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Manaslu Avalanche
Posted on September 23, 2012
We have just returned to base camp after a long day on the mountain and all
team members are well. We awoke at 4:30 AM Nepal time to snow, winds, & ice
penetrating our tents at Camp 2. Fortunately everybody in our group was ok,
however when we climbed up to Camp 3 shortly after to investigate we
discovered the debris from a massive avalanche and found many climbers in
distress. During the rescue & recovery in the following hours we were able to
coordinate and assist evacuating over a dozen climbers on 10 helicopter
flights from just below Camp 3 (20,500’). Lakpa Rita Sherpa coordinated much
of the helicopter evacuation by speaking directly to the pilot and supervising
the packaging and transportation of patients to our makeshift helipad on the
debris field. Currently our group is now in base camp and planning to rest for
a few days.
Garrett Madison, Expedition Leader
Avalanche reported at Camp 3; Alpine Ascents Team safe at Camp 2
Posted on September 23, 2012
We just received a call from lead guide, Garrett Madison on Manaslu saying
that there was a large avalanche on the upper mountain in the Camp 3 area.
Our team was lower down on the mountain, and none of our Climbing or Sherpa
team were on that portion of the mountain.
There is no further news at this time, we will keep you all posted as we hear
more details.
The Alpine Ascents Office Staff
Manaslu expedition team excited and acclimatizing well, as they arrive at Camp
2 under clear skies
Posted on September 22, 2012
Hi, this is Garrett Madison calling in for the Alpine Ascents Manaslu
expedition. Today’s Saturday, September 22nd and today we climbed from Camp 1
to Camp 2, and moved into Camp 2. We had spectacular views climbing up the
glacier, around crevasses, and up steep headwalls here to Camp 2 (which is
about 20,000 feet).
And everybody’s doing great. All climbers are up here and really excited to be
moved into Camp 2 here for a couple nights, all part of our acclimatization
strategy, on our first rotation. The weather’s looking really good; the
precipitation has leveled off somewhat and we had clear skies this afternoon.
Hopefully a few days of clear weather here at Camp 2 for some amazing views.
And we’re going to head up and climb towards Camp 3 tomorrow, for additional
acclimatization.
Again, everybody’s doing great, happy to be here. And we look forward to
checking in soon.
Manaslu expedition team enjoys awesome views of the Himalayas
on an acclimatization hike
Posted on September 21, 2012
Hi, this is Garrett Madison calling in for the Alpine Ascents Manaslu
expedition. Today’s Friday, September 21st and today we went for a climb above
Camp 1, towards Camp 2, and returned to Camp 1 to spend the night. It was part
of our acclimatization process.
Tomorrow our plan is to try to climb up to Camp 2 and move in, and spend a few
nights up there at Camp 2. The weather seems to be improving, less
precipitation, less snow throughout the day. And all the team members are
doing great, had some awesome views today above Camp 1 and hoping for some
great views tomorrow. Everything’s well here on Manaslu.
We’ll check in soon.
Manaslu expedition team tucked into their tents at Camp 1 for a second night,
after hiking the nearby ice fall
Posted on September 20, 2012
Hi, this is Garrett Madison calling in for the Alpine Ascents Manaslu
expedition. We are up at Camp 1 and about to spend our second night here, at
Camp 1 (just over 18,000 feet).
Today our Sherpa team, led by guide, Lakpa Rita Sherpa, climbed up to Camp 2
and had to break trail just about the whole way through waist-deep snow, to
establish the route to Camp 2.
The rest of the climbers and myself went for an easy hike and climb, up
through the ice fall section above Camp 1, and returned back here to Camp 1
for dinner. Everybody now is tucked into their tents, doing great and looking
forward to another restful night here at Camp 1.
Check in soon.
Manaslu expedition team heads to Camp 1, taking advantage of a break in the
weather
Posted on September 19, 2012
Hi, this is Garrett Madison calling in for the Alpine Ascents Manaslu climb.
Today’s September 19th and we have just arrived – Camp 1. We had a break in
the weather this morning, had a clear sky, so we decided to pack up and move
to Camp 1. It took us about seven hours, seven and a half hours of climbing
and everybody’s doing great.
We’re making up some soup right now and filling water bottles for the team.
It’s about 6pm and we’re looking forward to spending our first night up here
and resting tomorrow and hopefully the precipitation should start dying down
tomorrow. We had quite a bit of snow today coming up but happy to be here.
