Sun 24 Oct 2010 17:03 » Jon
I’m feeling a lot better today, both physically and mentally. Today we dropped down from Pokalde Base Camp to Chukhung (4,730m) for lunch then began the climb up towards Island Peak. We’re now at Island Peak Base Camp (4,960m), which is at about the same altitude as Pokalde Base Camp where we were this morning. The camp didn’t feel nearly as cold today as it did two days ago - there was still a layer of frozen condensation on the inside of the tent, but there was no snow outside, just a little frost.
Sat 16 Oct 2010 14:32 » Jon
The most popular Nepalese beer with our group so far is called Everest. There’s a special edition out at the moment with a picture of a Sherpa called Nima Gombu on the label, celebrating the fact that he’s climbed Everest twelve times. His brother, Nima Temba, is our sirdar (chief Sherpa) and he’s also been up Everest. In all, their family of seven brothers has summitted Everest forty-seven times.
I’ve been wondering what Nima Temba makes of our little trip – it must seem a bit dull after going up Everest. I guess it’s probably similar for Andy though – trips like this are the bread and butter, with treats like the 8,000’ers being much less common.
