Rest BC
6th May Today was a really settled day at base camp. Josh,Max,Stephen and myself did a bit of exercise. We did a liitle curcuit for 40mins which was good as it broke the day up but also opened my lungs up. It feels like your constantly becoming congested and a bit of a blow out cleared the lungs. We are all beginning to discuss all the different permutations that could happen over the next few weeks. The weather has been pretty bad so far.A metre of snow has fallen at the North col over the last few days. Yersterday, our Sherpas were up at 8200m loading the camp. Nuro is one of our top sherpas. He has summitted 9 times and moves like a machine. He went from the North col up to 8200m, dropped his load then all the way back down the ABC. This is an epic day. He came back down to base camp today for a couple of days rest before we hopefully go up for our summit attempt. The weather looks like it could allow us an attempt on the 17th or 18th. We are waiting for a detailed forecast. The main concern is the wind speeds. At the moment the snow has stopped and the winds have increased which is good to clear the snow from the ridge but does lower the temperatures dramatically.Lets hope it works out and we get a long enough window to get up there. I ordered an extra bottle of oxygen, giving me options slighlty lower down the mountain. It will also allow me to sleep at 7800m on oxtgen. I`m hoping this will allow me torest far better at this height. Since we`ve had 4 people leave there is a number of cylinders of oxygen now available for team members to buy. Most people have now got the set up I pre-ordered and will be starting on oxygen at 7500m. My personal thoughts are that having the extra both conserves your energy and allows you to rest better at 7800m. I am begining to really focus on the summit bid now. Hopefully another few days here and we will be away.

Base camp
7th May Today was a nothing day. I did a bit of washing, read my book and snoozed. The days seem to pass quickly considering how little we do. Everybody seems to occupy themselves and we sit and talk a lot. The weather is now one of the hot topics. We could be setting off from base camp on the 13th. This would mean us going for the summit on the 17th or 18th. The forecast is not yet detailed enough. All the teams have roughly the same information and are working towards this time frame. Lets hope it`s not to busy up there.

BC Birthday
5th May Today was a special day as it was Geordies` 21st birthday. Geordie os the guy from St Andrews who is attempting to be the youngest British 7 summiteer. He`s a very well spoken young man who is a wealth of knowledge on Everest and his beloved Newcastle United. The link with the football team, I don`t understand as he has no history with the city. Anyway he still has his boyish looks and has no facial hair at all, even though like the majority he hasn`t had a shave more a month. We fonud a beard grooming kit which we prsented to him for his b`day. He took in good humour.The cook staff made a cake which was great. We have lost 4 members of the team over the last few days. Don and Scott left due to Don struggling. We all got the oppurtunity to say bye and I told Don, just to be out here at 62 was an acheivement. I respected Scott for his decision to stick with his dad. The importance of them being together was more impotant than the mountain. Jantoon, who at the start of the trip was a really bubbly confident guy found each stage of the acclimatization process a struggle and never got higher than a short walkn from ABC. When I breifly spoke to him he said that he had been planning this for so long and that now he was hear he had actually lost his motivation. I think there was more to it but I wish him well and was sorry to see him leave. Micky, a guy fron New York suddenley decided to leave the day we were going up to the North col with our big packs. He turned around before the head wall and by the time we had reached the top he was on his way down to BC with Jantoon. This is a very tough expedition, and you can not underestimate what Everest will ask of you.I think these guys maybe realised it was getting tougher than they expected. I spoke to Beth, my wife today. She is a wonderful partner in all of this and supports me more than I could never ask for. I draw a great deal of strength from talking my family back home and reading all the comments people post on the Blog so thank you all. I hope sometime over the next few weeks we can give the summit a dam good shot! I spoke to my friends from Montenegro tonight. We exchanged pics of our trip up the North col. They invited me in to there tent and sat and talked with them. They had celebrated Nepalese new year a couple of week ago, with decorations etc. They had a big Montenegran flag at one end. The told me it had been presented to them by the President and he had signed it. They were hoping to take it to the top then present it back to him as the first Montenegrans to summit. It turns out two of them are Firemen. They have a slightly different strategy to ours in the fact that they plan to leave the North col on oxygen. We are starting a little higher at 7500m. They spent one night at 7100 were we spent 2. I think we are likely to be on the mountain at about the same time. They are thinking around the 16th to the 20th May. It`s all weather dependant now so we will just wait and see.