Everyone’s doing well and we’ll check in soon.
View of Manaslu from Base Camp
Hanging out in Manaslu base camp
Posted on September 18, 2012
We are making the most of our time in base camp as we wait out a monsoon like
multi day precipitation event. We have had about 1 inch of water equivalent
precipitation per day for the last few days, which equals about 10 inches of
snow. This event is expected to continue for at least another day, possibly
two days more. We have been reviewing some climbing techniques, watching
films, and socializing with some other teams here in base camp. Everyone here
is doing well and we are excited to move up to Camp 1 as soon as the weather
permits.
Garrett Madison, Expedition Leader
Puja Ceremony at Manaslu BC
Posted on September 17, 2012
Today we did our Puja ceremony at base camp. We had our team of western
climbers, Sherpa, and a Lama from the nearby village of Samagoan who chanted
Buddhist prayers to ask the mountain to allow us safe passage. Despite the
heavy snow today, we had a wonderful ceremony, and are looking forward to the
snow letting up so we can embark on our first ‘rotation’ to sleep at Camp 1.
Everyone on the team is doing great, and we are excited to now officially
begin climbing Manaslu!
Garrett Madison, Expedition Leader
Posted on September 15, 2012
We had a great acclimatization hike before the rain started here in base camp,
and it is expected to continue for a few days with up to 3 inches of water
content! We will plan to move up to camp 1 when the rain subsides. Everyone is
doing great at base camp, we did some training in camp using our ascender &
belay device, and we are planning to watch the film “Everest” tonight after
dinner!
Garrett Madison
Training on glacier
Posted on September 14, 2012
Today we are training in base camp. We hiked over to the glacier and reviewed
crampon & ice axe techniques. We will go for an acclimatization hike today and
return to base camp. Our current schedule is to train in base camp for a few
more days then do our Puja ceremony on Monday, and then climb to Camp 1 to
sleep the following day, our first “rotation”. Everyone is doing well in base
camp.
Garrett Madison, Expedition Leader
Team settles into Manaslu base camp
Posted on September 12, 2012:
Today our team is settling into base camp and organizing our gear. All of our
loads arrived and we have set up our personal tents, cooking tent, dining &
communications tent, etc. We had a bright sunny morning in base camp and went
for an acclimatization hike up to the toe of the glacier at about 16,000’. It
is great to be up here and to begin focusing on our first rotation to Camp 1 &
Camp 2 in a few days. Beginning tomorrow we will review climbing techniques
such as cramponing, fixed line travel, belaying & rappelling. All team members
are doing well and excited to be here in base camp!
In photo: Garrett, Jim, Marcelo, Bernardo, John
Garrett Madison
Beautiful sunny weather for the Manaslu
expedition team as they acclimatize during a hike to Samdo for lunch:
Posted on September 8, 2012
Hi, this is Garrett Madison calling in for the Alpine Ascents Manaslu
expedition. Today’s Saturday, September 8th and today we took a hike from the
village of Samagaon up to the village of Samdo. And we had a nice lunch there,
and had beautiful weather today, sunshine, light breeze.
And now we’re back in Samagaon, had dinner, and we’re getting ready for bed.
We’re going to plan to rest here tomorrow as well, and visit the monastery in
Samagaon, and then possibly move up to base camp the following day. Right now
we’re just resting and acclimating here at Samagaon (which is about 11,500
feet). Everyone’s doing really well and we’re having a great time on the
expedition. We’ll check in soon.
Manaslu expedition team arrives in Samagaon, a Tibetan-influenced Nepalese
village at 11,500 feet:
Posted on September 7, 2012
Hi, this is Garrett Madison calling in for the Alpine Ascents Manaslu
expedition. Today’s Friday, September 7th and we just arrived in Samagaon,
which is the last town on our trek to Manaslu base camp. We arrived here and
were able to relax and have a few hot drinks. It’s much cooler up here at
Samagaon (about 11,500 feet) and it’s a nice change from the hot and humid
valley that we trekked in over the last week. And very interesting village
here, a lot of Tibetan influence, so both architecturally and culturally it’s
a very different experience than the first few days on the trek. We’re going
to spend a couple nights here and rest and acclimatize, do some short hikes to
the nearby peaks, and then set up our base camp (at about 15,500 feet).
