Everest 2019: Weekend Update May 12
Update: Sherpas at South Col. Will fix to Balcony tomorrow and summit on Tuesday. Let’s be clear. Climbing Everest is complicated. The press likes to characterize it as an easy “walk-up” or “short-roped to the summit” after paying $65,000, As I have said for years, this is lazy cut and paste journalism that disrespects the […]
Everest 2019: Anticipation
Sherpas are currently ferrying gear to the North and South Col preparing for summit pushes. All eyes are on the weather forecast to see if the call of a Sunday calm is correct. On the Tibet side, the Chinese rope fixing team have returned to ABC. Headlines Most of the teams are still in base […]
Everest 2019: Here We Go!!!
As we enter the weekend, the winds are predicted to calm and with many eager to summit, I anticipate a lot of activity. The jet looks to move off the summit and stay away for a week! The Summit window is here!! Headlines Over the past two weeks, it has been tough on the Everest […]
Everest 2019: Weekend Summits?
The winds are still stopping the rope fixing progress but not the acclimatization process on either side. This weekend there could be a break. Headlines On both sides, the winds are calm at 7,000-meters, i.e. both Advanced Base Camps, but is still roaring on the summit. I can tell you it’s the strangest experience to […]
Everest 2019: Another Himalayan Death
The winds picked back up on Tuesday making the acclimatization climbs a bit of a challenge. Meanwhile a climber death on Makalu. Headlines Peruvian mountaineer, Richard Hidalgo, was found dead at Camp 2 on Mt. Makalu. Sherpas from Seven Summits Treks passing by his camp at 6500-meters and found him dead in his tent. He […]
Everest 2019: Loads to South Col
Its really kind of quiet right now, especially on the Tibet side of Everest. Teams are wrapping up their acclimatization rotations and Sherpas are busy dodging wind and rock to stock the high camps. Headlines Lots of talk about when people will summit Everest. There may be a small train following the rope fixers on […]
Everest 2019: The Jet Takes Over
Its almost business as usual on Everest with climbers doing acclimatization rotations, some have finished and are bored at base camp and then there are the chosen few that flew back to Kathmandu for a little relax time! The high winds and snow from the outer bands of Cyclone Fani are long gone and sunny skies […]
Everest 2019: Weekend Update May 5
If you look at Everest over the past decade or so, there is a slight trend with the weather. April is generally nice, May starts off horribly, then a ‘miracle’ happens and the winds and snow take a holiday off the summit opening the floodgates to everyone on both sides. Well, 2019 is on track! […]
Everest 2019: Big Snow, Now Calm
Well, there was a question if big snow would follow the big winds, and the answer is a big yes! I’ve spoken to people on both sides on Saturday May 4th, and it’s coming down hard, perhaps over 2-feet/60cm at the 7,000-meter/23,000-foot altitude! However as night fell on Everest, the skies cleared so the worse […]
Everest 2019: Big Winds!!!
In this case the forecast was spot on for huge winds from Cyclone Fani. Lots of damage reported. Expect a very quiet weekend as heavy snow could be next. I assume there will be limited movement between camps on either side. While we watch climbers on Everest, India and Bangladesh are being pummeled. Winds near […]