Mount Everest 29,029 ft/8,848 meters Himalaya Range Highest Mountain in the World
HIMALAYAN GRANDEUR Gain your high altitude experience on one of M o u n t a i n Tr i p ' s o t h e r Himalayan guided trips.
SUPPORT TREK Family and friends can join the Everest Climbing team on their trek in to base camp to witness the traditional Puja ceremony.
Mountain Trip International
THE FACES OF NEPAL Kathmandu is one of Asia's most exotic travel destinations. Spend your pre and post-trip moments wandering amongst it all.
EVEREST Expedition Information
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2012
EVEREST April 3rd to June 4th
$65,000 USD
DEPOSIT SCHEDULE September 1st - 15,000 November 1st - 30,000 February 1st - Final Due
OVERVIEW “Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves.”
-John Muir
Welcome to Mountain Trip’s Everest Expedition We are offering a professionally guided, fully supported expedition to climb the South Col Route of Mt. Everest. Included on this expedition is full guidance on the mountain at all elevations, by a strong Sherpa and western guide team to support your efforts. We provide comfortable (as possible!) camps, your oxygen system, as well as all the logistics and infrastructure necessary for climbing Mt. Everest. Our focus is to help you reach the summit and come home safely. We plan schedules and summit days first and foremost around safety, then success. You will be climbing with a team led by extremely experienced high altitude western guides, supported by an even more experienced Sherpa team, that have been there and know the mountain well. You can trust our team will make the right decisions at the right time. Over the years, we have developed a solid program on Everest that has been refined into an unparalleled safe and professional program. We can help you reach this goal and have a great experience along the way! Remember, there are no shortcuts to the top! You will have to climb the mountain, placing one foot in front of the other all the way to 29,035ft. With Mountain Trip you can be assured that everything else will be carefully taken care of. If you are reading this, you are interested in or planning a trip to climb Mt. Everest. Congratulations, it’s quite an adventure! It’s also a seriously big mountain. Let’s go! Mountain Trip and Mount Everest Mt. Trip is recognized as one of the world’s most respected guide services. Our history goes back to the earliest years of guiding on Denali in Alaska. We are continuing that tradition by offering professionally guided Mt. Everest expeditions in a number of formats from fully supported (our normal expedition) to one on one ascents with highly experienced American guides. We also have parallel programs to Lhotse and to Camp 2 or 3 on the Everest south side. There are only a couple companies that can offer a complete seven summits program including legally guided trips to Denali. We have executed solid programs for years on Denali, Aconcagua, Carstensz, Vinson, Elbrus, and Everest. The Himalayan, Central Asian and Russian programs are under the leadership of long time Denali, Aconcagua and Everest guide, Scott Woolums. Mt. Trip and Scott have combined energy to create the new standard for guiding and expedition support services to the highest mountain in the world. Our combined experience has led 8 successful expeditions in 2002, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and again in 2011. We hope you can join us on what many consider the experience of a lifetime!
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LEADERSHIP Scott
Woolums One
of the most experienced, full-time, professional guides currently working in the USA, Scott has 29 years of experience in leading remote, high altitude expeditions around the world. He has summitted Everest 6 times, via both the north and south sides. Scott is one summit short of 4 complete seven summits laps (the record for the Carstensz version), 7 Everest expeditions, 43 Denali expeditions, 34 Aconcagua expeditions, 10 Vinson expeditions, Cho Oyu and over 10 each of Elbrus and Kilimanjaro expeditions. This, combined with a very long list of leading expeditions to almost every mountain range in the world brings a nearly u n m a t c h e d le ve l o f e x p e r ie n c e t o Everest. Whom you go with on Everest may be one of the most important decisions you can m a k e . I t ’s n o t a b o u t t h e money; it’s about coming h o m e s a f e l y. S c o t t ’ s professionalism and safety record is very possibly the most outstanding of anyone in the business. Scott is an AMGA Certified Alpine Guide.
Bill A llen
Bill will be returning to Everest again in 2011. Bill has guided extensively around the world for since 1993 summiting Everest and completing the 7 summits in 2010. Bill has guided 22 Denali climbs, a dozen Aconcagua ascents, six Carstensz Pyramid trips, and several Vinson expeditions. He is one of the owners of Mountain Trip, and runs the international expedition programs for the company. Bill lives in Ophir, CO and sneaks out of the Mountain Trip office as often as possible during the winter to also work as a heliski guide.
SHERPA TEAM We use one of the most experienced Sherpa teams on Everest. Most speak English very well and all have multiple ascents of Everest and other 8000m peaks. These people are the core of any Everest expedition, and we use the very best Sherpas. On our standard Everest expedition, we employ an average of 2 Sherpas per climbing member, plus Sherpa staff. During our summit day you will be paired with at least one Sherpa who helps carry oxygen in addition to our western guide staff. The Sherpas are not just paid employees; they are our friends and equals. In addition to our climbing Sherpa Team we will have additional Sherpa staff in both BC and C2. These guys are prepared to go to the summit and can provide additional support in the event of an emergency. Most have already been to the summit and/or on other 8000 meter peaks. It takes a very special person to work as hard as our Sherpas. Many teams push Sherpas very hard to make schedules for early season summits. We do not. When groups go in early, it forces the Sherpas to put in the route and carry loads during some very harsh conditions. We find that it’s crucial to let the Sherpas carry when they feel it’s safe, on their schedule and at their pace. When you see what these guys carry, especially when it’s time to move oxygen and equipment from Camp 2 to Camp 4, you will be seriously humbled. Our Sherpas are paid, trained and equipped very well. They do this job multiple times. Always treat them with respect and dignity, learn their names, share a cup of tea with them and feel privileged that we have an opportunity to climb their mountain, Sagarmatha, the Mother Goddess of the World!
KNOTS Figure Eight on a Bight Follow Through Figure Eight Clove Hitch Double Fisherman's Water Knot (for webbing)
SNOW SKILLS Steep Ice Axe technique, including self arrest. 45+ degree slopes Crampon skills with a focus on French Technique on steeper ice (Alpinists have great French Technique!) Cramponing down steep snow and ice. Basic fixed line use. Ascending and descending. Descending we will use both arm wraps and figure eight rappelling. Basic crevasse self-rescue technique
THE BASICS Make sure you know how to adjust your pack and harness. Practice packing your backpack. Practice putting on your crampons quickly while sitting and standing. This is one of the hardest things to do at Camp 4 on summit mornings.
PREREQUISITES
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All Everest expedition members need to be pre-approved by Mountain Trip before being allowed to join. It’s one the most difficult and dangerous expeditions in the world and our concern is for your safety, as well as the other members of your team. This is a team expedition and you will want to know that everyone you are climbing with is capable and equally prepared to be there. This is part of that process. We will examine your experience, talk with your previous climbing partners and get a feel for why you want to climb Everest. We will ask you about your training and experience and your ongoing training program before the climb. It’s a p r o c e s s t h a t ’s h e l p e d b y h a v i n g previously climbed Denali, Vinson, Aconcagua or been on other expeditions with Mt. Trip. Previous high altitude expedition experience is mandatory. Talk to us and we can help set up a training program to develop the experience necessary for this trip. Then train, train and train some more!!
Technical and Expedition Climbing Experience Required Applicants will need several years of both climbing and expedition experience. Having climbed to over 7000 meters is very helpful as it can tell you how you function at higher altitudes. We highly encourage people to have 8000 meter experience as well i.e. Cho Oyu. It is mandatory to have solid cramponing, rappelling, and fixed line skills. It’s important to just have a good knowledge of rope management, and a sense of situational awareness while in extreme situations. This is important as all these skills will be carried out under extreme stress and they should be second nature! We have an opportunity to train in the lower icefall before going up higher. This allows everyone to get a feel for the ladders, fixed lines, rappelling and descending. This is part of all expeditions before we go up to Camp 1. Know these skills and know them well! On summit day at 3am in the morning, when it’s still dark, cold and windy out, and your goggles are totally fogged up, is not the time to be fumbling around with clipping your ascender or stumbling around stepping on the rope.
Our Base Camp This is a very important element on Everest. It is a sanctuary to relax between forays up higher, catch up on communications and let your body recover from the effects of extreme altitude. We offer full shower facilities, very efficient heaters, your own tent, communal dinning tent, communications, toilet tents, hundreds of DVD’s to watch, hot water to wash. We plan short hikes over to Kala Patar and Gorak Shep to stay active and better acclimatized while around camp. Hot water for cleaning clothes and for showers is available e v e r y d a y. W e h a v e everything to make your stay as comfortable as possible given the environment we are living in. Our base camp services are second to none; from hot water bottles every night to fresh vegetables brought in throughout the expedition! Email and Satellite Phone Use We realize that an Everest expedition is long and staying in touch with folks back home is important. We will maintain expedition dispatches and updates to keep our family and friends informed. We have several of the best systems available for communications from the mountain. In Base Camp and most of the time in Camp 2 we will have access to communications via both email and phone. Email: There is a lot to cover here. We will let you know what email address to use as we have a group email account during our expedition. Just have your friends or family type your name in the subject line. Then your mail will go into your own mailbox at base camp until you can respond. There is web mail access but this will cost quite a lot more as it takes longer, uses a lot more bandwidth and ties up the computers for a long time. This is text-only email. If you anticipate
"Home is not where you live,
but where they understand you." - Christian Morgenstern
having a lot of email, try to setup a pop3 mail account that is a unique email address and have someone forward only important emails to this new address. We can then do a send/receive at the end of the day. For photos we charge $2 per photo to either send or receive a photo under 30k. It’s all based on the megabytes of use so larger photos will cost more. We will have software on the computers to re s i ze yo u r p i c t u re s t o appropriate size for sending and show you how to do this. Please contact us for more detailed information on email use on the mountain. Sat Phone: We have Thuraya Satellite phones available for your use. You can either buy your own SIM chip from Thuraya with extra time if you plan to use this a lot or you can buy minutes from us at $3 per minute. Either way, the phones work great on Everest. On the trek in, all the way up through Tyangboche, there normally is good cell reception. It is best to buy a local SIM chip in Kathmandu; that is the cheapest way to call home. It will be very difficult to receive incoming calls. Don’t plan on receiving phone calls anywhere except maybe in Kathmandu if you have an appropriate cell account. For extremely urgent communications- we have an expedition Thuraya number that you can have SMS text messages sent to in an emergency. This is easy to do and it’s the best way to reach anyone on the trip urgently. So anyone can send you an SMS text message to our Base Camp phone and as soon as we turn on the phone the message will appear. This is simple, inexpensive and we will get the message more quickly than an email. We will provide more detailed information on this before the expedition.
INCLUDED
"It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves." -Edmund Hillary
-Western guide to climber ratios will be at least 1 to 4 -High Altitude Sherpa guide to member ratios of 2 to 1. -Flights Kathmandu to Lukla and return. -All permit Fees -All Liaison Officer Fees and expenses. -Fixed line fees- Coop between guide services. -SPCC Ice Fall Fees -Base Camp medical services fee for members and Sherpas. -All porters and Yaks. -All equipment transport. -Single Tents in Base Camp. -All lodging and food while trekking in and out. -High Mountain Food. Normally from the USA. -4 nights lodging at the Yak and Yeti hotel in Kathmandu. -All airport transfers. -8 Bottles Oxygen, 4 liter, plenty more available. -4 Bottles O2 for all Sherpas. -High Speed DSL Satellite modem service (see rules around this).
