It looks like the Everest season has finally ended with a big cold slap in the face to many teams on both sides. The weather deteriorated for the few teams making a push this week so much so, some classified it as the worse ever. Another death was reported earlier this week of a Japanese climber on the north, still no details. But another death was also mentioned and again now. Details are vague at best. Duncan Chessell told the Australian news: “They were the worst conditions I have ever encountered by a factor of at least 10 on the [continue reading]
North
May 182010
Excitement is building once again for more summits as team after team left Base Camp for camp 2 on the south and ABC on the north. Their enthusiasm, however, was tempered by talk of monsoons in India; more on that in a moment. There were talks of additional summits for Tuesday, May 18th, but nothing has been reported. As the weekend summiters return to base camp on the south, more details are coming in of summits. First up is on the north, Julio Bird’s wife Maribel sent me this email: I just talked to Julio. He reached the top on [continue reading]
update #4: Multiple teams are reporting summits this morning in Nepal. I estimate well over 30 summits from the south, probably much more. Weather was holding as of early morning. Congratulations and well done to all. The tracking chart is updated based on available information but so please check their sites for details on their sites and a summary later here. update #3: teams at South Summit. Note: Please remember that my Everest coverage is to raise money for Alzheimer’s research. Please read my story. Please make a donation that goes 100% to research, nothing to me. Thank you. update [continue reading]
UPDATE: In a statement by climber David Klein on expeditions.hu, he and his partner Laszlo Várkonyi were involved in the avalanche and Laszlo is still missing. Original story: I received an email overnight from Duncan Chessell of Chessell Adventures. He is leading an expedition along with Adventure Dynamics on the north. Jamie McGuinness of Project Himalaya, passed through Duncan a first hand account of yesterday’s accident on the North Col. Over on the south, the Icefall continues to be tricky with a small incident that did not hurt any climbers but created a period of anxiety.
There was a large avalanche near the North Col on Monday, Tibet time. Before going further, remember that breaking news of accidents from Everest, especially from the north side, in almost every case is inaccurate. The early reports from multiple teams are contradictory. Some say it was a rock fall but most eyewitness are saying it was a large serac or cornice that collapsed near the fixed ropes.
Apr 122010
Update: Jordan does have a permit to climb on the north. The article below was from a Nepal official where the minimum age is 16. 13 year-old Jordan Romero had captured the world media with his bid to summit the highest mountain on each of the earth’s continents, the 7 Summits. He had already summited 6 (actually 7 including Kosciuszko in Australia) and is currently on his way to Apparently, there is a snag.
Apr 112010
Everest south receives a lot of attention due to the sheer number of climbers but let’s not forget the north side. Adventure Peaks’ large team of 21 climbers have arrived and now will spend the next 5 days adjusting to the altitude before trekking to ABC via the Interim Camp.
Mar 092010
After deciding to climb Everest, climbers must choose their route. There are over 18 named routes on Everest and a couple that are still unclimbed. The vast majority of climbers use two routes: South Col or the Northeast Ridge Standard aka North Col route. Let’s look at both route in detail.
It is about a month before teams from all around the world pack their duffel bags for the flights to Kathmandu. Thus far the south looks like business as usual with about 16 teams already announced. To put this in perspective, in 2007, when we saw a record number of Everest summits, there were about 17 teams on each side. One question for 2010 is how the north will shape up. It has been a few years since climbing was open from the north. The Chinese closed Everest with their desire to celebrate the 2008 Olympics in Beijing by taking [continue reading]
Feb 032010
Once again, an Everest expedition is trying to solve the who done it mystery of Everest: did George Mallory and Sandy Irvine summit Mt. Everest in 1924? You see Sandy Irvine, who went missing on Everest’s North side in 1924, had a camera. A plan is emerging for a new search for the missing camera that could solve the mystery once and for all. We have seen this headline but this time is very different – there is a clue and a map! Before we take a look at this effort, a tiny bit of background of the north. The [continue reading]
From Sea to Mountain Top
Climber, Everest 2010, North
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Jan 212010
This is a unique approach! A Dutch team has officially started their 2010 Everest climb with a dive to 152 meters (500 feet) under water off the coast of Egypt on December 16, 2009. The principle climber is Jantoon Reigersman and he will be climbing Everest’s north side as a member of the UK’s Adventure Peaks team lead by Dave Pritt. Next up for Reigersman is training in the Alps, then Aconcagua. Not content with just diving and climbing, he will cycle from sea level to 1300m (4265 ft) in the Pyrenees; then from Kathmandu to the Tibetean basecamp at [continue reading]
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