So everyone’s doing great, we had a wonderful afternoon hiking here, and
enjoyed our dinner, and just getting ready to enjoy our first night here in
Samagaon. We’ll check in soon.
Manaslu expedition team feeling strong as they move higher into cooler weather
to Namrung:
Posted on September 6, 2012
Hi, this is Garrett Madison calling in for the Alpine Ascents Manaslu
expedition. Today we are hiking from the village of Deeng to the village of
Namrung. And it’s much cooler up here now that we’ve gained some elevation
(we’re above 6000 feet), and we’re really looking forward to moving our way up
the valley here where it becomes even cooler and eventually we’ll see some
snow.
Cook staff’s doing a great job for us, breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and the
whole team’s having a great time. Everyone’s feeling well, feeling very strong
and we’re looking forward especially to the town after Namrung, which is
Samagaon, that’s where we’ll spend a couple nights before heading up to base
camp. All’s well here in Nepal and we’ll check in soon.
September 5, 2012
Manaslu Team treks through lush valleys of
waterfalls on their way to Deeng:
Hey, this is Garrett Madison calling in for the Alpine Ascents Manaslu
expedition. Today is Wednesday, September 5th and we’re enjoying our trek from
Jagat to Deeng. And it’s starting to get a little cooler here as we gain
elevation, we’re at about 6,000 feet right now and working our way up a little
higher each day. It’s beautiful, green lush valleys with waterfalls.
And our cook crew is doing a great job cooking our meals, breakfast, lunch,
and dinner each day for us. And we’re really having a wonderful experience
trekking into this unspoiled valley in the Fall. So another great day here and
looking forward to spending the night in Deeng tonight. A few more days before
we reach Sama Gaon, then eventually base camp. I’ll check in soon, thanks.
Manaslu Team Experiencing Cooler Temperatures As They Make Their Way to Jagat:
Hi this is Garrett Madison calling in for the alpine ascents Manaslu
expedition. Today is Tuesday September 4th and we’re hiking from Machha Khola
to Jagat and its cooling off a little bit here in the valley this morning
which is nice, it’s been very hot the last two days, but we are having a great
time and looking forward to getting up a little higher here and seeing what
lies ahead. Everyone’s doing great and we’ll check in soon.
Manaslu Team Trek Day 1: Through The Jungle Valley from Arughat to Soti Khola:
Hi this is Garrett Madison calling in for the alpine ascents Manaslu
expedition. We are currently on our trek, just finished day from from Arughat
to Soti Khola. Today we are going to trek to Machha Khola, we’re pretty low
down here in the valley, about 870m, pretty low about 2000 feet. And it’s
really hot during the day and it rains a ton at night and then in the mornings
and evenings. So it’s a very tropical trek, we’re having a great time,
beautiful views, waterfalls a lot of lush greenery, and great food by our cook
staff here that’s trekking in with us and we’re really looking forward to
working our way up the valley to base camp. So everyone is doing well and
we’re looking forward to the next day of the trek here to gain a little
elevation and see a new area of the Manaslu region.
September 1, 2012
We are now all loaded up in our Landcruisers & driving to Arughat!
Team assembled and gear check completed at Yak & Yeti hotel
August 31, 2012
Today we met with all members of the Alpine Ascents Manaslu climbing team and
conducted a thorough clothing and equipment check. We are enjoying the
relaxing sanctuary of our historical hotel and the amenities it provides, as
well as the busy city that surrounds it.
Climbing Permit Acquired!
August 31, 2012
Yesterday was a busy day as we visited the ministry of Tourism and spent a few
hours completing the necessary paperwork and briefings to obtain our climbing
permit for Manaslu. We are very excited to now officially have our Alpine
Ascents 2012 Manaslu climbing permit and begin our expedition to climb the 8th
highest mountain in the world!
Photo: Expedition Leader Garrett Madison with official permit document from
head of Tourism ministry in Kathmandu, Nepal.
Earlier:
The Alpine Ascents team is headed to Manaslu, the world’s 8th highest peak. We
will begin our dispatches in early September when the expedition begins in
Kathmandu, Nepal. We will trek for just over 1 week to base camp. After
setting up camp, we will begin our climbing rotations and stocking our high
camps, fixing the route, and acclimatizing. We hope to summit in late
September or early October. Stay tuned!!
Garrett Madison, Expedition Leader
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