Diary

Sunday 26th October

As we arrived at Rongphu on Sunday the weather was atrocious and the drivers of our Land Cruisers did not want to proceed through the bad conditions, after lengthy negotiations we eventually made our way to where our Sherpas had set up camp.

Monday 27th October

Today we took out the Everest Chair with the intention of travelling from Rongphu Monastery back up to Everest Base Camp. The trek was 7km in length and started at an altitude of 5000m, the terrain was icy with calf-deep snowdrifts.

We continued on up from Ronguphu Monastery through horrendous conditions and gale force winds. Headlong we faced the wind chill and I found my legs starting to seize and become incredibly painful.

Upon reaching camp the team were highly fatigued and some members began to feel the effects of altitude sickness. Dr Kim's expedition medical experience was to prove invaluable in helping the team recover sufficiently to be able to continue participating the following day.

Tuesday 28th October

Rest day for all the team. We spent the entire day enjoying the majestic views of Everest set against clear blue skies. It was great to wake up with your sleeping bag covered in frost and icicles hanging from the inside of the tent!

Wednesday 29th October

In the morning Neil led Mark and Graham on an ascent of an adjacent 5300m peak, involving some scrambling and rock climbing.

Later on that afternoon I was to fulfil one of my childhood ambitions and visit the cairn that forms the monument to George Mallory and Andrew Irvine. To attempt this required help from the whole team and our Sherpa support team. The trip from base camp took about 45 minutes and involved a lot of pushing, carrying, huffing and puffing. Reaching the cairn was very moving and well worth the effort.

Glenn.