Back at Base Camp - Bad Weather, Bad Luck

Day 47/May 7, 2009 (Thursday)
Joy and Pain

It’s hard to describe the excitement that wells within as you prepare for a summit bid on the highest mountain in the world. Years of dreaming, reading and training have led up to this moment in life, with a chance to overcome the lost summit of last year. I was up at precisely 01:51 --- not 01:50 or 01:52 --- and I tossed and turned thereafter. Clothing and gear on by 03:50, breakfast at 04:00, and on the trail to Crampon Point at 04:32.

Danuru and I began in earnest at 04:50, setting a brisk but comfortable pace, eventually linking up with Karel and Karma Rita. Three hours total time to Camp I --- by far my best time up --- even though I was holding back energy in reserves for the summit days ahead!

After a brief rest stop at Camp I, we had nothing but Camp II on our minds. The sun had just hit the Western Cwm, but light gusty winds made the going bearable. About 15 minutes above Camp I, I received a call that my friend and climbing partner Rejean and his Sherpa Dawa, would need to descend to EBC. In the process of their descent, they would experience the worst avalanche of the season, narrowly escaping mortal injury by hiding behind an ice block, and aid in the rescue of two climbers who had been swept into a crevasse. A Sherpa traveling with the pair remains missing. I mourn the loss of this fellow mountain man, although I never really knew him --- I had probably said “Namaste” to him earlier in the mourning, as is my custom [slowing to give a greeting is always warmly received by the Sherpas, and it allows me a chance to slightly recover my breath].

I had been in great spirits up through the Icefall, simply pleased with my time and conditioning --- but by the time I got up to Camp II, my climbing partner had had to abort his summit bid, and a fatal avalanche had let loose from the West Shoulder of Everest. Chilling. I want nothing more than to top out on Everest in the next few days, and never pass through the Icefall again…

Day 48/May 8, 2009 (Friday)
Rest Day at Camp II, Weather Rolls In…

Clear skies greeted us in the morning, warmth hitting our tents around 08:30. Lots of Sherpa tea and time to pack for the summit: my oxygen mask, goggles and summit mittens would be carried for me to Camp III, while a small bag of food would head to Camp IV the following day. As the exhaustion from the day before began to wash away, my strength and focus for the upcoming 3 days to the summit solidified.

And then it started… snow, and wind. Lots of it. Moist air had not been forecast, but it was here without a doubt. Our summit bid was in jeopardy, as pulling up fixed lines and kicking in new steps on a summit day could be beyond exhausting. A call down to IMG Base and an updated forecast from Seattle suggested that our summit “window” was much narrower than previously hoped. Eric suggested we all descend in the next day or two, as heavy snows and winds in the coming days would prevent a safe ascent at this time. Long range forecasts now suggest sometime after May 18th would be the time to try again.

Not all is lost: this third time up the Khumbu Icefall was a useful acclimatization rotation. To say that I’m disappointed would be a vast understatement, though!

Day 49/May 9, 2009 (Saturday)
Down and Out

05:30 weather call to IMG base; no change in the forecast, so Danuru and I were out of Dodge by 06:30 at a sprinter’s pace. Danuru manned my Sony HD video camera, while I had the digital still camera strung around my neck. In case it wasn’t obvious, it is much easier coming downhill than slogging your way up. For a moderate stretch, Danuru and I actually jogged down the Western Cwm, our boots crunching the crisp morning snow and bounding over small crevasses.
After passing Camp I, more serious terrain follows…

You pass an avalanche field from the West Shoulder, and then the big seracs overhang the route. I noticed Danuru had donned his climbing helmet --- on early forays through the Icefall he left the helmet lashed to his backpack. He noticeably picked up his pace on the fixed lines, which became a real struggle lower down in the lower “Popcorn” section, the area where the avalanche’s fatal fury had been felt. The route itself was nearly unrecognizable, so much snow and ice had been deposited here. And then I saw the missing Sherpa’s backpack, and a search party from his team nearby, looking for their comrade.

Now safely back at EBC, myself, Keith and several of my climbing teammates plan to head down to Pheriche for a couple of days. Rest, thick air, and time to mentally prepare for another summit bid…

Scott