Correction on the last post: Chomrong is not the name of the place that we stayed, it is actually called Chukkung. Chomrong is the name of a village in the Annapurna region where we just were, hence the mistake.
Day 15: Rest day and mountaineering practice at Chukkung
Today was pretty laid back. We got all our mountaineering gear sorted, fitted our crampons, and ran through some climbing basics for those who didn't have any previous experience (rappelling, using crampons, using an ascender, ice axe etc.). I was still feeling quite sick but I went through the motions. Nothing else noteworthy happened during the day, I just went back to bed to try and recover. Tomorrow we go to base camp located at about 5000m, about a three hour walk from Chukkung.
Day 16: Chukkung to Island Peak base camp
Everyone got up late today and we didn't leave for base camp until around noon. We arrived around 3:00pm to find our camp already set up by the porters and Sherpas. All we had to do was lay down our sleeping bags in our tents and organize our climbing gear for the following morning. We didn't even have to cook for ourselves. Today was the first day we met Dapa-San, our cook for the camping section of our trip. It was pretty deluxe for those of us who are used to doing everything ourselves when camping. Wake-up tomorrow is 12:00am and we are supposed to leave by 1:00am ish. Dinner therefore was at 5pm and everyone went to bed shortly after in order to try and get as much sleep as possible. By this point I was starting to feel a bit better (thank god!) even if I was using the facilities more than most.
 |
| Island Peak 6189m (Imja Tse in Nepali) |
 |
| Our tents at base camp (the orange mountain hardware ones in the foreground) |
Day 17: Summit Day
Getting up at 12:00am was no problem, it was trying to get to sleep beforehand that had been difficult. When the alarm sounded we got up, dug out all the gear we had slept with the previous night, and dressed as quickly as possible. Dapa-San had porridge and eggs ready which we ate even though I don't think many of us were hungry so early in the morning (if you can call 12am morning). From base camp we set out in the dark with our headlamps lighting the way. It gruelling 4-5 hr march up the rocky and scree covered slopes of the mountain before the sun came out and we reached the glacier and the area known as "crampon-point." Even though most of us were well acclimatized by this point in the trek, the altitude still managed to make things much more difficult than they are at sea level.
 |
| Scrambling up the side of Island Peak in the dark |
At "crampon-point" we put on our harnesses, crampons, and tied ourselves to each other before making our way up Island Peak's north facing glacier (I think it was north facing at least).
 |
| Crampon-point |
 |
| Kiersten and the crew walking up from crampon-point |
Fortunately no one fell in any crevasses and we crossed the glacier without incident. The next part of our climb was to get up the 160m (or so) head wall before gaining the ridge that would ultimately lead us to the summit. This was done via fixed ropes that the sherpas set up. I was second in line on the ropes behind Guido and we made steady progress towards the summit ridge. There was only one difficult section near the top that required a little finesse to get up, but overall it was pretty easy considering the elevation.
 |
| Summit of Island Peak (you can see the section of the headwall that we climbed on the far left) |
The main difficulties were over once we were on the summit ridge. From there we just slogged our way up to the summit and took in the views.
 |
| Gyaltzen and Nima Sherpa |
 |
| View from the summit ridge of another party making their way up the glacier |
 |
| Guido side-stepping up the summit ridge with Lhotse in the background |
 |
| View down the summit ridge from the summit. |
 |
| Two more steps and Kiersten was at the top! |
When we finally reached the summit we were greeted by amazing views of the surrounding mountains. We were really lucky because the weather was amazing! Totally clear and calm, not a single breeze in a place that can be extremely windy.
 |
| Guido and Kiersten at the summit |
 |
| Kiersten and I at the summit with Lhotse in the background |
 |
| Mountain views from the summit |
The way back down was easier than going up, especially when it comes to the effort exerted on the headwall. The first pitch of rappelling was kind of funny though. The rope was super thin and I had to hold the thing behind my back to keep myself in control. I made it down fine but was kind of worried for the other people in the group that had very little rappelling experience. However, in the end, with the help of the Sherpas, everyone made it down fine.
 |
| Taking off crampons at crampon point before the way down |
 |
| View of base camp from above |
 |
| Kiersten on the walk down |
I arrived back at base camp around 3pm or so and was greeted with a warm cup of juice from one of the cooks helpers, which was much appreciated at that point. After that I think I returned to my tent and passed out until dinner. It had turned into a fine day indeed.
Day 18: Base camp to Chukkung
Nothing worth writing about happened today. We walked happily to Chukkung from base camp thinking about the day before. In the end, everyone managed to make it to the summit.
No comments:
Post a Comment