Tag Archive for: Island Peak

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Hello from Namche Bazaar!

Climbers, Anna and Thomas crossing the Hillary Suspension Bridge (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

The Madison Mountaineering fall, 2023 Himalayan expedition teams have reached the heart of the Khumbu Valley: Namche Bazaar! The team enjoyed excellent weather from Phakding while trekking along the Dudh Koshi River, across suspension bridges, and with a few breaks along the way before emerging into Namche, which is a major hub in the Khumbu Valley. Expedition guide, Terray Sylvester checks in with this dispatch from the Himalaya:

Hello! This is Terray calling in from Namche Bazaar (3440m/11,290ft), Nepal – it’s October 23rd. Today our teams here in Nepal hiked from Phakding (2610m/8,562ft) to Namche Bazaar. We had beautiful weather along the way and got our first view of Everest (8848m/29,032ft) and Lhotse (8516m/27,940ft) as we climbed the hill to Namche!

We had just a great time! (We) stopped in Monjo (2835m/9,301ft) and had a nice cup of tea in the sun, then we had a great lunch in Jorsalle (2740m/8989ft) and climbed up the hill to Namche across the famous Ed Hillary suspension bridge.

So, we just wrapped up dinner and we’re going to bed. Tomorrow we’re looking forward to a hike up to the Everest View Hotel where we’ll get a great view of Everest as well as Ama Dablam (6812m/22,349ft), which is the objective for some of our climbers here in Nepal.

We’ll be in touch tomorrow!

The team preparing to depart from Pahakding (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

The team preparing to depart from Phakding (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Everest Base Camp trekkers, Kirk and Nick at the entrance to Sagarmatha National Park (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Everest Base Camp trekkers, Kirk and Nick at the entrance to Sagarmatha National Park (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Madison Mountaineering expedition team members Kristen, Kim and Max approaching Namche Bazaar (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Madison Mountaineering expedition team members Kristen, Kim and Max approaching Namche Bazaar (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Enjoying lunch in Jorsalle (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Enjoying lunch in Jorsalle (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Sunny weather in the Khumbu Valley (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Sunny weather in the Khumbu Valley (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

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 our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

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Lukla to Phakding

Madison Mountaineering fall Nepal expedition members starting their trek up the Khumbu Valley (photo by Terray Sylvester)

Today was another magnificent day in Nepal with our Madison Mountaineering teams leaving the lowlands and stepping foot onto the trail! The team had perfect flying conditions with views all around of beautiful country and the high peaks of the Himalaya. With their first day of trekking under their belts, the team continues further up the valley tomorrow to Namche Bazaar. Expedition guide, Terray Sylvester checks in with this dispatch from the Khumbu:

Hello! This is Terray calling in for the Madison Mountaineering expeditions in Nepal – it’s Sunday, October 22nd. Today our teams here in Nepal flew from Ramechhap (1218m/3,999ft) to Lukla (2860m/9,383ft). We had excellent weather for our flights, not a cloud in the sky! So, we had great views of Everest (8848m/29,032ft) and Lhotse (8516m/27,940ft), and other beautiful peaks as we flew to Lukla. We touched down, had a late breakfast, and then enjoyed a leisurely walk to Phakding (2610m/8,562ft). We had just great weather, really pleasant temperatures for the entire walk down to Phakding!

So, we’re just about ready for dinner here. It’s a peaceful evening on the banks of the Dudh Koshi River. The plan tomorrow is to wake up nice and early, and then hike to Namche Bazaar (3440m/11,290ft) – the heart of the Khumbu Valley! We expect another great tomorrow, the forecast is excellent.

So the teams with us right now are our Everest Base Camp (5364m/17,598ft) trekkers, our base camp trekkers who will also climb Island Peak (6189m/20,305ft) and Lobuche East (6119m/20,075ft), and then our Ama Dablam (6812m/22,349ft) climbers as well. So, all is well here and we’ll be in touch tomorrow!

Touching down in Lukla!(Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Touching down in Lukla! (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Ama Dablam climber Anna trekking to Phakding (photo by Terray Sylvester)

Ama Dablam climber, Anna trekking to Phakding (photo by Terray Sylvester)

Trekking from Lukla to Phakding on a peaceful evening in the Khumbu Valley (photo by Terray Sylvester)

Trekking from Lukla to Phakding on a peaceful evening in the Khumbu Valley (photo by Terray Sylvester)

Everest Base Camp trekker, Kirk spinning prayer wheels en route to Phakding (photo by Terray Sylvester)

Everest Base Camp trekker, Kirk spinning prayer wheels en route to Phakding (photo by Terray Sylvester)

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 our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

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Kathmandu city tour!

