and asked the favor and a Dr named Steve came and visited me about 230ish He was the one on call and the tent is pretty busy right now. (They have evacuated at least 5 people already this week) He spent about 20 mins with checking me and asking quite a few questions but he only conclusion was I had picked up probably 1 of the million viruses floating around here but if I could make it over the hospital then he could do a better check on me. I said ok and thought later in the day I would be able to get up but that time never happened.
It was funny I was lying against the back wall on the ground in the tent, my pad was just thrown in there with my blanket on top of my clothes and I was wondering what he was thinking. The Sherpa’s wanted to make my bed but I just couldn’t get up. It was all was cleaned and dry but it had begun to snow so we had to put it back in the tent.
After the doctor left they came into the tent and just put it in the middle of the tent and at sometime I eventually rolled over on my better smelling linen which was nice.
Jim kept trying to feed me with all my favorites but I could move much less sit up and eat. I was shaking one hour and going back to sweating the next. This went on all night as I slept very little except one time when they thought I was gone. They were screaming into the tent and I was not moving so the young boy Dawa was scared and he went out and got one of the other Sherpa’s to come and shake me to see if I was alive. When He grabbed my leg I came up immediately. I don’t know who scared who the most but at least I was alive.
All night was another “peeing” fiasco and by the time I woke up this morning my clothes smelled so bad I was about to vomit not to mention the smell of the pee bottle when it was open inside my sleeping bag so I knew what today held for me
There were many times I thought about throwing in the towel last night. I was tired scared because I didn’t know what was going on with my body and really how much does a man have to take to prove is manhood or reach some silly dream? You know I have spent well over $100,000 on this trip that I have planned for over 4 years and these 2 days has certainly knocked me back physically and mentally and I just didn’t know if I could go on. But I never called to Jim and made it through the night Thank Goodness.
Thanks for all the prayers as I really needed the past 2 days.
I got up around 8 am when the hot sun had hit my tent and it felt good. I got up and had a good breakfast of eggs, bacon and potatoes and my pop tarts. While I was sitting there discussing yesterday with Jim I also managed to drink 3 ½ liters of water and did not have to go to bathroom so that certainly told me something about hydration.
We chatted on until about 11 am and then I needed to go to the bathroom and I never got out of the tent again.
Now when I went back to the tent I had no blanket or sleeping bad (remember I had peed on it and they were washing and drying it for me so I was laying on my sleeping bad on the ground which was pretty cold not to mention every rock was piecing every bone on my body no matter which was I was able to turn.
Once again I thought I could shake it off and finally around 1ish I called Jim over and told him if he could go and see a doctor for me as I know I am sick and not just dehydrated. He went over and asked the favor and a Dr named Steve came and visited me about 230ish He was the one on call and the tent is pretty busy right now. (They have evacuated at least 5 people already this week) He spent about 20 mins with checking me and asking quite a few questions but he only conclusion was I had picked up probably 1 of the million viruses floating around here but if I could make it over the hospital then he could do a better check on me. I said ok and thought later in the day I would be able to get up but that time never happened.
It was funny I was lying against the back wall on the ground in the tent, my pad was just thrown in there with my blanket on top of my clothes and I was wondering what he was thinking. The Sherpa’s wanted to make my bed but I just couldn’t get up. It was all was cleaned and dry but it had begun to snow so we had to put it back in the tent.
After the doctor left they came into the tent and just put it in the middle of the tent and at sometime I eventually rolled over on my better smelling linen which was nice.
Jim kept trying to feed me with all my favorites but I could move much less sit up and eat. I was shaking one hour and going back to sweating the next. This went on all night as I slept very little except one time when they thought I was gone. They were screaming into the tent and I was not moving so the young boy Dawa was scared and he went out and got one of the other Sherpa’s to come and shake me to see if I was alive. When He grabbed my leg I came up immediately. I don’t know who scared who the most but at least I was alive.
All night was another “peeing” fiasco and by the time I woke up this morning my clothes smelled so bad I was about to vomit not to mention the smell of the pee bottle when it was open inside my sleeping bag so I knew what today held for me
There were many times I thought about throwing in the towel last night. I was tired scared because I didn’t know what was going on with my body and really how much does a man have to take to prove is manhood or reach some silly dream? You know I have spent well over $100,000 on this trip that I have planned for over 4 years and these 2 days has certainly knocked me back physically and mentally and I just didn’t know if I could go on. But I never called to Jim and made it through the night Thank Goodness.
Thanks for all the prayers as I really needed the past 2 days.
Unsuccessful trip to Camp I
April 19th Mon
Jim and I were awaken around 3:30 am in the morning as the Sherpa’s were eon their way up the mountain. We had decided before went to bed that we would go only if it was a clear morning and it didn’t snow all night. When the kitchen fired up the gas stove at 2:30 I heard it and I heard the snow so I was hoping that we wouldn’t go up. I had a terrible night sleep and didn’t feel well but that wasn’t what was on Nima Tashi mind. He was going up the mountain and when he awoke me at 330am and again at 331am I saw his hand come through my tent asking for my sleeping bag. This was the deal but I didn’t know I was only going to have 1 min to get organized before I had to give it up.
Just a little background on the sleeping bag.
When I am leaving early am in the cold weather I stuff all my clothes in my sleeping bag so they will stay warm until I put them on in the morning. So when he woke me up at 330am and at 331am wanted my bag that meant I had to get all of my stuff out of my bag and would have to get dressed in the cold tent. And when it is cold outside the clothes get cold quickly so the socks were the first thing on me but I had to put a band aids on my heels because my new boots made some slight blisters on the back of them when we had gone up a few days ago. After the band aids then a strip to duct tape to make it slick so the socks would just slide over the heel on those steep inclines. Now the trade off of the cold clothes was to carry that extra 4 kilos or not so you know the sleeping bag went out the tent when I saw the hand and didn’t think anymore about it.
Jim and I both were moving a little slow (later found out that Jim was feeling good either) but we made it to the dining tent and decided to have a little breakfast. I didn’t feel like eating much so I had just a little coke. It was a funny feeling, not nausea or headache or anything like that just didn’t have the “spring in the step” We sat in for about an hour and we finally decided to leave about 5 am. The walk to the ice fall entrance is about 15 mins and it is a nasty walk over the base camp glacier in your stiff boots. You are slipping and sliding all over the place and by the time you make it to the Ice Fall you are breathing like you know what. (I hate it like you wouldn’t believe)
Ok we are now at the Ice Fall and we put our crampons on, (now I do like this because it allows you to be lazy because you will not slip) and start of the mountain. I was not feeling good but kept thinking it would get better. We started in the Ice Fall and at the steep hills; Jim was stopping to catch his breath. I thought this was good because this would allow me not to be lagging behind. This went on for about an hour and Jim got better and I got worse. We actually talked about it on the mountain when he finally turned around and said that he was finally feeling better. At this point I was not being dead weight but I was certainly being slow but we continued. I thought if I could just get to camp 1 I could rest and surely I was strong enough to get there. We continued on and finally after 3:15 we got the first ladder in the Ice Falls. Now this was the same place that Martin, Nima, and I were at in less than 1 ½ hrs the first time we went up so this shows how slow I was on this trip. We talked again and I said let’s keep pushing up. I really didn’t want to go down. I knew what a commitment this was to get back to base camp. It was a long way but the bottom was so much up and down I just didn’t know that I could do it. Up was a lot steeper but it would be shorter and I thought I could just push through it but it wasn’t happening. AN hour later I ask Jim about the status and he said we were about ½ way. I told him we needed to go down. This was one of the hardest decisions that I had made so far because I knew what “crap” I was going to have to go through to get back to base camp. I just didn’t know if I could do it. I absolutely had no power in my legs. I was shot and really didn’t know why. I had climbed many mountains and never before had this happened to me. One thing that was happening was I was peeing about 10 mins without any notice and it was immediate ( less than 10 seconds),it hurt like hell, it was gold color( which I know is not good but not the worse it could be) and it was very little. Holy shit I am dehydrated some but something is wrong here. BTW I am a good water drinker as I learned this a long time ago on this High Altitudes climbs and I know my body well so I was baffled.
With a lot of patience from Jim, with me basically walking about 10 steps, going down one hill and going up one hill and me constanly asking him can he see the end we finally made it out 3 ½ later. Two days before we had madwe it down in less than 40 mins from not too much further down than when Jim and I turned around so you know we have a problem.
We made it to the crampon removal area and I just sat there and told Jim to go on home. It was only a couple hundred meters and quite honestly I didn’t know how I was going to get up that hill and especially didn’t know when but he wouldn’t leave me.
SO we ventured on up the hill passing by some friends who wanted to make sure we were ok because they had seen others that had seen me and told them that I was not doing well.
We were back at the camp in about 25 mins. We had just completed 8 hours of walking and we had gone nowhere. What a defeating thing for anyone to stomach and it was proablbly the hardest walk I had ever done in my life and I have had some hard ones ( the 26 Kilometers walk out of Acocongua is one at the top of my list)
Ok we leave at 5 am and I am back in my tent at 1 pm exhausted delirous and just wanted to be left alone. Only my pee bottle needed to be my friend.
I laid across the tent with my feet outside for over an hour trying to just remember who I was and the Sherpa’s were so helpful. They removed my harness, my boots and helped me get into bed. Jim later came with a homemade grill cheese tomato ham speciafiaclly made for me. The Sherpa’s had never seen such a thing but I was not hungry but knew I needed something. I did manage to eat one of them and then I rolled over to try to get some sleep.
I mention these next few items so one day I can laugh about them but if you want to skip reading this section I will not be offended.
After a while I realized that my pants and underwear were wet because I had sat on the snow so much on the way down and I needed to get them off or my bag was going to get wet and cold. Some how I did get them off down to my ankles ( I know this because I woke up later cold and my legs were tied to together) I had tied the bottom of my ankle tight to keep the snow out of my boots and I guess when I was trying to remove my pants I couldn’t figure out how to get them off so I left them until I woke up cold. I did finally manage to get them off b ut the Sherpa’s had destroyed my organized tent looking for my hat that not I could find any damn I do not know how long this sage went on but I finally found something to wear. Now add this drama with me having to piss at a moments notice. Ok 10 sec ( and I mean no more than 10 sec and it was flowing)to find the pee bottle, find the head lamp ( they couldn’t find mine so they gave me one of the sherpa’s which was totally different from mine so I could never find the regular light button, undo the screw cap and get it out of my pants and into this bottle. Funny huh? So you know what happen most of the night. I didn’t hit the bottle enough and my blanket and sleeping pad was in bad shape the next morning I now know what if feel like to be in an old folks home because when I awoke on Tuesday morning I thought I had moved my bed to the urinal. This was not good. The last funny of the night was on Jim. I had the pants story and he had the same thing happen to him with his shirt. He couldn’t figure out how to get his shirt because he couldn’t undo the buttons.
High altitude is a great thing, Huh?
Somehow I made it through the night and actually felt much better after that crazy day/night.
Jim and I were awaken around 3:30 am in the morning as the Sherpa’s were eon their way up the mountain. We had decided before went to bed that we would go only if it was a clear morning and it didn’t snow all night. When the kitchen fired up the gas stove at 2:30 I heard it and I heard the snow so I was hoping that we wouldn’t go up. I had a terrible night sleep and didn’t feel well but that wasn’t what was on Nima Tashi mind. He was going up the mountain and when he awoke me at 330am and again at 331am I saw his hand come through my tent asking for my sleeping bag. This was the deal but I didn’t know I was only going to have 1 min to get organized before I had to give it up.
