Tag Archive for: acclimatization

First Rotation – Camp 1

Climbing to Camp 1 on First Rotation

Early this morning our Everest team began their first acclimatization rotation up the mountain by leaving out of base camp about 2:00 AM.  Climbing by headlight through the Khumbu Icefall they reached the mid-point (5727m) around 6:10 AM and pulled into a well-prepared Camp 1 (6059m/19,879ft) after climbing for 8-1/2 hours at 10:30 AM.

Unfortunately, the satellite modem was being a bit finicky so we have just the one photo (by Terray Sylvester) so far, but they will be spending two nights there at Camp 1, so expect to see and hear more before they move further up the Western Cwm to Camp 2 in the coming days.

If climbing Mount Everest is in your future, please contact our office, we would love to have you climb with us!

In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

– Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

  • Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear Garrett Madison’s daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my Madison Mountaineering flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

– our Garmin inReach Mini powered real-time tracking map:

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Rest Day at EBC

Evening View of a snowy Everest base camp

The Everest team took a rest day at base camp today while they waited for the snowstorm to move out.  Expedition leader, Garrett Madison provides the day’s summary:

Hello, this is Garrett calling in for the Everest expedition team.  We’re in Mount Everest base camp and we had a great day here just resting up.  The snow storm finally abated today about 4 or 5 pm, just before dinner time.  It lasted since yesterday midday and we had about a foot of fresh snow accumulate here in base camp, larger in some spots with the spindrift.  It was nice to have the sky clear up finially and get some good views.

We are looking forward to a good day tomorrow.  We’re going to get prepared tomorrow for our move up to Camp I and II.

Everyone’s doing well in base camp.  We are just happy to be here, having a great time – another great day, good meals, and a good movie.  Everyone’s doing well and we’ll check in soon.

Evening View of a snowy Everest base camp

Evening view of a snow-covered Everest base camp

If climbing Mount Everest is in your future, please contact our office, we would love to have you climb with us!

In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

– Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

  • Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear Garrett Madison’s daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my Madison Mountaineering flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

– our Garmin inReach Mini powered real-time tracking map:

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A Winter Wonderland in EBC

Guides Kumar and Ming Dorchi on the summit of Island Peak

The featured photo (above) is guides Kumar and Ming Dorchi on the summit of Island Peak with climber Rich D. earlier in the week.  Congrats Rich!!  For the recap of the snowy day at EBC, here’s Everest guide Terray Sylvester:

Hello, this Terray calling in again for the 2021 Madison Mountaineering Mount Everest expedition.  It’s Wednesday, April 21st.

Today the forecast dictated that we spend a rest day in camp and defer, for at least one day, our ascent to Camp I.  So we spent the morning going over some descending techniques down in the ice pyramids just below base camp.  We practiced arm-wrap descending and repelling with a belay device, just to make sure that everyone’s efficient with those techniques when it comes time to actually descend the Lhotse face or descent through the Khumbu Icefall.

Just as we were arriving back at camp it started to snow.  It’s about 7:30 now and it’s not actively snowing, but we got anywhere from four to six inches on the ground.  And certainly more where it’s drifted up against the tents.  Base camp has transformed from the rocky glacial landscape that it has been to a sort of snowly winter wonderland — it’s actually beautiful.

We just wrapped up dinner.  Tonight it was pasta, green beans, and filet mignon.  Then a desert of canned peaches.  Now we’ll settle in with a movie.

Before dinner we also did a weather forecast presentation.  We recieve detailed daily forecasts, so we put those up on the projector and work through that in detail.  Just so everyone knows what’s in store for the next few days.

Right now it looks like we’ll probably see more snow coming in on the 22nd, which means that may yet again delay our ascent to Camp I.  But after that, it looks like we’ll have some high pressure and clear skys and hopefully great conditions for climbing.

Okay, we’ll be in touch!

If climbing Mount Everest is in your future, please contact our office, we would love to have you climb with us!

In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

– Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

  • Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear Garrett Madison’s daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my Madison Mountaineering flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

– our Garmin inReach Mini powered real-time tracking map:

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First foray into the Khumbu Icefall

Climbing into the lower part of the Khumbu Icefall

The Everest team took their first foray into the Khumbu Icefall today and Everest/Lhotse guide, Terray Sylvester, has all the details:

Hello!  This is Terray calling in for the 2021 Madison Mountaineering Mount Everest expedition.  It’s Tuesday, April 20th.

Today we took our first foray up into the Khumbu Icefall.  We left after breakfast and accended to about 18,500 ft.  We had beatiful weather and great conditions in the Icefall.  It was a great chance for our climbers to practise the ascending and repelling skills that they’ll need when we actually do head all the way up through the Icefall to Camp I.

Today we went approximately a third, or maybe a quarter, of the way to Camp I.  And yeah, the weather was beautiful today, but it looks like we have some snow coming in tomorrow so we’ve delayed our actual accent to Camp I until, most likely, the day after tomorrow.

But, all is well here in base camp and we will be in touch!

Climbing into the lower part of the Khumbu Icefall

Climbing into the lower part of the Khumbu Icefall

Climbing into the lower part of the Khumbu Icefall

Climbing into the lower part of the Khumbu Icefall

Climbing into the lower part of the Khumbu Icefall

Climbing into the lower part of the Khumbu Icefall

Climbing into the lower part of the Khumbu Icefall

Climbing into the lower part of the Khumbu Icefall

If climbing Mount Everest is in your future, please contact our office, we would love to have you climb with us!

