UTMB Kit Requirements

Crossing old snow in a snowstorm on the TMB

Based on my own experiences on the Tour du Mont Blanc earlier this summer the weather really can change in a few minutes. We regularly had rain, snow, and sunshine in a few hours. Initial forecasts have suggested snow falling down to 2000m during this years UTMB. The organisers insist on a minimum kit list for safety reasons although personally I'd be carrying a wee bit more than this for an event of this length.

• Mobile phone
• Personal cup (150ml minimum)
• 1 litre of water
• Two torches with spare batteries
• Survival blanket
• Whistle
• Strapping bandage
• Spare food
• Waterproof jacket with hood
• Long running tights (or a combination of leggings and long socks which cover the legs completely)
• Additional warm top (180g midlayer OR 110g midlayer & windproof)
• Cap or bandana
• Warm hat
• Warm and waterproof gloves
• Waterproof over-trousers
• Identity papers for border
• Rucksack

Surprisingly there is no requirement to carry a map and compass as the route is well marked and marshaled. In addition to the list above many competitors will use trekking poles to help protect their legs and aid stability especially in the latter stages of the race.The organisers will also transport a bag of clothing to Courmayeur at just under half distance so runners can have a change of kit and resupply.

The North Face

I've just taken delivery of my first box of goodies from The North Face. Over the next few months I've been given the opportunity to put some of their current and future technical clothing through its paces and write some independent reviews as part of their ongoing development program. I'm afraid it's all already in the washing machine after todays mud and rain but initial impressions are very good. The next few months are looking busy; working on the Cuillin Ridge, Terrex Swift Adventure Race, mountain work in the Lake District, The Celtman Tri, climbing in the Alps, Lakeland 100 and an expedition to Greenland!  A perfect testing program!

Aclimatisation lectures

Oxygen training on Cho Oyu

Today I've been lecturing on the demands of climbing at altitude at the University of Cumbria. As part of their Human Performance module the Outdoor Studies students are spending a few weeks looking at operating in extreme environments. Plenty of interest and there's certainly a few folk who'll be heading high for their next trip.

Blue Ice Choucas Harness Review

Blue Ice Choucas Harness

I received a Blue Ice Choucas Harness just a few days before I was due to fly out to Kathmandu to lead an expedition on the North Ridge of Everest. At 170grams this harness is spookily light but the Dyneema webbing is incredibly strong and having had a quick play with it I felt able to leave my old heavyweight Bod at home (495gr)

In action it was very similar to the Bod with a number of advantages, the obvious one being the weight or lack of. There was plenty of adjustability in the medium/large size which fitted comfortably over my down suit but also clinched down tight over a pair of soft shell trousers lower on the mountain.

One great feature is the red belay loop which makes it very obvious even when peering down through goggles and an oxygen mask past a bulky down suit. I now extend my abseil device on a cows tail to remove the potential for error but if you chose to clip into your belay loop then this feature is a life saver.

The buckle was very easy to use even with big gloves on and it never froze, a problem I’ve experienced several times with other harnesses. Toilet stops at altitude are an interesting challenge usually occurring at the most inconvenient times but the spacing of the rear elastics meant that, without being too graphic, nothing restricted access and you were able to stay clipped in, an important safety consideration. Tried and tested at 8700m!

If you’re competent on Scottish style mixed ground then there’s not many opportunities to abseil on the North Ridge but on the couple of occasions I did the harness was surprisingly comfortable providing plenty of support to the legs. Some lightweight harnesses can ride up and restrict your breathing but in this case I think I can blame it on the altitude!

For me this is unarguably the best harness I’ve used for climbing at altitude. Like all Dyneema products it would be vulnerable to friction but after two months use of Everest it still looks as good as new. It would be ideal for many commercial trips such as Cho Oyu, Island Peak, Muztag Ata, Denali, Vinson etc but you would probably need a slightly more supportive harness for technical peaks such as Ama Dablam. It would also work great for easy alpine routes and ski mountaineering where weight is key. Overall a superb harness and one which I'll be wearing for scrambling, ski touring and general mountaineering in the next few months.

