Mt. Everest 2005: Did the British Summit Everest on May 30th?

Photo Tom West ©EverestNews.com

Update May 30th, 2005: many climbers think the British might have summited last night. So far no news... Except one British climber was seen coming down last night that attempted without oxygen. We are unsure if he was even on this team! More soon.. The Indian Air Force and the Russians summited on the 30th..

Update 5/28/2005: Team at camp one (North col), moving to Camp 2 right now...

Update 5/27/2005: The Brits are on the move up...

Update 5/25/2005: We are expecting to leave ABC on the 27th with a view to maximizing our chances with the weather window supposed to come in for the 29th/30th/31st.

Getting relatively close to our departure from the mountain, we are looking at any way of easing our end of expedition final packing up and getting down. So when a Tibetan turned up with 3 yaks offering to carry some loads down the 22km to BC, we jumped at the chance. The only trouble was we could only muster 2 1/2 loads. The yak man suggested our bog barrel (our toilet is a blue plastic barrel to enable us to remove our human waste for proper disposal away from the mountain) but it was only 2/3 full so we said no thanks.

Anyway...first thing the following morning a somewhat distressed Phenden Sherpa appeared outside Tom's tent (legs crossed) saying someone had stolen the toilet! We informed the mountain police but they had nothing to go on!!! What on earth a Tibetan is going to do with a blue plastic barrel 2/3 full of human waste is anyone's guess. Maybe he has a large vegetable garden?!!!

The weather remains very windy but there is a lull expected around the 29th onwards into June. Our intention is to al move up to the North Col on the 27th, continuing up the mountain in stages with possible summit days on the 30th or 31st depending on conditions.

A few of us wandered across the glacier the other day to the Raphu La which overlooks the Kangshung Valley. From the pass you get fantastic views across the Kangshung Face of Everest, you can almost reach out and touch Makalu and over to the east you have Kangchenjunga and Jannu, quite spectacular.

All the best, Patrick

The team are made up of:

Non climbing members:

Dr. John Semple

Robbie the Chef

Climbing Sherpas:

Phanden Sherpa

Mingma Sherpa

Pasang Sherpa

Jangbu Sherpa

Climbers:

Tom Richardson

Ian Wade

Matt Sharman

Dan Short

Mick Bromley

Tim Mosedale

Ross Ash-Cregan

Stuart Holmes

All the British climbers are from or have strong links with Keswick in

the Lake District, Northern England. They are a private, non commercial, group of friends. They do not have much in the way of

technology so updates are by satellite phone and the occasional email courtesy of the Norwegians.

Updates

Millet One Sport Everest Boot  has made some minor changes by adding more Kevlar. USES Expeditions / High altitude / Mountaineering in extremely cold conditions / Isothermal to -75°F Gore-Tex® Top dry / Evazote Reinforcements with aramid threads. Avg. Weight: 5 lbs 13 oz Sizes: 5 - 14 DESCRIPTION Boot with semi-rigid shell and built-in Gore-Tex® gaiter reinforced by aramid threads, and removable inner slipper Automatic crampon attachment Non-compressive fastening Double zip, so easier to put on Microcellular midsole to increase insulation Removable inner slipper in aluminized alveolate Fiberglass and carbon footbed Cordura + Evazote upper Elasticated collar. Expedition footwear for mountaineering in conditions of extreme cold.  NOTE US SIZES LISTED. See more here.

A cold weather, high altitude double boot for extreme conditions The Olympus Mons is the perfect choice for 8000-meter peaks. This super lightweight double boot has a PE thermal insulating inner boot that is coupled with a thermo-reflective outer boot with an integrated gaiter. We used a super insulating lightweight PE outsole to keep the weight down and the TPU midsole is excellent for crampon compatibility and stability on steep terrain. WEIGHT: 39.86 oz • 1130 g LAST: Olympus Mons CONSTRUCTION: Inner: Slip lasted Outer: Board Lasted OUTER BOOT: Cordura® upper lined with dual-density PE micro-cellular thermal insulating closed cell foam and thermo-reflective aluminium facing/ Insulated removable footbed/ Vibram® rubber rand See more here.

   Ascenders

   Atlas snowshoes

   Atomic

   Big Agnes

   Black Diamond

   Brunton

   Carabiners

   Chaco

   Cloudveil

   Columbia
   CMI

   Crampons

   Edelweiss ropes
   Eureka Tents

   Exofficio

   FiveTen

   Featured

   FoxRiver

   Gregory

   Granite Gear

   Harnesses
   Headlamps

   Hestra
   Helmets

   Helly Hansen

   HighGear

   HornyToad
   Ice Axes

   Julbo

   Kavu Eyewear

   Katadyn

   Kelty

   Kong

   Lekisport

   Life is Good

   Lowa

   Lowe Alpine

   Lowepro

   Millet

   Motorola

   Mountain Hardwear

   Mountainsmith

   MSR

   Nalgene

   New England Ropes

   Nikwax

   Omega

   Osprey

   Outdoor Research
   Patagonia

   Pelican

   Petzl

   Prana

   Princeton Tec

   Primus

   Rope Bags

   Royal Robbins

   Salomon

   Scarpa

   Scott

   Seattle Sports

   Serius
   Sleeping Bags

   Sterling Rope

   Stubai

   Suunto

   Tents

   Teva

   Thermarest

   Trango

   Tool Logic

   Trekking Poles
   Yaktrax
   and more here