Paul Pottinger’s Adventures from the Top of the World

Jump to helpful navigation →

Resting in EBC

Everest 2016  •  April 15

14 comments

4-13-16 trough 4-15-16

After Lobuche we spent the night in LBC, then headed back to EBC the next day.  As usual, the trek is easier the second time… still, I felt tired when we got back home.  A great sense of relief being back here… now, we can focus on climbing Mt Everest.

Camp life is fun when there is no time pressure to make a move.  Lots of snacks, drinks, time for relaxation, laundry, showers, talking with friends.  And time out of the sun, thank goodness.  We have been blessed with nice weather and mild temperatures during the day… but folks, it feels really cold at night.  Three sleeping pads and two sleeping bags (-40F and -25F) seem to do the trick.

Our view from camp on a typical morning... by afternoon, things tend to become overcast.
Our view from camp on a typical morning… by afternoon, things tend to become overcast.

Today (4-15-16) we did a little training on ladders in base camp.  The first section of our climb of the upper mountain will take us through the Khumbu Icefall, which contains numerous crevasses that sometimes need to be bridged with aluminum ladders.  This is no problem, but doing it with crampons on requires concentration.  Practice helps!

Cristiano explains the finer points of crampon placement to Justin.
Cristiano explains the finer points of crampon placement to Justin.
Siva reporting for duty.
Siva reporting for duty.
Steven loves it up here.
Steven loves it up here.
Plenty of ice melt on our practice course today.
Plenty of ice melt on our practice course today.
Watching Master Merle, rapt with attention.
Watching Master Merle, rapt with attention.
Kim demonstrates perfect form on the ladder.
Kim demonstrates perfect form on the ladder.
The ladder is no match for Siva's massive boots.
The ladder is no match for Siva’s massive boots.
Traversing on a fixed line above the practice ladder.
Traversing on a fixed line above the practice ladder.
Emily Johnston in her element.
Emily Johnston in her element.
Steven does a great job, his first time out on ladders I believe.
Steven does a great job, his first time out on ladders I believe.
What's wrong with this picture?
What’s wrong with this picture?
Demonstrating the finer points of a self-rescue...NOTE: Because we use safety lines, this is very very unlikely to happen!
Demonstrating the finer points of a self-rescue…NOTE: Because we use safety lines, this is very very unlikely to happen!
"Emily, how did you get that camera?"
“Emily, how did you get that camera?”
Me descending the ladder span.
Me descending the ladder span.
Nicky: Bowsprit of the Himalayas.
Nicky: Bowsprit of the Himalayas.
Bob pulling tension for his lovely wife. My turn is next...
Bob pulling tension for his lovely wife. My turn is next…
Real friends pull tension for each other.
Real friends pull tension for each other.
Bob cuts a commanding figure while crossing the ladder.
Bob cuts a commanding figure while crossing the ladder.
Eddie on the horizontal ladder.
Eddie on the horizontal ladder.
Eddie practices locking those points on the aluminum ladder.
Eddie practices locking those points on the aluminum ladder.
Eddie rocking the traverse.
Eddie rocking the traverse.
Me on the traverse.
Me on the traverse.
The peanut gallery is tough to impress.
The peanut gallery is tough to impress.
Phunuru gets down with his bad self.
Phunuru gets down with his bad self.

Plan is to climb halfway up the icefall early tomorrow morning, hopefully home by breakfast.  Then, a couple more rest days until we make our next rotation up the mountain, to camps 1 and 2.

Flavor of the day: Ranch Dressing.

posted: April 15, 2016

14 thoughts on “Resting in EBC”

  5. With heightened awareness……even ranch dressing tastes wonderful! Wonderful photos. Again, thank you.

    Reply

  6. Just looking at the ladders gives me the willies! I’m sure you’ve got the procedure down cold, though. Focus, focus, focus! xox

    Reply

  7. Paul – I’m really enjoying your blog. you don’t know me but we have friends in common. I climbed Vinson with IMG – Greg, Grace and Gretchen in Jan. Also, I summited Everest with the IMG Classic team in 2013 and Phinjo was my Sherpa. Please give my best to Greg and Phinjo and best wishes for an awesome season on Everest!! – Doug

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.