-Free email service (see rules regarding this). -All VHF Radios-Base Camp power system for charging 12v (car adapter) appliances. -Satellite phones (both Iridium and Thuraya) with spares (see rules around this). NOT INCLUDED -Medical Rescue insurance. -Trip Cancelation Insurance. -International Airfare to/from Kathmandu. -Personal Equipment. -Satellite Phone time. -Alcoholic Beverages. -Summit Bonuses and tips for Sherpas and Staff. -Personal Expenses on Trek In -Cokes, bottled water, food beyond 2 plates a meal, deserts, candy bars, phone, internet -and email use in the lodges on the way in/out. -If you come in/go out on a different schedule than the group, the trekking costs will be your responsibility. -Any additional Hotel nights beyond 4 total in Kathmandu.
Our Base Camp Expedition Reports We post regular updates on the Mt. Trip Expedition Dispatch web page for friends to keep updated on your progress. You can add your comments and we ask everyone to take an active part in writing the reports when we are in base camp. It’s fun to share both the writing and adding pictures from the days’ activities as a group. Cook Staff The cook staff is a critical piece to any Everest expedition. It’s great to go climbing and live on rice and beans for short trips, but Everest is different. Staying healthy and super fit with energy to burn, rotates around good food, prepared in a clean environment so no one gets sick. Our cooks and cook staff have all been trained to maintain the utmost
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cleanliness in and around the kitchen with your heath and strength in mind always. This cannot be underrated on a long expedi tion like Everest. We have ful l cook staff, tents, chairs and tables at both BC and Camp 2. The very best in Everest expedition fine dining! Vegetarian meals are available, just let us know! The Dining Tent This is the epicenter for any Everest expedition. We use a large Sling Fin Dome tent, with indoor/outdoor carpeting and comfy chairs. With 3 meals a day plus afternoon tea, the cooks stay very busy. Always available are hot water, snacks, teas, coffees, energy drinks. We have music, videos, computers, phones also available. We take pride in keeping camp very clean and sanitary, with gel hand sanitizers, AND soap and hot water available for washing hands. We have plenty of 12v lights, so the fun doesn’t stop at sundown, it just gets colder!
April 3 TO
April21 3900 USD
Do you or someone you know want to join the Everest team on the way into Base C a m p ? Fa m i l y members and friends are allowed first priority to join this trek. We w i l l a l s o coordinate a trek in that aims to arrive in Base Camp to coincide with the team’s estimated summit dates. We c a n arrange these privately or as part of a larger group. Please see our current online schedule for prices and dates.
Everest B a s e Camp Support T r e k
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ON THE
MOUNTAIN The South Col Route: Far from being a “walk up”, the south side of Everest is very challenging and risky at almost all points along the way. It is technical, steep, very exposed, it also has crevasse, rock, snow and ice fall hazards. Add these factors to climbing in normally wild to extreme weather conditions, and you have a formidable task. While this is not meant to scare anyone, you have to be aware of serious conditions and spend considerable thought in evaluating your decision before committing to climb Everest. Anyone that calls this route easy or non-technical is not being totally honest with you or has not been there. We can help you gain the experience that this takes on training courses and other big mountains of the world. Denali, Cho Oyu, Mount Vinson and Aconcagua are all very good peaks on which to gain high altitude and expedition experience. We believe with proper decision making along the way it can be climbable for those without years and years of hard climbing experience. It does take a very determined and focused individual willing to challenge themselves while keeping a good attitude along the way!
"A climber's day always starts at the crux: getting out of bed."
are 2 ropes, a fixed line going up and another for coming down. We protect this section with an ascender on our way up, with a figure eight or a short rope on the way down. At Camp 3 we find a tight small camp chopped out from solid ice in the middle of the Lhotse face. This is not a comfortable camp and everyone needs to be extremely careful as it is an exposed camp. Many Camp 2 21,500 ft. 24,000 ft. times the platforms here Leaving Camp 1, we walk Camp 3 From Camp 2 we follow a are barely wide enough up the Upper Khumbu relatively easy, crevassed for 2 people in a tent. We Glacier. This is fairly easy section to the base of the may spend one walking with occasional acclimatization night here Lhotse Face, and from very large crevasses. It’s if conditions, fixed rope here the world changes! easier going if you leave and weather allow. When We’ll climb 2000 vertical early enough to beat the we leave Camp 3 for feet of hard, blue ice heat. After a long and straight up the fixed lines Camp 4 at 6am or so, we normally very hot day are on our summit push. through the vast Western to camp 3. The base of That is where we commit Cwm, we end up at Camp the Lhotse Face is to starting to use our 2. Our Camp 2 is situated exposed to falling rock Oxygen. It can take 6 to 8 and ice from above. So at the upper part of a hours to reach Camp 4 we have to move quickly long rocky moraine. We near the bottom, wearing where we relax, eat, drink have full support here in and recover. helmets. Normally there our camp. There are Camp 1 20,000 ft. Situated at the very top of the Khumbu Icefall, Camp 1 is a welcome, flat, large area. Here, we have amazing views of Pumori and up toward the SW face of Everest. It’s cold at night and can be brutally hot during the day. There are lots of crevasses that lace the area around camp so care must be taken.
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separate cooking and dining tents, and normally single tents for sleeping. A full-time cook staff cranks out some amazing meals for this altitude! We will stop here on all trips up and down the mountain. This is a great place to acclimatize for the higher camps. Camp 2 is quite comfortable with quite good views up toward Camp 3 and the South Col.
Camp 4 26,000 ft. It’s a long day up here from Camp 3 on the Lhotse Face. Our Sherpas have been working 2 to 4 trips each moving Oxygen, tents, food, stoves and fuel up here over the last few weeks. We arrive, dive into the tents and start eating and drinking, hopefully with a few hours to catch a little sleep before getting ready again at 7 to 9pm, for departure to the summit at 9 to 11pm depending on a number of factors. This is as serious place on a bad day, but it can be beautiful and calm. It is a very flat camp with lots of history. Directly above camp is the Triangle Face that leads to the balcony along the summit ridge.
This is where all your preparation and training will come to the test.
ON THE
[ ] M
inimum trips through the Icefall
MOUNTAIN
We have carefully designed a schedule that allows us the
but in a normal expedition (if there is such a thing), three
minimum number of trips through the Khumbu Icefall. The Icefall is beautiful but deadly. This is one of the more
trips up and back should do. Some groups run up and down this as many as 5 or 6 times, which we feel exposes
risky sections of the mountain from the south side. We plan
climbers to unnecessarily increased risk and this tactic can
three trips up and back that include the summit round.
wear climbers down before they even get high. The Icefall is
Weather and other conditions could obviously change this,
not a place you want to spend much time.
Summit Day: 29,340 ft. This is where all your preparation and training will come to the test. Many factors need to line up for us to leave Camp 4 for the summit. Days of analyzing weather forecasts need to show a significantly good prognosis for the days before, during and after our Summit Day. You need to be feeling strong, healthy, confident and determined. Throughout the whole expedition we discuss the psychology and safety of the summit day. It’s very important to know and understand everything that surrounds this day. Each person needs to be very aware of his or her own abilities, in touch with where he/ she is and cognizant of the risks that surround them at all times. Safety is our priority on summit day. After a few hours of sleep at C4 we start to get ready and leave between 9pm to 1am that night for the summit. This allows us time for a slower, steady pace and normally finds
us below the south summit near sunrise. What a place to be looking out over Tibet and over at Lhotse on a perfect (we hope) day! Summit day should be between 12-16 hours long ending in Camp 4 feeling very tired. We will be carrying approximately 22+ hours of Oxygen with us and have more in reserve if needed. After Summiting It’s about 3-4 hours down from the summit to the South Col. We stop in Camp 4 for a wellneeded rest on oxygen, before starting down the next morning. Normally, we’ll just go to Camp 2 the next day. We’ll use up what oxygen we have on the way down. Then we’ll head on down to Base Camp the following day to start celebrating! We’ll spend a day or so in Base Camp recovering, sorting gear and getting ready for the trek out. We may have the option of getting a helicopter out to Lukla from base camp for an extra charge.
What’s in Your Pack? This may be the lightest pack outside of Kilimanjaro or Elbrus that you will carry in the mountains. All members will be responsible to carry their personal equipment back and forth to Camps 1 and 2. There is some load carrying support from the Sherpas for down suits and sleeping bags. Above Camp 2 we will have more Sherpa assistance with our kit. Above Camp 3 we carry only our camera, water, lunch, sleeping pads, extra mittens, and one oxygen bottle. Sleeping bags are carried to Camp 4. Help is always appreciated by the Sherpas if you feel good enough to help more than this. To the summit you will only have your water, lunch and one bottle of oxygen. Group Equipment Tents, food, stoves, oxygen, fuel, anchors and ropes are all carried by our Sherpa Team. It’s important to point out that this assistance is going to save your energy for up
high. When we arrive in Base Camp, most of Camp 2 will be set and the Sherpas will have already started working on Camp 3. On Mountain Food We use a variety of foods up high. We stick to simpler foods that digest well and are very tasty. You will have your choice of lunch food so you get what you like, when you want it. At Camp 2 we have a cook and cooking staff that prepare excellent meals. We only have a few days at Camp 1, Camp 3 and Camp 4 where we prepare our own meals. The Sherpas and guides do all the cooking on this trip. If you have specific foods, energy drinks or bars that you like to use, we encourage you to bring these items. We try to limit personal food to 10 lbs. or so. Talk to us before the expedition if you have specific dietary needs or requests.
S A F E T Y
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
Base Camp Instruction and Skills While in base camp we will go over and practice the skills that are necessary up higher in the icefall, on the fixed lines and during summit day. There is a nice practice area a few minutes from our base camp in the ice features of the lower icefall. It provides a great place to spend a couple afternoons practicing fixed line work, rappelling, and refining crampon skills. This review is critical for everyone to develop safe habits while under more extreme conditions higher up on the mountain. Despite this time for practice, it is still vital that you know and practice these basic tasks before your arrival. We like to see everyone on the trip develop safe and self-reliant habits that will last long after our expedition. Contact us for details on what to specifically practice. Safety Sherpas We have a strong Sherpa crew to allow for Sherpas to be available and rested at all camps on the mountain. These Sherpas constitute part of our own “rescue team” and while they may and may not go all the way to the summit, they will be capable of quickly helping in any situation that may demand it. With our communications network we can request assistance or additional Oxygen, if needed, at any point. This is a critical extra measure of support up high, especially above Camp 4. O2 Saturation Level Monitoring and Health Checks An important part of climbing Everest is closely watching everyone for signs of any health problems. Dehydration, coughs, or serious fatigue all can be managed if caught early and treated correctly. We use pulse oximeters to be better in tune with all members and their acclimatization on the mountain. This is only one part of larger comprehensive program of checking everyone’s health at each step on the hill. Communication with the guides is important so that we can help mitigate an arising health problem before it becomes a more serious issue. Additional Emergency Oxygen We have additional Oxygen available in all camps for emergency medical use. We have had to use this in the past to help climbers outside of our groups. This is another very important component of additional safety. While climbing anywhere above Camp 3, we have extra regulators and O2 masks available in case one in our group fails. Gamow Bag This is a portable, inflatable, hyperbaric bag that allows us to place people in an environment of higher pressure (simulating lower altitude) in the higher altitude camps. We bring 1 Gamow bag
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that is usually added to a pool among various guide services on Everest so there is at least one or more in each camp. This is for emergency altitude issues and hopefully will never be used.
Rescue Sked A Sked is a simple, lightweight stretcher that allows evacuation easily if needed. Again, this is added to a larger group pool between the various established guide services so at least one is available at each camp. Weather Forecasting We use several sources for weather forecasting. An important strategy for any summit attempt involves interpreting different forecasts to calculate a general idea of what’s going to happen. Everyone raves about “their forecasts” being better. The truth is most expeditions get their
forecast from one of 3 or 4 sources of which we also access. We are firm believers that it’s not necessarily the forecast that is important, but how it is interpreted. More accurately interpreting forecasts simply comes down to having experience on the mountain.