The North Col
1st May Once everybody had packed what they needed for this trip, they looked at the size of their load and wondered how on earth we were going to make it up to 7100m. I woke feeling good and although it was tough work was quietly confident. Once onto the glacier and up to the head wall, I clipped to the first fixed line and started up.AlthoughIi was working hard I felt my progress was steady. The biggest thing to contend with was the sun blazing into my back. I drink both water bottles before the top and found the last, and most challenging part exhausting. The route swung to the side of the serac fall, which was massive. The blocks of ice, some of which were shed size, were laid as if they had never moved. Looking up you could see the fresh blue face where it once hung. The route was not as direct, which took longer but with the packs I guess it didn`t really matter. I spent the last hoiur or so following my Montnegran friend. He was faster that I, but took more breaks so we kept acknowledging one another. He came to the final cravase ladder and I took a picture of him crossing, which considering how wrecked he looked before hand definately helped his perfomance. Its a testing experience crossing deep blue cravase on your crampons, walking on a ladder that looks like it would be rejected by any window cleaner worth his salt! I take my time and position my front crampon points on the run of the ladder, this way they can`t slip anywhere. You look down which means you are looking into the cravase. Anyway thankfully, unlike the South side of Everest with the Kumbu icefall, we don`t have many of these kinds of things to contend with. Once I had got over the cravase and up the final akward section I was met by a mass of tents. It was like a mini version of the lower camps. They were all perched behind a huge wall of ice that protects the camp from some of the winds. Our camp was next door to Jordon and his family, the 13yr old American. They seem really nice people and Jordan a very balanced young guy. I am sharing a tent with Simon who has a lot of experience when it comes to trips like this. He completed a race to the North Pole as well as several mountain trips. I got into a tent and got the stove lit and began the continuous process of boiling water. Melting the snow takes ages at this height so just filling a water botttle will take 30mins. Once the rest of the group arrived we got settled into the tents. Tonight was the most restless night I have ever endured. I couldn`t sleep, every time my breathing began to slow down I would gasp for air. I struggled to get any food down and to cap it all off my thermorest must have a hole as it quickly went flat. I put my down suit under my sleeping bag to keep my back warm. The wind was very strong and at times would sound like it was going to damage the tent. We had surrounded the tent with a bank of snow which stopped the wind getting under the canvase. I watched the time tick by all night. The snow gatherewd on the tent and finally, once the sun came up the melt water began dripping off the roof and soaked everything. This was real discomfort which until now I had only had a mild dose of. This was the real thing.

Up to 7500m
2nd May The weather was wild so the plan was to make as much progress up the North ridge as poss. We were not going to get our 7500m goal. Simon and I began the water boiling and tried to eat anything we could. I set off and soon realised I was really strugggling. I had no energy, and every step was real effort. The wind on the ridge, once out from the protection of the camp was wild. It was not only strong but bitterly cold. I had my down suit on and fleece underneath. I was to warm which was not helping. I struggled up to maybe 150m before turning round. There is a section just before camp that requires a bit of concentration. I found this really hard and took my time. Once I got back to the camp I was exhausted. Simon got the stove on and I got my kit off which is a battle in itself. Once back in the tent that was it for the rest of the day. The weather was supposed to be better tommorow so we would have another go. I was strruggling to eat anything and thought tommorows trip would be much the sameas todays.