In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

– Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

  • Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear Garrett Madison’s daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my Madison Mountaineering flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

– our Garmin inReach Mini powered real-time tracking map:

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Acclimatization before First Rotation Continues

Climbing team at Prayer Flag Point above EBC

Expedition leader, Garrett Madison, reports on the day’s activities for the team at Everest base camp which included an acclimatization hike up to Prayer Flag Point:

Hello, this is Garrett calling in for the Mount Everest and Lhotse expedition team.  We are in Everest base camp.  He had a good day today.  We changed our plans slightly because there was some activity in the Icefall.  We were going to go for a walk in the Icefall today, but instead, we went on another acclimatization hike – just outside of base camp to Prayer Flag Point.  We had some great views, good exercise, came back for lunch, had a restful afternoon, and had dinner.  We just finished watching Top Gun tonight – a great Amercian film.

Our Sherpa team is doing well.  They had a big day today on the mountain and we’re going to take an easy day tomorrow.  We are going to go for a little walk in the Icefall but not too far, just explore the bottom part for two hours and then back to base camp.

All’s well here with our team in base camp and we’re looking forward to another nice day here on Mount Everest.

Team acclimatization hike above EBC

Team acclimatization hike above EBC

If climbing Mount Everest is in your future, please contact our office, we would love to have you climb with us!

In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

– Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

  • Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear Garrett Madison’s daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my Madison Mountaineering flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

– our Garmin inReach Mini powered real-time tracking map:

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Acclimatization Rotation Complete

Ama Dablan

Conan Bliss, expedition leader, checked-in today with an update on the Ama Dablam expedition:

The Ama Dablam team arrived back at BC after a successful acclimatization rotation. We stayed 2 nights at C1 and made a climb up to C2, ascending the famous Yellow Tower yesterday. Tomorrow we’ll have a rest day then plan our summit push on the 2nd, weather permitting.

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Day 25 & 26 : Rest days in Everest Base Camp!

Resting At Basecamp !

All of our climbers are down in Mount Everest base camp at the moment, resting up and preparing for our next rotation up the mountain to acclimatize. We have been taking hot showers, doing laundry, and enjoying many fine meals here in our base camp. Our bodies are responding from the time we recently spent up at the higher camps by building more red blood cells. So that we will be better acclimated the next time we venture up Everest.

The weather has been good, only a little wind on the upper mountain and some daily snow fall in the afternoon, but we dont need to worry. This is the typical weather pattern for Mount Everest during this time of the year. Our Sherpa team is carrying loads up to Camp 2 and will make a carry while also completing the fixing of the ropes to the South Col high camp (Camp 4) in the coming days. Everyone is doing well and enjoying the magnificent views here in Everest base camp. We are hoping for good weather for next steps!

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Day 23 & 24 : First Rotation complete, Rope Fixing Update!


Today all of our climbers and guides in our main team descended from Camp 2 down to Everest base camp after a great first rotation! We ended up staying an extra night at Camp 2 for acclimatization because everything was going so well for us up at our “Advanced Base Camp”. This will assist us in our acclimatization process as we prepare for our ‘summit rotation’. We spent two nights at Camp 1 and three nights at Camp 2 while we were up on our ‘first rotation.

Today, while we were preparing to descend to base camp at 6 AM from Camp 2, we received information that the icefall route had changed . Our team at basecamp were saying that it was in the process of being repaired. So, we delayed our descent to around 10 AM when we had confirmation that the new variation in the Khumbu Icefall route was complete, arriving base camp this afternoon. Our team is excited to be back in Everest base camp where the air is thick, the food amazing, and the accommodations seeming very plush after nearly a week up high on the mountain.

 

Rope Fixing Update:

Over the last few days our expert team of Nepal Climbing Sherpas were able to fix ropes to the Geneva Spur, just short of the South Col (Camp 4) high camp on Mount Everest, despite the windy conditions and the icier than normal slope on the Lhotse Face. Now, with an up line and a down line in place from the base of the Lhotse Face to Camp 3, and then a single line going above that to the Geneva Spur, teams will be able to acclimatize and position loads up higher on the mountain.

Our rope fixing team is preparing to head back up and fix ropes all the way to the South Col in the coming days and then position oxygen and equipment for the ‘summit fixing’ project at the South Col so that when the weather conditions permit they can begin fixing ropes from the South Col up towards the Balcony, the South Summit, and onward to the summit of Mount Everest. They will also install a second ‘down line’ in places to ease congestion on the route such as on the Yellow Band, the Geneva Spur, and at other bottlenecks along the route. All is well here on Mount Everest and we hope for good weather and route conditions to continue!

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Day 22 : Resting in Camp 2!

Resting in Camp 2

Resting in Camp 2!

Today we are resting in Camp 2 and just got back from an acclimatization hike up the west shoulder of Mount Everest. We had stunning views of the Lhotse Face, Nuptse, and the Western CWM. This is our second night in Camp 2. Tomorrow we plan to descend to base camp for a rest.

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Day 19 : First Rotation !

Puja During Morning For First Rotation

We have begun our First Rotation! Today our climbers and guides departed Everest base camp at 3 AM . They will climbed up through the Khumbu Icefall to Camp 1, arriving in the morning. Our plan is to rest for the remainder of the day at Camp 1 and then spend the night here. Our plan for tomorrow is to go for an acclimatization hike up the Western CWM (valley) tomorrow and then spend another night in Camp 1. All is well here on Camp1.

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