Communications
"Climbing is the only cure for gravity."
This is a very critical part of an expedition. Having a comprehensive communication system with plenty of batteries and charging facilities allows us to quickly deal with any issues or medical problems. We maintain VHF base stations in both Base Camp and Camp 2, each with large antennas and powerful transmitters. Every team member and most Sherpas will have personal 5 watt VHF radios with instructions on their use. In both Base Camp and Camp 2 we have solar power and batteries for charging everything. In several past situations we have found other groups using our radios to try and communicate with their members in emergencies. It is common for groups to have a lot of trouble with communications on the hill, mostly due to battery and charging issues. Experience helps us choose what systems work best. Our Equipment We use the highest quality Mt. Hardwear and Sling Fin tents on this expedition. We check and recheck every piece of gear that goes high to ensure that we can trust it when the weather turns extreme! Doctor Service We use the Everest Base Camp Doctor and pay this fee for you. It allows us unlimited access in Base Camp to one of normally several western doctors. We are committed to supporting this program, as they have facilities that other groups with their own doctor do not have access to. Having an expedition doctor is an option, but we feel it is highly overrated when we have better services available in Base Camp already. Please check them out online at: www.basecampmd.com They maintain a very well staffed and supplied clinic in Base camp with a lot of equipment that no expedition on Everest could bring privately. It is a great resource and we know the docs well. We also have access to our company medical advisor is Dr. Peter Hacket, one of the foremost high altitude/expedition doctors in the world. Expedition Medical Kits We stock large medical kits in both Base Camp and Camp 2 for emergencies. These are in addition to the portable medical kits that all guides carry during the climb. These kits contain comprehensive medical supplies to allow treatment of most common issues at altitude or basic emergency medicine situations. Oxygen This is one of the most important issues on Everest and other climbs going above
S A F E T Y
8000 meters. We have plenty of oxygen for the climb to support the commonly accepted rate of 1-1.5 liters per minute flow for sleeping and 2.5 - 4.0 liters per minute while climbing. We also offer an additional oxygen program to provide for higher flows while climbing. Please call to discuss this. We use the reliable Top-Out masks, Poisk regulators and 4 liter bottles. While it’s challenging to climb with any O2 systems, the Top-Out mask has some noticeable advantages besides being the very efficient and reliable.They are comfortable to wear, and allow for good vision. Many climbers like to purchase their masks at the end of the trip, we are happy to talk to you about that option. At altitude, what would otherwise be straightforward climbing, can be quite challenging with an oxygen mask, so we will spend time practicing with our masks and regulators before going high. We believe oxygen, and lots of it, is one of the things we can more closely control to make this climb safer. This has been proven over and over again, and the vast majority of fatal accidents up high on Everest can be attributed to too little oxygen, or complete lack of it. It costs a lot in international air cargo, transport to base camp, money and manpower to get those bottles to Camp 4 and higher for our summit day, but it is worth the expense. We have a carefully designed program to supply our summit day and also have enough for emergencies. We have additional oxygen available for a second attempt at the top if we do not summit our first attempt. Oxygen helps people think clearer, climb stronger and stay warmer. These are critical elements to any Everest trip. All members including guides will use oxygen above Camp 3. All Sherpas will use oxygen above Camp 4. On summit day all members will carry only one bottle and use a total of three en route. We will have extra regulators and masks on all summit bids to swap out if there are any problems. Our experience and attention to these complicated logistics can dramatically increase your safety and success in a very unsafe environment. Inter-team Support We work closely with and have a very good working relationship with most long term Everest guides and staff from other expeditions. We all work together on a basis of mutual respect to help look after everyone’s overall safety. Years of working together has resulted in these close relationships between teams that allow even greater resources to be shared. One example is how we sort out sharing our Gamow bags and contribute staff, equipment and Oxygen for the setting fixed lines from Camp 2 to the summit. Helicopter Support Our agent in Kathmandu is part owner and operates one of the Helicopter charter companies in Kathmandu. This allows us priority helicopter use if needed. This is a potentially important bit of additional “insurance” that we are able to provide. This is one of only a couple helicopters in Nepal that can land at base camp with passengers. We can arrange heli flights back to Kathmandu, or Lukla at the end of the expedition, which has been a popular option for many of our climbers.
GENERAL I N F O R M A T I O N his is a good SO WHY Tquestion that you should honestly ask CLIMB of yourself. Yes, it certainly is EVEREST most there! People climb
Everest for many reasons from wanting to c h a l l e n g e themselves both physically and mentally, to fulfilling a lifelong dream after climbing many lesser peaks. It is one of the great adventure goals in the world and an Everest attempt requires a very deep sense of commi tment and dedication unlike any other mountain. So please ask yourself, why are you climbing Everest? You should have a long hard look at the risk vs. reward into your decision making. Any ascent to 8000 meters involves significant risk. Hiring a professional guide service like Mt. Trip can help to minimize that risk and increase your chances of success.
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Te a m m e m b e r s a r e ultimately responsible for their own well being. This includes making all necessary preparations to ensure good health and excellent physical conditioning both before and during an expedition. Our guides will oversee and discuss important issues along the way, but you should arrive in Katmandu very well prepared. Team members are responsible for understanding the conditions and risks that may exist on the climb and communicating closely with the guides. Over the course of a long expedition, especially one as serious and strenuous as an Everest climb, it is not unusual to have doubts or a change in focus. You need to keep in close communication with your guides at all points so that we can better help monitor your progress. Before an expedition, team members are responsible for having knowledge of all predeparture information, preparing themselves to be in a very high level of fitness, and for assembling the appropriate clothing and equipment for the expedition. Please contact us with any and all questions. While on the expedition, team members are responsible to listen closely to the guides at all times, maintain basic levels of hygiene and to conduct themselves respectful ly wi th other team members, staff and members of other expeditions.
RESPONSIBILITIES OF TEAM MEMBERS
GENERAL
I N F O R M A T I O N
EXPECT ATIONS
We believe that the most successful expeditions are born of teamwork. Anyone can muddle up a hill, with someone holding their hand, tugging on the rope when the going gets tough. We hope to instill a sense, in everyone who climbs with us, that through active participation you walk away with a more positive experience. Strive for quality in everything you do on the mountain, from lacing up your boots in the morning, to taking the extra minute to organize your kit and be the first one ready to go each morning. Climbing Everest is a lot of hard work and we feel that if you do your best every step of the way, your chances of reaching the summit will improve. You have embarked upon a journey that will test your will, your patience, stamina, endurance and good humor. Everest is not a comfortable place. You will, at times, find yourself too hot or too cold, too thirsty or too full, moving too quickly or too slowly. There will be plenty of time to hang out and enjoy your surroundings, but when we are climbing, you will need to focus all you energies at completing the task at hand. The better prepared you are before you arrive in Kathmandu, the more fully you will enjoy your climb. Climbers in the past have commented that they should have put in more long days training with their pack on (4-6 hours, plus breaks). Get creative. There will be opportunities on your expedition to review skills necessary for safely traveling through a glaciated environment and we’ll teach you a trick or two; however, we do expect you to come to Nepal proficient in certain skills. You should come to Mount Everest comfortable with your basic mountaineering skills. We expect all of our climbers to come with experience on Denali, Aconcagua, or other high altitude expeditions. We are happy to help climbers who aspire to climb Everest to come up with a plan to gain the appropriate experience to make this a reasonable goal. There aren’t any shortcuts, it is a lot of work, and requires a skilled mountaineer to summit Everest.
"The best climber in the world is the one who's having the most fun." -Alex Lowe
Physical Conditioning An Everest expedition may well be one of the hardest physical undertakings of your life. You must be prepared for that reality. Physical conditioning is one of the few things you have control over on Everest. You need to train sufficiently so that you do not worry if you are fit enough while on the climb. You should know before going to Katmandu that you are in top form and have the requisite abilities to move quickly and safely while on the expedition. If you question your physical preparedness, you need to begin training harder or skip a year until you feel you are not limited by your level of fitness. We will work closely together to make sure you have a solid training program to meet what Everest takes, as this is a very important part of this expedition.
Waste Management All human solid waste is carried down from base camp in barrels. Higher up, we use WAG bags for human waste in Camp 3, where the camps are quite small and stacked on top of each other. We only wish all other expeditions would help with this. All trash is carried off the mountain and down to Namche where it is weighed by the SPCC (Sagarmatha Pollution Control Counsel). We encourage everyone to keep the mountain clean and we strive to set a very positive example for other groups on the mountain in how to manage these issues.
Paperwork We must have your expedition application and initial deposit early in order to confirm your spot on an expedition. It is vital for a well run expedition to know far in advance how many people will be joining us. As we get closer to the expedition start, it becomes increasingly difficult to adjust our Sherpa numbers and Oxygen orders. This requirement helps assure that everything is in place at the right time for your team. Remember that final payment is due at least 120 days before the start of the trip. Please refer to Cancellation and Refund page in your application packet for details on those policies
Insurance We require all of our climbers to have personal medical and emergency medical/transportation insurance in place before an Everest expedition. We have found IHI (www.IHI.com) covers both emergency medical and evacuation with few limitations. US and Canadian residents can contact Todd at the Mountain Trip office for information on Travelguard policies, which provide the above coverages, as well as trip cancellation insurance. Additionally, a personal medical policy in your home country is highly recommended. We highly encourage trip cancellation insurance to protect against the unfortunate situation where you cannot join the team at the last minute, as this will protect you from the forfeiture of your deposits. Mountain Trip carries commercial liability insurance and fully insures all mountain and camp staff.
GENERAL I N F O R M A T I O N
[] Teammates
An important part of any longer expeditions is who you will share that experience with. Almost all climbers joining our Everest team have participated on other Mt. Trip expeditions. For those of you who have climbed with us previously, welcome back. Thank you so much for your continued trust. We like to put team members in contact with one another before their climb, however; if you would not like to be included on team contact lists, please let us know.
Mental Preparation This is a much overlooked part of climbing Everest; however it may well be the most important part. Do your research, talk to people, and try to gain an understanding of what can go wrong up there. We have all heard the stories of frustration and fear, and they may or may not be based in reality. You will be faced with long waits, extreme cold, the Khumbu Icefall… It takes a much focused drive at all points on the mountain to reach beyond the physical and mental challenges on the way to the summit. It requires strong focus to move forward through the icefall so you and your teammates spend less time in it, to push hard on summit day so you can arrive on top and still have the energy to make it back, to really hear what the guides are saying, and to listen honestly to what your body is telling you. Sometimes the intensity feels like too much and you need to be able to push through this mental barrier. The same thing applies with the all too common waiting game while we watch the weather, awaiting a good window. Occasionally,
you will see other groups that have summited, or descending with serious injuries. This all conspires to illustrate that this is a very mentally challenging and serious endeavor that we are undertaking. If you can prepare well, remain focused, strong, healthy, and attentive, with a little luck and good weather, you can do it!