The North Col and Beyond
3rd May I had another horrid night and couldn`t eat anything. I worked out i`d managed to consume about 1000 calories in the last 24hrs. I expected to feel like i did yesterday. The weather is a lot better so dressed accordingly. I set off and felt great, it was still windy on the ridge so I stuck my down jacket on. The ridge gradually rises up. The view from here is amazing, you can see the summit high above you and the surrounding ranges are incredible. As I went higher my hands began to get a little cold. I decided to turn round at with altimeter reading 7450m. This was due to a little bit of concern about my fingers. I flew down the fixed lines back to camp. Once i stopped I knew I my fingers were cold. I began to gently warm them with hand warmers and Ian, a great guy on the trip gave me his big mits. The key was to keep them warm and get down to ABC. Two of my fingers were a bit white at the end, but with in an hour i had pain and feeling in back to them. This was a relief as it means at least there is no lasting damage. This means I have to be a little more careful when I`m high next time as I must keep them warm. Along with handwarmers I have down filled mitts which will keep me warm. I got down the North col, with the help of Ian. The weather was pretty bad and the constant snowing made for white out. I was pretty tired by the time I reached ABC. Stu already knew about my fingers so he had a look and we decided on the treament. The main thing is not to let them get really cold, so gloves are the ordeer of the day .

Back to BC
4th May Had a good nights sleep at ABC and after a bit of breakfast I set off with Josh. We had a steady walk down and passed the time talking about a wide range of subjects. He`s a top guy and very interesting to talk to. We dicussed everything from the trip itself to what makes a top sports person to parenting skillls to house prices on Hyde Park corner in London. The 5 1/2 hours seemed to pass pretty quick and we were in resonable shape when we arrived, unlike the previous jouirney back which was exhausting. The majority of the group were walking down today one or two were resting following o tommorow. Heather, Pete and Mat, the Marines and mat the guide were going up to the North col. They had not yet slept up there so were a trip behind. As we walked down Everst was engulfed in cloud and snow was falling art our level so we were pretty sure they were will be having a tough time of it. We found out lateer that they had 6" of snow and there was more forecast. Comunication is very important on a trip like this. Along with base radios at BC and ABC we all have hand held radios. We have organised radio calls at a certain time just so we know where peolpe are. This doesn`t always happen for whatever reason and a couple of times we have been concerned for the safety of one of the group. Back down at BC life is fairly easy. 5200m now feels the like hopme. If you exert yourself you still feel it , but normal living is fine. We are eating whatever we can get in, knowin how we all feel hiugher up. It`s exciting thinking next we set off it will be fopr the final time and our summit bid begins.

The Trek to ABC
29th April Unlike the first time up to ABC we are not stopping the night half way. The trek is 15miles and takes us from 5200m to 6400m. The terrain is up and down and very rocky. It would be a good hike at sea level and with the altitude it really slows you peolpe down. Heather and Don are stopping at intermediate camp as is Mat, who has returned to the group after getting the all clear from the doctors in Katmamndu. It was a long hard slog but the time said it all as it took us 7 1/2 hours compared to the 10 hours it took us over 2 days previous. The scenary is stunning, the problem is you spend that much time gasping breath you really don`t feel like stopping as smiling for the camera. As we pulled up the final mile or so, Everest comes into view, the North ridge ramping up infront of you. You begin to walk through the tented villages the different teams have constructed. There will be sherpas returning from load carries up high on the mountain vchatting away as if they`ve just ran round the park. The smell of food seeps from the cook tent, making you feel nauseas, even though you`ve probably expended 5 times the calories you have eaten that day. I am noticably thinner than when I started. Even though knew this would happen you know you can`t go on like this. The food is very average and at altitude even your favourite would be hard to stomach. Up at ABC eveything is that bit harder. Your sleep is disturbed, eating a little harder and it`s that bit colder. It will be interesting to see how I fair staying up on the North col at 7100m. The plan is to have a rest day tommorow then load our rucksacs with all the high alltitude gear and lug it up the head wall. If the weather is good we will walk upto 7500m before comning down as sleeping a second night at 7100m, on the North col. All tents are in place with the stoves and cooking gear are inside. We are now on boil in the bag food, which I am quite looking forward to. Atleast it`s Western flavours that hopefully will be a little easier to swallow.

