I woke up Wednesday at 1 am after a very restless sleep. I had packed all my gear for my first rotation up the mountain the night before. Sherpa would carry most of my gear, sleeping bag, pad, pillow, bathroom gear etc. I'd carry a light pack with spare layers and gloves. We left under clear skies, mild wind and temps in the 30's. We crossed the Khumbu Ice Field at 2 am as its optimal since the glacier moves every day about 3 ft. As the three of us entered the glacier we were followed by a black Himalayan mountain dog for about two miles. We thought that was a good omen. There were 60 other climbers and guides who had the same idea and they passed us as we stopped to put on our crampons in the ice. The first major obstacle was an ice wall about 40 ft tall. Each climber lined up and attached his/her Jumar "aka ascender" to the rope line. Most had good skills, climbing shear walls with that tool.
The path through the Khumbu Ice Fall winds around seracs as tall as buildings and deep crevasses that we spanned with ladders and ropes. Crossing these ladders looking straight down into a deep blue chasm 50-150 ft deep is about the scariest thing I've experienced on a mountain. Check out Mountain Professionals on Instagram for some of their photos of the Ice Fall.
After 3 hours I could feel my energy begin to fade. The physical upper and lower body strength to transit the icy walls, and the constant up and down moving in every direction, weaving through the icefall became mentally taxing. Also it's almost impossible to see the final destination- Camp 1 because of the up and down. The day ended at 9:40 am after 7 hours and 40 minutes ascending 2,791 ft to an elevation of 19,800 ft above sea level. We traversed 6.81 miles and descended 700 ft. At Camp 1 the solar radiation is so strong that you can't even rest in the tent between 10 am and 4 pm, I drag my foldable pad and lay outside in the sun on the snow. The tents at base camp have mattresses and cots and vestibules - you can stand upright - Camp 1 is a more normal 3 person tent that I have solo.
One of the most spectacular parts of the mountain - views are mind boggling, and you can see Everest looming over the camp. 9,000 ft above. Reminds me of Denali, although Denali Camp 1 is 10,000 ft and the summit is 20,400 ft. It’s a huge amount of vertical to overcome except Denali has NO support and Everest has teams of people hauling gear up and down the mountain.
'“Above the icefall is Camp I at 6,065 m (19,900 ft) Camp 1 is mostly a temporary camp with most climbers just spending one night at this camp.” - Source Google
I have no Internet access until I get back to Everest Base Camp on Saturday, Videos and Photos will be uploaded then. Tomorrow I will be going from Camp 1 to Camp 2.
Huge shout out to SBA who sponsored our journey from Everest Base Camp to the Khumba Ice Falls to Camp 1 today.
Today I honored Hopecam Child Yash, from Cary, NC. He is treated at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute.
LEN IS HONORING HOPECAM CHILD yash TODAY. READ MORE ABOUT yash HERE!
My Message to Hopecam Kid Yash
THANK YOU TO sba FOR YOUR SPONSORSHIP AND SUPPORT SO THAT WE CAN CONNECT MORE CHILDREN FIGHTING CANCER.
Thank You to SBA!
View all of Hopecam’s Mt. Everest Sponsors here: Sponsors
BECOME A SPONSOR TODAY! Contact brett@hopecam.org
Stay tuned for more updates from Len! You can also follow Len on his Garmin to see his location here: Where is Len?