Just a little background on the sleeping bag.
When I am leaving early am in the cold weather I stuff all my clothes in my sleeping bag so they will stay warm until I put them on in the morning. So when he woke me up at 330am and at 331am wanted my bag that meant I had to get all of my stuff out of my bag and would have to get dressed in the cold tent. And when it is cold outside the clothes get cold quickly so the socks were the first thing on me but I had to put a band aids on my heels because my new boots made some slight blisters on the back of them when we had gone up a few days ago. After the band aids then a strip to duct tape to make it slick so the socks would just slide over the heel on those steep inclines. Now the trade off of the cold clothes was to carry that extra 4 kilos or not so you know the sleeping bag went out the tent when I saw the hand and didn’t think anymore about it.
Jim and I both were moving a little slow (later found out that Jim was feeling good either) but we made it to the dining tent and decided to have a little breakfast. I didn’t feel like eating much so I had just a little coke. It was a funny feeling, not nausea or headache or anything like that just didn’t have the “spring in the step” We sat in for about an hour and we finally decided to leave about 5 am. The walk to the ice fall entrance is about 15 mins and it is a nasty walk over the base camp glacier in your stiff boots. You are slipping and sliding all over the place and by the time you make it to the Ice Fall you are breathing like you know what. (I hate it like you wouldn’t believe)
Ok we are now at the Ice Fall and we put our crampons on, (now I do like this because it allows you to be lazy because you will not slip) and start of the mountain. I was not feeling good but kept thinking it would get better. We started in the Ice Fall and at the steep hills; Jim was stopping to catch his breath. I thought this was good because this would allow me not to be lagging behind. This went on for about an hour and Jim got better and I got worse. We actually talked about it on the mountain when he finally turned around and said that he was finally feeling better. At this point I was not being dead weight but I was certainly being slow but we continued. I thought if I could just get to camp 1 I could rest and surely I was strong enough to get there. We continued on and finally after 3:15 we got the first ladder in the Ice Falls. Now this was the same place that Martin, Nima, and I were at in less than 1 ½ hrs the first time we went up so this shows how slow I was on this trip. We talked again and I said let’s keep pushing up. I really didn’t want to go down. I knew what a commitment this was to get back to base camp. It was a long way but the bottom was so much up and down I just didn’t know that I could do it. Up was a lot steeper but it would be shorter and I thought I could just push through it but it wasn’t happening. AN hour later I ask Jim about the status and he said we were about ½ way. I told him we needed to go down. This was one of the hardest decisions that I had made so far because I knew what “crap” I was going to have to go through to get back to base camp. I just didn’t know if I could do it. I absolutely had no power in my legs. I was shot and really didn’t know why. I had climbed many mountains and never before had this happened to me. One thing that was happening was I was peeing about 10 mins without any notice and it was immediate ( less than 10 seconds),it hurt like hell, it was gold color( which I know is not good but not the worse it could be) and it was very little. Holy shit I am dehydrated some but something is wrong here. BTW I am a good water drinker as I learned this a long time ago on this High Altitudes climbs and I know my body well so I was baffled.
With a lot of patience from Jim, with me basically walking about 10 steps, going down one hill and going up one hill and me constanly asking him can he see the end we finally made it out 3 ½ later. Two days before we had madwe it down in less than 40 mins from not too much further down than when Jim and I turned around so you know we have a problem.
We made it to the crampon removal area and I just sat there and told Jim to go on home. It was only a couple hundred meters and quite honestly I didn’t know how I was going to get up that hill and especially didn’t know when but he wouldn’t leave me.
SO we ventured on up the hill passing by some friends who wanted to make sure we were ok because they had seen others that had seen me and told them that I was not doing well.
We were back at the camp in about 25 mins. We had just completed 8 hours of walking and we had gone nowhere. What a defeating thing for anyone to stomach and it was proablbly the hardest walk I had ever done in my life and I have had some hard ones ( the 26 Kilometers walk out of Acocongua is one at the top of my list)
Ok we leave at 5 am and I am back in my tent at 1 pm exhausted delirous and just wanted to be left alone. Only my pee bottle needed to be my friend.
I laid across the tent with my feet outside for over an hour trying to just remember who I was and the Sherpa’s were so helpful. They removed my harness, my boots and helped me get into bed. Jim later came with a homemade grill cheese tomato ham speciafiaclly made for me. The Sherpa’s had never seen such a thing but I was not hungry but knew I needed something. I did manage to eat one of them and then I rolled over to try to get some sleep.
I mention these next few items so one day I can laugh about them but if you want to skip reading this section I will not be offended.
After a while I realized that my pants and underwear were wet because I had sat on the snow so much on the way down and I needed to get them off or my bag was going to get wet and cold. Some how I did get them off down to my ankles ( I know this because I woke up later cold and my legs were tied to together) I had tied the bottom of my ankle tight to keep the snow out of my boots and I guess when I was trying to remove my pants I couldn’t figure out how to get them off so I left them until I woke up cold. I did finally manage to get them off b ut the Sherpa’s had destroyed my organized tent looking for my hat that not I could find any damn I do not know how long this sage went on but I finally found something to wear. Now add this drama with me having to piss at a moments notice. Ok 10 sec ( and I mean no more than 10 sec and it was flowing)to find the pee bottle, find the head lamp ( they couldn’t find mine so they gave me one of the sherpa’s which was totally different from mine so I could never find the regular light button, undo the screw cap and get it out of my pants and into this bottle. Funny huh? So you know what happen most of the night. I didn’t hit the bottle enough and my blanket and sleeping pad was in bad shape the next morning I now know what if feel like to be in an old folks home because when I awoke on Tuesday morning I thought I had moved my bed to the urinal. This was not good. The last funny of the night was on Jim. I had the pants story and he had the same thing happen to him with his shirt. He couldn’t figure out how to get his shirt because he couldn’t undo the buttons.
High altitude is a great thing, Huh?
Somehow I made it through the night and actually felt much better after that crazy day/night.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Camp I Preperation and Sunday April 18th
April 18th 2009 Sunday Camp 1 Preparation day
I had a long night of a little sleep. It was cold, had some of those “crazy” High altitude dreams and I had my first day in 15 days that I just wanted to quit and go home. I actually think that this is not that bad. On every trip I have gone you always have days or nights when you really have to ask yourself what the ‘Hell” am I doing and it is time to quit and go home. In every case you just keep going because you have worked too hard to get to this point, not to mention the money you have spent on these silly adventures. In the past, I had my friends around to pick me up when you had these lonely “feel sorry” days as we call it, but here, I am all alone so I needed to a little more pick me up from the inside. Martin had left and I am sure that is why it happened today. After getting up, talking with Jim, getting a great breakfast burrito, drinking some Mt Dew and getting a shower, I am beginning to get back in the game and ready to go to camp 1. The weather in the morning was great but as we have seen every day the sleet/ hail/snow starts around 3 pm and it starts to get cold. I hope I will be at comp 1 tomorrow before the weather changes.
Note: Found out today that Jim’s dad is Jack Williams who was one of Jack Welch’s right hand men during his reign of GE. Jack and his wife lived in Asia almost his entire career but the Jim and siblings always lived in the US.
I spent the morning reorganizing my stuff to take up to camp 1 and camp 2. The Sherpa’s take stuff up and leave it and you just keep moving stuff up the mountain and hardly ever bring anything down until the end of the trip. This is a little difficult as you begin to split off your clothes and will have to make adjustments along the way as you can’t have 2 or 3 of everything to take up. NIma got my stuff and they will carry it up in the afternoon.
The next thing to day was go over the meal plan for the next 4 days. That was a little bit of challenge because of my eating habits but I believe we got it done. I also filled a bag up of my favorite snacks to make sure I will eat something for the next four days. I gave Jim credit for being a good snack shopper as I liked many things that he had brought.
Jim continues to get the antenna and mountain radios ready for use over the next few weeks. Looks like we are finally get everything set up for the long journey. Nima and a few of the guys are going back down the mountain while we are gone to get some more supplies.
Tracey, the base camp manager should have landed in KATMANDU today. She sent a note to Jim that she was leaving Singapore and she has more supplies including my condiments and also my 12 volt inverter so I can have my computer hooked up in my tent with a light and don’t have to worry about running the battery down. This will be nice as it will be much warmer in my tent in my sleeping bag. She should be here in about 9 days as she makes her way up the mountain.
They took out the 2nd person off the mountain today. We do not know what the condition was with this person but that is 2 people that taken the helicopter out in the last 3 days. Diarrhea is running rampart in the camp but so far we are all good. The medical tent has been very busy with this and the cough.
I took for the first time in my climbing career, the pill Diamox 250 mg. It supposedly helps regulate your breathing at high altitudes. One of the things that happen during the night, is because of heavy breathing you are constantly getting awaken during the night. I usually take Tylenol PM which numbs me through these times but Jim hates this as it suppresses respiration. I sleep through it but it is not good for my body. The down side to Diamox is that it makes you use the bathroom all the time so my “Pee Bottle” is close to me at all times. I will try this for the next few days and see what happens. It is interesting to note that all guides have differing opinion on the use of Diamox (some strongly against, some indifferent and some strongly for it) but most climbing people at Everest are “pro” Diamox vs other places than I have climbed. I will keep you updated on how it is working or not.
We were sitting in the tent when we heard a huge avalanche on the snow side today. Finally one of the overhangs that we have been looking at for a couple of days came down. What a spectacular seen. It is not over our pass but was right behind our camp. It was pretty hot today with the sun shining so I am sure this is why it finally came down.
The other thing we had to do today is to get our “bodily fluid” bags. This has been a huge controversy here over the years. There was huge push in 2000(with Jim Williams playing a huge part in it) to eliminate tons of waste on the mountain and it is much better but the battle with human waste is still a huge problem. I have seen it first hand at the Tetons and MT Rainer that these fancy (all in one) bags really work. It was decided yesterday that all teams would attempt to try and make these bags work.
Note: one of the reasons to why this has failed is that Sherpa’s do not like to handle human waste so this has hindered the process but in the case the climber will be responsible for removing his own waste. This is great, just added another 6- 8 kilos to my backpack. Note really upset but weight is weight.
I will let you know how this transpires over the next few weeks because if it works it should make a huge difference on the mountain. I still remember the smell at Camp Berlin (Aconcagua, Argentina) and walking up Mt Elbrus (Russia) when we got close to the Lodge. What a disgusting smell it was at these 2 places.
The other thing we had to get done today was to redo my harness with all the right hardware. I used Jim’s hardware in the Ice Fall when we went in to train a few days ago. I thought this was a pretty good set up and was very easy to use quickly to affix to the ropes so I wanted to changed my from previous climbs. The other thing I had to incorporate was my ascender. I have not used an ascender since I was in Bolivia in 2006 but here it will be used a lot since most of the climb is on fixed ropes and the ascender can help you get up the steep places because it allows you to use your arm (in my case right handed) to help pull you up the hill attached to the rope and it is also another safety attachment if you fell. We got this done and I am ready to leave tomorrow morning at 430 am.
The mountain has been quite calm today so tomorrow might be real busy. Jim is not too worried but did say we will probably walk about 2-2 ½ hours before we stop as this timing aligns itself with the sun coming up on us when we will probably have to make a clothing adjustment. We will install our crampons after about 20 mins of walking so I can make a clothing adjustment at this time. I get quite hot walking and wear very little clothing so we have to keep moving or I will get very cold very fast which is not good.
