Cho Oyu Team Hits The Road

August 29, 2014

IMG Cho Oyu climbers and Tibet Trekkers (Mike Hamill)

Good news from Nepal on several fronts. In Kathmandu, the Cho Oyu climbers and Tibet trekkers and all their luggage have arrived safely, so that is a great way to start the trip. After completing gear checks, the team received their visas at the Chinese Embassy today. This evening they had a team meeting and dinner, and are all set to depart at 4am tomorrow. Expedition leader Mike Hamill reports that he visited and had a nice chat today with Elizabeth Hawley, the famous Himalayan historian.

Closer to the Tibet border, Ang Jangbu reports that the IMG Sherpas reported that they safely reached Kodari with all the luggage from both trucks. Sounds like it was a bit of a muddy epic, but with the help of porters they were able to get past the big landslide area.

Hopefully the team will reach Zhangmu tomorrow, or if they are delayed, then the next day. We are now in touch with our Chinese Liaison Officer who is in Zhangmu waiting for them to arrive. Once they get there and pass Chinese immigration and customs, they will move all the gear from the Nepal trucks to Chinese trucks, and then head to the local noodle restaurant for some good home cooking. So far so good!

Eric Simonson

That’s A Wrap From Bolivia

August 28, 2014

: Illimani Summit. (Luke Reilly)

: The team at the Illimani trailhead. (Doug Pitman)

Luke called in from La Paz. They are taking showers and having a well-deserved drink before dinner. Luke and Doug passed on a couple photos of the success Bolivia Expedition.

It is a great feeling to complete a trip! We will be looking forward to hearing all of the stories and seeing more photos.

Congratulations on a successful Bolivia trip everyone. Now, get back to sea level!

Greg Vernovage

IMG’s 25th Cho Oyu Expedition Is Ready To Begin

August 27, 2014

Cho Oyu Sherpas load the truck in Kathmandu for another adventure to Tibet (Ang Jangbu Sherpa)

We have been doing Cho Oyu (8,201m) since 1995, and since then have done 24 trips (22 of them successful) to the worldâ€™s 6th highest peak.Â This year marks our 25th expedition, and we are looking forward to getting started.Â IMG guides Mike Hamill and Josh McDowell are now in Kathmandu to receive the team and do gear checks.Â Every year the trip is a bit different, and for 2014 traveling to Base Camp in Tibet is complicated by a massive landslide that wiped out some of the road (and killed over 150 people) near the Nepal town of Barisbise on the way to Kodari (the Nepal town on the Tibet border).Â The road is not yet rebuilt, so the IMG team and all their gear will need to travel on foot through this area.

Ang Jangbu reports that the plan is to get all the gear to Kodari ahead of members.Â The sherpa team loaded the truck this afternoon for an early morning departure to Lamosangu with Nima Karma, Ang Karma and Fura Gyalzen. They are being met by Raju from Kodari with porters and they will start portering to Barabise and on to Kodari on different trucks from Barabise. Â Â The first truck will then return to Kathmandu tomorrow afternoon and we will load the remaining loads on the truck including member base camp duffels tomorrow evening and depart early next morning with 2 other sherpas, Mingma Chhiring and Mingma Tenzing.

The team will do their group dinner at Hotel Tibet night of the 29th, and then will then depart 4AM Saturday morning for Lamosangu with Mingma Dorge, Kaji, and sirdar Phunuru.Â It will take them 3-4 hours to walk past the landslide area to Barabise, and then get on another bus to Kodari. Hopefully they will reach the border by 2:30PM before Chinese immigration close down. Â If they are delayed and donâ€™t get to border before Chinese immigration/customs shuts down then they might end up spending the night at Kodari.

Eric Simonson

Illimani Summit

August 27, 2014

Summit of Illimani. (Luke Reilly)

Luke just called in with great news;Â the clouds dissipated overnight and the team stood on top of Illimani (21,200ft.) early this morning.A few puffy clouds lingered but the route was in excellent condition and the team had a great day of climbing.

The team is tired and catching their breath with some soup at High Camp. They will be packed up and heading down to the thicker air shortly. The guide team equally as happy, this is not an easy climb and the route can be very challenging.

Down to Base Camp for some fresh fruit and popcorn. I bet some of them will soak their feet in the cool glacial stream that runs next to camp.

A great job by everyone!

Congratulations!

Greg Vernovage

A Great Day For A Flight Around Mt. Rainier

August 27, 2014

It’s a pretty good day at work when you can drop what you’re doing, hop in a plane and fly around Mt. Rainier (and St. Helens), and still call it work. This is exactly what Greg Vernovage and I were able to do yesterday. A friend called up and offered up a couple seats in his plane for a flight . We didn’t want to be rude so we met him in Eatonville for a few laps around Rainier and one around St. Helens. No point in talking about how awesome it was because you’ve probably already skipped to the photos.

