Camp 1 Archives

Ama Dablam 2021

Team Back in Base Camp After 1st Rotation

Ama Dablam team at the puja ceremony today

Our Ama Dablam team is back in base camp after completing their 1st acclimatization rotation. Garrett Madison, expedition leader, calls in today’s update:

Hello! This is Garrett calling in for the Madison Mountaineering Ama Dablam expedition team. Today’s October 31st, Halloween and we are back in base camp!

We had a couple of good nights, up on mountain in Camp 1 and we climbed up to Camp 2 yesterday – touched Camp 2. We had some great views up there, fun technical climbing, and good acclimatization – sleeping up at 19,000 ft. at Camp 1.

Today we camp back down to base camp, had a nice lunch, and then did our Puja ceremony with a Buddist Lama monk from Pangboche.

Everyone’s doing well here. We’re just resting and recovering from our time high up on the mountain and looking forward to a few rest days here in base camp.

So, all’s well here at Ama Dablam base camp. We’ll check in soon.

Camp 1 and Ama Dablam

Climbing the Yellow Tower on Ama Dablam below Camp 2

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 daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions

– Instagram:

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

https://madisonmountaineering.com/maps/ama-dablam-2021/

October 31, 2021/0 Comments/by Garrett

Ama Dablam 2021

1st Acclimatization Rotation Continues

Garrett Madison climbing around Ama Dablam Camp 1 and Camp 2

The 1st acclimatization rotation on Ama Dablam continues with the team touching Camp 2 (5980m/19,619ft) and returning to Camp 1 (5791m/19,000ft) for the night. Team member J.B. Waterman provides today’s expedition dispatch:

This is J.B. Waterman on Madison Mountaineering’s Ama Dablam team.

Today was an epic training day – from Camp 1 at 19,000ft to Camp 2 at 20,000ft, across a serrated knife edge ridge, going up vertical walls of granite, to make it to Camp 2, and then turn around and go back.

We’re sleeping at Camp 1 tonight and then we’re gonna head back to base camp for a few days of rest and relaxation and recuperatation, so that we can go to the summit!

It was a great day. Now it’s time to recuperate!

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 daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions

– Instagram:

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

https://madisonmountaineering.com/maps/ama-dablam-2021/

October 30, 2021/0 Comments/by Garrett

Ama Dablam 2021

Ama Dablam Camp 1 on 1st Rotation

Today our Ama Dablam kicked off their 1st acclimatization rotation by hiking and climbing up from base camp to Camp 1. Team member J.B. Waterman provides today’s expedition dispatch:

Hello, this is Madison Mountaineering Ama Dablam 2021 team member J.B. Waterman. It’s Friday, October 29th and me and the rest of the team are ensconced in Camp 1 (5791m/19,000ft) on Ama Dablam.

We hiked 4,000 vertical feet today with our packs and our gear hiking with jumaring up the rope to get to this spectacular place on the ridge. We watched the sunset and are settling in. We’re up at 19,000ft, getting ready to eat some dinner, and then grab some sleep.

Tomorrow we’ll head up to Camp 2, touch it, and come back to acclimatize. It’s been pretty spectacular!

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 daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions

– Instagram:

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

https://madisonmountaineering.com/maps/ama-dablam-2021/

October 29, 2021/0 Comments/by Garrett

K2 2021

K2 Camp 2 on Summit Push

Chase staying cool at K2 Camp 2 earlier today

On their summit push, our K2 team climbed up from Camp 1 to Camp 2 (6700m/21,980ft.) today under beautiful weather and route conditions. Expedition leader, Garrett Madison, provides today’s expedition dispatch from 6,700 meters:

Hello, this is Garrett calling in for the Madison Mountaineering K2 and Broad Peak expedition team. Today is July 25th and we are up at Camp 2.