The Blue Ice range is currently stocked at Lakes Climber in Ambleside

The Choucas in action on the North Col of Everest

...And Down To ABC

Everyone is now safely back together at ABC having descended through today's snow and wind. Sadly the rumoured crate of beer is now thought to be at BC rather than ABC, but the team are consoling themselves with a good meal before evacuating down 22km of moraine to BC tomorrow. www.adventurepeaks.com

...And Further Down...

Last night saw high winds and snow, which shows that the team perfected the timing of their summit attempt. There are now unlikely to be any teams summiting for at least the next few days. This change in the weather has led to many small avalanches and wind slabs, so the team have been breaking trail today as they move down the mountain. However they are all now (13:15 Nepal time) at the North Col or lower, so everyone should be back to ABC before the end of the day.

Zac is back feeling 100% today, and is currently waiting for the last couple of members of the team at the North Col before descending with them to ABC. There was even a rumour (through muffled phone reception so may not be true) that a crate of beer has been spied at ABC for a little celebration! www.adventurepeaks.com

The Way Down...

Following the successful summit attempt the team have now retreated back down the mountain. Greg and Mark descended slowly, accompnied by Zac and three Sherpas. They arrived back at Camp 3 (8,300m) at 17:00 (12:15 UK time) and are overnighting there before continuing down tomorrow. The rest of the summit team are at Camp 2 (7,800m) with the exception of Steven, who showed signs of suffering from HAPE so has continued down to ABC with Chris.

The expedition saw 18 successful summits (8 clients, 8 Sherpas and 2 guides) out of a possible 24 who started (13 clients, 9 Sherpas and 2 guides). There were also a number of records broken by the team with:

• Geordie becoming the youngest Britain to complete the true 7 Summits. At least for a couple of hours, until...
• George taking the world record as the youngest person to complete the true 7 Summits.
• George also becoming the youngest Britain ever to summit Everest.
• Jaysen becoming the first ever Mauritian to summit Everest.

Zac was struggling with a bit of sickness at Camp 3 before the summit attempt and the dehydration that this caused led to initial symptoms of HAPE at higher altitude, but these have subsided as he has moved back down the mountain. He reached the top at 09:40 (04:55 UK time) and remained there until 10:30 (05:45 UK time), including 20 minutes on his own and a phone call to his parents including a (not entirely appropriate) quote from Sir Edmund Hillary on summiting Everest! He reports that the weather remained fine and warmer than expected throughout, and that despite seeing lights on the South Col early on in the dark during their summit push, they only spotted five other climbers on the mountain all day.

The whole team will be withdrawing to ABC from their various points on the mountain throughout the day tomorrow. They then expect to be back in Kathmandu on 30 May. www.adventurepeaks.com

Summit Attempt Successful!

At 09:45 (05:00 UK time) on 26 May Zac summitted Mount Everest to bring the total to eight clients, eight sherpas and two instructors successfully summitting from the team this morning. The entire team are now descending the mountain, aiming to make it to Camp 2 before dark. www.adventurepeaks.com

Summit Attempt 26 May 05:29 (00:44 UK Time)

The sun is now up and there are stunning views from the North East ridge to Cho Oyu (8,188m) and Shishapangma (8,027m). The summit attempt remains on schedule for all, with the exception of Nick who remained at Camp 3 and Salam who was finding it tough going so has been asked to descend.

Zac is now at the top of the Second Step (8,600m) with Greg slightly behind him and the rest of the team ahead. With the sun up they can now see up to the Third Step (8,700m) and the summit (8,848m). The first member of the team (probably Geordie) is likely to summit in about 30 minutes and Zac is expecting to make it in about two hours time. www.adventurepeaks.com

Summit Attempt - 26 May 02:10 (25 May 21:25 UK Time)

Everything is going well and on schedule. There are thunderstorms to be seen on both sides but the weather on Everest remains good and they can see lights on the other ridge of another team attempting to summit.

