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Daughter of Everest not in the mood this year
Nov 10, 2004 09: 31 EST
With all the summit success reports from the mountains lately it's easy to be lured to believe that climbing in Himalaya is easy. It's not. Peak Freak expeditions summited Ama Dablam but had to turn back on Pumori. The bitter-sweet daughter of Everest was not in the mood this year:
Winter in the Himalayas has come early this year
"The Peak Freak Expedition team reached 6300 meters on Pumori, a Himalayan peak of just over 7000 meters in stature. Winter in the Himalayas has come early this year, causing unusual cold and high winds.
Staying longer would have meant risking frostbite; the wind was incredibly draining on the body, making the difficult task of hauling loads and fixing rope even more challenging than usual," the expedition writes in an update today.
Life goes on, as it should
Well, the guys survived the avalanche prone mountain and had a solitary, spectacular climb by the deserted South side of Everest; "While some of our team suffered from the altitude, all seemed to find the trip personally rewarding," ends the report.
The Pumori 8 member team ranged in ages 25-54, most from Canada and US, coming from all walks of life: There was a dentist, a forest fire fighter, a safety consultant and a Physics Lecturer.
Canadian Peak Freak Expeditions is a small outfit involved with the local people and organizing climbs in the area, run by husband and wife team Tim and Becky Rippel.
Tim has been successfully operating mountaineering and trekking expeditions in the Himalayas for the past 13 years. During the winter months Tim stays in tune with the mountains working as Heli-Ski Guide and is certified by the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides.
His extreme skiing has taken him to Mt. Robson (highest mountain in the B.C. Rockies) for an icy North Face winter ski attempt and the first ski ascent on Mt. Everest North side in 1991 from the top of the North Col. Tim was given the name "Peak Freak" and later adopted the name as his company.
Tim's has worked with climbers like Allison Hargreaves, Eric Jones, Greg Child and American one leg amputee Tom Whitaker, and has been featured on the Discovery Channel "Climb for Hope" in 1991, and Discovery Channel " Storm Warning" which is currently airing.
The team: Eric Woodward, 31, Student, Vancouver, B.C Canada. Paul Garvin, 33, Tenis Club Director, Illinois, USA. Laurie Wood, 46, Manager, Collingwood, Australia.
Pete Raymond, 41, Dentist, Auckland, New Zealand. John Pratt, 54, Physics Lecturer, Victoria, B.C. Canada. Clayton Sheen, 25, Forest Fire Fighter, Chetwyn, B.C. Canada. Jack Lamberson, 56, Safety Consultant, Indiana USA. Dan Rollert, 24, Forester, Burns Lake, B.C. Canada.
Staff: Ang Nima Sherpa, Sardar. Dandi Sherpa, Climbing Sherpa. Ang Karsung Sherpa, BC Cook. Lhakpa Gelgan Sherpa, Assitant Cook. Sonam Sherpa, Yak herder. Sumji Sherpa, Yak herder.
Image of Pumori and Tim Rippel, compiled by ExplorersWeb, courtesy Peak Freak Expeditions and ExWeb files.
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