: Cessna 206 Turbo. (Tye Chapman)

: Mt. Rainier (Tye Chapman)

: Mt. Rainier with the Disappointment Cleaver in the middle left-ish.. (Tye Chapman)

: The upper Muir Snowfield is starting to show some icy patches. (Tye Chapman)

: Mt. St. Helens. (Tye Chapman)

: Spirit Lake which still features the thousands of trees that were displaced in the blast of St. Helens. (Tye Chapman)

Tye Chapman

Illimani Team At Nido de Condor (High Camp)

August 26, 2014

Nido de Condor. High Camp on Illimani. (Luke Reilly)

Luke called in from high camp and all is well. The team had a good climb up the rock ridge to high camp on Illimani today. Everyone is feeling good and preparing for their summit attempt this evening. It was a breezy climb with the summit in a cloud all morning, Luke said, and as they pulled into High Camp, they had some light snow.

Illimani is no “gimme.” As much as any mountain in the world, this peak will not lay down and give itself up. The team is watching the weather and will be ready to go when the bell rings.

It will be a cool night and morning but the previous climbing has prepared them for a good climb.

On Illimani, we like to say “take it step by step and head for the sun.” As the team climbs, they will be in the shadow until the final summit ridge, then the sun will be on them and everything feels that much better.

Luke will be up early to keep an eye on the clouds and when they blow off, they will make their move.

Greg Vernovage

Another Great Day In Bolivia

August 25, 2014

Illimani BC (Greg Vernovage)

A very happy IMG Guide Luke Reilly called to check in from Illimani Base Camp. â€œThis is the best day we have had in Bolivia so far!â€

Luke was just finishing up a BBQ at Illimani Base Camp.Â He reports that the team was taking a siesta after they finished up lunch which consisted of a grilled meat, chorizo and vegetables at about 15,000 ft.Â Starting the grill can be no easy task at this elevation.Â Between our great cook staff and a few mountain guides, I am sure there was some great arguing about the best way to get it hot enough to cook.

The team decided to use another day down low to insure they were strong enough for the next two days.Â Tomorrow, they will leave Base Camp and trek across to the ridge leading to High Camp at 18,000 ft.Â It is the first of two strenuous days of climbing.

Base Camp is simply gorgeous.Â They will take a short hike to stretch their legs and organize their gear for the summit push.

The team is happy, full and tired…the perfect lead in to a summit attempt!

Greg Vernovage

On The Road To Illimani

August 24, 2014

Luke checked in early this morning.Â The team had a great day off yesterday.Â They are rested and ready to hit the road to Illimani Base Camp.

From the minute the team leaves the hotel, they are heading in a different direction. Lake Titicaca, Pequeno Alpamayo and Huayna Potosi are all uphill from La Paz. Illimani heads down valley. The road weaves up and down and through many small villages.Â The team will take the road to its end and meet the donkeys and porters. Once they organize gear, what better than to have a little picnic before heading up to Base Camp!Â Illimani Base Camp is set next to a great stream of water directly off the glacier of Illimani. I believe the ground is like a mattress, soft and comfortable for a night or two of sleep.

: Illimani (Viki Tracey)

: The winding road (Viki Tracey)

: Best basecamp (Viki Tracey)

Tonight, they will see the sun set over the Altiplano the lights glow in La Paz and El Alto. To the North will be Huayna Potosi.

Luke said the team is ready to go!Â What does that mean to Luke? He said that he brought all three of his puffy coats and plenty of hand warmers.Â It can be a little cool on their summit push, they climb in the shade until the sun hits them on the summit ridge!

Greg Vernovage

Bolivia Team Resting Up In La Paz

—–Original Message—–
From: Luke Reilly
Sent: Friday, August 22, 2014 9:50 AM
To: Tye Chapman; Eric Simonson; Greg Vernovage
Subject: Bolivia Update

: Condoriri Base Camp (Luke Reilly)

: Huayna Potosi Summit

: Pequeno Alpamayo Summit

Lots of snow and smiles this week in Bolivia. The team is back in la paz now after successful climbs of Pequeno Alpamayo and Huayna Potosi. Route conditions on both mountains were superb this week which helped since the weather has been a little unstable in the mountains lately. The team summitted in near white out conditions on Pequeno Alpamayo hiding the views of the Cordillera Real but the fun climbing on the summit pyramid made up for the lack of visibility. Huayna Potosi was a different story; a calm, clear and cool night afforded great climbing and vistas from the technical summit ridge.

Some are heading home as scheduled while others are resting up and preparing for our next objective…the Illimani extension.

Luke

Huayna Potosi Summit

August 21, 2014

Huayna Potosi summit ridge. (Greg Vernovage)

Luke checked in from Base Camp on Huayna Potosi just now: â€œAll is well with a beautiful summit today!â€

Great news for the team!Â All according to plan for them.Â Luke said there was a little more snow than he had expected on the route but it posed no problems.

The team was climbing by 2am and on the ridge, heading for the summit, by 7am with the sun rising over the jungle to the East and Lake Titicaca to the West as they worked their way up to the summit!

I asked how the temperatures were before the sun came up and Luke said â€œcold, really really cold.â€

Now they are down at Base Camp for the evening.Â Some soup and a good night sleep.Â Tomorrow, the team will load up the bus and head back to La Paz.

They will celebrate their summit success and say good bye to the Huayna Potosi climbers.Â For the Illimani Extension, some laundry and good food before they head back out to get the icing on the cake!

Nice job down there gang!

Greg Vernovage