Mountain Madness Gasherbrum II 2005: Getting ready to move up!

Dispatch: Dispatch #8 - July 5, 2005

Basecamp. Yesterday evening the clouds disappeared over the peaks and some teams left basecamp very early this morning towards Camp 1. A large German group led the way, encountering knee-deep snow in places, but relatively mild conditions. More clouds and light snow flurries returned today, but it remains warm and calm at basecamp. Our group will leave for Camp 1 tonight, at 1:00 am on July 6. The weather forecast calls for a dry spell starting July 8, so we hope to be in position at Camp 1 then to continue pushing the route higher, possibly to Camp 3. We may be above basecamp for several days if the forecast holds true. Many of the other expeditions on the mountain are also planning on moving to Camp 1 tonight and there will be a big push by all the groups to establish higher camps on the mountain in the next few days. Everyone on the Mountain Madness team is well-rested and ready to get back on the mountain.

Cheers, Charlie 

Dispatch #7 – July 4, 2005: Basecamp. For the last few days the team has been at basecamp, resting from our time up at Camp 1 and sitting out some bad weather. For the last few days there have been frequent snow showers with some brief periods of sunshine. Everyone is anxious to head back up the hill, but the forecast looks like a day or two more of unsettled conditions. In the meantime, several other expeditions have arrived and basecamp is taking on a real international flavor. Yesterday several expedition leaders met to coordinate breaking trail on both Gasherbrum 1 and 2 and maintaining the trail through the icefall and glacier to Camp 1 (common to both mountains). The long spell of good weather has made the icefall challenging, with crevasses widening daily; one in particular now requires a big jump to cross.

All teams are in basecamp now, but hope to head up to Camp 1 in a day or two if the weather improves as forecasted. Our plan is to sleep at Camp 1, then finish breaking trail to Camp 2, where we will spend another night. Weather and fitness permitting, we will try to reach Camp 3 on our next outing, as well.

Happy July 4! -  Cheers, Charlie

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