Daily Everest Updates – 22nd May
Updates from Individuals and Teams on Everest – 22nd May.
“Our Everest and Lhotse summit teams are safely into their respective high camps.
“They reported windy conditions today but the winds are forecasted to drop throughout the night and day tomorrow.
“The climbers are resting on oxygen and recovering from the days effort.
“We are wishing our teams the best of luck and safe climbing tonight and tomorrow.”
“We are still waiting for a solid weather window that will allow us to give it a go, but in the meantime the acclimatisation must be maintained and the body must be reminded of how little oxygen it’s going to get!
“Yesterday was a day well spent doing just that: Kilian Jornet and I went from BC to the base of the Lhotse face and back to Pheriche for dinner.”
Heimer Hallgrimsson and Siggi Bjarni
“The boys have arrived at Camp 4, where there is a storm and tents have been set.
“They feel good in spite of that, are very prepared if Sigga’s knee still holds.
“They will wait for the wind and aim to try for the top another night 🙏🏻👊”
“The time is right friends!
“We attacks tonight and summit is possible by 3am French time!”
“The IMG team just pulled in to Camp 4, South Col, Everest after a solid morning of hard work.
“It’s a bit windier than this at the moment but the team is moving strong and now settling in to a few hours of well-earned rest before getting up for the final summit push.
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“My role this year is of course keeping me mostly in Base Camp as the team does the real work up on the mountain. The weather has been a fickle beast this season, but we’re all proud of the effort the entire team has put in so far. Now it’s down to the final hours.”
“Team successfully made it to Camp 2. They will push to Camp 3 in the morning.
“Weather window may be a little tricky, but the team is strong and hopeful. Pray weather holds for their summit attempt.”
“Our Mount Everest climbers have successfully moved up from Camp III and are now perched at the South Col.
Expedition leader Garrett Madison via satellite phone has communicated a planned summit bid for the morning of May 23rd.”
“In her second attempt to climb Everest, Khadija Turki showed amazing determination and willpower, but unfortunately with the appearance of Covid 19 symptoms and the deterioration of her health and after the confirmation from the camp doctor, it was necessary for me to end her journey, which was a very difficult decision especially that she was two days away from the summit, but a decision has been made to evacuate her immediately to Kathmandu.
“Khadija is currently receiving the required care in the capital, Kathmandu. Her health is more important than anything else.”
“Our team in Nepal has made the extremely tough, but necessary call to end our 2021 Mount Everest Expedition. While it’s a difficult decision to make when considering all of the work, years of preparation, sacrifice and resources that have went into the expedition, it’s the only sensible outcome from a risk management standpoint.
“While we did our best throughout the expedition to be as COVID responsible as possible (and at the beginning of the season it looked like COVID was on the decline) there has been a sharp spike of cases throughout Nepal that we couldn’t predict or fully avoid, even with being cautious. Six of our Sherpa team have been evacuated to Kathmandu with COVID symptoms, and while they are all thankfully doing well, they are no longer available to help progress the team higher and carry essential resources to the upper camps. Moreover, a summit push this late in the season would put our Sherpa sweep team on the glacier in June—later than ever before—with a very active and rapidly warming Khumbu Icefall to contend with. Given the conditions this year that situation would be fairly unconscionable.
Additionally, with many teams prevented from going up throughout a long typhoon storm cycle with dangerously high winds, our team would undoubtedly face long lines of climbers going for the summit, a risk we always try to avoid as best we can with strategic summit pushes. In this short of a window, such avoidance would not be possible.
We want to thank you all for following along with the expedition, and we’re certainly disheartened to report this outcome. Aside from the earthquake season in 2015, all of our Everest seasons have led to a successful summit push. However, the summit is NEVER a guaranteed part of any expedition, and our number one priority is always doing our best to ensure that everyone comes home to climb another day.”