I hope most of you enjoyed Jim’s updated blogs yesterday but with all we have been doing today it is still behind a few days. We have discussed these blogs and have already picked out the pictures for the writings but there is not enough time in the day for him to keep it updated. I am sure while we have nothing to do at camp one he will get caught up but that will be 4 days from now. He is taking his little 10 inch computer but I will not travel with mine. Mine is almost 3.5 kilos so that is out of the question.
You will not see anything from me for the next 3-4 days. It could be 3 days if I perform well but it might be 4 days so do not panic. We might move on up to camp 2 if I feel good. This would be a good thing if it happens. Believe me if something happens to me all of you will know it pretty quickly.
Just got an email form Martin. He is “flying” down the hill in Record time as we all expected. He made it to Namche and I am sure by now he is enjoying his own private shower in almost 8 days. Take care my friend you are already missed.
I wish everyone a nice Sunday and please say a prayer for me to have a safe trip through the ICE FALL.
I had a long night of a little sleep. It was cold, had some of those “crazy” High altitude dreams and I had my first day in 15 days that I just wanted to quit and go home. I actually think that this is not that bad. On every trip I have gone you always have days or nights when you really have to ask yourself what the ‘Hell” am I doing and it is time to quit and go home. In every case you just keep going because you have worked too hard to get to this point, not to mention the money you have spent on these silly adventures. In the past, I had my friends around to pick me up when you had these lonely “feel sorry” days as we call it, but here, I am all alone so I needed to a little more pick me up from the inside. Martin had left and I am sure that is why it happened today. After getting up, talking with Jim, getting a great breakfast burrito, drinking some Mt Dew and getting a shower, I am beginning to get back in the game and ready to go to camp 1. The weather in the morning was great but as we have seen every day the sleet/ hail/snow starts around 3 pm and it starts to get cold. I hope I will be at comp 1 tomorrow before the weather changes.
Note: Found out today that Jim’s dad is Jack Williams who was one of Jack Welch’s right hand men during his reign of GE. Jack and his wife lived in Asia almost his entire career but the Jim and siblings always lived in the US.
I spent the morning reorganizing my stuff to take up to camp 1 and camp 2. The Sherpa’s take stuff up and leave it and you just keep moving stuff up the mountain and hardly ever bring anything down until the end of the trip. This is a little difficult as you begin to split off your clothes and will have to make adjustments along the way as you can’t have 2 or 3 of everything to take up. NIma got my stuff and they will carry it up in the afternoon.
The next thing to day was go over the meal plan for the next 4 days. That was a little bit of challenge because of my eating habits but I believe we got it done. I also filled a bag up of my favorite snacks to make sure I will eat something for the next four days. I gave Jim credit for being a good snack shopper as I liked many things that he had brought.
Jim continues to get the antenna and mountain radios ready for use over the next few weeks. Looks like we are finally get everything set up for the long journey. Nima and a few of the guys are going back down the mountain while we are gone to get some more supplies.
Tracey, the base camp manager should have landed in KATMANDU today. She sent a note to Jim that she was leaving Singapore and she has more supplies including my condiments and also my 12 volt inverter so I can have my computer hooked up in my tent with a light and don’t have to worry about running the battery down. This will be nice as it will be much warmer in my tent in my sleeping bag. She should be here in about 9 days as she makes her way up the mountain.
They took out the 2nd person off the mountain today. We do not know what the condition was with this person but that is 2 people that taken the helicopter out in the last 3 days. Diarrhea is running rampart in the camp but so far we are all good. The medical tent has been very busy with this and the cough.
I took for the first time in my climbing career, the pill Diamox 250 mg. It supposedly helps regulate your breathing at high altitudes. One of the things that happen during the night, is because of heavy breathing you are constantly getting awaken during the night. I usually take Tylenol PM which numbs me through these times but Jim hates this as it suppresses respiration. I sleep through it but it is not good for my body. The down side to Diamox is that it makes you use the bathroom all the time so my “Pee Bottle” is close to me at all times. I will try this for the next few days and see what happens. It is interesting to note that all guides have differing opinion on the use of Diamox (some strongly against, some indifferent and some strongly for it) but most climbing people at Everest are “pro” Diamox vs other places than I have climbed. I will keep you updated on how it is working or not.
We were sitting in the tent when we heard a huge avalanche on the snow side today. Finally one of the overhangs that we have been looking at for a couple of days came down. What a spectacular seen. It is not over our pass but was right behind our camp. It was pretty hot today with the sun shining so I am sure this is why it finally came down.
The other thing we had to do today is to get our “bodily fluid” bags. This has been a huge controversy here over the years. There was huge push in 2000(with Jim Williams playing a huge part in it) to eliminate tons of waste on the mountain and it is much better but the battle with human waste is still a huge problem. I have seen it first hand at the Tetons and MT Rainer that these fancy (all in one) bags really work. It was decided yesterday that all teams would attempt to try and make these bags work.
Note: one of the reasons to why this has failed is that Sherpa’s do not like to handle human waste so this has hindered the process but in the case the climber will be responsible for removing his own waste. This is great, just added another 6- 8 kilos to my backpack. Note really upset but weight is weight.
I will let you know how this transpires over the next few weeks because if it works it should make a huge difference on the mountain. I still remember the smell at Camp Berlin (Aconcagua, Argentina) and walking up Mt Elbrus (Russia) when we got close to the Lodge. What a disgusting smell it was at these 2 places.
The other thing we had to get done today was to redo my harness with all the right hardware. I used Jim’s hardware in the Ice Fall when we went in to train a few days ago. I thought this was a pretty good set up and was very easy to use quickly to affix to the ropes so I wanted to changed my from previous climbs. The other thing I had to incorporate was my ascender. I have not used an ascender since I was in Bolivia in 2006 but here it will be used a lot since most of the climb is on fixed ropes and the ascender can help you get up the steep places because it allows you to use your arm (in my case right handed) to help pull you up the hill attached to the rope and it is also another safety attachment if you fell. We got this done and I am ready to leave tomorrow morning at 430 am.
The mountain has been quite calm today so tomorrow might be real busy. Jim is not too worried but did say we will probably walk about 2-2 ½ hours before we stop as this timing aligns itself with the sun coming up on us when we will probably have to make a clothing adjustment. We will install our crampons after about 20 mins of walking so I can make a clothing adjustment at this time. I get quite hot walking and wear very little clothing so we have to keep moving or I will get very cold very fast which is not good.
I hope most of you enjoyed Jim’s updated blogs yesterday but with all we have been doing today it is still behind a few days. We have discussed these blogs and have already picked out the pictures for the writings but there is not enough time in the day for him to keep it updated. I am sure while we have nothing to do at camp one he will get caught up but that will be 4 days from now. He is taking his little 10 inch computer but I will not travel with mine. Mine is almost 3.5 kilos so that is out of the question.
You will not see anything from me for the next 3-4 days. It could be 3 days if I perform well but it might be 4 days so do not panic. We might move on up to camp 2 if I feel good. This would be a good thing if it happens. Believe me if something happens to me all of you will know it pretty quickly.
Just got an email form Martin. He is “flying” down the hill in Record time as we all expected. He made it to Namche and I am sure by now he is enjoying his own private shower in almost 8 days. Take care my friend you are already missed.
I wish everyone a nice Sunday and please say a prayer for me to have a safe trip through the ICE FALL.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Details and plans for the next 2 weeks
Jim and I plan to go to Camp 1 on Monday April 19th and we will stay at least 2 days but more like 3 days. This would include a full trip through the Ice Fall which would be about 2-3 hours more than what we did the on the training day. Camp 1 is roughly 19000 ft. 1 day while we are there, we will walk about ½ of the 7 miles up to camp 2. This gets us around the corner to be able to see camp 2 and then we will return home.
Our support staff has been up the mountain every morning the last 4 days to help set up the camps at Camp 1 and camp 2 so they will be taking tomorrow off to rest a bit and help Jim and I finish up the last little details of base camp setup. Then some of them will return down the mountain to get more supplies for our trip.
After we return home, I will stay at base camp for about 4 days and then proceed up the mountain again to camp 2, which is 21000 ft. I will go with the lead Sherpa guide (Nima Tashi) to work on our relationship. (Speed, habits and Language). We will need to work on our language issues as his English is not the best and neither is mine (South Alabama) which makes it worse for him because he doesn’t hear well. So we will have to work on a few signals to make this work. Don’t worry, Nima Tashi is a great person, an accomplished guy (summitted Everest 11 times) and is generally considered one of the hardest working Sherpa’s on the mountain. I climbed with him on the Grand Teton last September but this is a completely different climb with different rhythms. Martin spent 45 days in Oct/Nov (Baruntse) with him being the lead Sherpa including the entire crew (guides and Kitchen crew) and feels completely comfortable with them so his recommendation meant a lot to me.
I spent quite a bit of time discussing this with Jim this morning while we worked on the tent setup. This part is another essential part of the success of my summit attempt. I have had failure and have had success with a pretty stringent program over the years and I know what works for me to make it to the top so we just have to spend some time together to make sure the basics are messed together. I always walk in the back of the pack as this gives me time to adjust to almost anything and with me being the only one in between 3 Sherpas I am a bit uncomfortable with it since it a roped climb including mostly fixed ropes due to the severe steepness of the mountain especially on summit day so I just need some comfort with who I am with. Sherpa’s are real animals on the mountains and their pace can be quite fast and I need them also understand my little idiosyncrasies so we can be successful. Nawang Pasang is the other lead guide who speaks very good English and this will be his 4th summit attempt (with having 3 summits in the last 4 years) with numerous times up to the Southern Col and Dawa Tsuring will be the 3rd Sherpa and this will be his first summit attempt but has been up the Southern Col many times as a working Sherpa.
I feel pretty good about all of these guys as I have met and spent time with their families as we came up the valley to get here so I understand their motivation and commitment to get home safely as they have families who depend on them and Nawang’s wife will actually have their baby when we are on the mountain and she told us to bring him home safely personally when we had dinner with his brother and her.
I will fill the rest as we move through these next few weeks and once we start you can fill in your calendars as I will not be able to post blogs or answer emails when I am on the mountain.
Our support staff has been up the mountain every morning the last 4 days to help set up the camps at Camp 1 and camp 2 so they will be taking tomorrow off to rest a bit and help Jim and I finish up the last little details of base camp setup. Then some of them will return down the mountain to get more supplies for our trip.
After we return home, I will stay at base camp for about 4 days and then proceed up the mountain again to camp 2, which is 21000 ft. I will go with the lead Sherpa guide (Nima Tashi) to work on our relationship. (Speed, habits and Language). We will need to work on our language issues as his English is not the best and neither is mine (South Alabama) which makes it worse for him because he doesn’t hear well. So we will have to work on a few signals to make this work. Don’t worry, Nima Tashi is a great person, an accomplished guy (summitted Everest 11 times) and is generally considered one of the hardest working Sherpa’s on the mountain. I climbed with him on the Grand Teton last September but this is a completely different climb with different rhythms. Martin spent 45 days in Oct/Nov (Baruntse) with him being the lead Sherpa including the entire crew (guides and Kitchen crew) and feels completely comfortable with them so his recommendation meant a lot to me.