The team touring Pashupatinath Temple in Kathmandu (photo: Terray Sylvester)

The Madison Mountaineering expedition teams started today with a city tour of Kathmandu, visiting some of the cities most important and sacred sites – a nice way to stretch the legs after all of the travel the last few days. Some of the best parts of a Himalayan expedition are these cultural experiences along the way! Following their city tour, vans were loaded with duffel bags of gear and the team hit the road en route to Ramechhap airport where they will go wheels up and fly to Lukla where the trek up the Khumbu Valley begins. Guide, Terray Sylvester checks in with this dispatch from Nepal:

Hello! This is Terray calling in from Nepal, it is Saturday, October 21st. Today our Ama Dablam (6812m/22,349ft) climbers and our Everest Base Camp (5364m/17,598ft) trekkers did their city tour around Kathmandu (1400m/4,600ft). We visited Pashupatinath, the most important Hindu temple in Kathmandu and also Boudhanath Stupa, the most important Buddhist site in the city. Both of those are UNESCO World Heritage sites.

After lunch, we drove out of the Kathmandu Valley and along the banks of the Sunkoshi River to the little village of Mulkot (493m/1,617ft). Tomorrow morning we’ll wake up early and we’ll drive over to Ramechhap (1218m/3,999ft) airport, and then fly up to Lukla (2860m/9,383ft) to begin our trek in the Khumbu Valley!

So, all is well here in Nepal and we’ll be in touch tomorrow.

A colorful statue of the Hindu god, Ganesh (photo: Terray Sylvester)

A colorful statue of the Hindu god, Ganesh (photo: Terray Sylvester)

Monkeys in Kathmandu (photo: Terray Sylvester)

Monkeys in Kathmandu (photo: Terray Sylvester)

Touring one of Kathmandu’s numerous UNESCO World Heritage sites (photo: Terray Sylvester)

Touring one of Kathmandu’s numerous UNESCO World Heritage sites (photo: Terray Sylvester)

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 our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

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Three expeditions underway in Nepal!

Welcome dinner in Kathmandu to kickoff the expedition!

The fall, 2023 Madison Mountaineering Himalayan expeditions are underway in Kathmandu! We are filled with gratitude to be back in Nepal with new and old friends, and great adventures ahead. This season we look forward to treks to Everest Base Camp, and climbs of Ama Dablam, Lobuche East and Island Peak! With gear checks, orientation and a welcome dinner complete, city tours and an exciting flight to Lukla are all that separate the team and the start of the trek up the beautiful Khumbu Valley! Expedition guide, Terray Sylvester checks in with this dispatch from Kathmandu:

Hello! This is Terray calling in from Kathmandu (1400m/4,600ft) – it’s Friday, October 20th.

Today we kicked off three of our itineraries here in Nepal! We launched our Everest Base Camp (5364m/17,598ft) trek for the year – we have two teams of trekkers heading up to base camp at the foot of the highest peak on the planet. One of those teams will also climb Island Peak (6189m/20,350ft) and Lobuche East (6119m/20,075ft) before returning to Kathmandu. We also launched our fall Ama Dablam (6812m/22,349ft) climb.

It was a beautiful day here in Kathmandu, really nice weather! We met for orientations and gear checks here at the Yak and Yeti hotel, and then we went out for a big team dinner out at Mezze near the former royal palace. Now we’re just getting ready to go to bed. Tomorrow we’re looking forward to our city tour here in Kathmandu, and then we will start the journey up to the Khumbu Valley!

So, all is well and we’ll be in touch tomorrow.

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 our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

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Nup la Khang advanced base camp

The village of Gokyo, next to the lake, with the Nazumba glacier, Mount Everest and Lhotse behind on left side.

Expedition leader, Garrett Madison, checked in via satellite phone to provide this Nup la Khang (aka Unclimbed Peak) update:

Today the team flew by helicopter from base camp (4965 m) across the Ngozumpa glacier and by last year’s First Ascent peak, Tharke Khang to our advanced base camp.  Advanced base camp is located just near the Nepal / China border at approximately 6170 m (just over 20,000 ft).  After scouting out the area and base of the route, they spend some time acclimatizing to the new elevation.

The plan will be to launch a summit bid within the next few days.  The weather is favorable, and the team is strong, in high spirits and ready to do this!  Network communications are currently limited, so no new pictures yet.

We are looking forward to a recorded audio dispatch in the next day or so with a detailed update direct from the team.