camps, especially at Camp 2 where a vast amount of garbage gets left every season. We use a fully solarpowered base camp and Camp 2 to lessen the environmental impacts of our expedition. We support many projects as part of our commitment to Nepal and its people, including the “Sherpa Children’s Fund” which helps local children obtain higher level schooling in Kathmandu and beyond. We also help Environmental Ethics support the local “Porter Protection Program” via A very important part of our Everest program is donations of clothing and equipment. This helps local respecting and maintaining the ecosystems that we porters receive a fair wage, standardized loads, live and work in. We support and strongly adhere to adequate clothing and food. Another organization we the “Leave no Trace” program while climbing support is the “High Altitude Mountain Workers anywhere in the world. It’s critical that we adhere to Welfare Association” which helps the Sherpas lobby this ethic on a mountain like Everest where there is so for better wages, work conditions, equipment and much lack of concern and heavy environmental impact benefits. This is a rapidly expanding issue as so many within the camps. We have pledged to follow smart Sherpas are now working and risking their lives for a environmental ethics while on Everest and other growing number of foreign climbers. We encourage regions of the world where we climb and guide. We everyone to support the Sherpa people and their pay bonuses to Sherpas who help carry down empty environment. oxygen bottles from our expedition and others. We do our best to encourage everyone to maintain clean
will need to arrive prior to the first scheduled day of the AIR You expedition in order to attend our first (late-afternoon) briefing in
TRAVEL
Kathmandu. Everest climbs may take over 60 days. Do not book your return flight back too early. We highly recommend you plan your arrival at least a day early as this will allow you time for any unexpected travel delays or lost baggage. A couple of extra days will also help you to better adjust to the time zone. Return flights need to be booked for no earlier than the recommended flight day. We have found it is reasonably easy to change flights home for earlier dates, especially if you fly through Bangkok. Before booking, check to make sure your flights are not only available 1 or 2 days a week. Thai Airlines offers flights every day and 2 flights a day during the high season to/from Bangkok. Thailand is not such a bad place to travel after an expedition, so consider planning some extra time if you can. As guides, we plan
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flights home for June 6th-8th, and then change just the Kathmandu to Bangkok section. That allows us a short (and maybe a bit longer) vacation to decompress after the rigors of the expedition and also allows plenty of time in case of delays. Another tip, is that the section from Bangkok to Kathmandu and return can be booked separately as a Business class ticket that’s very affordable (it adds $300 or so). This allows for additional baggage and is a much easier ticket to change. Please make sure we know when you will arrive and if you need additional hotel nights. We recommend Pirjo DeHart with CTT destinations at +1-425-831-0367 or via email at: Pirjo.dehart@cttdestinations.com Also let us know if you prefer a single room while in Katmandu. This service is available for an additional fee.
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GENERAL
Teammates
We understand that you are entrusting your guides to make difficult decisions and we do not take that trust lightly. We will strive to continue to earn that trust throughout the expedition. Another less serious part of joining a team is you can share in the diverse experiences of the group. Most people who choose to climb Everest lead quite interesting lives and sharing what happens on and after an expedition can lead to lifelong friendships. The bond that is created during a well run expedition will always be there.
I N F O R M A T I O N
GRATUITIES Mountain
NOTES ON OTHER GUIDING OPTIONS
Nowadays, there are lots of different forms of Everest expeditions being advertised. There are many companies making promises for the best this and best that. As you negotiate all the information out there, please be careful as we have seen many very concerning things happen on Everest. Self-guided or Sherpa-guided expeditions can save some money, but simply put, you will not receive the same benefits as from the program as we are offering. It is also a bit concerning to see the trend of climbers who have climbed peaks around the world as part of commercially guided expeditions, yet decide to save some money and join a self-guided team on the hardest mountain challenge of their lives. As their guides on difficult mountains like Denali and Vinson, we are only occasionally asked by our clients if we think they are ready for such an undertaking, and we give them our honest advice on the matter. We have also had numerous climbers join these groups and not reach the summit on their first or second attempt. We feel that with an investment of this magnitude (financially and otherwise); it makes sense to spend a bit more to have the insurance of western, professional guides. Mountain Trip has been looking after climbers for over 35 years. We know how to organize the requisite logistics required to lead an expedition focused on getting you home and when all things align properly, to the summit. We have great trust in our Sherpas, yet honestly believe that currently, it still requires a very experienced western leader to make sure standards are maintained, schedules followed and that everything is in place for our summit push. The depth and level of logistics or this climb are incredible and our experience allows us to maintain the highest standards in all areas surrounding an expedition to Everest. You can be assured you are on a well run expedition from the start, instead of finding out half way through that things are not as they seem.
Guiding is one of the m o s t demanding professions imaginable. Your guides, (both Sherpa and Western) will work incredible hard for weeks on end to help keep you comfortable and hopefully help you reach the summit. If you are satisfied with the quality of their service, we encourage you to express your satisfaction to your guides. There is a minimum per Sherpa bonus of $800 per climbing Sherpa and $3000 per staff. Please remember that our Sherpa ratio is 2 per member. We pool these costs and share it amongst all team members, including the western guides. All tips should be in US Dollars (or Rupees). During and after any Everest expedition you will see how incredibly hard our team will work towards allowing you to safely reach your goals.
IMMUNIZATIONS P l e a s e
check with the CDC, your local travelers’ immunization clinic or your doctor for a list of appropriate and current immunizations. Bring them your immunization card so they can tell you up to d a t e recommended immunizations. Ty p i c a l l y, nothing is required for travel to Nepal, but it’s a very good idea to check on vaccines and immunizations for Hepatitis A and B, Tetanus, Typhoid, Rabies, Malaria and Meningitis
W e f i n d m a n y BLOGS people have s p o n s o r s , a r e SPONSORS c l i m b i n g f o r a CHARITIES cause, or update personal blogs while on the mountain. We encourage that, and will help support these projects on your t r i p . Yo u c a n brand this e x p e d i t i o n however you want and market y o u r c l i m b fo r sponsors and causes. If you are running a blog or e x p e d i t i o n reports, try to set things up so a simple email with a picture attached updates your site. Most blogs have this option now. Cont ac t us for thoughts on how to make this work.
KATH MAN DU
Katmandu is one of Asia’s famous exotic travel destinations! It is a wild and fascinating place. Kathmandu is a large, busy, colorful city with numerous beautiful temples and markets. We have some excursions to Swayambunath and Pashupatinath temples planned. Be warned, you are entering a third world country where sanitation is of a much lower standard than home. Please see the notes below on water treatment. Care needs to be taken with the afternoon dust on hot days while walking around Kathmandu, as this can the source for a variety of chest infections and persistent coughs. While such infections are difficult to guard against, this would make for a rough start to an expedition. Many travelers therefore use dust masks. There are hundreds of equipment shops in town if
you need any last minute items, and you can ask the guides where to go. You can even buy boots, down suits, sleeping bags, and more or less anything you might need for an Everest climb at prices a little less than retail. We recommend you arrive an extra couple of days early if you are going to shop for equipment, because, while it is plentiful, you may need to spend some time finding the right size.
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KATH MAN DU
On Arrival in Kathmandu On arrival, you will have to get your visa. After entering the terminal, quickly go to the “visa on arrival” counter as this process can take awhile. It requires 2 passport photos and $50 to $100 cash to get a 2 month visa to Nepal. After securing your visa, go pick up your bags (fingers crossed here), and proceed to Customs, where they will X-ray them before you exit out into the chaos of Kathmandu! You will be met by either us or one of our agents with a sign that will read “Mountain Trip.” It’s a long flight so we’ll not plan much for this first day, just a short meeting with the team, generally right before dinner. At this time we will discuss the schedule for the next day. Kathmandu Schedule As mentioned, we will have a short orientation on the first evening of the expedition to allow everyone to get some rest and recover from long flights. It is also important to do a brief equipment check on your arrival day in case something needs to be purchased in town. The following day we have a longer meeting scheduled to go over all aspects of packing, the trek, permits, flights and what to expect in the coming days. The following morning, we are on call for flights into Lukla. This requires that we get up early, go out to the airport with our gear for the trek in and hope the weather is good enough to fly in. This can go quickly or it could take a few days. The Lukla Airport is a challenge place to land in the best of weather. We will oversee sorting everyone’s equipment into two loads, one that will go in directly to BC apart from us and the other load which will stay with us on the trek in. We go over all of this in detail in Kathmandu. Although it is a 10 day trek and it will be cold by the time we arrive in the upper villages and near base camp, we will strive to pull a minimum amount of gear for the trek in. It’s good to think a bit about what to send ahead and what to keep with you for the trek before you arrive in Kathmandu. Hotels We provide three (3) nights of hotel lodging before and 1 night after the expedition in Kathmandu. We will stay at the Yak and Yeti or an equivalent hotel. The Yak and Yeti is located right in the heart of
Kathmandu and hosts a pool, gardens, and a very good restaurant. It is a very welcome retreat from the busy streets of Kathmandu and is one of the finest hotels in the city. It is also just a short walk from the Thamel tourist district. Rooms are provided based on double occupancy. This is the location of the team meeting and equipment check on the evening of your arrival. Water We recommend drinking only bottled or filtered and treated water in Kathmandu and on the trek. Because of the environmental issues of plastic bottles, we highly recommend filtering and treating water or buying boiled water for drinking. Please do not brush your teeth using the local water! This is an easy mistake that could cost you dearly. You will undoubtedly get sick if you ingest any of Kathmandu’s water, including water in the hotel shower. The Trek to Base Camp This is one of the truly outstanding treks of the world! Upon our arrival in Lukla we are in the heart of the Sherpa community. We’ll spend the next ten days working our way up to Everest Base Camp. There are lots of places to explore, and things to see and do along the way. We will stay in some great mountain lodges, eat good food, revel in the clean air and savor the remarkable views of the Himalayas. Our trek will take us through Lukla, Namche Bazaar, Tyangboche, Dingboche, Lobouche, Gorak Shep and then to Base Camp. The trek provides us with the opportunity to acclimatize and stay “tuned up” physically as we approach Mount Everest. There are no cars up here, but they do have cell phone service and electricity in the lower villages now! This trek is a very rewarding part of the trip. It affords climbers some time to start focusing on Everest and its significance to the local people, as there is an almost tangible sense of spirituality that surrounds the mountain. The local beliefs need to be respected as they are an important part of the culture and lives of the Sherpas who will be helping you reach your goal of climbing Sagarmatha (Everest).
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AL IT IO N
AD
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Single Suppliment For single occupancy in Kathamndu Hotels.
$475 for the 4 nights.
OPTIONS Support Treks to Base Camp Do you or someone you know want to join the Everest team on the way into Base Camp? Family members and friends are allowed first priority to join this trek. We will also coordinate a trek in that aims to arrive in Base Camp to coincide with the team’s estimated summit dates. We can arrange these privately or as part of a larger group. Please see our current online schedule for prices and dates.
Additional Sherpa Support We can offer extra Sherpa support during any trip to help with personal equipment, oxygen, filming, transporting electronics, or for additional security and support. Please call for details. We encourage this as it will help everyone out. The additional cost per Additional Sherpa.
Additional Oxygen Want to crank up the flow rates? Use oxygen lower on the hill? We can provide additional oxygen that will be reserved for you and in place where you want it. We have a very comprehensive program already and more oxygen than most teams on the mountain, but this is an option we can provide. This requires bringing additional Sherpa support to get the bottles up the mountain. If you are interested, please talk to us and we can work it out. Additional costs will be involved.
$3900, 19 days.
$12,500, which includes an extra bottle of Oxygen
$5000 for one extra bottle
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Lhotse Expedition We have a parallel expedition to Lhotse, Everest’s very close neighbor and one the fourth highest mountain in the world. The Lhotse team will be on a different schedule than ours. The climbing on Lhotse is more serious than Everest due the steeper angle of the slopes, poorer fixed lines and additional technical difficulties. The Lhotse team will have all the advantages and resources of our Everest expedition including the same Base Camp services, communications, one to one Sherpa ratio, and oxygen, all combined with a 3 to 1 western guide ratio.
$26,500, 55 Days, 6 bottles Oxygen, 3 climber minimum.