Current positions (hopefully correct but it can be hard to pick up names correctly):

• Geordie and Dorjee are approaching the Second Step.
• The rest of the team are at the First Step.
• Zac, Salam and Greg are on the North East ridge.

www.adventurepeaks.com

Summit Attempt - 25 May 19:23 (14:38 UK Time)

The whole team (with the exception of Simon and Heather who are now both at ABC) today left Camp 2 (7,800m) to climb to Camp 3 (8,300m). With the exception of Jason who turned round and is now back at Camp 2, everyone is now successfully at Camp 3, although some members have found the day quite tough. Following the early summit attempts by most groups earlier this week the team have the mountain to themselves, and despite some snowfall this afternoon the sun returned in time to give a great sunset.

It is now dark and the team are brewing up ready to start their final push. The first members will leave Camp 3 at 21:00 (16:15 UK time) with Zac, Chris and the final Sherpas being the last to leave at 22:30 (17:45 UK time).

The next update will hopefully come from the second step after about six hours climbing time. www.adventurepeaks.com

Summit Attempt - 24 May 20:15 (15:30 UK Time)

After a night on the North Col the team have today moved up to Camp 2. Shortly after leaving the North Col Simon and Heather both turned back, but both are remaining at altitude to manage the communications. Simon is at ABC and and Heather at the North Col. As darkness falls the rest of the team have successfully reached Camp 2 with the exception of two who are about 20 minutes away and should be arriving shortly.

The team are now all on oxygen with most going on at 7,000m and Zac, Chris, Geordie and George joining them at 7,500m.

The plan for tomorrow is to leave Camp 2 at 07:30 (02:45 UK time), arriving at Camp 3 in the early afternoon. Current forecasts for the summit day (26 May) remain good with wind speeds of 10-30mph predicted at the summit. www.adventurepeaks.com

Everest Summit Is A Go

In a few short hours 24 of us are departing for the North Col and onwards and upwards hopefully to the summit. The spike in the wind speeds arrived today as forecast, battering the summiters from the last couple of days as they descended to ABC. I took a wander up to the headwall to stretch the legs and get the latest information on the route. Surprisingly Ueli Steck and Don Bowie didn't summit due to the cold, but climbing without oxygen is a different level of difficulty to what we're attempting. They made the sensible decision to turn around just below the summit when severe frostbite was becoming a very real possibility. However with the extra warmth provided by supplementary oxygen many of the commercial teams have been very successful with over 100 summits in the last couple of days and the route seems to be in good condition. Our Sherpas paid a quick visit to the North Col today to confirm everything was still in place. Unfortuently Sonam sustained some minor frostbite to his cheek on the descent, but it's already responding to treatment and with care he'll still be an important part of the team.

From the North Col we'll climb to Camp 2 (7800m) on the 24th, Camp 3 (8250m) on the 25th, and depart for the summit that evening between 21:00 and 22:30 (16:15 and 17:45 on 25th May UK time). The climb should take 8-10 hours so we're aiming to be on top of the world soon after sunrise on the 26th May (around 03:00 on 26th May UK time). A quick descent should see everyone at Camp 2 or lower before nightfall and everyone back to ABC by the evening of the 27th.

We have a great forecast, a fit and healthy team, the strongest Sherpa team on the mountain and the route to ourselves...Blue skies.

Live updates during the summit bid can be found on this blog, at Adventure Peaks and on Greg's Twitter.

The Final Preparations...

Photo: Greg Healey Collection

The whole summit team have now arrived at ABC and are making their final preparations for our summit bid. As expected the mountain has been extremely busy the last couple of days with 100+ climbers heading for the summit this morning on the recently fixed lines. There was a long crocodile of headtorches visable on the ridge for most of the night.

Our planned summit date of the 26th means we'll have the mountain totally to ourselves so no chance of any traffic jams. The wind speeds are continuing to drop and everything is looking pretty much ideal. A final rest day tomorrow and we'll be heading up to the North Col on the 23rd. A quick count today revealed our Sherpa team have 26 Everest summits between them plus a handfull of Cho Oyu, Shishapanga and Manaslu. Even our ABC cook has topped out a couple of times!

