Khumbu Icefall Archives

Everest 2017

Everest 2017 climbing team preparing for their first rotation

Today our Mount Everest 2017 climbing team had an amazing day training in the Khumbu icefall. The winds have been fierce the past few days, gusting to 50mph at times. While we have been training between the ice towers we are protected for the most part. The sun was out all day today and the recent snowfall is slowly melting.

After a few rounds on the training circuit with fixed lines and ladders, we enjoyed a few laps of epic ice climbing on a sweet Serac. We practiced with ice climbing tools and then a select few climbers were able to scale the ice with just crampons. From the top of the ice we had great views of Everest base camp and the surrounding glaciers.

Tomorrow we will have our Puja ceremony here at base camp. Our weather forecasts are predicting decreased winds and sun, we hope this is accurate! Soon after our Puja ceremony we will begin preparations for our first rotation up to Camp 1. Enjoy the photos from today!

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Everest 2017 climbing

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Everest 2017 climbing

April 16, 2017/0 Comments/by Andrew

Everest 2017

Wild thunder and lightning storm last night

After a wild thunder and lightning storm last night, we awoke to about 8 inches of fresh snow here at Mount Everest base camp! Our team of climbers set off for their first day of technical training in the Khumbu Icefall. Our guides reviewed the basics to refresh our team and covered best practices for a safe climb on Mount Everest. Our amazing base camp chef, Antony Dubber, continues to impress our taste buds with amazing meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner. We had a special guest join us for lunch today. Ueli Steck, from Switzerland known as the ‘Swiss Machine’ shared a meal with our team and we chatted about our past and upcoming ascents.

Tomorrow we will continue our icefall training and build a more difficult course for our climbers to navigate. On the 17^th we will have our Puja ceremony here at base camp where we will all be blessed for a safe season on Everest. Enjoy the pictures below!

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lightning storm

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April 15, 2017/0 Comments/by Andrew

Everest 2017

Team arrives to Mount Everest 2017 base camp!

After an amazing trek through the Khumbu Valley, our team of climbers and trekkers have arrived safely to Mount Everest 2017 base camp. As we arrived to camp we caught two time Grammy Award nominee Paul Oakenfold playing a set at Everest base camp. Our Sherpa team danced along with fans from around the world as we laughed and enjoyed the beautiful setting.

With a warm welcome from our chef (Antony Dubber), we all enjoyed fresh Norwegian salmon and a tasty variety of side dishes. I think we will be eating well on this expedition! The weather here at Mount Everest base camp has been warm and sunny the past few days, allowing for ample reading outside with magnificent 360 degree views of some of the tallest mountains in the world. Today we are having a personal day where we are able to do laundry and set up personal tents. Over the next few days we will start training in the Khumbu icefall in preparation for our first rotation to Camp 1 on Mount Everest. We are excited to be here and look forward to making our ascent. Onward!

Follow us on social media @MadisonMtng on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. Thank you Mountain Hardwear, MusclePharm, Thuraya, Wicis and Modern Oats for your support on this expedition!!

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Kala Patthar, meaning ‘black rock’ in Nepali and Hindi, is a notable landmark located on the south ridge of Pumori in the Nepalese Himalayas. Thank you to our expedition friend Rob Mens for sharing these.

Mount Everest 2017 Kala Patthar

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Kala Patthar view at sunset

Mount Everest 2017 Kala Patthar

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Kala Patthar view at sunset

Mount Everest 2017 Kala Patthar

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Kala Patthar view at sunset

Mount Everest 2017 Kala Patthar

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Yak train looking over Mount Everest base camp and the Khumbu Icefall

Mount Everest 2017 base camp

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So happy to have the world traveling chef Antony Dubber here with us this season!! 🙂

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Norwegian salmon as our team arrives at base camp. So tasty!!

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Mount Everest 2017 base camp

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Madison Mountaineering’s Sherpa team enjoying an awesome gig by Paul Oakenfold!

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Paul Oakenfold rocking the stage on Mount Everest!

Mount Everest 2017 base camp

April 13, 2017/0 Comments/by Andrew

Everest 2016

Team makes safe descent through the Khumbu Icefall

Today our team packed up from Camp 2 and made a safe descent through the Khumbu Icefall. Arriving into Base Camp a little before lunch time. Up on the mountain the winds were strong and our team spent a lot of time in our field tested Mountain Hardwear Trango 3 tents. Spending five days up on Everest our climbers were able to acclimate and get ready for the next rotation. Tomorrow will be dedicated to rest and recovery with no planned activities in the day. Tonight we had a feast of a meal and I’m sure that will continue in the days to come. Weather the past few days has been blue skies with no clouds, which means it is very cold once the sun goes down. We are all in good health and look forward to the adventures ahead of us.