Rest Day ABC
30th April Today is a "rest as best you can day". What I mean by that is, at this height you are really not recovering, more like surviving. The sleep was a little better , and I am generally more comfortable than the first visit but still want to get on with our trip higher.

A Welcome Rest Day
22nd April I woke up with the sun beaming into the tent and the noise of people organising themselves. The majority of the team were climbing the North Col today. I got up and stuck my head out to wish them good luck. This took quite an effort and found myself happily flopping back onto my sleeping bag for a doze. The wind up at ABC is wild. You hear it funnel up the valley then rip through the camps, pulling at the tents. I woke one morning expecting damage but to my surprise everything but the toilet tent was un-harmed. Living at 6400m, which is the height of ABC your body really is recovering as much as surviving. You don`t sleep properly, your appetite is reduced and any activity takes it out of you. This is why it so important to make the long journey back to Base camp. The day was mainly spent listening to the radio chat coming back from the guys climbing. The majority did really well and got up in good time. One or two didn`t make for various reasons and they will discuss the beast way forward with Stu on there return to ABC. Everybody looked tired on there return and a few had developed the dry cough that is common when working hard at this kind of height. I plan to trek back to base camp tommmorow so spent some time sorting out what I was taking down and what was staying. I wanted to make a couple of alterations to my set up for the next trip up the mountain and decided I would leave the equipment at ABC and do it when I get there next time round. Rather than dreading this next assault I am now looking forward to it. The North col gave me confidence which earlier in the trip I was lacking. I know now what to expect when the air gets thin.

The Trek to Base Camp
23rd April After grabbing breakfast I set off, with Simon at 9.30am. We knew this was going to be a slog, and what a slog it turned out to be. The scenary was beautiful with towering ice structures on both sides of the moraine and snow capped peaks all around. Once I got my clothing right I settled into a plod that was more like a day in Scotland than the Himalaya. The ground was rough and undulating but once I got down below 6000m the air became a little richer and my breathing definately calmed down. It was then justy the distance that was the issue. We had been warned that it was a long way but not this long. The way I felt confirmed that at ABC(6400m) your body is not recovering. I din`t feel like I had had a full days reat the day before. The worst part of all was the last section. I came down the last steep decsent, meeting a yak train half way down which was funny. The Yaks just freeze as you approach, or atleast the front guy does. Then what happens is the hurder shouts,whips, thorws stones at the hurd all of which set off apart from the one that is at the front. What follows is a bunch of Yaks trying become one as they all walk into each other. Finallly they get past and I can join the path again. After this last descent I felt I was nearly home, what I didn`t bargin on was that the flat section that followed would take another hour. This was the same for most of the guys as they came in. I was very tired and was looking forward to my tent.

Rest, rest, rest
24th April I slept the best yet. The air felt thick with oxygen, my cough is ok and I didn`t wake up for a pee all night..... Perfect. There was about 8 of us that had come down yesterday so camp was a little more quieter than usual. I spent the morning with the down wind doors of my tent open with my top off reading my book. I am reading a book written by the official Times reporter on the 1953 Everest exped. So far it talks about the problems of how he was going to get information back to England without other reporters gettting there first. I am looking forward to reading on and finding out how the info is delivered. Everything is easier down hear. I can function normally without being out of breath...much. I wouldn`t want to start running anywhere and when I climb a short way up the valley side to get signal on the Bgan I still breath hard. The different is now I feel like my legs are being provided with enough oxygen to keep going. I am looking forward to another few days of rest before any more trips up to ABC and beyond. We are going back up on thursday (29th) so we`ve got a few more days to charge the batteries