I spent quite a bit of time discussing this with Jim this morning while we worked on the tent setup. This part is another essential part of the success of my summit attempt. I have had failure and have had success with a pretty stringent program over the years and I know what works for me to make it to the top so we just have to spend some time together to make sure the basics are messed together. I always walk in the back of the pack as this gives me time to adjust to almost anything and with me being the only one in between 3 Sherpas I am a bit uncomfortable with it since it a roped climb including mostly fixed ropes due to the severe steepness of the mountain especially on summit day so I just need some comfort with who I am with. Sherpa’s are real animals on the mountains and their pace can be quite fast and I need them also understand my little idiosyncrasies so we can be successful. Nawang Pasang is the other lead guide who speaks very good English and this will be his 4th summit attempt (with having 3 summits in the last 4 years) with numerous times up to the Southern Col and Dawa Tsuring will be the 3rd Sherpa and this will be his first summit attempt but has been up the Southern Col many times as a working Sherpa.
I feel pretty good about all of these guys as I have met and spent time with their families as we came up the valley to get here so I understand their motivation and commitment to get home safely as they have families who depend on them and Nawang’s wife will actually have their baby when we are on the mountain and she told us to bring him home safely personally when we had dinner with his brother and her.
I will fill the rest as we move through these next few weeks and once we start you can fill in your calendars as I will not be able to post blogs or answer emails when I am on the mountain.
Martin's leaving and a good day at the office
Saturday April 17th
Woke up early as usual but couldn’t get out of the bed this morning as it was very cold. It seemed like it changed about 3 am when I needed to put some more clothes on and added an extra blanket. I finally got up about 7am. The sun is up but doesn’t hit on us until about 745am.
It has been a cold, windy and cloudy day. The wind is coming in from the north and has been real cold so I hope it is a better day tomorrow as I really would like to have a shower before we go up to camp 1 for a couple of days.
Martin left today, while it was a bit sad seeing too old men leaving each other with tears in their eyes, I was happy to have spent the last 2 weeks with a great friend who came in to support me personally on this adventure of mine and added more in his mountaineering career highlights. We had a great time discussing our last 6 years of adventures (and all the great friends we have made and miss) and are already planning the next one in Oct in PNG so all of you are invited ( details to follow when I get off this one, just let Martin know asap if you are interested). We went by to see Wally before he left and got some great pictures to remember and Martin was wearing his new hat ( Everest Doctor’s Hat 2010) which he said would be a collector’s item when he returns to Australia late week. He will be back in Katmandu in 4 day of hard walking and if gets lucky with the weather in Lukla for the return journey. He plans to spend a few days seeing his friend (ANG) and the 2 kids he supports educationally in Katmandu.
After I returned to our camp, I started helping Jim set up the communication tent. It has been a great day for working inside and we now have set up an official office at Everest base camp 2010. If you saw it you would think Jim and I were just working away back in the US. We have satellite phones; we have radios for Staff, a desk telephone, Printer and 3 computers. We have email service, internet service and blogs for me and for Exploradus so we should be set now to communicate when we are here in the camp. I will get a picture of this and show it when I return but Jim sets up a pretty good operation. If the damn heater worked a little better, I think I could be very productive.
I have set up an alternative email address which I will send out if David and I cannot get it worked out with my company email. We should have this done in the next couple of days as I just have been able to communicate with him via email so early next week should be good to go either with my new address or my company address.
The rest of the day we continued to get the mess tent set up and now we really have a home here and tried to stay warm.
Woke up early as usual but couldn’t get out of the bed this morning as it was very cold. It seemed like it changed about 3 am when I needed to put some more clothes on and added an extra blanket. I finally got up about 7am. The sun is up but doesn’t hit on us until about 745am.
It has been a cold, windy and cloudy day. The wind is coming in from the north and has been real cold so I hope it is a better day tomorrow as I really would like to have a shower before we go up to camp 1 for a couple of days.
Martin left today, while it was a bit sad seeing too old men leaving each other with tears in their eyes, I was happy to have spent the last 2 weeks with a great friend who came in to support me personally on this adventure of mine and added more in his mountaineering career highlights. We had a great time discussing our last 6 years of adventures (and all the great friends we have made and miss) and are already planning the next one in Oct in PNG so all of you are invited ( details to follow when I get off this one, just let Martin know asap if you are interested). We went by to see Wally before he left and got some great pictures to remember and Martin was wearing his new hat ( Everest Doctor’s Hat 2010) which he said would be a collector’s item when he returns to Australia late week. He will be back in Katmandu in 4 day of hard walking and if gets lucky with the weather in Lukla for the return journey. He plans to spend a few days seeing his friend (ANG) and the 2 kids he supports educationally in Katmandu.
After I returned to our camp, I started helping Jim set up the communication tent. It has been a great day for working inside and we now have set up an official office at Everest base camp 2010. If you saw it you would think Jim and I were just working away back in the US. We have satellite phones; we have radios for Staff, a desk telephone, Printer and 3 computers. We have email service, internet service and blogs for me and for Exploradus so we should be set now to communicate when we are here in the camp. I will get a picture of this and show it when I return but Jim sets up a pretty good operation. If the damn heater worked a little better, I think I could be very productive.
I have set up an alternative email address which I will send out if David and I cannot get it worked out with my company email. We should have this done in the next couple of days as I just have been able to communicate with him via email so early next week should be good to go either with my new address or my company address.
The rest of the day we continued to get the mess tent set up and now we really have a home here and tried to stay warm.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Personal updates april 16th
Guys please give Jim a break about his blog He is busy getting the camp set up with communications. He will be back on line in the next couple days with many good pictures which I cannot post due to line speed.
I appreciate all the comments that the blog has generated and I welcome more in the future.( it does give me confidence to keep this adventure going) I am amazed at who the people are who following this story as it is some new friends and some old friends. Thanks
Corwin – I hope you and family are doing well. Good to see you following
Sylvia- thanks for the comments
Ashley – I appreciate all of the positive support that you have given over the past few weeks. I know you have been busy traveling with your friends (wedding) and family (girls, dogs and mother) over this period but you have always been able to give positive comments to help me keep going. I hope you have great week on the gulf just taking some time off. I sure hope the deal on the house works out for you. I look forward to seeing you again when I return to the US.
See- glad to see you joined in I hope you and family are doing well. XOXO
K Bee and K Nui- Be careful traveling in Korea and back to Bangkok. Miss you both can’t wait to see the pictures and see what you bought K Steve.
Glenn Thx mate
Sorry if I missed some of you but I appreciate all of them
I tried to post some pictures last night but the internet is running too slow maybe I can get them to download in the next couple of days. I want you all to see the ceremony, my home and the day in the ice fall.
I appreciate all the comments that the blog has generated and I welcome more in the future.( it does give me confidence to keep this adventure going) I am amazed at who the people are who following this story as it is some new friends and some old friends. Thanks
Corwin – I hope you and family are doing well. Good to see you following
Sylvia- thanks for the comments
Ashley – I appreciate all of the positive support that you have given over the past few weeks. I know you have been busy traveling with your friends (wedding) and family (girls, dogs and mother) over this period but you have always been able to give positive comments to help me keep going. I hope you have great week on the gulf just taking some time off. I sure hope the deal on the house works out for you. I look forward to seeing you again when I return to the US.
See- glad to see you joined in I hope you and family are doing well. XOXO
K Bee and K Nui- Be careful traveling in Korea and back to Bangkok. Miss you both can’t wait to see the pictures and see what you bought K Steve.
Glenn Thx mate
Sorry if I missed some of you but I appreciate all of them
I tried to post some pictures last night but the internet is running too slow maybe I can get them to download in the next couple of days. I want you all to see the ceremony, my home and the day in the ice fall.
Everest Base Camp Home
We are located somewhere around 17500 ft above sea level. While it looks like a huge rock quarry, it is really rock lying on top of a glacier. It is constantly moving and when I am in the bed at night I listen to the snap crackle and pop of it moving. ( AT 18000 ft the oxygen level is 50% vs 100% at sea level so everything is a chore to do without breathing hard)
Jim says that our camp will have to be moved around before we leave and he has seen even a crevasse open up under the mess tent in a previous year. This caught my attention when I heard several loud pops under my tent the first night.
The other thing I hear constantly is the avalanches of the mountains surrounding us. It is rocks and snow. One of the things today that were brought up was the trail into camp 1. Evidently there is a crevasse that is quite large with a ladder over it and this could cause a bottleneck with many people at risk if an avalanche happened in this avalanche prone area. Jim attended a meeting to discuss the plans of all the teams to help medicate this risk over the next few days. I haven’t heard the plan but will know more before we go on Sunday morning.
I am living in a 3 man tent with a mattress and blanket and I lay my sleeping bed on top of it to keep warm. My head faces the mountain as in most Asian cultures you never show anyone the bottom of your feet. I have my 3 duffel bags surrounding me like a barrier to keep anything or anyone out. Can’t believe it is all I need for 2 month of living. It is nice and comfortable but certainly not like my home in BKK.
Jim says that our camp will have to be moved around before we leave and he has seen even a crevasse open up under the mess tent in a previous year. This caught my attention when I heard several loud pops under my tent the first night.
The other thing I hear constantly is the avalanches of the mountains surrounding us. It is rocks and snow. One of the things today that were brought up was the trail into camp 1. Evidently there is a crevasse that is quite large with a ladder over it and this could cause a bottleneck with many people at risk if an avalanche happened in this avalanche prone area. Jim attended a meeting to discuss the plans of all the teams to help medicate this risk over the next few days. I haven’t heard the plan but will know more before we go on Sunday morning.
I am living in a 3 man tent with a mattress and blanket and I lay my sleeping bed on top of it to keep warm. My head faces the mountain as in most Asian cultures you never show anyone the bottom of your feet. I have my 3 duffel bags surrounding me like a barrier to keep anything or anyone out. Can’t believe it is all I need for 2 month of living. It is nice and comfortable but certainly not like my home in BKK.
My Dietary Habits
The Challenge to Jim’s Team and my Success
Before the trip I had requested certain things to Jim that I liked and didn’t like to eat because eating (or lack of) is my number one issue or a cause for alarm that could keep me for being able to summit Mt Everest. This is the background to it and where we are today.
Background
Normal day to day
I do not eat that much food regularly in my normal day to day life and I would be easily give the title of being a picky eater if though I like food from around the world. I usually have a coke because Asia and S America doesn’t have MD (but thanks to Wally Berg I have my Mt Dew for breakfast here), usually a bowl of rice and vegetables at lunch if in BKK or a salad on the run if traveling and then a meal at night but usually fish, pasta or chicken. Add to this a regularly routine fitness routine and I haven’t changed my weight much in the last 15 years only just where it is on me.
Typical Climbing trip
In a 2-3 week climbing trip I would lose about 4 to 5 kilos (8 to 11 lbs) quite easily. The first week is ok for food. The 2nd week (higher altitude, you begin to lose your appetite) everything starts tasting the same and by the 3rd week (even higher altitude) I just don’t want anything to eat. This has hurt me in some of my climbs but I could usually overcome this because I have learned to compensate to make it to the summits.
Everest trip
If I did this for a 2 month trip there would be no way that I would be physically strong enough to climb Everest. Just remember when we are doing these 6-7-8 hours of walking, we are burning off some 4000 to 6000 calories and this could be even more the higher because your body is working so hard just to breathe because of the lack of oxygen.
So now you are seeing why I was requesting things that I like and back to the story. Remember I am writing this for me to remember all of these detail when I am old and my memory is falling.
