The Final Chapter

At last the final chapter (over the next few days)...and some answers

Friday 27th May. The team (Tom, Ian, Mick, Matt, Dan, Tim and myself along with Pasang, Phenden, Jangbu and Karma Sherpas) climbed once again up to Camp 1 on the North Col. Lenticular clouds, like flying saucers, over the highest peaks suggested strong winds at altitude.


Shooting the breeze on the North Col

On our part of the mountain however it turned into a very pleasant jaunt and quite sociable too, we would stop for regular breaks and shoot the breeze with the Sherpas and people from other teams. Once in camp, we brewed up and had some re-hydrated cardboard for dinner, I think my variety was imaginatively called Lamb Fettuccini! The night turned out to be quite dramatic as thunder and lightning crashed and flashed around us.


Phenden Sherpa enjoying a brew

Saturday 28th May. The plod up the snow slope to Camp 2 (7650m) seemed interminable. A snowboarder slid past down the hard packed snow as I was about half way up. Far from ideal boarding conditions, the consequences of a fall don¹t bear thinking about. Near the top of the snow I started getting serious gastric rumblings. I managed to catch up with Tom at around 7500m then got left behind again as my stomach condition required urgent action of the unzipping of flaps kind! In far from ideal conditions I managed to pay a visit 4 times in the space of an hour between altitudes 7550m and 7650m
(maybe it¹s some kind of Everest record???!!!).


Matt leaving Camp 2

The final vertical 100m to Camp 2 is up a rocky ridge requiring a bit of easy scrambling. Fortunately the tents on this exposed ridge had been well lashed down as the wind had picked up dramatically. I crawled into a tent with Tom and struggled to get comfortable. Ian and Tim were in the tent below and Matt and Dan followed shortly after to occupy the third tent on the ridge. The Sherpas were all huddled in the highest of our Camp 2 tents.


Ian and Tim at Camp 2

We brewed up inside the tent, the noise of the tent fabric flapping in the wind making conversation difficult. We couldn¹t face food and retreated into our sleeping bags early. Tom and I both decided to sleep with our oxygen masks on and a low flow of 1 litre per minute. This, alongside a couple of immodiums, meant I got a reasonable night¹s sleep. Ian and Tim decided that
if they slept without oxygen, they would really feel the benefits the next day when they put their masks on and consequently had a rough night with little sleep.


From Camp 2, strong winds creating amazing cloud formations

What happened next? Find out tomorrow in the next exciting instalment of the Karrimor Diaries.