BC Rest
25th April I am sleeping really well and feeling well rested down here at BC. We have done a deal with a local guy with a motorbike who is providing us with coke,sprite and beer. We have all chipped in and bought cases and cases of the stuff. It`s been fun watching him deliver 2 cases at a time on his bike, with a big smile on his face counting his dollars. The wind is not quite as persistant down here, still the air temperature is cold. The sun is veryintense and would burn you quickly if you don`t protect yourself. I organised to speak to my family today which was great. my parents,sis & kids, Beth and Isla were all there together. It was great to talk to them although really hard not to blubber especially when Isla comes on. It`s so much easier on this trip being able to comunicate with home regularly. My family are so important and it`s time like this I realise how important! The sat phone and bgan equipment is working really well. It`s incredible to think I can sit such a remote location and speak to the UK with such clarity. The facilities down here at BC are good. It`s nice to be able to get a bit of washing done and have a shower of sorts. The Nepalese guys that run the camp are hard working and always wanting to please. The cook tent is a hive activity. They`re constantly boiling water which has been gathered from the glacier fed river about 15mins walk away. The guys take a barrel over to the river and fill it up then roll it back. I tried to move one of these barrels and wow it was heavy. Mat is back from Katmandu. He has been given a clean bill of health and his insurance (the BMC) are happy for him to have another bash. He has to do the acclimatisation walks over the next few days to catch up and then hope his body copes with it. The group are begining to discuss the next stage of the plan. Once we have completed the next trip up we will be sat waiting for a weather window for our summit attempt. The next stage involves the dreaded walk upto ABC followed by a days rest then upto the North col and sleep. The next day we make our way up the North ridge upto 7500m before back to the North Col for another night. We then descend the North Col back to ABC followed by a days rest. Once back at BC we are then read for the summit bid. This is likely to be around the middle of May.

BC Rest
26th April Today was a sad day. We got news around 11am that they has been an accident on the North Wall leading up to the North Col. A prominent Secrac (unstable ice)has collapsed and swept three climbers off the fixed lines. One was injured, one is still missing and one was killed. My condolencese go to the family(ies) of the climbers. The detail we have is pretty vague. We undersatand that they were part of the Asian treking party. This company offer a range of suppport depending on your budget.David Sharp, the guy from Guisborough who died in 2006 used them. Apparently the three Hungarians had base camp support but nothing above there.Todays accident had nothing to do with there level of support as this could have happened at anytime. This incident has given me a strange feeling. It`s funny thinking we passed over that ground only a few days prior. It is rare for this kind of collapse to happen during the climbing season. During the monsoon there will be a lot more instability due mainly to the snow fall. A section of the fixed lines needs replacing and the route clearing.We believe it will take the CTMA 2 days to sort this. It won`t effect our movement up the mountain. We will still set off on our next stage on thursday and move to the North col on saturday, after a days rest at ABC. I think it has made everybody think a littlie more about the enviorment we are heading into. It has not placed any doubt in my mind of what I hope to acheive, it just makes me even more aware of my surroundings and what I can do to limit the risk to me.

BC Rest
27th April At 6pm the North Col / Lhapkri team set off on there 16hr journey to Lhasa, on there last leg before returning to Katmandu. They were a good bunch who added to the team in a number of ways. It was quite a mixed group, who I think all got a lot out of the trip. I couldn`t help feeling a little envious when they were talking about home, there families and hot baths. This morning we had a Q & A session with Stu and Mat, the guides. A lot of the questions were self explaniory, but it was good to hear about things like the cooking arrangements, oxygen suppplies and times between camps higher on the mountain. I feel ready to take on the next big challenge which is 7500m without oxygen. If this goes well, on the summit bid, I intend to sleep on oxygen at 7800m before heading upto 8200m the following day again on oxygen. I will arrive at the 8200m camp early afternoon where I will rest, eat and hydrate before leaving for the summit at 10.30pm that night. All sounds so easy!!!! Lets get this next stage cracked first and then start focusing higher.