Our whole team’s up here: all nine climbers and most of our sherpa team, except for five of our Nepal sherpas who are up at Camp 4 (7681m/25,200ft.) tonight. They climbed up from Camp 2 to Camp 4 today and tomorrow and the next day they are going to work on fixing lines above Camp 4 in anticipation of our arrival.

So, we had a beautiful day today, sunny skies, warm temps, almost too warm for us. But we got into Camp 2 around noon and have just been relaxing, enjoying the amazing views up here, and getting ready for some dinner and a good night’s rest. And then tomorrow, we’ll be off early on our way up to Camp 3 (7250m/23,800ft.).

All’s well here, the team’s doing excellent, and we’re excited that more good weather is on the way and we’re headed up the route! We’ll check-in soon, thanks!

If climbing K2 or Broad Peak 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:

https://madisonmountaineering.com/maps/k2-2021

July 25, 2021/0 Comments/by Garrett

K2 2021

(Almost) Live from the Karakorum!

Garrett video interview by Alan Arnette from Broad Peak base camp

Great video interview of Garrett Madison by the nexus of all high-altitude climbing news, Alan Arnette.

Garrett Madison, founder of Madison Mountaineering is one of the few people on the planet to have summited K2 twice. He’s hoping to get his third this 2021 summer. This is his sixth expedition to K2 making him the most experienced western operator to run regular trips to the Northern Terrorities of Pakistan.

With the new 4G Cell tower in Concordia, Garret took the hour walk from K2 Base Camp to Broad Peak Base Camp to talk with me over Zoom about his expedition. We discussed their rotations to Camp 1 and 2, the snow conditions on the mountain, what happens when he finds bodies on the mountain, and more. I think you’ll enjoy getting this first-hand information directly from Northern Pakistan.

Watch the video interview here: https://www.alanarnette.com/blog/2021/07/14/k2-2021-summer-coverage-video-interview-with-garrett-madison-from-the-karakorum/

July 15, 2021/0 Comments/by Garrett

K2 2021

1st Rotation Complete!

The K2 team has completed the first acclimatization rotation up the mountain to Camp 2 and Garrett Madison, expedition leader, provides all the details in today’s expedition dispatch from K2 base camp:

Hello, this is Garrett calling in for the Madison Mountaineering K2 and Broad Peak expedition. Today is July 13 and yesterday we got down from our first rotation on the Abruzzi Ridge of K2. We spent five nights in total above base camp: one night in Advanced Base Camp (ABC), two nights in Camp 1, and two nights in Camp 2 at about 22,200 ft.

We’re back in base camp and it’s stormin’! It’s snowing, windy, and we’re hunkering down to stay warm. Hopefully good weather’s on the way; we could use some sun and some warmth. But everyone’s doing well here, we’re staying entertained with books, movies, board games, and just resting up and enjoying some GREAT food. So, we’re very comfortable here and looking forward to some good weather in the days ahead.

We’ll check in soon, thanks!

Garrett Madison says “hello” from the Abruzzi Ridge on K2

The view from K2’s Abruzzi Ridge

If climbing K2 or Broad Peak 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:

https://madisonmountaineering.com/maps/k2-2021

July 13, 2021/0 Comments/by Garrett

K2 2021

K2 Camp 2 on 1st Rotation

Satellite comms are up again and Garrett and team check-in for K2’s Camp 2 on the Abruzzi Ridge with today’s dispatch:

Hello! This is Garrett calling in for the Madison Mountaineering K2 and Broad Peak expedition team. Today is July 10^th, and today we climbed from Camp 1 up to Camp 2 on the Abruzzi Ridge – about 22,000 ft. or almost 6700m.

We had great weather – beautiful sunny day today, awesome views all around. The team is doing great, and we’re really enjoying this first rotation to acclimatize, getting familiar with the climbing route, and spend a couple of nights up here at Camp 2, and then we’ll be heading down to rest in base camp.

