Last week’s intense snowstorm in the Himalaya has caused serious equipment damage for several expeditions, but for Benjamin Vedrines’ team, it may threaten their entire project.
Before the storm hit its peak, the French climbers retreated to the village of Kangbachen for a night but left their two cooks in base camp at the foot of the mountain.
“We didn’t think the snow would fall so low,” said Vedrines. “That evening at the lodge, we became aware of the high risk of avalanches. The base camp is extremely exposed, the access even more so, and we couldn’t go back up as planned.”
36 hours of hard shoveling
The French climbers contacted Sam Hennessey and Mike Gardner of the U.S. The two Americans are also attempting Jannu East and had stayed in base camp. They confirmed that the two cooks had gone down the valley and that the French camp was in a shambles.
“They said our tents were under the snow, many of them [destroyed],” Vedrines said. The Americans had managed to keep their own camp operational by 36 hours of hard shoveling.
A few hours later, the cooks showed up at the lodge at Kangbachen, soaked to the bone. “They said they thought they were going to die on the way back as snow fell around them.”
Earlier today, the French team was about to return to base camp, not knowing quite what they would find or even whether the damage could be bad enough to end the expedition prematurely.
