#northsidesummitpush

[zebblais]

#NorthsideSummitPush : return to the life zone. The struggle isn't just to get out of the "death zone", it's to get back to the life zone. After reaching the top, we want to get to thick air, warm temps and as far from the jet stream as we can. We rested at Camp 3 for an hour, rehydrating and refueling before packing our bags and returning to descent. Once again, a huge thanks to our #Phortse #Sherpa team, who dropped camp and carried our infrastructure down. #superhuman The weather didn't cooperate. As we packed, winds and clouds whipped up and light snow began. We made a speedy exit, knowing we had 6,000' of descent left before we would hit #everestabc. We arm-wrapped the fixed lines, belaying ourselves below camp, past the body of an Australian climber who had died the week before. Condolences to his friends and family. Camp 2, pictured, looked like a post-apocalyptic warzone with thick cloud rolling over tents shredded days earlier by gale force winds. Clearing the lines of rime as we went, the snow ramp between C2 and the #NorthCol seemed never ending. We paused to melt snow and drink before making the final push down the fixed lines. 18 hours after we started, we were home. Safe at ABC. Thick air. Real food. Coca cola. Beer. @alpenglowexpeditions #AdventureDoneRight #MountEverest #Everest #Everest2017 #EverestNoFilter #Northside #DarnTough #JulboUSA #terramartribe #strapinventureout (at Mount Everest)

[zebblais]

#NorthsideSummitPush: day 2, part 2 arriving at 7700m, Camp 2 ( so many 2's...). Plumes of blowing snow and convective clouds billowed off the #summit and #NortheastRidge as we arrived at Camp 2. Otherwise visibility was nearly unlimited and we could see from the summit to ChoOyu until mid afternoon moisture occluded the view with cloud. Camp 2 is much less comfortable than Camp 1. Tent platforms are pedestals of piled rock that take arduous effort to erect. At this point, most are permanent structures #Sherpa teams built years ago, and they're big enough for a tent if you're lucky. When we arrived at camp, skeletons of tents that were destroyed days earlier in a storm littered the ridge. We walked past the wreckage to tents our Sherpa had popped up hours earlier, thankful to have such a strong and hardworking team. We melted snow, made soup and drinks to rehydrate and rested. We emerged only for more snow and to watch the #Alpenglow hit the mountains at dusk. Same routine the next day! Or so we thought... @alpenglowexpeditions #AdventureDoneRight #Everest #Everest2017 #MountEverest #Northside #Tibet #JulboUSA @terramarsports #strapinventureout (at Mount Everest)

[zebblais]

#NorthsideSummitPush: Day 1, part 2. Camp 1 sits at 7,000 meters on the #NorthCol. From camp, almost the entire route to the #summit is visible. It ascends the 2,500' snow ramp and rock ridge to Camp 2. From Camp 2 it contours climber's right to Camp 3, then gains the #NortheastRidge, the skyline pictured here. The rugged and steeply stepped ridge separates the #KangshungFace from the North face, with thousands of feet of relief on either side. At the North Col we begin using supplemental oxygen. We rest and sleep on a low flow rate, then crank it up to climb. The relatively low elevation of camp combined with wide, flat tent platforms and oxygen makes this the most comfortable camp on the route. Plus, the views are a 360 degree panorama of the North face, #Changtse, #EverestABC, the East Rongbuck glacier and Lhakpa Ri 🌄! @alpenglowexpeditions #AdventureDoneRight #Everest #Everest2017 #Everestnofilter #Northside

[zebblais]

My next few posts are a chronological series of #Everest2017, starting at #EverestABC, ending on summit day. Follow #NorthsideSummitPush to see pics from each stage, and feel free to post questions in comments or email. 🌏🗻 #NorthsideSummitPush: Day 1 The NorthCol. After acclimatizing, we waited for a suitable weather window without too many big teams. This means we need two days with low winds: one to reach high camp and one to summit. We can climb through some wind on the way to camp 1 and 2, but we ideally we have low winds to high camp. This shot is from the day we climbed to the #NorthCol, the saddle between #Changtse and #Everest. We climb this section without oxygen. The climbers shown here are just below camp, which is hidden behind the bulge of ice in the middle of the shot. Once at camp we begin using supplemental oxygen, and we'll continue to use it constantly throughout the summit push. @alpenglowexpeditions #AdventureDoneRight #Everest #Northside #MountEverest (at Mount Everest)

[zebblais]

#NorthsideSummitPush: the descent. When you hit the top, you're halfway there. This statement has a heavier feel to it when you're close to the cruising altitude of a 787. The pressure to get to where the air is thick and camps aren't exposed to the severe winds of the jet stream is constant and urgent. There is no time for dilly dallying. The business at hand is descent. Here we are almost back to Camp 3 (8300m/27,000'), just getting to the bottom of the Exit Cracks. The weather was still good at this point, just convective moisture building. A few hours later winds and snow elevated and the descent became fairly intense while we climbed down past Camp 2. #Changtse, the peak that forms the other side of the #NorthCol, is popping out of the clouds. @alpenglowexpeditions #AdventureDoneRight #MountEverest #Everest #Everest2017 #EverestNoFilter #Northside #DarnTough #JulboUSA #terramartribe #strapinventureout (at Mount Everest)

[zebblais]

#NorthsideSummitPush: day 3, Camp 3, 8300m. The work capacity of our #Sherpa team bogles my mind. This is my 3rd #8000m expedition and I'm still amazed by the tireless efforts of our team. Wind, snow, wrecked tents are just minor bumps in the road. Just another day at the office for these guys! After carrying gear to camp, building platforms (some built before hand), setting tents, gathering clean snow for melting they take a bit of rest and prepare their personal gear for the #summit. Here, Panuru, Palden (@namgye) and Phurba are ascending past other teams and destroyed tents above camp to our oxygen cache to grab the bottles we'll need for our #summit attempt. On our final push we'll use 3 bottles, while Sherpa only use two (if that). Even at half the flow, they are as fast as we are 💪! Thanks team! @alpenglowexpeditions #AdventureDoneRight #NorthSide #Everest #Everest2017 #NortheastRidge #MountEverest #DarnTough @julbousa (at Mount Everest)