Camp 2, 3 and 4 Expeditions Are you interested in climbing to 8000 meters, seeing what an Everest climb is like without assuming the additional challenges and risks of the higher mountain? Perhaps you are planning to climb Everest in a few years and not sure about your capabilities? This is a good choice for climbers to get a taste of high altitude climbing as you will be climbing together with the Everest summit team. We can offer climbing to Camp 2, 3 and 4 as part of this expedition very easily. This is quite an opportunity to see and experience Everest’s very famous features-
the Icefall, the Lhotse Face, Yellow Band, Geneva Spur and the Western Cwm. These are truly legendary and amazing places. This option requires less of a time commitment than the whole two months that Everest requires. Please see our current schedule for prices and dates.
Please Contact for Price
"I Have not conquered Everest. It has merely tolerated me." -Peter Habeler
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I T I N E R A R Y SOUTH C O L ROUTE Everest is a big, serious mountain with big mountain weather, technical climbing, and health and acclimatization issues. The following itinerary represents a very basic outline of what could happen on a given day during the course of an Everest expedition. Many factors can, and probably will, contribute to cause the following schedule to change. Everest requires a pace spread out over two months instead of over days or weeks. It requires a pace that enables you to conserve your energy for up high and requires spending a lot of time recovering down low on our rest days. Many people find this very hard to do. The waiting game is very challenging as there is a lot of “downtime.” We always plan short hikes and a before-summit respite down in Dingboche. We have carefully chosen our start date to allow you a little shorter overall expedition and less downtime waiting. This still allows plenty of acclimatization and a mid May summit date. The entire time while we are trekking in, our Sherpa team will be working hard to get BC, Camps 1 and 2 set up. Many loads have to go up through the icefall before we can go up. Last season the route through the icefall opened on April 13th and the route to Camp 2 on the 15th. This work was done on behalf of every team on the mountain. Our schedule strikes a nice balance between maintaining a conservative acclimatization schedule and spending so much time that the downtime proves to be a mental hurdle. Historically, it has also been a bit more dangerous in the icefall in the few days following a new route through being established. Our guides know the mountain and may elect to stray from this itinerary in order to give you the best possible shot at getting to the summit. We will discuss all major changes in strategy with the group so everyone can understand why we are making the choices we do. We plan to be there until we summit or conditions prove too risky to continue.
Which Season l We always plan to go during the highly successful spring season. There may be more climbers, but the hazards, conditions, length of days, temperatures, weather and winds are all
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better in the “pre-monsoon” season. The autumn season has a much lower percentage of climbers reaching the summit, less climbing teams to share the group work and is overall more dangerous.
I T I N E R A R Y S O U T H WHEN IN MAY TO SUMMIT
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E V E R E S T
This is a hot topic, and always a point of contention around Base Camp. The current thoughts are
of May the weather begins to settles down into a good pattern of fair-weather cumulus of varying degrees. that after the This is the classic pre-monsoon weather pattern that brings much warmer weather and less wind. The vast majority of summits over the last few years have shifted to later in the season, with very few summits happening before the 18th. You will see all that earlier in May, the winds scour the upper part of the mountain and the windows are smaller, less predictable, and colder. Additionally, the route is sometimes not “in� for earlier attempts or climbers find that the Sherpas are fixing the route on the day they go for the summit. This is not ideal and makes a risky summit attempt even less safe. Overall its best to plan to summit a few days later and we organize our whole acclimatization schedule to work towards a summit window in the last 2 weeks in May. We will be watching several different weather forecasts very closely and if a trend of good weather is forming earlier, we can easily adjust our schedule (BC or Dingboche rest days) to summit before May 20th if that is looking best. Generally, most early 18th
summit bids are launched more because people start running out of patience to wait for better weather. This results in some climbers reaching the top, but not with a high success rate and almost always results in a much higher accident rate due to cold injuries. There has been some limited success before the 18th of May, but the vast majority of successful summits are now a bit later in the season.
SOUTH VS NORTH ROUTES Both sides of Everest offer re a s o n a b l e ro u t e s t o t h e summit. The South has traditionally been how most p e o p l e h ave re a c h e d t h e summit and has been the standard route for guiding. The North has had a reputation for more difficult climbing, higher accident rate and lower summit percentages. When trying to decide on the route to take, you have to understand that many people on the north side are there on budget trips, with minimum Sherpa and O2 support. These facts alone probably explain the higher number of incidents. Climbing the N. side exposes you to the risk of getting involved in rescues for climbers and teams who are ill prepared and more likely to have an accident. After climbing both sides of the mountain, we believe that in many ways, the North side offers a good route, but other factors make the S. Side more appealing. Unfortunately, there have been many problems over the last couple years as a result of decisions on the part of the Chinese government and climbers have not had reliable access to the North side.
We are really happy with our infrastructure, Sherpa staff, and the entire experience of the expedition from the Nepal side. The experience of trekking through the Khumbu region beneath beautiful peaks such as Ama Dablam and Cholatse , staying in comfortable guest houses, all the while enjoying the warm Sherpa culture on the way to base camp all combine to make this truly the experience of a lifetime.
We continue to believe the South is the best choice for climbers, considering the recent access issues. You are taking a chance going to the North side that things could change and you may be turned around at the border at the last minute. We are unwilling to launch an expedition to a side of the mountain where our access is not guaranteed, so we are continuing to focus on the South Col route. The trek in is a very pleasant part of any Everest expedition on the south side, and is not to be missed. We are always happy to talk about the differences, so please give us a call.
I T I N E R A R Y S O U T H
C O L l
E V E R E S T
THANK YOU FOR JOINING MOUNTAIN TRIP l This booklet contains an assortment of information to help you prepare for a safe and successful climb of Mt Everest. Within these pages you’ll find an expanded itinerary, gear list and training ideas, as well as some general information and history about Everest, the Himalayas and of climbing the highest mountain in the world! Climbing an extremely high mountain like Everest requires proper preparation, guidance and can be incredibly rewarding. The more physically and mentally prepared you are for the trip, the more you will enjoy your experience. See you in Kathmandu! THERE ARE ONLY A FEW DAYS CLIMBING UP HIGH l We like to break the expedition down and look closer at the number of days climbing with crampons and it’s remarkably few for a mountain like Everest. There should be only 15 days of actual climbing above BC (more with rest/acclimitzation days). About 4 of those days are quite short, 2 to 3 hours. 6 of those days are climbing to/from Camp 2 below 21,500ft., altitudes most of us have been to before. Then we have 5 days above Camp 2, up and down to the summit, difficult and long. We need to be highly focused for these. And of those 15 total days climbing, 4 are climbing down! There are many more trekking and rest days than climbing. The waiting days can be more difficult to handle with many days of waiting when we all would like to go. These days we go for short hikes, train, check equipment, relax and enjoy just being here. So all this is just a deferent way to look at things that may help! Note: We are not trying to diminish any of the difficulties of climbing Mount Everest, just put things in a different perspective.
S u mmary l S o w i t h a l l t ha t s a id , i t s im p o r t a nt t o p re p a re e a r ly s o i t ’s le s s s t re s s ful. Tra in ha rd no w s o i t s m o re e njoyable . E ve re s t c an be ve r y daunt ing. Al l t he pre parat io ns , t raining, e quipme nt , c o nc e r ns , anx ie ty al l fo c us e d dow n t o a fe w days up high. S o w e have found i t s ve r y impor t ant t o jus t bre ak e ve r yt hing dow n int o s imple r t asks. E n j oy Ka t h m a n d u d u r in g yo u r s t ay t h e re. You could buy al l your gear there i f there is anything you forgot o r are mis s ing, s o n o w o rries t h ere, w e ’ l l dou b le ch e ck e ve ry t h in g . Focu s ju st on t h e t re k, inst ead o f t he mount ain, t his is t he fun par t of t he t r ip. At B C t hings are c omfor t able and i t ’s a good t ime t o pre pare for t he c l imb t o C1 and C2, no t be yo nd. One s t e p at a t ime !
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SOUTH COL ITINERARY This schedule will change. We have lots of options to either accelerate or wait out bad weather at all points.
Day 0
4/02
Recommended Arrival
Day 32
5/04
Descend to Dingboche
Day 1
4/03
Arrival in Kathmandu - Meeting
Day 33
5/05
Dingboche - Acclimatization
Day 2
4/04
Kathmandu - Visit Temples
Day 34
5/06
Dingboche - Acclimatization
Day 3
4/05
Fly to Lukla - Start Trek to Base
Day 35
5/07
Trek to Louboche
Day 4
4/06
Trek to Namche Bazaar
Day 36
5/08
BC - Rest
Day 5
4/07
Namche Bazaar - Acclimatization
Day 37
5/09
Climb to C2
Day 6
4/08
Trek to Tengboche
Day 38
5/10
C2 - Acclimatization / Rest
Day 7
4/09
Trek to Dingboche
Day 39
5/11
Climb to C3 - Lhotse Face
Day 8
4/10
Dingboche - Acclimatization
Day 40
5/12
Climb to C4 - South Col
Day 9
4/11
Dingboche - Acclimatization
Day 41
5/13
First Summit Day
Day 10
4/12
Trek to Lobouche
Day 42
5/14
Extra Summit Day
Day 11
4/13
Lobouche - Acclimatization
Day 43
5/15
Extra Summit Day
Day 12
4/14
Trek to Gorak Shep
Day 44
5/16
Extra Summit Day
Day 13
4/15
Trek to Everest BC
Day 45
5/17
Extra Summit Day
Day 14
4/16
Everest BC
Day 46
5/18
Extra Summit Day
Day 15
4/17
Everest BC
Day 47
5/19
Extra Summit Day
Day 16
4/18
Everest BC
Day 48
5/20
Extra Summit Day
Day 17
4/19
Climb to C1
Day 49
5/21
Extra Summit Day
Day 18
4/20
Carry to C2
Day 50
5/22
Extra Summit Day
Day 19
4/21
Climb to C2
Day 51
5/23
Extra Summit Day
Day 20
4/22
C2 Acclimatization
Day 52
5/24
Extra Summit Day
Day 21
4/23
C2 Acclimatization
Day 53
5/25
Extra Summit Day
Day 22
4/24
Descend to BC
Day 54
5/26
Extra Summit Day
Day 23
4/25
BC - Acclimatization
Day 55
5/27
Extra Summit Day
Day 24
4/26
BC - Acclimatization
Day 56
5/28
Extra Summit Day
Day 25
4/27
Climb to C2
Day 57
5/29
Descend to Camp 2
Day 26
4/28
C2 - Acclimatization
Day 58
5/30
Descend to BC
Day 27
4/29
C2 - Acclimatization
Day 59
5/31
Trek to Pangboche
Day 28
4/30
Climb to C3 - Lhotse Face
Day 60
6/01
Trek to Namche
Day 29
5/1
C2 - Acclimatization
Day 61
6/02
Trek to Lukla
Day 30
5/02
Descend to BC
Day 62
6/03
Fly to KTM
Day 31
5/03
BC - Acclimatization
Day 63
6/04
Flights Home
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EQUIPMENT LIST Climbing big mountains inherently requires specialized equipment. The following list should be followed closely in order for you to succeed on Everest. Optional items are noted as such, but the rest of the list should be regarded as required equipment. Many of the items on the list need to fit you well in order for you to fully enjoy your experience on the mountain. Please plan ahead with your equipment for your trip so you can be certain that your gear fits you well. Mt. Everest is not the place to discover that your pack is too long for your torso or that your boots give you blisters. Lastly, we do provide some recommended items that reflect the opinions of our guides and are weighted toward companies practicing sane environmental practices, but they may not necessarily fit you. Kathmandu has an amazing collection of equipment shops, including fully stocked North Face, Mt Hardware and Marmot shops. Allow extra time if you plan to buy lots of gear in Kathmandu. Call or email with any gear questions, as we want you to be as prepared as possible for your expedition.