Up to date situation
I requested Blueberry frosted Pop tarts ( brand name), Heinz Ketchup, Heinz 57, a lot of black pepper and French’s plain mustard because I want to have something to put on anything ( even if it is just bread) and it taste like something I like so I will eat something. I also requested that we do not have green peppers (high altitude is terrible for indigestion and I take Nexium already for acid reflux), no garlic, and no mushrooms. Well the list keeps growing on the way up the mountain, No ginger spicing, no eggs in anything especially my potato salad, and I requested that Jim base camp manager bring up some Kraft’s Thousand Island dressing for the crackers I saw that Jim had brought. I guess this last request was the final straw as the lady asked Jim” Does this guy eat condiments on paper?” because most of what she is bringing condiments and 4 more boxes of pop tarts because Jim brought the wrong brand. Just heard that her family and friends were getting a laugh about the pop tarts which are real “Breakfast of Champions”
It has now begin to be funny as the cook comes into the tent before every meal to make sure I will eat what he will cook and I think now Jim understands my taste so I think I will have better chance of eating more to keep the weight loss to a minimum. This is just one of those things that have to be worked out with our new travel partnership and I do plan to travel more with Jim in the future. Of course Martin will eat anything so this does not affect him thanks goodness I am the only picky one. I look forward to meeting the camp manager early next week to hear her side of the story.
Before the trip I had requested certain things to Jim that I liked and didn’t like to eat because eating (or lack of) is my number one issue or a cause for alarm that could keep me for being able to summit Mt Everest. This is the background to it and where we are today.
Background
Normal day to day
I do not eat that much food regularly in my normal day to day life and I would be easily give the title of being a picky eater if though I like food from around the world. I usually have a coke because Asia and S America doesn’t have MD (but thanks to Wally Berg I have my Mt Dew for breakfast here), usually a bowl of rice and vegetables at lunch if in BKK or a salad on the run if traveling and then a meal at night but usually fish, pasta or chicken. Add to this a regularly routine fitness routine and I haven’t changed my weight much in the last 15 years only just where it is on me.
Typical Climbing trip
In a 2-3 week climbing trip I would lose about 4 to 5 kilos (8 to 11 lbs) quite easily. The first week is ok for food. The 2nd week (higher altitude, you begin to lose your appetite) everything starts tasting the same and by the 3rd week (even higher altitude) I just don’t want anything to eat. This has hurt me in some of my climbs but I could usually overcome this because I have learned to compensate to make it to the summits.
Everest trip
If I did this for a 2 month trip there would be no way that I would be physically strong enough to climb Everest. Just remember when we are doing these 6-7-8 hours of walking, we are burning off some 4000 to 6000 calories and this could be even more the higher because your body is working so hard just to breathe because of the lack of oxygen.
So now you are seeing why I was requesting things that I like and back to the story. Remember I am writing this for me to remember all of these detail when I am old and my memory is falling.
Up to date situation
I requested Blueberry frosted Pop tarts ( brand name), Heinz Ketchup, Heinz 57, a lot of black pepper and French’s plain mustard because I want to have something to put on anything ( even if it is just bread) and it taste like something I like so I will eat something. I also requested that we do not have green peppers (high altitude is terrible for indigestion and I take Nexium already for acid reflux), no garlic, and no mushrooms. Well the list keeps growing on the way up the mountain, No ginger spicing, no eggs in anything especially my potato salad, and I requested that Jim base camp manager bring up some Kraft’s Thousand Island dressing for the crackers I saw that Jim had brought. I guess this last request was the final straw as the lady asked Jim” Does this guy eat condiments on paper?” because most of what she is bringing condiments and 4 more boxes of pop tarts because Jim brought the wrong brand. Just heard that her family and friends were getting a laugh about the pop tarts which are real “Breakfast of Champions”
It has now begin to be funny as the cook comes into the tent before every meal to make sure I will eat what he will cook and I think now Jim understands my taste so I think I will have better chance of eating more to keep the weight loss to a minimum. This is just one of those things that have to be worked out with our new travel partnership and I do plan to travel more with Jim in the future. Of course Martin will eat anything so this does not affect him thanks goodness I am the only picky one. I look forward to meeting the camp manager early next week to hear her side of the story.
Great Day in the Khumba ICE Fall
April 16, 2010
A great day in the Khumbu Ice Fall. As I went t bed last night I was as nervous as I have ever been in my climbing life. For the first time in my life I was facing something that I could not imagine in my mind what to expect. I had read the books. I had seen pictures but everyone had told me that you will not know what it is until you get there because it is always changing.
Nima Tashi, Martin and I left for the falls around 10 am. By 11:15 we had encountered our first ladder. On the way up we were moving fairly quickly as we moved up down sideways etc. It reminded me of the first time I took my kids to the “Jungle Jim’ in Chattanooga. (You know how you climb stairs, crawl through tubes, slide down into balls, and climb the rope to the lookout point.) Well that was what this was like but I was 20 something then maybe early 30’s and I am 48 years old now and the stakes are considerably higher with crevasses everywhere you looked and the potential that the ice fall could reshape at any minute. Nima told us about half way up our climb that what we see today especially as we get higher will be totally different than what we will see in the next few weeks and I totally believe what he is saying because base camp 2010 is totally different than 2009. It is not even close to the same shape and size. I just hope most of these changes are when I am not in the Ice Fall and surly while I am not on the ladder.
Anyway I wanted to give you something t hat most of you have seen or done with your children or grand children and if you haven’t then look next time you are at one of those places and imagine you are on ice/snow doing it.
Ok back to the story. This ladder was a 10 foot alum ladder standing straight up an ice wall. It really was not too bad but remember I have spikes on my feet , 2 poles in my hands and a assist rope to get down this ladder all the while you are trying to see the steps hold the rope and keep your poles from digging in somewhere where they don’t need to be and hope you don’t fall. Funny huh? Well Go get on you step ladder and try it
Ok on to the next ladder. This was about 15 feet across a crevasse that I never saw the bottom, but bear in mind I was not looking either. So this was (2) 10’ alum ladders tied together with straps so the first 5 foot was a double ladder so this made me feel good since I am not the little Sherpa that I just saw almost run over it weighing about 50 kilos( 100 lbs) and didn’t seem to care much about the bottomless crevasse. Any way it was my time to go and we have about 10 people waiting to come down and up and the pressure was on and I was just bearing sweat. You have 2 ropes to help you balance. Right?? These ropes are lying on the ground when you get to the ladder. They are not stretched tight so you could hold on to so you could then just worry about your steps. We all know that would be too easy and the “Ice Doctors” couldn’t keep them up like that because of the glacier movement so you have to provide your own stability. So you pick up the ropes and lean forward to bring tension on the ropes and then you begin your journey. Again I have spikes on my feet, poles dangling from my wrist and me( big ole Steve leaning forward with these ropes) trying to walk on this alum ladder and not trying to think about falling and worse yet, what if the ropes give way I go face first and take a terrible tumble for a long way. (Now I am tied in to these 2 ropes with my harness around my waist connected by 2 carabineers at the end of a rope so there is an element of safety but it the rope anchors fail then you know the answer. Again if you want to know how this feels just go outside and try it on level ground and I bet it will still give u a little scare. )
Well none of us fell, (Thank Goodness) even as we went over several more ladders of varying degrees ( lengths, heights positions) even to a point of having gaining some confidence in doing this that this might not be so bad after all but remember too that this was in the daylight. The next time I see these ladders on Sunday it will be in the dark. Funny it seems like climbing this damn mountain always has some more to offer than any other one I have climbed but I will continue on for another day.
I hope I gave you a good picture of what we did for 4 hours today. It was one of the scariest moments but also one of the greatest moments of my life especially having my friend Martin here. He was like a kid in a candy store. He loved it! Remember Martin is 62 years “Young” and did it without any hesitation and he gave me the confidence that I needed to overcome this crucial point in my journey. I have to make it through this Ice Fall 4 times if I have the chance to get to the top of this damn mountain so today left me wanting more and I want to see the changes.
A great day in the Khumbu Ice Fall. As I went t bed last night I was as nervous as I have ever been in my climbing life. For the first time in my life I was facing something that I could not imagine in my mind what to expect. I had read the books. I had seen pictures but everyone had told me that you will not know what it is until you get there because it is always changing.
Nima Tashi, Martin and I left for the falls around 10 am. By 11:15 we had encountered our first ladder. On the way up we were moving fairly quickly as we moved up down sideways etc. It reminded me of the first time I took my kids to the “Jungle Jim’ in Chattanooga. (You know how you climb stairs, crawl through tubes, slide down into balls, and climb the rope to the lookout point.) Well that was what this was like but I was 20 something then maybe early 30’s and I am 48 years old now and the stakes are considerably higher with crevasses everywhere you looked and the potential that the ice fall could reshape at any minute. Nima told us about half way up our climb that what we see today especially as we get higher will be totally different than what we will see in the next few weeks and I totally believe what he is saying because base camp 2010 is totally different than 2009. It is not even close to the same shape and size. I just hope most of these changes are when I am not in the Ice Fall and surly while I am not on the ladder.
Anyway I wanted to give you something t hat most of you have seen or done with your children or grand children and if you haven’t then look next time you are at one of those places and imagine you are on ice/snow doing it.
Ok back to the story. This ladder was a 10 foot alum ladder standing straight up an ice wall. It really was not too bad but remember I have spikes on my feet , 2 poles in my hands and a assist rope to get down this ladder all the while you are trying to see the steps hold the rope and keep your poles from digging in somewhere where they don’t need to be and hope you don’t fall. Funny huh? Well Go get on you step ladder and try it
Ok on to the next ladder. This was about 15 feet across a crevasse that I never saw the bottom, but bear in mind I was not looking either. So this was (2) 10’ alum ladders tied together with straps so the first 5 foot was a double ladder so this made me feel good since I am not the little Sherpa that I just saw almost run over it weighing about 50 kilos( 100 lbs) and didn’t seem to care much about the bottomless crevasse. Any way it was my time to go and we have about 10 people waiting to come down and up and the pressure was on and I was just bearing sweat. You have 2 ropes to help you balance. Right?? These ropes are lying on the ground when you get to the ladder. They are not stretched tight so you could hold on to so you could then just worry about your steps. We all know that would be too easy and the “Ice Doctors” couldn’t keep them up like that because of the glacier movement so you have to provide your own stability. So you pick up the ropes and lean forward to bring tension on the ropes and then you begin your journey. Again I have spikes on my feet, poles dangling from my wrist and me( big ole Steve leaning forward with these ropes) trying to walk on this alum ladder and not trying to think about falling and worse yet, what if the ropes give way I go face first and take a terrible tumble for a long way. (Now I am tied in to these 2 ropes with my harness around my waist connected by 2 carabineers at the end of a rope so there is an element of safety but it the rope anchors fail then you know the answer. Again if you want to know how this feels just go outside and try it on level ground and I bet it will still give u a little scare. )
Well none of us fell, (Thank Goodness) even as we went over several more ladders of varying degrees ( lengths, heights positions) even to a point of having gaining some confidence in doing this that this might not be so bad after all but remember too that this was in the daylight. The next time I see these ladders on Sunday it will be in the dark. Funny it seems like climbing this damn mountain always has some more to offer than any other one I have climbed but I will continue on for another day.
I hope I gave you a good picture of what we did for 4 hours today. It was one of the scariest moments but also one of the greatest moments of my life especially having my friend Martin here. He was like a kid in a candy store. He loved it! Remember Martin is 62 years “Young” and did it without any hesitation and he gave me the confidence that I needed to overcome this crucial point in my journey. I have to make it through this Ice Fall 4 times if I have the chance to get to the top of this damn mountain so today left me wanting more and I want to see the changes.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
First Day at Everest Basse camp
I was up at 6 am because I just couldn’t stand to be in the tent any longer. I went to bed at 8 pm and by 6 am I was like a caged animal and my side hurt from laying down so much. I knew the sun would not be on us until about 745 am so I just went to mess tent and waited on the others to get up or the sun to come up and it would be much warmer. We had more snow last night about 2 inches and the temp was below freezing.
