17 April: Budget Trips vs. Experienced Trekkers

Tendi and Lama Jambu did a load to Camp I today. It took them about two hours to make it to their destination. Two hours. It took us two hours to barely make the Soccer Field the other day and these guys were at Camp I. Every time I see these Sherpas flying up and down the trail I'm constantly amazed at their physical abilities. And the most impressive thing? They are so down to earth about it- doing all this with a smile and incredible humility at what they can do. Here we are, wheezing, dying, gasping, snotting and doing everything in our power to keep from passing out when saying "hello" to someone on the trail. And whizzing past us at what seems like the speed of light with packs easily five times heavier come a train of Sherpas- not out of breath, dancing along the lines, and sure-footed as they come.

While these superhumans were trucking up to Camp I, the rest of us woke to another interesting morning of a humongo avalanche calving off Pumori.

As I watched this, I looked down and noticed that the Khumbu Icefall Lake District had extended all the way out to open up a new subdivision right by my tent. As Joe and I talked about this, we wondered aloud what the Icefall- especially the part where we park ourselves- would look like in four weeks time. While in Gorak Shep the other day, we noticed that a frozen lake we trekked right over was now essentially a puddle. Would the rest of the glacier follow suit? I'm a bit concerned that there might be one day that I return- tired, hungry, and wiped out. And then look around and wonder... hey, where'd my tent go? There is a smallish cavern right adjacent to my tent- I think it's just a linear crack, but when this morning I tried to dump rock after rock into the hole, it didn't seem to do much at all- even after 15 minutes of dumping. Given that most glacial movement seems to be happening in the evening hours, how bad would it be if one of those groans and creaks I hear each night ended up with me taking a quick drop into a frozen water bath? Yowzah.

Still, the nights these days are eerie. Silent at times with no wind. Mountains stand like giant ghosts in moonlight. Then in the distance you can hear the hurricane force winds whipping off peaks like faint jet engines, occasionally dropping down & rattling the tents where you can hear gusts coming like a freight train from a long way off. We learned that winds along the mountain tops are to be between 80 & 100 mph. Last night we had a spring storm, lashing tents with vigor & accumulating snow. But most of us were too exhausted to notice much and the snow melted off by ten. As the moon approaches full, its intensity is magnified by the snow, creating a truly beautiful sight and you don’t even need your headlamp. But crystal clear night = quite cold as well... and we are. Yee cats is it cold. But so incredibly beautiful.

Tomorrow we plan to ascend to Camp I and possibly Camp 2. Acclimatization is such an interesting phenomenon. Other teams are going at different rates and different plans- not all logical. It is here that you truly see what can get an unprepared climber into trouble, and where experience pays off. At the top of one ice shelf yesterday, Willie is chatting with two climbers on a budget trip. Their Sherpa ratio is 7:1 and they largely set their own schedule, which has them in the Icefall ascending much later than Willie or our Sherpa team are comfortable with. The look on their faces when they realize in conversation that they are several liters short of O2 for summit day... meanwhile, another climber at the point of exhaustion, completely decked out in down & expedition weight mittens/ overboots takes a full ten minutes on one ladder. He looks to be overheating in the noon sun, but struggles- finally- to the top of the ladder, immediately taking a knee. His three country flags flutter proudly from his gear, but perhaps like their owner, too proudly. He ignores our questions as to if he is ok, and even Lhakpa's checking on him. These people have no safety net if things go wrong. It's at times like these that you don't skimp and essentially get what you pay for.

In 2002, I had Lasik on my eyes. There are plenty of places around advertising $500, or something akin to basic budget Lasik. I went with a guy in DC that cost over $3000, but is the doctor that performs eye surgery on FBI sharpshooters. To me, there wasn't even a discussion about the value. There are some things you don't put a price tag on. To me, finding yourself halfway up Everest with no safety net in the event the shit hits the fan is exactly one of those things.