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Sunset on
Shishapangma from Base Camp |
Today we woke early in Tingri and said a sad farewell to our
Cho Oyu teammates. They are a great group of people and we will miss them very
much. It was super fun being able to hang out together all of this way.
We picked up Chumey, our loyal Tibetan kitchen assistant and then all of us
piled into two land-cruisers and we drove west, away from dusty Tingri, to the
base of the 4900 metre/16,000 foot Lalung La, then left the main friendship
highway behind to continue west. Suddenly the road became a rough-shod affair,
and our jeeps bumped along from rock to rock and rut to rut. At times, the
road disappeared altogether and we found ourselves crossing grassy meadows on
pea-sized gravel.
Upon veering off the highway, the Tibetan Plateau came to life and we saw all
sorts of new types of vegetation, lush grasslands, many stunning types of
birds, even the very rare sight of a majestic Lamergeir bird sitting beside
the road eating a rodent, looking ever so much like a massive golden eagle.
This bird, though perched, would have easily risen above my knee, and I am 1.9
metres/6'3" inches tall.
After crossing the secured gate into the Shishapangma Core Zone, it felt ever
more like we were in a remote wilderness, dotted with tiny Tibetan villages
nestled humbly beneath enourmous grassy-rocky hills. Next we traversed the
valley floor, and wound our way past the expansive and deep blue Pelku Tso
Lake, which lies in all of its enourmity at 4590 metres/15,000 feet.
Turning up a side valley (by the way leaving the "main" highway to sacred
Mount Kailash) we followed a crude track to a cluster of tents and were
relieved to see our remaining staff of Jangbu, Kipa, and other Tibetan Kitchen
assistant Tsewang (all of whom had driven up here with the equipment truck
directly from Nyalam to establish this basecamp) waiving and beckoning to us.
We said good-bye to our friendly and patient drivers, and dove into the
already set up dining tent for a delicious tea. Then we moved into our
comfortable sleeping tents for a rest followed by a delicious lunch.
It's very beautiful here at 5000 metre/16,000 foot-high basecamp, with a light
rain falling, and temperatures around 18 degrees. So far our objective Mount
Shishapangma, "Goddess of the Grasslands" has shyly secreted herself behind
snow-laden clouds, but we know she will show her face sooner or later.
Tomorrow we plan some acclimatization rest and a light hike of a few hours.
Thanks for following our expedition!
Earlier: 7 September, 2009:
Dear SummitClimb news readers,
Today we left Tingri and drove to Cho Oyu Chinese basecamp. This is just a 2
hour drive from Tingri, located on a riverbank at 4918 metres/16,100 feet.
When we arrived at basecamp, it was already set up by our awesome staff and we
were welcomed with hot tea and coffee. After this Samdien, our Tibetan cook,
prepared a delicious meal for us. It was a welcome change from all of the food
we ate on the road to get here. Some members spent their afternoon doing a
small hike, while others just relaxed in basecamp.
Our yaks, the animals that are going to carry our equipment up to ABC
(advanced basecamp), will arrive tomorrow evening. This means we will probably
leave BC on the 9th and move up higher on the mountain.
All members are doing very well, they are all healthy and strong.
More news will follow soon.............
Arnold Coster Expedition leader
Earlier: Hi there Summit Climb News readers. I hope you are well and
thanks for following our dispatch for 30 August, 2009, for Cho Oyu and
Shishapangma
Today was quite a busy day for us as we prepared for our
expedition. We awoke in our comfortable hotel and after a fresh morning rain;
the sun popped out and dried out the streets of Kathmandu. I love this time of
year here as it's so clean and the city is so well washed. It's very quiet and
peaceful as locals relax and assume a slower pace of life. Also there are very
few tourists here so the normally frantic 'Thamel' neighbourhood is nice and
calm.
We had a delicious breakfast at our local coffee shop then got to work
checking member's personal equipment and going over the gear list.
There are three special members of our LeaderInTraining
programme and they have been working very hard getting us ready for the
expedition. They are Adam Dixon from England, Gavin Vickers from Australia,
and Ry Fable from Colorado. Also in town are two of our expedition members
Richard Pierse from Ireland and Alex Macrae from Aberdeen.
We went around the "Asan" neighbourhood with our kitchen staff and checked
food prices and quality at three different shops, and then returned to
SummitClimb's Kathmandu office to make final purchase decisions. Our food
lists and cook staff are looking good, so we will be eating very well. Then we
went on to review the equipment lists and sat with the lead sherpa from each
team
to discuss every item on the list in detail, so we have things perfectly
organised.
We are bringing lots of equipment like ropes, tents, radios, medical gear,
etcetera, so we are going to be very well prepared. In the evening we met for
a delicious dinner at a nearby bistro which serves the most delicious Italian
food in a lovely cozy classy atmosphere, then had one nightcap in a nearby pub
where we ran into old friends who are in town launching their expeditions to
various mountains around Nepal and Tibet.
All of the best for now, thanks for following our news
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