I did get a hot water bottle before I went to bed and even though it wasn’t as hot as the one I had gotten the night before it still seemed to last until about 4 am. It got my feet warm early in the night and then I moved it up to my belly and had it there for the rest of the morning.
I didn’t sleep well last night as the excitement of finally getting to base camp was really bringing reality to the situation. Had lots on the mind and I am sure I still got 8 hours of sleep somewhere in those times of restlessness.
I did like the tent and bed layout and while I am not looking forward to spending the next month in there it is pretty comfortable.
We didn’t have a busy day planned, due to our last 3 days of pretty tough walking and lots of organizing to do for the upcoming days. The first thing on the agenda was getting a shower which was nice after being without one for 5 days. Funny how good a hot shower feels in 40 degree weather but it was awesome. Nothing like putting clean clothes on a clean body for a change and it might e a few more days before that happens again. I got a few clothes washed which was nice also.
The other thing that was done today was to try out the new bathroom or the “The Throne” as we call it. This is completely made out of stone and perch high (about 4 ½ ft) like you are the king sitting on it and it is lined with felt paper to make the toilet seat. It is by far the best homemade toilet that I have ever seen or used for that matter. Sorry but you always have to have at least 1 or 2 potty stories on your trip because people always wonder but never ask.
After we did the necessities we proceeded to have the Puja at 11 am which lasted 2 hours. The Puja is performed at every expedition site before anything can happen. It is a blessing for the people, the food we brought (even the Mt Dew) and our tools for summit day (ice axe boots harness and crampons) that we will have strength and safety for our trip. We then went to David Beshears grand opening which was nice and had some outstanding pictures.
I did get a hot water bottle before I went to bed and even though it wasn’t as hot as the one I had gotten the night before it still seemed to last until about 4 am. It got my feet warm early in the night and then I moved it up to my belly and had it there for the rest of the morning.
I didn’t sleep well last night as the excitement of finally getting to base camp was really bringing reality to the situation. Had lots on the mind and I am sure I still got 8 hours of sleep somewhere in those times of restlessness.
I did like the tent and bed layout and while I am not looking forward to spending the next month in there it is pretty comfortable.
We didn’t have a busy day planned, due to our last 3 days of pretty tough walking and lots of organizing to do for the upcoming days. The first thing on the agenda was getting a shower which was nice after being without one for 5 days. Funny how good a hot shower feels in 40 degree weather but it was awesome. Nothing like putting clean clothes on a clean body for a change and it might e a few more days before that happens again. I got a few clothes washed which was nice also.
The other thing that was done today was to try out the new bathroom or the “The Throne” as we call it. This is completely made out of stone and perch high (about 4 ½ ft) like you are the king sitting on it and it is lined with felt paper to make the toilet seat. It is by far the best homemade toilet that I have ever seen or used for that matter. Sorry but you always have to have at least 1 or 2 potty stories on your trip because people always wonder but never ask.
After we did the necessities we proceeded to have the Puja at 11 am which lasted 2 hours. The Puja is performed at every expedition site before anything can happen. It is a blessing for the people, the food we brought (even the Mt Dew) and our tools for summit day (ice axe boots harness and crampons) that we will have strength and safety for our trip. We then went to David Beshears grand opening which was nice and had some outstanding pictures.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Personal updates April 14th
Opus Martin and I got your text message Hope all is well with you
Lauren safe travels home
Leah was good to talk to you.
Jenny thanks for the conversation I love you
Lida I hope you and Wes have a great time riding your bikes
Lauren safe travels home
Leah was good to talk to you.
Jenny thanks for the conversation I love you
Lida I hope you and Wes have a great time riding your bikes
The "Smoking Walk to Base Camp"
Jim " the Dozer" was surly going to show Martin and I that though he might be Fat(according to Jenny) he certainly was capable was making Martin and I hoof and poof a bit today,
We left home expecting a 6 hour walk to base camp and Jim had us there from Loboche in 4 hrs and 15 mins.We only stop once when i was bitching that I wanted something to drink so Jim gave 3 mins. what a nice guy.
We made it here and I finally am in my new home for the next month. It is not too bad a place as i have to look at the Ice Fall whenever i open my tent. I guess someone wants me to meet my insecurities right from the start.
we saw Wally when we came into camp and had a coke with him and he gave over to visit with us later. He was great seeing old mountain friends.
We are very close to many of our friends so we should have a good time over the next 30 days.
I am looking forward to sleeping in my home tonight and as you can see i am @ 17500 ft and I am working an my Internet just like I was home in BKK.
we will have our (PUJA)with our team and all of our Sherpa's to bless us with safety on the mountain and attend an open house for a museum for David Bershears which is a famous Everest photographer.
so we will be busy tomorrow.
Tonight is cold about freezing and it will continue to drop more tonight and probably more snow.
Thanks for all the comments and following sorry I am so many personal things but I want to keep this and remember what was happening in my life when i reread this when I get old.
We left home expecting a 6 hour walk to base camp and Jim had us there from Loboche in 4 hrs and 15 mins.We only stop once when i was bitching that I wanted something to drink so Jim gave 3 mins. what a nice guy.
We made it here and I finally am in my new home for the next month. It is not too bad a place as i have to look at the Ice Fall whenever i open my tent. I guess someone wants me to meet my insecurities right from the start.
we saw Wally when we came into camp and had a coke with him and he gave over to visit with us later. He was great seeing old mountain friends.
We are very close to many of our friends so we should have a good time over the next 30 days.
I am looking forward to sleeping in my home tonight and as you can see i am @ 17500 ft and I am working an my Internet just like I was home in BKK.
we will have our (PUJA)with our team and all of our Sherpa's to bless us with safety on the mountain and attend an open house for a museum for David Bershears which is a famous Everest photographer.
so we will be busy tomorrow.
Tonight is cold about freezing and it will continue to drop more tonight and probably more snow.
Thanks for all the comments and following sorry I am so many personal things but I want to keep this and remember what was happening in my life when i reread this when I get old.
The long walk to Loboche via the KONGMALA PASS
We started out about 4700 meters top out at the pass 5530. This was another one of jIm's speciality walks Up and down all day until we reached the peak.
It was a pretty day with about 2 inches of snow on the ground which kept the dust down.
which we reached the top we sat there for almost an hour to fully get our acclimation then we had 3000 ft straight down walk to the bottom.
Then we went back to Jim's glacier climbs of up down 100 to 200 ft at a time to finally reach home at 5000 meters
It was a solid 7 hour ( 6 hour walking) and we all felt good and healthy and we was back at the Eco Lodge. What a better place than the night before. Inside toilet at night and a real toilet
I know it doesn't seem much t you guys but life's little comforts are really missed up here.
It snowed again lasts night and it was unbelievable to see the mountains this morning.
Health is still good for all of us.
It was a pretty day with about 2 inches of snow on the ground which kept the dust down.
which we reached the top we sat there for almost an hour to fully get our acclimation then we had 3000 ft straight down walk to the bottom.
Then we went back to Jim's glacier climbs of up down 100 to 200 ft at a time to finally reach home at 5000 meters
It was a solid 7 hour ( 6 hour walking) and we all felt good and healthy and we was back at the Eco Lodge. What a better place than the night before. Inside toilet at night and a real toilet
I know it doesn't seem much t you guys but life's little comforts are really missed up here.
It snowed again lasts night and it was unbelievable to see the mountains this morning.
Health is still good for all of us.
walk up to CHUKUNG
We had a great day of walking up to CHUKUNG we said to good by to Nima's family and Lama Geshe daughter and son. As we wondered up the trail we had to visit all of the relatives along the way to have some hot lemon and black tea.
The good thing about this day was it was all up hill about 900 meters or close to 3000 ft which was a lot different than what we have had over the past few days. It took us about about 5 hours with all the stops we made but it was fun.
The bad thing about CHUKUNG was the accommodations. Hole in the floor for the bathroom ( which was terrible) and the rooms smelled like "vomit" It was certainly a long night and one that I couldn't wait to come to an end.
i told Jim that it was ok if we missed this stop on the way home or the next time I come with more friends.
The "Dozer" was a little faster today.
slept well due to the Tylenol PM as the smell was too bad to take the night alone.
Physically doing well
The good thing about this day was it was all up hill about 900 meters or close to 3000 ft which was a lot different than what we have had over the past few days. It took us about about 5 hours with all the stops we made but it was fun.
The bad thing about CHUKUNG was the accommodations. Hole in the floor for the bathroom ( which was terrible) and the rooms smelled like "vomit" It was certainly a long night and one that I couldn't wait to come to an end.
i told Jim that it was ok if we missed this stop on the way home or the next time I come with more friends.
The "Dozer" was a little faster today.
slept well due to the Tylenol PM as the smell was too bad to take the night alone.
Physically doing well
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Personal
Little Leah- I thought about you so much this morning as I was litening to my 2 favorite songs "Mountain of God" and "Sing a Song" by 3rd Day. I can't help but know God knew what he was doing when he put you in my life to make me a better person and better father. I love you Leah and I hope you have great day and listen to the songs. It sure brings tears to my eyes as I think of those early days at Catherdral church
Lauren- I heard about Alex's ID issue I hope you guys were still able to have a good time I love you and I hope you enjoy you last few day in B town we talked to a few Red Sox fans yesterday
Mom and Dan travel safe home from Missippi
Lauren- I heard about Alex's ID issue I hope you guys were still able to have a good time I love you and I hope you enjoy you last few day in B town we talked to a few Red Sox fans yesterday
Mom and Dan travel safe home from Missippi
Great Day with the Lama Geshe
We had a great few hours with the Lama Geshe yesterday We all got new necklaces to cover up the mountain safely and have memories to treasure forever.( Yes Ash I have my new one) I got his card and he made me promise I would take picture with it at the top and give it to him to paste on his wall of successful summits. Jim and Nima Tashi have several pictures posted on his wall Let's hope mine will be there soon and maybe I Can present it to him in person.
Didn't sleep well because we discussed and looked at many pictures of the "Ice Fall" yesterday. this is my scariest part and just can't seem to get a handle on it. walking across alum ladders over those bottomless crevasses just scares the hell out of me.
oh well wrestled with it about 3 hours this morning and it will not get any better until i see and feel it so one we go.
Physically feel good so hike should be an easy one today
we have a 4 - 5 hour hike today as things now begin to get a little more serious. Higher altitudes and only days away for the base camp and the adventure turns to hard work and the real reason why we are here.
I am happy that Martin will be here for 5 more days and will even go out into the Ice fall with me for his support.
I appreciate all the support the list of followers are growing daily and I will need all of you to make this journey to the top
Didn't sleep well because we discussed and looked at many pictures of the "Ice Fall" yesterday. this is my scariest part and just can't seem to get a handle on it. walking across alum ladders over those bottomless crevasses just scares the hell out of me.
oh well wrestled with it about 3 hours this morning and it will not get any better until i see and feel it so one we go.
Physically feel good so hike should be an easy one today
we have a 4 - 5 hour hike today as things now begin to get a little more serious. Higher altitudes and only days away for the base camp and the adventure turns to hard work and the real reason why we are here.
I am happy that Martin will be here for 5 more days and will even go out into the Ice fall with me for his support.