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NOTES
Much of today's gear is built bulletproof, meaning overbuilt so that it lasts a long time. This translates as heavy! You should be on a mission to purchase the very lightest gear that will serve a given purpose. Analyze every piece of equipment you bring and see if you can replace it with something that is as warm, but is a few ounces lighter, yet will do the same job. Think layers and not one single purpose layer. As a general rule, if you can't layer it, leave it behind in camp! Obviously we will need some of the warmest equipment available for this climb, but do you need a -40 degree bag when you have a 5 to 6 lb. down suit as well? Make sure to try on, use and feel comfortable with all your gear. Knowing your equipment, how to adjust it, and what to do if something fails are very important on Everest. The Sherpas do not carry all your gear up. You will be responsible for most of your personal equipment from BC to Camp 2 and there can be a huge difference in the weight of what you choose. Weight is one of the hardest things to deal with up high. Buy your gear as if you will be carrying it all. The Sherpas will help us a lot, but to show up with bulging duffels of heavy gear and expect them to carry it is very poor style.
EQUIPMENT LIST
NOTES Spend time planning your clothing systems. Consider how everything you bring will work together, make sure it is as light as it can be and that you can layer it and use us as a resource for your equipment selection. We are always very happy to answer your questions about equipment as we feel this really is a critical area for your enjoyment and success. If you want to return home with your gear, please mark all your equipment with paint or tape. All duffels need to be clearly marked with your name as things can get very mixed up when 60 to 100 bags come off the yaks at BC, in Lukla, or at the airport on the way out.
TREKKING EQUIPMENT We typically get off the plane in Lukla and just start hiking. It is generally hot so we’ll trek in shorts and light tech shirts with a long sleeved layer (expedition weight fleece or Schoeller) handy. You should also have your sun hat, long pants, shell top and bottom, light gloves, light hat or Buff, camera, sunscreen, water treatment and 1 or 2 liters of water and an insulated jacket (lt. down coat or Puff) in our day packs. It will be cooler up towards Tyangboche where we will also use our Micro-Puff jackets (and/or light down jackets). Higher up we need a couple layers for top and bottom, with a fleece/Puff and light down coat layers available (to layer or one heavier down coat). While mornings and evenings can be cool, it often warms up enough to still shorts while trekking on nice days. We can always put our shells over these layers for additional warmth at any point of the trek. The lodges typically have Yak dung heaters going in the evening, very “green energy,” that works much better than it might sound. BC EQUIPMENT The temperatures fluctuate from allowing us to wear shorts and sneakers in the day to requiring a down coat and pants at night, especially early in the season. For the most part, we can wear our trekking shoes around Base Camp, even at night. In the Equipment List you will notice that we ask you to bring two light weight sleeping bags. Layering two 20 degree Fahrenheit sleeping bags makes for a great
combination in BC as early season you need both, however later on, one is sufficient. Sleeping in one lighter bag is much more comfortable in the trekking lodges as well. Small, light, zippered nylon duffels make gear organization in your tent easier than stuff sacks. An MP3 player adds a lot of entertainment (not to be used climbing). In selecting your reading for the trip, consider some good books that others would be willing to trade for when you are finished. BC TO CAMP 2 EQUIPMENT For this stretch you can climb with a couple of layers on your legs, such as a light synthetic base layer and a lighter soft-shell (Patagonia Simple Guide Pants). You should keep your lightweight, full-zip Gore-tex jacket and pants available. On your torso you will probably be comfortable in a couple of light layers under a Patagonia Micro Puff Hooded Jacket (or similar), plus a lighter weight down parka for stopping that can go over your Puffy. Another thought might be to add a hooded soft-shell. These are great layering systems and will work in most other places besides Everest. We will cache our down suits in Camp 2, then use a combination of layers for up and down between BC and Camp 2. It is important here to dress lighter so we don’t overheat while we push hard through the icefall to minimize risks from collapsing ice and avalanches from the Lho La Pass. A good thick softshell or wind-stopper fleece glove, plus a warmer glove (Black Diamond
Guide Gloves are highly recommended) are a very good combination for your hands in this section. Always have a fleece hat that fits under your helmet and a Buff scarf handy to adjust for a variety of temperatures. We will leave our warmer sleeping bag, down suits, 1 headlamp, 1 Pbottle and what other miscellaneous things that we can at C2 so as to minimize what we carry back and forth to C2. CAMP 2 TO SUMMIT EQUIPMENT We use our down suits when travelling above Camp 2 as it is important for an early start and the wind can get serious. Under our down suits we normally wear a couple of layers and a lighter soft-shell or fleece. You will need two layers on your legs. The Gore-tex and all other down/synthetic layers stay in Camp 2. Have a neoprene face mask, thick gloves and mittens, glacier glasses, and goggles all at hand.
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GEAR LIST BOOTS ___High Altitude Climbing BOOTS: LaSportiva “Olympus Mons EVO”, Lowa “Expedition GTX 8000”, “Millet Everest” The goal is to have warm, comfortable feet! Try on a variety of boots as they all fit differently and get the one that fits well. You need room to wiggle your toes easily. A good test is to see if you are able to put your finger down behind your heel with all your socks on and insoles in place. Err to have a ½ size too large here, or even a full size, as you can add additional insoles or thicker/ additional socks, however we believe one sock is a better way to go. Spend some time wearing your boots before the trip to make sure of the fit. Guides’ Pick: La Sportiva Olympus Mons ___Lightweight Climbing Boot: (optional) We’ve found that a lighter weight climbing boot can be really nice for rotations up to Camp 2 from base camp. You can, and many climbers will, use your big mountain boots for the whole trip. Guides’ Pick: La Sportiva, Trango Extreme Evo Light GTX ___Trekking Shoe: Trail Running Shoes or ankle high trekking shoes work perfect for the trek to/from Base Camp. We spend most of our time in Base Camp with these on. Please be certain that these are broken in before the trek!! ___Booties: Synthetic or down filled booties. These are great for camp and tent comfort and allow you extra opportunity to dry out your mountain boots. (Optional) ___Electric Foot Heaters: Battery powered toe warmers can offer a bit of insurance for your toes on a cold summit night. These do add some weight, and additional batteries, but if you have cold feet it just might give you peace of mind, and warmth of toes. (Optional) ___Crocs or Flip Flops: These are nice for the lodges, base camp, and for taking showers. You can buy them in Kathmandu. ___Socks: You’ll need four (4) sets of wool or synthetic medium/heavy weight socks to wear in your climbing boots, and 2-3 lighter weight sets for trekking. (We can do laundry in base camp)
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LEGS Consider how your layers will work as a system. Think about how challenging it might be to change layers when the temperatures drop...or rise. How will you negotiate things when “nature calls?” ___Shell Pants: These should be large enough to go over your base layers and must have full side zippers. Look for Packlight Gore-tex or similar pants. These should weigh under a pound. These will mostly be for the trek in case we encounter rain or snow on the way up to base camp. Above base camp our “Soft Shell” pants will typically be all we want. ___Down or Primaloft Pants: This layer must have side zippers, so they can be layered over your shell pants for easy and quick layer changes. Not 8000m pants. Guides’ Pick: Patagonia Micro-Puff Pant. ___Softshell Pants : Used to be considered optional, “Softshell” layers are now considered standard due to the broad comfort range they provide. Pants made of Schoeller Dynamic or similar fabrics can be worn on most of the mountain. Guides’ Pick: Patagonia Guide Pants. ___Base Layers: You should bring a variety of weights including (1) warm (Synthetic or wool) bottoms and a couple (2-3) light weight layers . Guides’ Pick: Patagonia Capilene 4 “Expedition Weight” bottoms, and Capilene 2 “Light Weight” bottoms. ___Underwear: 5-6 changes or so should do the trick, although ladies might want a few more. Look for synthetics such as Patagonia Capilene. Ladies should also bring several synthetic sportstype bras. Again, remember we can do laundry along the way.
GEAR LIST HANDS AND HEAD ___ Gloves: Medium to heavy weight fleece, Wind stopper or Schoeller fabric (one or two pairs.) We really like the Shoeller versions. Guides’ Pick: Outdoor Research “Vert” Gloves ___Insulated Gloves: Warm, shelled, insulated expedition glove systems are the workhorse on Everest as there are thousands of feet of fixed lines to clip, climb and rappell. These gloves will often be worn all the way to the summit! Guides’ Pick is Black Diamond’s “Guide Gloves. ___Summit Mittens: Thick, warm, non-constricting mittens made of Primaloft or down. Good choices include: North Face- Mt. Guide or Himalayan Mitts, Mountain Hardware’s Absolute Zero or Masherbrum Mitts, Marmot Expedition Mitt and our Guides’ Pick: Outdoor Research Alti Mitts They aren’t cheap, but are extremely warm (Divide the cost by 10 fingers!). ___Warm Ski Type Hat: Bring two hats of different weights. Fleece lined tend to be more comfortable. Your hat must provide ear protection. One should be thinner for high exertion periods. Both should be sized to fit under your helmet. ___Buff: This is the brand name of a lightweight neck gaiter that can also serve as a hat or headband. These are the choice of virtually ALL of our guides! Bring at least one, and perhaps more, as they now make them in different weights. ___Sun Hat: Baseball type or (better) wide brimmed sun hat for the intense sunshine of the trek and thin air of the mountain. You can combine a baseball hat with a bandana or Buff for good sun protection-again, think synthetic. Hats with neck protection are a bonus! ___Glacier Glasses They must provide side protection and filter 100% UVA and UVB rays. Consider bringing a spare pair. Look for a very low VLT (visible light transmission). There is often very serious UV and intense sunshine for long hours on Everest! Guides Pick: Julbo Explorer with Spectron 4 Lens ___Clear Lens Glasses These are another pair of glasses with a light yellow, or clear lens for eye protection at night. If we have a windy summit night, you will want some eye protection without a dark lens. ___Nose Guard: You can purchase one (Beko makes nice ones) or make one out of duct tape, put this will save your nose on sunny days. ___Ski Goggles: Double lens goggles for use during storms or really cold high winds. UV-protected Amber lenses work great (do not bring very dark lenses). Pack them inside a lightweight, hard-shelled case for protection. A built in fan can help with fog build up. Guides Pick: Smith, Phenom Turbo Fan Goggle
UPPER BODY LAYERS ___ Expedition Down Suit: Marmot, Mountain Hardware, Feathered Friends, North Face all make excellent down suits. Suits that fit somewhat snug are better than a big loose suit. ___ Mid-weight Down Parka: Marmot, Mountain Hardwear and Patagonia all make good, down filled parkas. Down is recommended as it is lighter and less bulky. This is not the same as an 8000m parka. It should be a mid-weight down that can be thrown on over your Puffy or fleece jacket, so size accordingly. It is better to use lighter layers instead of one huge layer. ___Shell Jacket: This should be a lightweight gore-tex or equivalent jacket in case we encounter rain/snow on the trek. We’ll generally leave these at base camp, and go higher on the mountain with a lighter weight wind shell. Guides’ Pick: The Patagonia Torrent Shell Jacket ___Light Weight Wind Shell: This is another shell jacket that is not a “waterproof” layer, but is very light and windproof. We’ll leave the gore tex shells at base camp and use these for a light shell high on the mountain. Guides’ Pick: The Patagonia Houdini Jacket ___Primaloft or Down Hooded Jacket: size Primaloft to fit over your shell, as their nylon fabric is already windproof. We are big fans of the Patagonia hooded puffy jackets (or similar), they are warmer for the weight and compress better than fleece. This will go over base layers and, under the Mid weight parka above. Guides’ Pick: Patagonia Micro-Puff Hooded Jacket or Down Hooded Jacket. ___“Expedition-weight” shirt: This should be made from 100 weight or Powerstretch fleece. A zip t-neck ventilates better than a crew neck. Size this to fit over your base layer. This is not a thick heavy fleece layer. Guides’ Pick: Patagonia R1 Hoody. ___Base Layer Zip T-Neck Shirt: Synthetic or Wool long sleeved base layer. 2 or 3 of these for changing out base layers. Synthetics wick slightly faster, but retain odors. A top with a “Zip-T” neck is nice for ventilating and you might consider a light color for warm days on the lower glacier. Guides’ Pick: Mid-Weight Synthetic or Wool 2 or 3 from Patagonia. ____ Collared Shirt and/or T-Shirts: A comfortable cotton shirt or two is a nice amenity at base camp, or the lodges on a 2 month expedition.