Today's highlight was Babu Tsonar from Pokhara paragliding from the summit of Everest. His orange canopy was highlighted for a few moments just before 10 o'clock before he dropped out of view down the South West face. Previous flights have taken just 11 minutes to descend all the way to the south side base camp. www.adventurepeaks.com

Everest Summit Attempt On...

In the last couple of hours the CTMA rope fixing team has succeeded in reaching the summit of Mount Everest from the north. Closely following in their wake are many of the 15 teams who have been stuck at ABC waiting patiently for this moment. With an improving forecast expect to see a flurry of summits from the north over the next few days.

Down at base camp we've sat it out over the last few days in comfort and are now well rested and beginning the move back up the mountain. By tomorrow night we should all be relaxing at ABC, but tonight folk are spread across the three base camps based on their individual preferences. A big weather window seems to be opening up from the 21st and we've penciled in the 25th for our big day. The snow is increasing as the monsoon gets closer but over the next few days we'll finalise our plans as we move up to the North Col, the springboard for our attempt.

This evening the skeleton crew left at BC are going to give our Sherpa team some 'ideas' with a viewing of Vertical Limits (which advocates the carrying of nitro glycerine for high altitude mountaineering!) www.adventurepeaks.com

Things That Go Bump On Everest

Photo: Greg Healey Collection

Friday the 13th, a full moon and Ben's 31st birthday. With Ben already sporting a beard that would do a werewolf proud it was always going to be a strange day.

We're still waiting patiently at base camp for our summit opportunity. Surprisingly every other team on this side of the mountain has followed each other up to ABC aiming for the 16th or 17th May despite a pretty windy forecast. Additionally the CTMA rope fixing team are a day behind aiming to fix to the summit on the 18th. Strange goings on.

Potentially we now have the situation where all 33 teams on the south of the mountain will have mounted their summit attempts before the route is opened on the north! The current small weather window is rapidly drawing to a close and we expect most of the teams to continue to basecamp to continue the waiting game.

The AP team are baring up well to this enforced stay at basecamp. We're seeing a lot more wildlife as the temperatures rise with plenty of Tibetan Snowcocks (aka Sherpa chickens) and marmots around and yesterday a large herd of small deer wandered through the camp. We have a large library of trashy novels which is keeping most people amused (I'm on my 18th book) and Chris is managing to sleep for 23 hours a day. Finally Reuters have just published a great article on the custodian of Himalayan climbing records, Ms Liz Hawley which is worth a read:
http://m.trust.org/alertnet/news/interview-elizabeth-hawley-worlds-everest-expert.

www.adventurepeaks.com

Storms & Parties On Everest

Photo: Greg Healey Collection

Our first challenge of the trip arrived on Saturday night with gale force winds battering the North Col. Our final team of three completing their acclimatisation had a fun night holding their tents down sat fully dressed in their sleeping bags ready to make a quick exit. In the morning light it was found that five of the ten tents were damaged, but we got off lightly compared to some of the other teams whose tents had completely disappeared towards Nepal. Our Sherpas were quickly on the scene with spare tents and it looks like our preparations haven't been disrupted too much.

For me the the descent to ABC a couple of days earlier had gone well only taking 18 minutes to descend the fixed lines. However my efforts have been put well and truly in the shade with the arrival of Ueli Steck fresh from speed ascents of Cho Oyu and Shishapangma. After the formalities of a quick jaunt up Everest he's away to Broad Peak in the Karakoram.

You can find out more about Ueli Steck and what he's up to at www.uelisteck.ch/en.

The whole team are now back at Base Camp waiting for a lull in the winds and celebrating Heather's birthday. Unfortunately Stephen has had to return to Kathmandu due to illness, but there is a slight chance he may get the all clear and be able to return in time for our summit bid. Many of the European weather forecasts are predicting a brief opportunity window of oppurtunity around the 15th - 17th May, but we're staying put as there is still a risk of 60mph gusts and the Chinese rope fixing team are still at ABC with the fixed lines only extending to 8200m.