I appreciate all the support the list of followers are growing daily and I will need all of you to make this journey to the top
Another Website to cover the trip
www.exploradus.com
If you want to see more pictures and read more "technical BS" you can read my guides website also. It is listed as the Everest 2010 Expendition
He is Jim " The Dozer" Williams aka " The FAT Man" by Jenny
If you want to see more pictures and read more "technical BS" you can read my guides website also. It is listed as the Everest 2010 Expendition
He is Jim " The Dozer" Williams aka " The FAT Man" by Jenny
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Personal updates
Lida Thanks as always for your and See's support I miss you girls being here. It brings back so many memories yes on the pop tarts and I have 6 more boxes waiting on me at base camp YEAH also have the goldfish
Ann I appreciate all hard work in doing the translation for Toffee I really enjoy the "words of wisdom" Your big guy( Martin) is doing well and we are having fun
Ann I appreciate all hard work in doing the translation for Toffee I really enjoy the "words of wisdom" Your big guy( Martin) is doing well and we are having fun
Sunday April 11th
We are just hanging out at Nima's house today getting the supplies together for our next big push up the mountain tomorrow.
We will go by and have a ceremony at Lama Geshe and I will get my new necklace( good luck for the summit) and my head butt. We actually saw him yesterday when we entered the city and he was rambling around town.He gave us all the Famous head butt and we said we would see him today. What a remarkable man.
I slept good last night after i took a couple of Tylenol PM's. Have a little cough today but feel fine physically
Looking forward to a hot shower( well at least have a little water run over the body) as this is not the shower that you guys are getting back home but it is better than nothing.
and trying the hit the hole in the floor in the bathroom also becomes a chore at 14000 ft. Nothing like missing the conveniences of home.
Will check in later tonight
We will go by and have a ceremony at Lama Geshe and I will get my new necklace( good luck for the summit) and my head butt. We actually saw him yesterday when we entered the city and he was rambling around town.He gave us all the Famous head butt and we said we would see him today. What a remarkable man.
I slept good last night after i took a couple of Tylenol PM's. Have a little cough today but feel fine physically
Looking forward to a hot shower( well at least have a little water run over the body) as this is not the shower that you guys are getting back home but it is better than nothing.
and trying the hit the hole in the floor in the bathroom also becomes a chore at 14000 ft. Nothing like missing the conveniences of home.
Will check in later tonight
Personal updates
Peter I looked at Ama Dablam all day and couldn't help but think of you I hope you and Sharon are doing well with the kids and dogs
Ashley I hope you guys have a great day at the wedding wish I was in Key West with you guys.
K Bee and K Nui I hope all is good in KOrea and you are finding your shopping markets
Jenny Did you like the comments by the "Fat Guy" He is loving it.He is looking forward to meeting you one day.
Leah and Caroline have a great weekend and be good.
Ashley I hope you guys have a great day at the wedding wish I was in Key West with you guys.
K Bee and K Nui I hope all is good in KOrea and you are finding your shopping markets
Jenny Did you like the comments by the "Fat Guy" He is loving it.He is looking forward to meeting you one day.
Leah and Caroline have a great weekend and be good.
Happy Birthday Lauren
I love you and you make me so proud.
Take care and enjoy your friends on me and the AMEX tonight. Smile
Dad
Take care and enjoy your friends on me and the AMEX tonight. Smile
Dad
A long walk to Pangboche
I have a little more time today so i will clean this up a bit.( I was tired and trying to eat my soup and type to save money on the Internet.
We arrived at Nima's house after 8 long hours. While the walk was not that difficult it sure played on the mental side of things. We ended up about 2000 ft of elevation,but we actually climbed it almost 3 times to get here. It was straight up in the morning from the Panaroma Hotel, where we had a great send off from Rita and her mom, for about 1300 ft then down past the Everest View Hotel, straight down to Khum Jung( about 400 ft) to deliver some presents to a very nice family, whose son runs the MO MO(dumplings with stuff inside) shop in Jackson Hole. They were so nice to us as they thought we had just brought them a lot of gifts ( but actually just some money and 3 pairs of shoes. I think they were just proud that their son had sent them and Jim brought them. We then went straight back up back to 4000 meters or (1700 ft elevation gain since we left that morning) and then right back down to the river(about 1000ish ft down) and then the long up to about 4300 meter(up about 2200 ft) and down home back to the 3900 meters.Great walk but damn frustrating for the mind. When you have a hill in your face to go up and you get there and then the next corner you go back down only to reclimb it again can drive you crazy.
i am sure it will be a short night tonight as I am tired but i still feel good physically
We arrived at Nima's house after 8 long hours. While the walk was not that difficult it sure played on the mental side of things. We ended up about 2000 ft of elevation,but we actually climbed it almost 3 times to get here. It was straight up in the morning from the Panaroma Hotel, where we had a great send off from Rita and her mom, for about 1300 ft then down past the Everest View Hotel, straight down to Khum Jung( about 400 ft) to deliver some presents to a very nice family, whose son runs the MO MO(dumplings with stuff inside) shop in Jackson Hole. They were so nice to us as they thought we had just brought them a lot of gifts ( but actually just some money and 3 pairs of shoes. I think they were just proud that their son had sent them and Jim brought them. We then went straight back up back to 4000 meters or (1700 ft elevation gain since we left that morning) and then right back down to the river(about 1000ish ft down) and then the long up to about 4300 meter(up about 2200 ft) and down home back to the 3900 meters.Great walk but damn frustrating for the mind. When you have a hill in your face to go up and you get there and then the next corner you go back down only to reclimb it again can drive you crazy.
i am sure it will be a short night tonight as I am tired but i still feel good physically
Friday, April 9, 2010
On to Nima's House today
up early 5 am just finished breakfast and getting ready for our 7 hour hike today We will climb 3000 ft and land at about 14000 feet tonight.
looking forward to the walk today after resting all day yesterday.
posts might be a little spotty over the next 2 days so hang in there with em and I will get them again soon.
take care
looking forward to the walk today after resting all day yesterday.
posts might be a little spotty over the next 2 days so hang in there with em and I will get them again soon.
take care
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Personal updates
Philippe got your message glad you were able to log on Looking forward to meeting your Sherpa friend at base camp Give my regards to Veronique thanks for your support
David heard you had a grilling party( Not planned) Hated I miss it still remember those days at Scott's pool but have done that myself when the door was left open would love to have some of it up here with me instead of the yak meet I am eating
Danny got word of your email to Jim. Martin and I wish you were here too. Wearing the orange Nike shirt in your memory
Jenny hope you have great Friday and a good weekend at the beach Hopefully the weather will cooperate.
Leah u sounded good hope you have a great weekend
Lauren I hope you are doing well and getting ready for the big day I miss being with you.
Mom and Dad glad you made it to Vicksburg ok. Tell Pinky and Lois Jane I said hello and I miss them also
Ashley and Laurie I hope you have a safe trip to Key west be careful and travel safely.
Clay I hope it doesn't get that bad. That day was surly one we will always remember.
Some of you might be wondering who is Toffee( The dog)? Toffee is Martin's dog who walks with us when i go and visit him in Brisbane. He takes on "Hell"s Hill" with a lot less effort then Martin and I but is always gracious when he makes it to the top ahead of us. Ann, Martin's lovely wife, is doing the translation for Toffee so enjoy as he is a special dog.
David heard you had a grilling party( Not planned) Hated I miss it still remember those days at Scott's pool but have done that myself when the door was left open would love to have some of it up here with me instead of the yak meet I am eating
Danny got word of your email to Jim. Martin and I wish you were here too. Wearing the orange Nike shirt in your memory
Jenny hope you have great Friday and a good weekend at the beach Hopefully the weather will cooperate.
Leah u sounded good hope you have a great weekend
Lauren I hope you are doing well and getting ready for the big day I miss being with you.
Mom and Dad glad you made it to Vicksburg ok. Tell Pinky and Lois Jane I said hello and I miss them also
Ashley and Laurie I hope you have a safe trip to Key west be careful and travel safely.
Clay I hope it doesn't get that bad. That day was surly one we will always remember.
Some of you might be wondering who is Toffee( The dog)? Toffee is Martin's dog who walks with us when i go and visit him in Brisbane. He takes on "Hell"s Hill" with a lot less effort then Martin and I but is always gracious when he makes it to the top ahead of us. Ann, Martin's lovely wife, is doing the translation for Toffee so enjoy as he is a special dog.
Leisure day at 11200 ft Namche Bazar
Slept well last night after listening to the ipod for a while but was wide awake at 5am for a long day of sitting around and trying to get the computers synced to the satellite and phone so i can have Internet and email service the entire time I will be gone.
We have had a few issues that we need to resolve but we will get this done tonight when Athens IT wakes up.
Was able to download some of my email and have responded back the best I can but they are now stuck in my outbox. The Internet is running too slowly I hope to have the UUplus set by tomorrow so i can complete the download.
We have had a few issues that we need to resolve but we will get this done tonight when Athens IT wakes up.
Was able to download some of my email and have responded back the best I can but they are now stuck in my outbox. The Internet is running too slowly I hope to have the UUplus set by tomorrow so i can complete the download.
Personal updates
Cee and Lida- Saw Narong on the trail and he said hello He still looked good but gained a little wait I miss you girls
Lauren( my oldest daughter)- I hope you have a great time in Boston. Lauren just got accepted to NYU in the fall so she is up celebrating with her BU friends. She will be 23 years old on Sat.Love you Dad
Leah I will call you tomorrow Love you dad
Ashley- Great work on the 14 1/2 miles Keep it going. Hope GE is better and did well on her test Love you Steve
To All Heil Trailer Thanks for the support. I hope you guys have a great week in Strategy next week.
K bee and K Nui I hope you guys have a great trip to Korea.
Mom and Dad take care and love u
To all the followers Thanks for the comments and the support. Life will be getting a little tougher as we continue to rise.
Lauren( my oldest daughter)- I hope you have a great time in Boston. Lauren just got accepted to NYU in the fall so she is up celebrating with her BU friends. She will be 23 years old on Sat.Love you Dad
Leah I will call you tomorrow Love you dad
Ashley- Great work on the 14 1/2 miles Keep it going. Hope GE is better and did well on her test Love you Steve
To All Heil Trailer Thanks for the support. I hope you guys have a great week in Strategy next week.
K bee and K Nui I hope you guys have a great trip to Korea.
Mom and Dad take care and love u
To all the followers Thanks for the comments and the support. Life will be getting a little tougher as we continue to rise.
Long walk into Namche
Up at 5 am and breakfast at 630 am
We began our walk about 710am and got here about 1130 am
Great walk. we stayed together because Jim wanted to slow us down and also protect me from getting all the dust in my lungs from the heavy breathing if we walked the normal Martin pace. This was not as important if we were trekking but Jim said if I got the cough now I would never get rid of it over the next 2 months.
It was nice cool walk but very tiring. We gained about 3000 of altitude as we went up and down through the hills. The mountains are just so unbelievable. We got our first view of Everest about 30 mins out of Namache and the wind must have really been blowing at the top but what great imposing view.
We are now here in Namche for a couple of days. Hot shower felt good but the room is cold so they cancel each other out.
We are waiting on our meal and then we will bed down early for a good nights sleep after the long day we had.
I am feeling well and looking forward to my tomato soup tonight
We began our walk about 710am and got here about 1130 am
Great walk. we stayed together because Jim wanted to slow us down and also protect me from getting all the dust in my lungs from the heavy breathing if we walked the normal Martin pace. This was not as important if we were trekking but Jim said if I got the cough now I would never get rid of it over the next 2 months.