“The Mountain Professionals team has made it safely to Camp 4! This camp is located on the South Col, a wind-swept, rock-strewn saddle between Mt. Everest and Lhotse. It serves as the final base from which summit attempts are undertaken and sits just under 8000m (26,000’). It’s also the first opportunity for climbers to lay eyes on their next stop – Everest’s summit pyramid. At this elevation, climbers can no longer acclimatize and must generally rely upon supplemental oxygen. Sleeping at the South Col is challenging, digesting food is nearly impossible, and gale-force winds often pummel the area, so time is always of the essence.
“The route from Camp 3 led our climbers past the two final obstacles before Camp 4, the Yellow Band and the Geneva Spur. The Yellow Band is a multiple hundred-foot strip of limestone which requires climbers to ascend on rock for the first time on the expedition, and the Geneva Spur is a 150’ block of 40-degree ice, snow, and rock just below the South Col. Today’s climb was a challenge, as fierce winds whipped the team throughout the journey, making for slow, but consistent progress.
“The weather continues to be volatile and unpredictable, making summit attempt planning akin to shooting a moving target. Assuming that conditions are safe to climb, the team plans on heading for the summit slightly later than usual today in order to minimize their exposure to high winds while in the dark.
“We’ll share an update as soon as we hear more. Until then, please keep our group in your thoughts. Good luck and godspeed to our rock star gang of climbers!”
“Pioneer team and many other climbers (almost 350) are headed to Camp IV today.
“They will attempt their finally summit push tonight. Hopefully the weather and other parameter remains favourable.
“If everything goes well most of the climbers will summit Mt. Everest tomorrow.”
“The group “Everest 1”, Alexander Abramov plus six participants (Daniel Wolfson, Anna Permilovskaya, Mikhail Mikheev, Georgy Shulepov, Dmitry Livanov, Eduard Kubatov), today climbed from Camp 2 to Camp 3 (7100 m). Tomorrow afternoon, the plan is to move to Camp 4 on the South Col (8000 m). And in the same evening, around 21.00-22.00, start of the summit assault. If the weather permits.
“The group “Lhotse 8516”, guides Vladimir Kotlyar and Alexey Lonchinsky plus three participants (Irina Zisman, Daniel Briman, Igor Smirnov), today climbed from the Base Camp to Camp 1 (6000 m). Tomorrow, according to the plan, we will move to Camp 2 (6400 m). May 23th move to Camp 3 (7,100 m). May 24th climb to Camp 4 (7900m). On the night of May 24-25, the summit of Lhotse assault. If the weather permits.
“The group “Everest 2″ Artem Rostovtsev and Ekaterina Lipka (Kalabukhova) today moved to Camp 1. Then in parallel with the group Lhotse. May 24th – an ascent to the South Col and Everest summit assault is May 25. If…”
“We are just crossing the Yellow Band now, on our way to the Geneva Spur. Its a very sunny very high altitude day up here. Wind is a bit gusty but ok. Chill factor is not too bad. Our team is feeling good and moving well.
“There are approximately 100 other people climbing near us, and everyone seems to be moving together well and helping each other.”
Update 1
“South Col !! We arrived at 1645 pm. Our team is doing well, Sherpas are amazing as ever. Climbing the Geneva Spur was a little steep but not bad. We are still climbing together with the same 100 or so people. Everyone was being polite and helpful. The group is moving at a good steady pace. The weather has been a bit mixed, with clouds shifting around throughout the afternoon, especially due to this massive lenticular cloud clinging to the summit like a windblown head of hair. So after this long 10 hour day, we are cresting the Spur, onto the South Col, finally reaching out in excitement to touch our ultimate goal: 8000 meters! But, I have to admit, we feel a bit disappointed…Its so damn WINDY up here Now we are safe in the tents resting, drinking, eating, and huffing huge amounts of bottled oxygen. Except for some of our members who are trying to climb without O2.”
Update 2
“High winds show no sign of abating. We are thinking of waiting until tomorrow.”
“Considering the weather condition and expected crowd during these short weather window period on Everest summit, Nima Jangmu planned not to climb Everest in Shortest time.
“So our expedition ends here, our next climb will be to Kilimanjaro soon.”
https://everestmountain.co.uk/daily-everest-updates-23rd-may