ESSENTIAL PERSONAL ITEMS
GEAR LIST
Personal Medical Kit: We will have a very extensive medical kit and all guides are medically trained at the Wilderness First Responder level at the minimum. We also have access to the basecamp Doctor and clinic. Your kit should contain everything you personally anticipate needing, i.e.: Blister kit (second skin, Band-Aid or Compead blister patches), aspirin, ant-acids, anti gas, lozenges, Ibuprofen, antibiotics and high altitude drugs. Should you opt to bring high altitude drugs, definitely discuss them with your personal physician. Typical high altitude drugs include Nifidepene, Diamox and Dexamethasone. Antibiotics might include Cipro, Azithromycin and Levoquin. These are only to be taken after discussing this with your doctor and with the guides on the mountain. If you take personal medications, make sure to have enough supply for the whole trip, plus a couple of extra weeks. Please discuss any drugs you are taking or may need to take with your doctor, the office and the guides both before the trip and during the trip. ___Sun Cream: 2 or 3- 4oz. tubes of SPF- 40 or better. Guides Tip: Get 5 or 6 small 2 oz. squeeze bottles at REI and buy one large 16oz of sun cream and fill bottles to stash in all your coat pockets (also your lip balm). ___Lip Balm: Bring 3 or 4 tubes, with 15spf minimum, that you can keep in different pockets, so you always have it. ___Blister Kit: Spenco, Second Skin, Compead and Band-Aid all make very good, tapered plastic-like blister patches. They work very well. The larger sized the better. Bring 10 patches or so. These can be put right over a bad blister and keep you smiling! Try these out to make sure you know how they work and if they work for you! ___Foot Powder and/or Cream: This is important after a long time in your boots. Not just because of smell, but rather because it is possible to get difficult foot fungus on longer trips. ___Personal Meds: If you take personal prescriptions, bring enough for entire expedition plus extra in case of loss. ___Altitude Meds: Talk with your physician. Suggested meds would be Diamox, Decadron and Nifidepene. ___Cough Suppressant: Bring a couple 4oz., liquid cough suppressants. These are important, if (when) you get a painful cough up high. ___Cough lozenges: Hard candy will also work, but something with a cough suppressant is better. ___Stuff Bags: (for your own items, plus one large ultralight stuff sac for a cache bag). Small nylon zip duffels work great for tent organization. ___Medium Plastic Bowl: for eating (2-3 cup Rubbermaid storage bowl or Silicone ones.) We have all eating utensils for BC and C2. The silicone ones are really good. ___Insulated Plastic cup: for hot drinks. Do not bring metal cups. 1.5 cup standard REI cups are great.
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___Spoon: Lexan is the best. “Sporks” are of questionable utility, and might get you teased, but work. ___Bandana: Bring two cotton bandanas to keep and sunglasses clean. synthetic fabrics do not
goggles Cotton is important as clean wet goggles well. ___Toilet Kit: (Tooth brush & paste, floss, Advil, aspirin, other meds... keep it small). Consider having one for up high on the hill and one for Base Camp. Men might consider a shaving Kit or small battery operated razor. ___Shower Kit: A mesh stuff sack with a mid-sized towel or pack towel, soap and small shampoo for BC and the trek in. Sea to Summit makes some nice, light towels. ___Swiss Army Knife: These are very handy for many tasks. Please bring a smaller one. ___P-Bottle: 2 of these. 1 qt or larger wide mouth Nalgene bottle (collapsible Nalgenes work great). Make sure your bladder is not bigger than your P-bottle! One lives at C2, the other in BC. Ladies bring an adapter and please practice before you come. ___Personal Hygiene: Ladies should bring any necessary personal hygiene items sufficient for a 2 month trip. ___A Sense of Humor: ___Small ___Large ___Books: You can read upwards of 6 or 7 paperback books on this expedition, or not. Some folks feel these are worth their weight in chocolate on those long storm/rest days. We’ve had great luck with the Kindle readers! ___Favorite Treats and Drinks: We’ll provide plenty of food, but having your favorite energy bar or energy/ recovery drink mixes can help. Maximum 10 lbs. or so. ___Headlamps: Bring 2 or even 3 headlamps, so you can leave one in Camp 2 and another in BC. When we go to the summit, we use 2 headlamps. These also make great gifts for the Sherpas after the expedition. Guides’ Pick: Black Diamond, Spot Headlamp ___Lithium Batteries: Bring appropriately sized lithium batteries for anything you plan to use above Camp 2, i.e. headlamps. Required! These work exceptionally well in extreme cold and weigh less than alkaline batteries. ____Reading Light: A small reading light for your base camp tent is a nice touch. Guides Pick: Black Diamond, Orbit Lantern ___Large, Disposable Towelettes: These are very important also to get sun cream off your face and just general hygiene. Plan on 2 or 3 of these every day on the mountain and you will be a happy camper. ___Hand Warmers: Bring 15+ sets of the disposable versions. Toe warmers work well too and can keep camera batteries warm on summit day. These really work! “Grabber” is a brand with a proven track record. ___Watch with Alarm: It’s important to have some way to know what time it is. Consider if the alarm on your watch is loud enough wake you up… ___Favorite Snacks, Energy Bars, Gu’s: Bring a bag full of your favorite energy bars and/or Gu’s. Jerky, protein bars, whatever you really like to use during endurance activities.
PACKS AND DUFFLES
GEAR LIST
___Expedition Pack: Due to the amazing abilities of our Sherpa team, you only need to bring a 4500 cu. in. or 75+ liter pack. Look for a pack that weighs 3 lbs. (1.4 Kg) or lighter, with an upper weight limit of 5 lbs. (2.25 Kg). Guides’ Pick: Black Diamond, Mission 75L, stripped down this pack weighs just over 2 lbs! Get used to your pack; train with it, know how to adjust it! ___Mid-Size Trekking Pack: You’ll wear this on the trek in. 25L or 1500 cu. in. Guides’ Pick: Black Diamond, Speed 30 ___2 Large Zippered Duffels: You will need two of these. Lightweight and inexpensive bags work great although the Patagonia Stellar Black Hole Bag is just about the perfect international expedition bag as it is waterproof and the lightest on the market (2 lbs.). Have a couple locks for these. One bag will go with you on the trek another will be sent ahead directly to base camp ahead of us. ___Light Nylon Zip Duffels: 2 or 3 of the small to medium sized zip duffels for gear organization in tents and lodges. Outdoor Research makes some very nice ones.
SLEEPING GEAR ___Expedition Sleeping Bag: Rated to -20 f below or warmer. Feathered Friends and Western Mountaineering make great bags. Do not choose a synthetic bag for this climb. Whichever you choose, be sure it is a quality product! ___Stuff Sacks for everything: Look for light ones such as the Granite Gear Air Compressor or the Outdoor Research Helium Sacks. Essential for sleeping bags and we recommend one for your summit clothes, such as your parka, mitts and warmest pants. ___ Sleeping Pad(s): You need two pads, one closed cell foam pad such the ThermaRest Z-Rest and a warmer air filled pad, like the. We will have thick foam mattresses in Base Camp for you! Guides’ Pick: ThermaRest Z-Rest and ExPed Downmat 7 Regular. ___Base Camp Sleeping Bag(s): You will need an additional sleeping bag or bags for the trek in/out and for sleeping in Base Camp. We highly recommend two lighter bags instead of one warm bag. That way you can use these bags for other activities and on different trips. You can use one 0 degree F bag or two 20 degree F bags which will work great at Base Camp layered inside one another. The latter system would leave you with one comfortable bag on the trek in. These do not need to be the lightest bags on the market, so save some money on one of them, if you elect for the two bag system
WATER SYSTEMS AND BOTTLES ___Platypus System- Very highly Recommend: 2 or 3- One liter platypus bottles (one with a hydration tube, both with standard nipples also) and a ½ liter Platypus bottle with standard nipple top also. The 1 liter bags can be used on the trek in and up to C2 with a hydration tube. Then you can put the standard pop top nipple on it, shove it your down parka up high and have accessible unfrozen water readily available. These work much better than a couple huge insulated bottles in your pack where you cannot get to them or strapped to the outside your pack where they will freeze. Ultra light and packable! ___Nalgene Bottle(s): Bring one wide mouth Nalgene bottle with insulated jacket even with the Platypus system. If you are going with 2 Nalgene bottles instead of the Platypus system, make sure they are wide mouth and you both have insulated jackets. ___Water Treatment System: There are several good tablets on the market as well as some really good treatment systems, such as the Polar Pure Potable Agua Crystal Iodine, Aqua-mira and various chlorine systems. All the commercially available systems work well and everyone should have enough to treat 50 liters or more. Tablets go bad 30 days after opening the bottle, so if you elect for tablets, bring 2-3 bottles.
IN KATHMANDU ___Travel Clothes: A couple pairs of long pants, a couple pairs of Shorts, and 4 or 5 shirts will serve you well. You can also wear some of your trekking clothes to save weight. Don’t forget a swimsuit for the pool and for Thailand on the way home! ___Cash: We recommend a minimum of $1200 cash. This is for tips, misc. items on the trek, and in Kathmandu for dinners out. Consider keeping your cash in a money belt under your clothes. **TIP**ATM’s: There are generally several ATM’s that work in Kathmandu. We found we had to check a bunch of them to find one that worked a 2 hour project! Being in Kathmandu, they are just marginally reliable, however you should bring at least one ATM card for emergency cash. ___Small Duffel: To leave clothes and personal items in while on the expedition. ___Credit Cards: Always have a couple of credit cards for emergency travel issues. Most shops do not take credit cards in Kathmandu, however a few do. ___Passport Photos: Have 6 passport photos for your “visa on arrival,” and for your trekking and expedition permits. We will take care of the permits, however, we will need the photos to do so.
GEAR LIST TECHNICAL CLIMBING EQUIPMENT ___Ice Axe: 50-60 cm length (with leash) works well for Everest. No big heavy steel axes! This is really where you can save some weight. Guides’ Pick: Black Diamond, Raven Ultra ___Crampons: 12 point crampons that FIT YOUR BOOTS! Strap on versions work well, just make sure they fit your larger boots. Some crampons will need an extended bar to fit your expedition boots. Aluminum crampons are not acceptable. Guides’ Pick: Black Diamond, Serac Crampon with “Clip” or “Strap” attachment option. ___Harness: Again think ultralight! Your harness must have adjustable leg loops. Look for an easy buckle to use and ease of dropping the leg loops for in between camp, “gotta go” breaks. Check the fit of leg loops with your thicker layers. Guides’ Pick: Black Diamond, Couloir Harness ___Ascenders: We will be using an ascender on fixed ropes through most of the technical sections of the ascent. Make sure you’ve got one you are comfortable using with gloves on! Guides’ Pick: Petzl, Ascension ___Prussik Loop: Bring a couple short 6mm Prussik loops to back up rappels or as a safety while descending fixed lines. ___Carabiners: Bring two locking carabiners (Petzl Attache or Black Diamond Vaporlock) and eight regular ultralight carabiners (BD Oz or Nuetrinos). Mark them with colored tape for identification. Please, no bent-gate ‘biners! Guides’ Pick: Black Diamond Vaporlock (locker) and the Oz non locking wire gates
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. ___Climbing Helmet: Think light such as the Black Diamond Tracer or Half Dome or Petzl Meteor 3. Everest has several sections exposed to falling ice and rock. Make sure you can fit a warm hat underneath your helmet. We will be wearing these on summit day! You can often find one in Kathmandu. Guides’ Pick: Black Diamond “Tracer“ ___Sewn Runners (slings): Bring FIVE (5), over-the-shoulder length (24” or 60 cm) slings made of Dynex or similar material. We use these for leashes (on pack and “cow’s tails”) and for our ascenders and foot loops. We’ll show you how to set these up. Make sure these are not double length; rather they should be only long enough to go over your shoulder once and not hang down below waist. Guides’ Pick: Black Diamond 10 mm Dynex 60 cm Runner. ___(2) Figure Eight Rappel Devices: We require a Figure 8 for descending the fixed lines. Bring a second one in case you drop one! You could contact the other team members so that two of you share one extra Figure 8. Figure Eights work better in an alpine environment simply because they can pass knots without removing the device from the rope. They also work better if the ropes are icy, as it is very hard to feed icy rope through an ATC or similar belay/rappel device. A small aluminum Figure 8 works well. ___Trekking Poles: Select a length for trekking. Adjustable trekking poles work best, as we carry them for short sections, including into the western Cwm and they fit better in duffels for traveling. The mid-sized trekking baskets work fine. We’ll use the same pair for both trekking and climbing in the western Cwm.