It was nice cool walk but very tiring. We gained about 3000 of altitude as we went up and down through the hills. The mountains are just so unbelievable. We got our first view of Everest about 30 mins out of Namache and the wind must have really been blowing at the top but what great imposing view.
We are now here in Namche for a couple of days. Hot shower felt good but the room is cold so they cancel each other out.
We are waiting on our meal and then we will bed down early for a good nights sleep after the long day we had.
I am feeling well and looking forward to my tomato soup tonight
Walk in to Phakding
Martin and I left Luckla and had a nice stroll down the mountain to Phakding. We landed at little over 9000 feet and went down about 1000 feet. Bear in mind that this is all not down but in the end you end up down there.
We stayed at the Sunshine hotel where a group of 32 doctors were staying on their way up to base camp. They are here to get their CME credits.
Dad maybe you could get some credits for a walk into base camp. I saw and talk to people of all ages. Maybe next year we can come again.
Nice walk and had a nice bed for the night.
We stayed at the Sunshine hotel where a group of 32 doctors were staying on their way up to base camp. They are here to get their CME credits.
Dad maybe you could get some credits for a walk into base camp. I saw and talk to people of all ages. Maybe next year we can come again.
Nice walk and had a nice bed for the night.
Long day at Airport but FINALLY got out
we went to the airport again around 8 am and finally left around noon. We went out to the plane and boarded and then sat there for 45 mins waiting on the air traffic controller to clear us.
we finally left with me in the back seat of this 15 passenger twin ottor prop plane next to my guide Jim Williams and the pretty Nepalese flight attendant who had made the flight twice that morning already.
The flight over was unbelievable I have flown in a lot of planes in my day but this was by the far the worse flight I have flown.
The wind was very bad and after my stomach had dropped to my feet a couple of times I was ready to get off that plane and then all of a sudden a huge gust of wind came and just blew us sideways that is when I told Jim I was ready to get off. Thank goodness the flight attendant told me everything was ok with her sweet smile because I Had the bag ready for my sickness if we didn't land soon.Just so you know. The landing is like throwing the plane up against a mountain with under inflated tires onto a runway built at a 20 degree angle that is only 800ish feet long and you hope you stop. Amazing things that they do here. I was ready to be in Lukla and on my own 2 feet
we finally left with me in the back seat of this 15 passenger twin ottor prop plane next to my guide Jim Williams and the pretty Nepalese flight attendant who had made the flight twice that morning already.
The flight over was unbelievable I have flown in a lot of planes in my day but this was by the far the worse flight I have flown.
The wind was very bad and after my stomach had dropped to my feet a couple of times I was ready to get off that plane and then all of a sudden a huge gust of wind came and just blew us sideways that is when I told Jim I was ready to get off. Thank goodness the flight attendant told me everything was ok with her sweet smile because I Had the bag ready for my sickness if we didn't land soon.Just so you know. The landing is like throwing the plane up against a mountain with under inflated tires onto a runway built at a 20 degree angle that is only 800ish feet long and you hope you stop. Amazing things that they do here. I was ready to be in Lukla and on my own 2 feet
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
LONG day at the airport
We went to the airport @ 8 am and was back home at the Malla @ 5 PM.
We went out to the plane once around 11:30 to load but was turned around after about 5 mins due to much wind and clouds.
Jim told an interesting story about how it has been proven over and over that "clouds" and the "Himalayas" don't mix so I was glad to be turned around if they thought the weather was too bad.
What a long day to just sit around a terrible airport that just keep getting worse with the lady on the loud speaker that seemed to be getting louder as the day went on the numbers of repeating the message for sure got be be multiple.
By the time we left I had a terrible headache and just wanted something to eat.We went out an Had some great Indian food and walked about 10 mins back to the hotel
All of our gear moved up so this was a good thing and now we are waiting for the call for the time we have to be back in the morning.
didn't sleep much last night so calling it a night
hopefully tom morrow we will be off again on the trip.
We went out to the plane once around 11:30 to load but was turned around after about 5 mins due to much wind and clouds.
Jim told an interesting story about how it has been proven over and over that "clouds" and the "Himalayas" don't mix so I was glad to be turned around if they thought the weather was too bad.
What a long day to just sit around a terrible airport that just keep getting worse with the lady on the loud speaker that seemed to be getting louder as the day went on the numbers of repeating the message for sure got be be multiple.
By the time we left I had a terrible headache and just wanted something to eat.We went out an Had some great Indian food and walked about 10 mins back to the hotel
All of our gear moved up so this was a good thing and now we are waiting for the call for the time we have to be back in the morning.
didn't sleep much last night so calling it a night
hopefully tom morrow we will be off again on the trip.
Monday, April 5, 2010
Moving up to the mountain
I am up at 5 am to check the last few emails from work with several calls last night to Thailand,US, Brazil and Argentina. Lots going on there to keep up with over the next few weeks
Busy day yesterday with a visit to the pharmacy and boot shop. I had to buy a new pair of boots ( $500) for my work going up the mountain. Jim didn't want me to wear out my 8000 meter boots and i needed something a little lighter and cooler.
Hated to spend more money for this damn trip but you do what you gotta do while you are here.
Spent the day catching up with Martin. Really enjoyed that time.
Ok we are off to catch the plane today.
Let's hope it will be clear so we can go, Yesterday's 7:20 plan finally left @ 4:30 and this airport is not the one you want to spend all day in.
Sent 2 duffel's up to base camp so I have just my trekking gear. Looking forward to stretching the legs today for a few hours.
Take care
Busy day yesterday with a visit to the pharmacy and boot shop. I had to buy a new pair of boots ( $500) for my work going up the mountain. Jim didn't want me to wear out my 8000 meter boots and i needed something a little lighter and cooler.
Hated to spend more money for this damn trip but you do what you gotta do while you are here.
Spent the day catching up with Martin. Really enjoyed that time.
Ok we are off to catch the plane today.
Let's hope it will be clear so we can go, Yesterday's 7:20 plan finally left @ 4:30 and this airport is not the one you want to spend all day in.
Sent 2 duffel's up to base camp so I have just my trekking gear. Looking forward to stretching the legs today for a few hours.
Take care
Sunday, April 4, 2010
What a great 1st day in KAT
The flight was good but it was pretty empty.
I had to pay only 1630 baht for my overweight luggage. I am allowed 60 kilos and I had 65 kilos.
I met Jim at the airport and it was pretty non eventful except the long visa line.
I was so worried about the $35000 cash i was carrying but they waived me right through customs and I gave Jim the cash and that was a relief.
I went to the room to relax before dinner and had 6 2 liter bottles of Mt Dew delivered to my room what a surprise. It was from my friend Wally Berg, the guide I have been climbing with for the past 6 years. what a great gift from a special friend.
The next special thing that happened to me was I saw Martin Glynn in the lobby. The feeling of seeing him was unbelievable. He came in to support me up to base camp. As many of you remember, he was the guy from Brisbane Australia that had to bail out of the climb due to finding cancer on his foot just a few months ago. he is doing well and I am so thankful he will be with me the next 10-12 days. Ann I really appreciate you letting him come.
We had dinner at one of the Sherpa's house tonight and it was a good time in downtown KAT
I had to pay only 1630 baht for my overweight luggage. I am allowed 60 kilos and I had 65 kilos.
I met Jim at the airport and it was pretty non eventful except the long visa line.
I was so worried about the $35000 cash i was carrying but they waived me right through customs and I gave Jim the cash and that was a relief.
I went to the room to relax before dinner and had 6 2 liter bottles of Mt Dew delivered to my room what a surprise. It was from my friend Wally Berg, the guide I have been climbing with for the past 6 years. what a great gift from a special friend.
The next special thing that happened to me was I saw Martin Glynn in the lobby. The feeling of seeing him was unbelievable. He came in to support me up to base camp. As many of you remember, he was the guy from Brisbane Australia that had to bail out of the climb due to finding cancer on his foot just a few months ago. he is doing well and I am so thankful he will be with me the next 10-12 days. Ann I really appreciate you letting him come.
We had dinner at one of the Sherpa's house tonight and it was a good time in downtown KAT
Saturday, April 3, 2010
The Big Day
Today is April 4th and I am leaving. Here is a picture with all of my hair cut off and my 3 big bags with my stuff which I will be using over the next 2 months.
Slept well last night after a big workout yesterday so I am ready.
Stepped on the scales and I am weighing in at 97. 6 kilos Pretty close to where I wanted to start. I believe when i return I will be less than 90 Kilos so it will be interesting to compare when i get back home.
Take care and keep the support coming.
Slept well last night after a big workout yesterday so I am ready.
Stepped on the scales and I am weighing in at 97. 6 kilos Pretty close to where I wanted to start. I believe when i return I will be less than 90 Kilos so it will be interesting to compare when i get back home.
Take care and keep the support coming.
Friday, April 2, 2010
The RED SHIRTS are coming
sitting in the restaurant today and enjoying a little relax time before I leave and the waitress tells me that I need to pay and go home.
apparently the Red Shirts have shut the town down and everything was closing in the next 20 mins.
I made it home safely but the amount of people and the chaos was unbelievable.
One more interesting day in living in a foreign country.
I am sure it will be a long night in BKK.
apparently the Red Shirts have shut the town down and everything was closing in the next 20 mins.
I made it home safely but the amount of people and the chaos was unbelievable.
One more interesting day in living in a foreign country.
I am sure it will be a long night in BKK.
The Time has COME!!!!
Time is running out and I am ready to go. The last few weeks have been quite stressful with work,travel, saying goodbye to friends/family and the anticipation/preparation of the climb.
I got my satellite phone set up and downloaded my Internet connection this week so I should be ready to keep communication going while I am away.
Jim Williams ( my guide) emailed yesterday and told the the Heinz 57 and black pepper was heading up the mountain today. Got to have something when all the food starts tasting the same about week 3.I have a MT Dew for the summit day. I just hope I can hold off drinking it before then.
I have had quite a few restless nights over the past 2 weeks as I think about this climb that I have been anticipating for almost 3 years.
Believe me I have asked myself many times in the last couple weeks " What the Hell are you doing Steve" but I keep moving forward to this dream of mine.
I only wish that I could have some of my buddies with me that I have climbed with over the past 7 years but as I always say "It is what it is" and you have to deal with it but I will be thinking of all the times we had all over the world together.
I have had so many nice comments/emails from many of you and I hope it continues for the next few weeks to help me get to the top of this damn mountain and back home safely. Thanks for all of your support
I got my satellite phone set up and downloaded my Internet connection this week so I should be ready to keep communication going while I am away.
Jim Williams ( my guide) emailed yesterday and told the the Heinz 57 and black pepper was heading up the mountain today. Got to have something when all the food starts tasting the same about week 3.I have a MT Dew for the summit day. I just hope I can hold off drinking it before then.
I have had quite a few restless nights over the past 2 weeks as I think about this climb that I have been anticipating for almost 3 years.
Believe me I have asked myself many times in the last couple weeks " What the Hell are you doing Steve" but I keep moving forward to this dream of mine.
I only wish that I could have some of my buddies with me that I have climbed with over the past 7 years but as I always say "It is what it is" and you have to deal with it but I will be thinking of all the times we had all over the world together.
I have had so many nice comments/emails from many of you and I hope it continues for the next few weeks to help me get to the top of this damn mountain and back home safely. Thanks for all of your support
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