A couple of nights ago was the infamous Russian 7 Summits Club base camp party, now a yearly event. The Russian based company put on a superb spread of food, beer and vodka for all teams at BC followed by a firework display. Unsurprisingly the main topic of conversation was the weather!

Early this morning our nine Sherpas reached 8300m to establish our Camp 3, the spring board to the summit. For us and all the other teams it's now the waiting game trying to keep busy in Base Camp. www.adventurepeaks.com

Everest Acclimatisation Complete

Photo: Greg Healey Collection

Over the next couple of days the team will make their way back to base camp having completed the final stage of their acclimatisation. From our 7010m camp on the north col an unrelenting snow slope with fixed lines led to a small camp and the start of the climbing proper at 7500m. Despite the temperatures requiring down suits, the views across to Pumori, Cho Oyu, Changtse and Gyachung Kang were stunning. A five hour slog up a slope that looked like it should take two gave Geordie a very physically demanding 22nd birthday. Our Sirdar Dorje had a quick sprint up the North Col to leave a prayer scarf with birthday wishes tied to the tent!

Our previous day’s climb to the north col had gone well despite a big pack, the fixed lines taking just over 2 hours. There was a team of Russian base jumpers checking out a cliff of Changtse for next year. 5.5 seconds for those who are interested.

After last year’s problems with tents being blown 100m vertically upwards, this year our ten tents are all tied together in a long line! With the slightly worrying fact that our equipment is now spread across six locations on the mountain it's away down to base camp to stare at the weather forecast and make our plans. Others plans involve 4 ascents in a season for Pemba Dorje Sherpa, and 24 hours on the summit, putting our efforts in to perspective! www.adventurepeaks.com

Everest North Col Bound...

Photo: Greg Healey Collection

The whole team are currently reunited at a snowy ABC. Over the past couple of days folk have made their way back up over 22km of moraine and 1250m of height gain. For some this was a 7 hour sprint, others a 12 hour slog and some a 2 day stroll with a night at intermediate camp in between.

Our Sherpas have done a sterling job and have just three load carries left to complete to finalise our preparations. The ropes are fixed to 8300m and the CTMA will be heading up to complete the job during the next weather window. Finally we have to complete our acclimatisation with a climb to 7500m. Two thirds of the team are heading up to the North Col tomorrow with the rest following the next day. We hope to spend two to three nights here with a climb up the North Ridge to just below Camp 2.

For the first time the group will have to fend for themselves melting water and rehydrating food. To this end today was spent finalising our kit selections, practicing with the stoves and having an interesting discussion on frostbite. Some great practical examples from the team on previous expeditions! www.adventurepeaks.com

Back to Everest Base Camp

Photo: Greg Healey Collection

The whole team are now back at base camp having successfully completed the first stage of our acclimatisation. All but one of the team reached around 7000m on the fixed lines to the North Col. The trek from ABC to BC which took two long days in ascent only took four hours on the way down. However that evening involved a quick jaunt back up to just below Intermediate camp to check on the progress of two of the Lhakpa Ri team.

Base camp feels very luxurious after the demands of the last few days. A chance to recuperate, eat well, wash clothes, shower and generally get ready for the next stage. The Royal wedding was celebratated / avoided with yak sizzlers, onion bhajis and more milky tea. Everest always surprises and this time it was a 20' Swiss alpine horn being played at BC.

This morning we completed our oxygen training with the Top Out masks which we'll be wearing to the summit. There was plenty of practice in fitting the cylinders, keeping the mask working at 8000m and problem solving. The final challenge was a night walk up the frozen river with the whole system of mask, goggles and headtorch.

Everest itself is looking very snowy and we're forecast a couple of days of bad weather, but we're still planning to head back up in the next few days, aiming to spend a couple of nights on the North Col reaching 7500m. www.adventurepeaks.com