GEAR LIST OPTIONAL ITEMS PHOTOGRAPHY AND VIDEO We could spend hours discussing options here. The most important thing to focus on is climbing the mountain. We will naturally have times and places to shoot photos, so it is critical to have your camera accessible, with extra batteries handy. Rest stops and photo ops are short. Let us know if you have any special needs around this i.e. shooting video or bringing larger video or SLR cameras. ___Camera: Choose a light camera with lots of extra memory and several extra batteries (2 or 3). Guides’ Pick: Canon G12 as it is small, light, works up high, and offer very high quality photos. There are lots of tricks to keeping camera working up high. Extra batteries are mandatory as the extreme cold tends to drain batteries much faster. We have solar in BC, so bring a 12v, cigarette-lighter style chargers! ___12v Chargers: Make sure you bring 12v car adapter style chargers for everything you have electronic. Inverters use way too much juice at BC and tax our solar battery and charging system. With all of our electrical needs, please do not expect your 120v charger to take a priority! Call B and H Photo and Video today and order a 12v charger! ___Video Camera: Keep in mind that simply taking still photos is a challenge. Video requires a bit more time to do well. It is fine to bring a video camera, just make sure it’s one of the smallest ones you can get, with extra batteries and a good case so that you can access it quickly. ___Camera Bags: Having your camera handy is critical. If you have to take your pack off to get your camera, you should consider just leaving it behind. Find a very secure, compact bag that you can wear around your shoulder or clips onto your pack. This should not be bulky, as it is more important to be able to see your feet than take pictures. Small, digital cameras can fit nicely in the thigh pocket on most soft shell pant.
___Altimeter Watch (see watch notes above) ___ Lighter: Fancy, windproof models seldom work up high. ___ Hand and Face Lotion ___ Maps (you can buy some great maps in Kathmandu) ___GPS: More for fun than for finding your way, as once you clip to the fixed line, you follow it right to the summit! ___Thermarest Chair: The Compack Chair by Thermarest is ultralight and comfortable with your foam or inflatable pad in it. We have chairs in BC and C2. __Cell Phone: We’ve had good luck using cell phones on the trek to base camp, and even at base camp for the last few years. Much cheaper than a Sat Phone, and you can buy a local sim card with pre-paid minutes. __Sat Phone: Bring your own, rent one, or just consider just bringing a Thuraya SIM card to use in our phones. Thuraya phones work the best. The Eco SIM card works up to C3, however, only the Thuraya Super SIM works up high at the South Col and the summit. If you want just one SIM card, the Super SIM card will work best. Iridium also works, but drops calls a lot as we are often deep down in a valley, plus the Iridium system costs more to use. Call us for more details if you expect to make a lot of calls or use excessive bandwidth on the Sat modem. Please see email notes on this. You can also buy minutes from us for $3/min. This may be easier and maybe cheaper if you are not planning to use phones much. ___Personal Music Player: We have music in Base Camp, but if you want one for the trek and for personal use, keep in mind that versions with hard drives generally fail at high altitudes. Flash based media players are better at altitude. ___Personal Media Player: Bring some movies to watch in your tent! The iPod Touch is a nice personal movie player/entertainer. ___Small Netbook: If everyone brought a laptop, we would run out of juice. So bring one only if you really need one at Base Camp and consider a 12v charging cord mandatory! We will have a computer you can use for email. ___Journal: Lightweight with extra pens so you don’t run out of ink before you pen that novella you’ve been meaning to author. ___Vitamins and Energy Drinks: Bring your favorite vitamins and energy drink mix, enough for entire expedition. Don’t start a new vitamin regimen right before your trip. .
Climbing a high mountain is a serious undertaking, demanding a lot from your body. This experience can only be fully enjoyed if you have prepared for it. Physical fitness is one of the subjective factors of mountaineering over which we can exert a great deal of control. It is especially important for the occasional mountaineer to realize that being fit can make dealing with objective hazards less dangerous. Your physical capacity for mountaineering is determined primarily by your level of aerobic power and physical strength. You must begin training well in advance of your expedition. Plan your training a minimum of six months before your trip. Make up a realistic training schedule for yourself, and stick to it!
TRAINING Mountaineering is a physically demanding sport and going on an expedition should be the last place to go get into shape. Seasoned mountaineers understand this and try to maintain a continual state of fitness. An unfit climber on an expedition can be a potentially dangerous liability to himself and to the safety and success of the rest of the team members. The fitness level of individual members of an expedition can make or break a climb. Your fitness level can also dictate just how much you will enjoy the experience. If you are over 30 years old and have been living a sedentary life for more than a year, you should have a complete physical before beginning your training program and you should begin your training program 5-6 months in advance of your expedition. Climbing a high mountain is serious and one must be serious about being prepared. Begin your training program with low key exercise and then gradually build up both distance and intensity. Do not over-train at the start, but give your body and mind time to adjust to the training stress. LSD (long, slow distance) is one of the safest ways to train and it will produce the fastest results. After you have trained yourself so you can climb, hike, cycle, ski or whatever for several hours with minimum of fatigue, you will have the self confidence and body awareness for mountaineering.
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FOR AN TRAINING EXPEDITION Aerobic Training and Endurance Training
Aerobic conditioning for mountaineering should involve long term, sub-maximum heart rate (65-85% of max HR) endurance type activities that stress and develop the cardiovascular system. Activities that fall into this category include cycling, running, Nordic skiing, brisk walking, swimming, hiking and mountaineering. To be effective, these endurance activities must be done at a constant heart rate (above 65% of max HR) for at least 30-60+ minutes, three to five days a week. At least one day should include a multi hour effort. Your maximum heart rate (HR) is roughly 220 less your age. Your mountaineering endurance program must eventually reflect the long, continuous hours spent climbing a high mountain. Running a few miles a week will be of little benefit. In preparing to climb a high mountain like Everest; you should be able to run 6 to 8 miles in under 1 hour or cycle 60 miles in well under 4 hours. This provides a fitness safety margin you will need to have for high altitude mountaineering. The level of cardiovascular fitness to handle a 60 minute run requires a minimum of 10 to 12 weeks of training, provided you are not overweight, don't smoke and have been reasonably fit within the last year.
Suggestions for a Training Schedule "I believe that the man who works hardest deserves to win..." Lance Armstrong
Come up with a realistic training program that you can actually do. Write up a schedule for a few weeks at a time and change it as your body begins to respond to the exercise. Once you have gotten a good fitness base and you can work out without too much stress, you should increase this to 5-6 days a week. Do not try to work out 7 days a week, as your body needs at least one day of rest. The harder you train before a climb, the more you will be able to enjoy the experience and the greater will be your chances for success! So begin your training now: take it seriously and enjoy yourself on the mountain! So
Strength Training Besides aerobic conditioning, strength training is important to prepare your body for climbing steep terrain while carrying a medium sized pack. Strength training can entail working out with weights, or climbing up things (hills, mountains, stairs, stair-climbers...) with a pack. Do not run with a pack as this puts too much impact on your joints. Getting used to carrying a medium (20-25lb.) pack is essential for success on Everest. Begin with a light pack and build up to 40 -50 % of your body weight. Expedition loads may be between 20-30lbs. down low (less up higher) and you must be prepared for this. Too often we have seen team members who could run for hours, but could not carry a 30 pound pack for 4 to 5 hrs.. Spend at least one day a weekcarrying a pack. This will allow you to get used to your pack and fit it to your body.
get that pack out and go for a hike! Training can be doing all the things you love! The following is an example of an early training week starting 6 months out. Exercise time should increase to double this as you get stronger and closer to the expedition departure date. It is important to taper off a harder training schedule to lower the risk of a training related injury. We all like to ski fast, bike hard but balance this with the risks of injury. You can replace different activities with what you enjoy, so training can be having fun! Skiing, Mt. Biking, Road Biking, Skate Skiing, Cross country Skiing, Backcountry Skiing, Rock Climbing and Alpine Climbing.
SUNDAY: Long endurance activity 2-3 hours with light pack (increase pack weight as your strength improves) MONDAY: Rest Day TUESDAY: Endurance activity of your choice 60 minutes. Cycle, ski, run, stair climber... WEDNESDAY: Rest with some stretching or strength training for 30-60 minutes. THURSDAY: Activity for 60+ minutes, Strength and Cardio FRIDAY: Activity for 30-60+ minutes, Cardio SATURDAY: Activity for 90+ minutes, Strength and Cardio
You should be comfortable with this training schedule at a minimum before you arrive. The actual climb will be considerably harder in the number of hours and will be closer to your maximum cardio and respiratory rates. Write Down your Training Schedule and Keep Notes on your Activities Simply writing down your training schedule for the next few weeks and stick to it can really help improve your commitment. Write in a calendar what you will do and what you have done. Then keep checking to see if it is falling into recommendations. Really this is one of the most important things you can do to increase your chances of summiting starting right now.
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Mountain Trip is committed to Low Impact Practices in all aspects of our operations. We travel among some of the most beautiful mountain environments in the world and believe it is our responsibility to protect these places in whatever way we can. We practice the “Leave No Trace” policy in the wilderness to minimize our impact in the pristine mountains where we lead our trips. As mountain guides, we are lucky to be able to travel to remote locations around the globe and visit different peoples and places. While acknowledging that our mere presence in some regions is an impact, we will always do our best to learn about and respect local cultures in all our travels.
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Moving forward into the new millennium, we need to be conscious of the fact that the choices we make affect the footprint that we leave on this planet. We try to do our part to make this world a better place by purchasing healthy expedition food with minimal packaging and packing out our trash on expeditions. We support vendors who practice lower impact policies. Our Mountain Trip Tshirts are made from bamboo and organic cotton and we utilize a solar powered web service to power our website. Starting in 2008, we began purchasing carbon offsets to reduce the impact of our Alaska operations. As a company, we have tried to invest in our guides and we think that you will notice what a difference this
makes on our trips. Mountain Trip has always felt more like a family than a corporation and this is a big reason that so many of our guides return year after year. A result is that all of our lead guides are among the most experienced and respected in the world. We encourage you to call our office with any questions or comments. When you call, you will reach someone who has climbed Denali or Everest many times and can give you advice based on personal experience not based on a informational “cheat sheet”. We love what we do and are excited to share the high mountains with you. Thanks for your trust and we’ll see you in Nepal.