The Final Rest Day
28th April This morning was the first really calm morning, and looking up at the summit of Everest I wouldn`t of minded today being the day. The weather/wind normally worsens in the afternoon which is a pattern followed in most mountainous regions. Intended summit time is between 6.30 & 8.30am, so we have plenty of time to get down before mother nature whips things up. I have spent this morning enjoying the final day of rest before our long journey upto ABC. Don,Scott and Jantoon set off today, for differing reasons. Jantoon didn`t get make the North col first time round, so he has to catch up. Don is the 62year old dad of Scott who is finding the trip pretty tough. He is a fantastic guy and I really hope he makes it to the North col. I think he has resigned himself to the fact that the summit is out of his reach. Over the last 5 years, he has completed 5 of the 7 summits with his son Scott. Scott is a sub 3hr marathon runner and would have a good chance of making the summit. The latest from our leader Stu is that Scott is not going to make an attempt if his dad is not going to be there with him. He is a very motivated, organised young man and your intial reaction is one of disappointment but then there is something really warming the fact he wants to stay back with his dad. I wish then both a memorable conclusion to the trip, whatever happens. I have got my gear ready for the trek up to ABC. I`m trying to keep my pack as lite as poss as I reckon any energy I preserve now is in the tank for the days to come. The lines have been re-fixed up the head wall onto the North col. Appartently it is a more direct route but avoids the Serac dangers. I am looking forward to making my way above the North Col, high up on the north ridge. The team are in good spirits and are one unit which is good. I feel these days spent around base camp could be days where personalities begin to rub but everybody seems to get on well. The mountain has been rigged up to 7800m, so no one has summited yet. The team rigging normally complete to the summit about now, but due to the winds and cold temperatures it will be sometime in the next week. We have tents and supplies at the North col and a tent at 7800m. What the sherpas do is get a tent up then cordon off an area for our use. They can then use the tent to store equipment and shelter if needed. We begin to get daily weather reports from the 1st May. This comes from the States and uses several different weather models, which depending on the level of agreement between the models determines the accuracy of the forecast. Keep our fingers crossed that we get some still bright weather in the middle of May...............Perfect!!

On the North Col 7100m

The North Col
21st April Today has probably been the hardest single day I have ever experienced. I can not remember doing anything in my life that asked the same questions as today did. Seven clients and Mat set off and after the usual faff we got going at 9.30am. The weather was good, the wind a bit strong but I felt up for it. We got to the haed wall and had a drink and a bite to eat. A number of the party had walked up to the head wall as there pre Col walk. I connected to the fixed line and began. At first the ground is quite steep and I was soon gasping for air. As I made slow progress up the ice it became obvious that this was going to be very hard. For the first time Everest was going to ask both physical and mental questions of me. Every step and every pull on the jumar(ascending device) was sapping. The ground would be hard going at sea level and then add to that the alltitude it makes it really slow. Before the trip, when I thought of these hard days I was worried I would get frustrated at how debilitating this makes you feel. In reality it didn`t frustrate me, I just settled into a rythem of 6 to 10 steps and then a stop and slow my breathing down. It took me a few hours to get up. The last little section involved us crossing a ladder that was laid over a a pretty deep cravase, then up a steep section to the tents at 7100m. I slumped down next to Mat and waited for Josh and Simon. The others had turned back about half way up knowing they weren`t going to make the top before the turn around time. The weather was looking like it could turn on us so we were quite keen to get down. The wind was wild at times, I found the best way to deal with it was to just to drop down and dip my head when I heard it coming. I wore my Cebe goggles (courtesy of Bushnell Optics) which, along with a baloclava kept the wind off my face. Once we started coming down I felt confident to descend quickly. I wrapped the rope round my fore arm and let gravity do the rest. The less confident people abselied some sections but I felt confident enough to just to let the resistance of the rope against my arm to control my descent. Once off the wall it was a straight forward slog back to camp. We got back just before 6 and we`re met by the rest of the team wanting to know what it was like. Our physical state really said it all. I couldn`t eat a lot so re-hydrated and hit the tent. The end to a hard but reassuring day. Bring the next stage!