The wind on Cho Oyu has created a problem for the team trying to summit from the Nepal side. Some climbers moved to Camp 1 today to find that two tents, six sleeping bags, and seven down suits had been blown away.
On Instagram, Adriana Brownlee wonders how the team can afford replacement suits and considers canceling the expedition. “[We’ll] play monopoly to cool our heads and make a decision in the morning,” she said.
Photo: Adriana Brownlee/Instagram, Dec 28
The team had nice weather when it initially arrived at the mountain. This allowed the Sherpas to progress fast up to Camp 3 at 7,200m. Then the wind started. Watch Gelje Sherpa below, demonstrating the typical problem of setting up a dome tent in a wind.
The plan has been to wait for another weather window long enough to let the Sherpas go up again and fix Camp 4 (and perhaps a Camp 5) as they push for the summit.
Manaslu: Base Camp 1
Simone Moro is still in the Khumbu Valley. He plans to climb Lobuche tomorrow to complete his acclimatization before joining Alex Txikon on Manaslu.
Meanwhile, Txikon’s team has set their “Camp 1” at the base of the mountain, in roughly the normal Base Camp’s location on the glacial moraine. As we pointed out earlier this week, the expedition has installed their Base Camp on the outskirts of Samagaon village.
Alex Txikon’s Camp 1 on Manaslu. Photo: Txikon’s team
… and the normal location of Manaslu Base Camp earlier in the year, sans snow. Photo: Viajes por Nepal
Goettler & Barmasse going “somewhere”
After acclimatizing on Island Peak (Imja Tse), David Goettler and Herve Barmasse are back in Kathmandu. They continue to hedge about their actual goal, apart from the teaser that it will be “some” 8,000m peak.
Options are Dhaulagiri, Annapurna, or back to Pakistan for a second try at Nanga Parbat.
“We will choose based on the weather,” Barmasse said in an interview with the Gazzetta dello Sport newspaper today.
He did share, however, the minimalistic kit he and Goettler will carry for their alpine-style attempt. “The backpack will weigh a maximum of 13 kilos: 50-60 metres of rope, 4 ice screws, 4 pitons, 5 Friends, a sleeping bag, and a tent,” he told La Gazzetta.
Goettler (in yellow) and Barmasse on the summit of Imja Tse on Christmas Day. Photo: David Goettler
