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Everest - Readying plans for summit
09:45 a.m. EDT Oct 13, 2003
Wally Berg and the climbing team are down in Pangboche and Namche for a few days, soaking in the oxygen rich air in preparation for their summit bid on Everest. Wally predicts the team could be on the summit by October 20th or 21st, weather permitting. He reports, “We have really classic, favorable autumn weather at this period right now. There’s variable winds and sometimes significant winds at Camp 2 and above. We have clear skies and no precipitation.”
However, current forecasts show hurricane force winds predicted on the summit by this weekend. Though the monsoon has left the Everest area, and a weakening southwesterly jet shows 12m/s summit winds through the next couple of days, a new jet forming later in the week is predicted to affect Mount Everest to the weekend. The jet looks like it will bring much higher winds which may diminish only slightly by the 20th, however it’s too soon to tell if the forecast will hold.
Wally is prepared to wait things out until the end of October at least, if necessary. In the meantime, the expedition’s Sherpa team is up in Camp 2, waiting for things to settle on the Lhotse Face before proceeding higher. With the number of recent deadly avalanches in the Himalayas, the team is exercising caution and safety. Sherpa Nima Tashi narrowly escaped injury the week before last when he was caught in an avalanche that sent him tumbling down the mountain in a 300m slide. Last week, two climbers from South Korea were lost in an avalanche as they attempted to climb Lhotse Shar.
Meanwhile, Wally called in from the Highland Sherpa Resort, Ang Temba’s house. He noted that the biggest change since they were last in the valley a month ago is the influx of trekkers. “The fall tourist season has arrived. And we walk through, past groups of trekkers, yaks supporting trekking groups, constantly as we come down the trail. I’m very pleased to see this – it’s good business for the Sherpas in this valley. This is a hard life here. Tourism adds greatly to it, but it would never diminish the hard work for a decent existence the people in this valley have to go through all the time.”
Berg Adventures has the only South Side expedition this fall. They have a real challenge ahead of them these upcoming weeks having to fix and prepare Everest entirely by themselves. One of the expedition members, Maegan Carney plans to ski down from the summit.
Image of Ang Temba and his family in their home courtesy of Bergadventures.com.
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