The sherpa team is doing great – they pushed up to Camp 3 and above yesterday. So they’ve made great progress on the route, and they’re gonna head down tomorrow and take a little rest. Looks like we’re going to take some high winds coming in a few day’s time, so it will be good to go down to base camp and rest for a bit and then revisit the upper mountain.

So all’s well here on K2, we’re enjoying ourselves, and having a great time here in Pakistan.

Climbing up K2 Abruzzi with the Black Pyramid above

If climbing K2 or Broad Peak 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:

https://madisonmountaineering.com/maps/k2-2021

July 10, 2021/0 Comments/by Garrett

Everest 2021

Team back at EBC

The first acclimatization rotation up the mountain is complete and the Everest team is now safely back in base camp. Here’s expedition leader, Garrett Madison, with the details:

Hello, this is Garrett calling in for the Madison Mountaineering Everest and Lhotse team. Today, April 28th, we came down from Camp II. We did our first rotation; we had two nights at Camp I, two nights at Camp II. We had a great time up there – good weather and got some great views.

Today we came down from Camp II through the Khumbu Icefall to base camp. It was a beautiful day – we got into base camp, had a nice lunch, some showers, naps, and we just finished up our dinner and now we are having a movie.

Everyone’s doing well here. We’ve been enjoying the time on the mountain. We’re all healthy, enjoying the climb, and looking forward to a few days of rest here in base camp. And then heading back up on our next rotation here in a few days and hopefully touching Camp III.

All’s well here in Everest Base Camp!

Climbers in the Western Cwm with the Lhotse Face in the background

The Western Cwm

Everest Camp 2

Climbers descending through the Khumbu Icefall

Art M. loves acclimatizing!

Heading down through the Khumbu Icefall with base camp below

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:

https://madisonmountaineering.com/maps/everest-2021

April 28, 2021/0 Comments/by Garrett

Everest 2021

First Rotation – Camp 2

On their first acclimatization rotation, our Everest team moved up to Camp 2 in the Western Cwm today marking a personal high-point for some of the climbers at nearly 21,300 ft (6490m). Expedition leader, Garrett Madison, phones in the details via satellite phone:

Hello, this is Garrett calling in for the Madison Mountaineering Mount Everest and Lhotse expedition. We are up at Camp 2! It is April 26th and we had a great day climbing from Camp 1 to Camp 2 today – beautiful weather, no wind, no clouds – just a perfect day up here in the mountains. We got into Camp 2 in the afternoon. Our Sherpa team did a great job in setting up Camp 2 for us. We’ve got a nice dining tent with a heater, all of our personal tents are up, and great views all the way around. It’s really great to be up here.

We spent two nights at Camp 1; restful but a little windy at times, but it was good to acclimatize at Camp 1. We plan to spend two nights up here before heading back down to base camp before the big snow starts.

All’s well up here and we’ll check in soon.

(photo: Everest South Col route Camp 2 from the Madison Mountaineering archives)

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:

https://madisonmountaineering.com/maps/everest-2021

April 26, 2021/0 Comments/by Garrett

Ama Dablam 2020

Summit Push – Camp 2

Jenn D and Garrett touching Ama Dablam Camp 2

The Ama Dablam team have once again completed the crux of the route, The Yellow Tower, while making the move to Camp 2 (6000m) on their summit push. Tonight is the night! Within the next few hours, they will start the climb to the summit. Godspeed team! Here’s today’s audio dispatch courtesy of team member, Moe Al Thani from his Instagram feed @moealthani:

This is Moe Al Thani calling you from Camp 2, Ama Dablam. I can see the summit, it’s so close I can touch it. We arrived here like within three hours since we left Camp 1 after the tough hike up to Camp 2. We are feeling really good!

The sherpa team just fixed the fixed lines all the way up to the summit. So now we have the go-ahead to go this evening for our summit push. We will leave around 1 AM for an 8-9 hour summit push to the summit. [Arabic] Keep us in your prayers and will talk to you soon.