September 4, 2010
Mike Hamill reports by sat phone that the team all made it up to ABC in good shape and that everyone is doing well. The IMG Sherpas did a great job getting the camp set up and all the yaks up there with the gear, so everything was looking good for the arrival of the climbers. Cho Oyu ABC is quite high, at nearly 18,500 feet, so one thousand feet higher than Everest Base Camp. That is why it was super important for them to move up there slowly, with lots of acclimatization hiking along the way.
The team will now do their puja at ABC,  the sherpa blessing ceremony that which marks the traditional beginning of the climbing. Then, over the next few days, the Sherpas will start working on putting in Camp 1 and the climbers will continue their acclimatization with several day trips up toward Camp 1, before they move up there for overnight.
So far so good!!
Eric Simonson