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April 25, 2016/0 Comments/by Andrew

Everest 2016

Climbers acclimatize at 6,400m (21,000ft)

Spending a second night at Camp 2, our climbers acclimatize and continue to move higher up the mountain. Over the past two days our team has enjoyed the comfort of our advanced base camp with hot meals and beautiful views. From base camp we watched many helicopters make rounds to Camp 1 yesterday, carrying loads dangling beneath filled with fixed ropes for higher on Everest. In years past Sherpa had carried the fixed ropes through the Khumbu Icefall. Tomorrow if the weather allows our team will descend the mountain and arrive back at Base Camp. Strong winds have been ripping across base camp at night which makes for a exciting night in the tent.

Once back at base camp our team will rest for 4-5 days before making their second rotation toward Camp 3 at 7,200, (23,635ft).

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April 23, 2016/1 Comment/by Andrew

Everest 2016

Climbers go on beautiful day hike and rest at Camp One

After successfully making it through the Khumbu Icefall yesterday our team has enjoyed a rest at Camp One. Today our lead guides, (Garrett, Conan, and Billy) made a nice breakfast for the team before taking off on a day hike to continue to acclimatize. Everyone is in good health and ready to continue the journey up Mt. Everest tomorrow. With weather conditions stable our team will climb 3-5 hours to reach Camp Two at 6,400m (21,000ft) tomorrow. Spending a couple nights at Camp Two our team will complete their first acclimatization rotation and return to base camp to rest. The views are spectacular and we will have photos up of Camp Two tomorrow!

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Madison Mountaineering Camp One

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April 21, 2016/0 Comments/by Andrew

Everest 2016

Climbers successfully reach Everest Camp One

Early this morning our climbers departed from base camp and successfully navigated through the Khumbu Icefall to reach Everest Camp One. Crossing the many crevasse’s with ladders fixed together and steep fixed lines our climbers worked as a team to overcome the obstacles and reach the safety of our tents above the icefall. Our weather reports in the weeks to come will be from our good friend Micheal Fagin with Everest Weather. Michael will be providing tailored weather analytics that provide the most up to date and accurate assessments, allowing our team to make data driven decisions closer to summit day. Right now we are not seeing any storms that may move out of the Bay of Bengal with light precipitation on Mount Everest over the next few days.

Tomorrow our team will go on a 2-3 hour day hike and return to Camp One in the evening. All members are doing well and I’m sure will have a good night sleep after their ascent through the Khumbu Icefall. Below is a shot of Madison Mountaineering Camp One!

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April 20, 2016/2 Comments/by Andrew

Everest 2016

Alpine Start Toward Everest Camp 1

It’s an early morning as our team gears up for an alpine start toward Everest Camp 1. It is now 2 am and the team is having a light breakfast and grabbing lunch snack packs before taking off into the Khumbu Icefall toward Camp 1. Backpacks and gear were packed before dinner and the stars and moon are out in full. The weather looks great for the ascent and everyone is excited to begin this next stage of their journey.

Yesterday we went up into the Khumbu Icefall for a 3 hour trip up toward the ladders for continued ice practice. All members of the team did very well and moved up and down the fixed ropes with ease. Garrett will be able to send brief messages and pictures via satellite connection and I will upload from base camp. To the top!

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April 19, 2016/0 Comments/by Andrew

Everest 2016

Exploring Everest Base Camp

Today we enjoyed a beautiful sunrise and a few of us wondered around exploring Everest Base Camp throughout the afternoon. Surprisingly it takes about an hour to get from one side of the camp to the other! There are three helicopter landing zones that we found and dozens of camps with climbers gearing up for their first rotations. We met many interesting characters along the way including a man that is here for 6 weeks collecting personal postcards to put into a traveling art gallery. I will try and get pictures and details as his collection grows!

Our team is healthy and ready to make their first rotation up through the Khumbu Icefall tomorrow night. The plan is to trek into the icefall in the morning then relax and double check our gear before taking off at 1am the following night. Our team will spend two nights at Camp 1 and then move up to Camp 2 for an additional two nights. Camp 2 for us is a bigger establishment with a dining tent similar to base camp. Today we met all of the climbing Sherpa that will be with us as we journey to the top.

Photos from our trek around base camp! Enjoy 🙂

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April 18, 2016/0 Comments/by Andrew

Everest 2016

Climbing team gearing up for Camp 1

Today was our third day training on the edge of the Khumbu Icefall, with our climbing team gearing up for their first rotation to Camp 1 early this coming week. On the course today we had multiple ladder crossings and fixed rope circuits that continued to challenge the team and allowed each climber to grow stronger. Tomorrow we will rest up and go for a short hike around base camp. All of the climbing team’s in base camp are taking the day off from climbing in the icefall tomorrow in remembrance of the 2014 icefall avalanche.

The weather has been beautiful in the mornings with snow clouds rolling in early afternoon and throughout the evening. All members of the team are in good health and are excited to begin the next stage of their journey. Our meals are plentiful and delicious, we are all convinced that we will be gaining weight on this expedition.

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