Meanwhile, our Island Peak team has trekked from Gokyo over the Cho La pass (5420 m / 17,782 ft) into the Khumbu valley and down to Dingboche.  Yesterday, they continued to Chukhung.  Today they will finish the trek to the Island Peak base camp and conduct some additional training.  They should be going for the summit on November 2nd in Nepal.

We are pretty excited to have our two teams going for Himalayan summit possibly the same day!  Join us in wishing them both great climbing success, and we will have another update for you tomorrow.

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Gokyo

Trekking above Gokyo

We’ve made it to Gokyo (4750 m/15,580 ft), the last village before before base camp.  After leaving Khumjung, we trekked up the Gokyo Valley.  This area, including the village of Machermo, is remarkably beautiful with stunning views.

Today our team went on an acclimatization hike up nearby Gokyo Ri, at 5357 m (17,575 ft). We had amazing views all around of Mount Everest, Mount Lhotse, Makalu, and could see our objective the unclimbed Nup la Khang! This afternoon we will head to base camp.  There we will spend a few days acclimatizing and training to prepare for our attempt of Nup la Khang.

Our Island peak team will head off today from Gokyo towards Dzongla and will spend several days making their way to Island Peak (Imja Tse). So we are saying our goodbyes to our fellow trekkers/climbers.  We look forward to reuniting with them after the climbing period.

The weather has been stellar the past week for us as we’ve trekked up from Lukla towards these high Himalayan peaks.  We hope it will continue.  But there looks to be some high wind in the forecast. Fingers crossed for calm winds and clear skies!

The team at the top of Gokyo Ri (17,800 ft) today, beautiful views all around! Everest is behind top left.

The team at the top of Gokyo Ri (17,575 ft) today, beautiful views all around! Everest is behind top left.

The village of Gokyo, next to the lake, with the Nazumba glacier, Mount Everest and Lhotse behind on left side.

The village of Gokyo, next to the lake, with the Nazumba glacier, Mount Everest and Lhotse behind on left side.

Close up of Everest and Lhotse from Gokyo Ri

Close up of Everest and Lhotse from Gokyo Ri

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First group returns to base camp after successful first rotation

Today guides Brent and Geoff returned to base camp with John and Anders after a successful first rotation. The weather at base camp has been cold with steady snowfall over the past two days. Our climbers up on the mountain are doing well and tucked in at Camp 1 and 2 on Mount Everest. They will follow the same schedule with two nights at Camp 1 and two nights at Camp 2 before returning back down to base camp.

Our Sherpa team reports that the route fixing team has moved up to Camp 4. We predict that the first Sherpa summits will be in the next one to two weeks. Beautiful photos below taken by our first rotation team!

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successful first rotation

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Changing Everest weather as teams move up

Today at base camp we woke up to sunshine and by early afternoon we had steady snowfall accumulating, Everest weather changes quickly! Our second wave of climbers pushed through the Khumbu icefall and made it to Camp 1 early this morning. We now have climbers acclimatizing at Camp 1 and Camp 2 on Mount Everest. Our third and final group will depart for Camp 1 early this morning. Everyone is doing well and in good spirits.

For daily photo updates follow us on Instagram @MadisonMtng.

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Everest weather

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Everest weather

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Everest weather

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Everest weather

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Everest weather

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Climbers moving up on first Everest rotation

Our first Everest rotation is in mid-swing with our second wave of climbers moving up in a few hours. Beautiful day at base camp today with ample time to enjoy the sunshine. Our climbers at base camp continued icefall training with difficult courses set up by our guide staff. Up at Camp 1 our team is doing well with heavy clouds reported throughout the afternoon. Tomorrow our Camp 1 team will move up to Camp 2 where they will spend two days acclimatizing.

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first Everest rotation

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first Everest rotation

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first Everest rotation

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Sid Pattison reports a successful ascent of Island Peak (pictures below):

Bookended by a forecast of wind and snow our team squeaked in a summit of Island Peak at 6:15am on the 17th. Our climb began at 12:15am and after climbing steadily up tallus fields and ridges we made it to Crampon Point as the sun rose. We put on crampons and roped up to cross the very broken and bridged glacier, after an hour we made it to the base of the final 750ft headwall. The steep climbing was strenuous but we moved steadily up to the summit ridge. From the summit the beautiful Himalayan mountain range was on display, Lhotse, Taboche, Cholatse and Ama Dablam fueling dreams of future climbs. The descent went smoothly, we packed up basecamp and made the final trek back to Chhukung and slept soundly. Today we made the long trek to Namche and Lukla tomorrow.

“We couldn’t have asked for better conditions, this summit is the culmination of weeks of hard work” Jared Moravec reflected on the climb.

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Island Peak Expedition 2017 

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