Feeling Stronger

Sorry for the delay in getting this post out but all is well here at K2 Base Camp.

The weather has been amazing with incredible views of K2 above us each day – sunny and little wind.  It has been weirdly good weather – perfect weather for a summit attempt but of course no one is either acclimatised or anywhere near the mountain.

Alix thought that the last post was a bit of a downer, but to be honest I wanted to convey what a nightmare it had been, although possibly it might have been too much as it left some people concerned, I’ve never had an illness anything like that in the mountains and it knocked me for six. But day by day I’ve been getting stronger and feeling more like myself, and have been continuing the acclimatisation process here at Base Camp.

As on Everest, I have brought a lot of my own (Italian!) food here as I struggle to eat at altitude. But I’m happy to share… A few nights ago I cooked penne Caccio e Pepe for the team members and the following night the same thing for the cooks in the cook tent.  There is nothing more valuable up here than a large chunk of Parmiggiano Reggiano...

On the 2nd we practiced ice climbing and fixed rope work in the small icefall nearby and the same again this morning, honing the skills which will need to be automatic when we are exhausted and descending – you can’t clip into the wrong rope or the wrong anchor and as we descend in particular our full body weight will be on the ropes at all times.  K2 is too steep to walk down and we’ll be rappelling/abseiling the way down.  The ropes need to hold us and we need to clip in correctly every time, even when shattered.

On the 3rd we had the traditional Puja ceremony, which is a Buddhist ceremony presided over by a lama and until it is done the Nepalese Sherpa will not set foot on the mountain.  Offerings to the gods included whisky, sprite and chocolate bars and our climbing equipment was blessed.  After the ceremony and a lot of dancing the Sherpa climbers went up onto the slopes of K2 for the first time.

Yesterday the rest of the team walked up to ABC (Advanced Base Camp) under the Abruzzi Ridge and once back in camp we settled into what turned into a 10 hour 4th July all afternoon whisky session, with visitors coming over from other teams to join us.  Base Camp is quite social and we all woke a little hungover this morning.

We are currently discussing team tactics for the next few days as we plan our acclimitisation climbing schedule, and will be heading up onto K2 proper in the next couple of days. We are potentially changing our ascent route from the normal route (the Abruzzi ridge) to an alternative.  More on this and what it means tomorrow when its been decided, but the expedition is really getting started now.

The period of exceptional (and very unusual) weather is set to continue until the 12th, perhaps even 14th.  Let’s just hope that this isn’t this season’s ‘summit window’ and that K2 doesn’t shut its doors when we’re ready to go for the summit in a couple of weeks.

More tomorrow...