April 19, 2021

Team 1 Preparing to depart EBC (Ang Jangbu Sherpa)

Team 2 had a great day trekking back to EBC after a successful climb of Lobuche Peak over the weekend.  The Team will now have a couple days of rest before doing some ladder training and preparation to head up on their Dry Run.  It is a great feeling to get the summit of Lobuche under their belt.  The additional acclimatization and training on Lobuche will help the team when it comes time to head up the Khumbu Icefall on their first rotation.

EBC from Look Out Point (Ang Jangbu Sherpa)

Team 1 set the bar high for themselves during the morning of the Dry Run.  The energy felt in the pre-dawn hours at EBC is amazing.  Climbers put in months of training and hard work in preparation to climb Mount Everest and it starts happening now!  Expedition Leader Jonathan Schrock reported that all members were dialed and departed EBC 5 minutes before their scheduled departure time of 3AM. Backpacks on and walking out of camp at 2:55am!  The Team had perfect weather and had a great morning climbing half way up the Icefall before returning to Base Camp.  Great job Everyone!

Geneva Spur and South Col (Ang Jangbu Sherpa)

Ang Jangbu reported that Camp 2 is looking good with the main tents now up and more Sherpa carrying loads up nearly every day.  We have 24 more Sherpa heading to Camp 2 tomorrow.  We also received an update has come in from the fixing team up on the Lhotse Face.  They have now got the route fixed up to the Geneva Spur (well above Camp 3)!  We  soon be sending several of our Sherpa up the Lhotse Face to evaluate the route and claim our Camp 3 campsite.

All is well on Mount Everest!

Greg Vernovage

April 4, 2021

Ang Jangbu reports from Everest Base Camp that our Teams are enjoying perfect weather for climbing and training!  Down at Lobuche Peak we had 100% Team 1 success this morning with all climbers and guides standing on top, enjoying a fantastic view of Everest.  They said that there is now only room for three people at a time to stand on the summit, as apparently a piece of the summit snow blob has fallen off!

Team Two training at EBC (Kevin Kayl)

Back up on Everest, our first big load carrying push was successful with a large team of Sherpas reaching Camp 2 and descending safely to Base Camp.  Well done!  Team Two had a training day on the ice near EBC and IMG leader Kevin Kayl says the team did well working out the bugs with their rigging and ice climbing before they head down to Lobuche Peak tomorrow.

All’s well at Everest!

Eric Simonson

April 12, 2021

It has been busy over the weekend at Everest Base Camp.  Expedition Leader Jonathan Schrock reports that Team 1 did some excellent training on the Lower Khumbu Glacier to fine tune their crampon and fixed rope skills,  before heading back down to Lobuche Base Camp for their acclimatization climb of Lobuche Peak.  This morning at Everest Base Camp also marked the Sherpa team’s traditional Puja Ceremony for good luck on the mountain.

Moving up to Everest Base Camp today was Team 2, after spending several days of acclimatization hiking in the Lobuche BC area.   Along the way they exchanged greetings on the trail with Team 1 heading downhill.   Team 2 is now settling in for a few days of rest and training at Everest Base Camp, and then in a few days they will also be headed back down to climb Lobuche Peak.  It takes time to get well acclimatized, and every day our climbers spend on the trail, at Lobuche Peak, and training on the glacier is “money in the bank”.  We feel strongly that there is no reason for anyone to be heading up the Icefall to Camps 1 & 2 until they are well prepared and acclimatized!

Team 2 at dinner time (Ang Jangbu Sherpa)

With their puja accomplished and our Sherpa team ready, tomorrow will mark the beginning of moving gear above EBC.  Ang Jangbu says that we have 28 Sherpas prepared to make their first carry to Camp 1 in the morning.  The team is excited and ready to get to work building Camp 1!

Beautiful weather and a lot going on at Everest Base Camp!

Greg Vernovage