The Prentice Everest Summit report: Summit Climb Everest 2004 Dispatch

The following is the unedited account of the Prentice summit attempt...

4 out of 14.5!! [?? must be a Prentice code]

This is just another Everest story, It started on Sunday  16th May we had done all our acclimatisation walks/climbs gone low to allow body regeneration and repair and where back with vengeance for the summit, we climbed up to the north col in glorious sunshine it looked like the satellite phone text forecasts we had received had been right the weather was good, then a big problem, Ian started throwing up for England not good over 4 miles up, a desperate radio call to Doc John Mislow left Ian eating a cocktail of drugs sat up bolt up right in the tent and on oxygen, it worked although the next morning Ian judged himself to weak to climb higher so an extra day recovering at the col it was, no problem. We moved higher to 7700mts to a perfect camp site complete with snow field for drinking, Ian still felt rough but was positive about his recovery we moved up again this time into the death zone 8300 there's only 5 mountains higher in the world and we were camping! it took us ages but after settling on top of our sleeping bags in full climbing gear harness boots the lot we rested and drank all the tang (squash) we could, each of us John Briggs, Ian Prentice, Garth Miller and myself all thinking about the biggest day of our lives now only hours away. The plan was simple get up at 11pm and be out the tents by 12pm, climb up to the top of the north east ridge traverse it climb the three "steps"  (Technical rock obstacles) safely complete the Mushroom traverse then the last snow ridge (not in that order) and then bask in the glory of the highest place on planet earth.....

12:25pm: Not bad as anybody who knows us knows were always late, were out of the tent, there's a snake of maybe 40 lights ahead of us already, after an hour of extreme effort climbing with no style at all an emotional Ian comes to me "I can't go on" the sickness had got the better of him "I've got to go back", ever since Mount Blanc several years ago we said we would never split up on a mountain, but now what? I did what all hard Everest climbers would do, started crying, 2 years of planning training and sacrifice was over 500 vertical meters from the top of the world.

I rang my girlfriend for advice she didn't answer... then of course my other brother Stuart, after 30 seconds of fact filling in the answer came, go back its only a mountain this is life or death for Ian. I looked at Ian he knew straight away "no way" I going down with Loda (Our Tibetan porter with promise who we were taking to the summit) for five minutes we cried and talked about the implications of this decision, on I went, myself ,John Briggs, Garth miller and Pemba Galsing (Nepalese Sherpa extraordinaire) I don't remember much of the climb but it was physically hard as just living is at that altitude, I gained the ridge with just enough light from my head lamp to see I was on a cornice standing in china hanging over Nepal  over 5 miles up .... time to switch on or I wont ever see this stuff in the light on the way back.

Where's John ? I asked Pemba, John catch us up he very fast came the answer, no he's only got a Tikka (small L.E.D head lamp) in my self pity I had climbed the whole route with out even looking around for my mates how bad am I first my own brother now this dam.

In the distance I saw a small glow thank god it must be John, I shouted, it was, 10 minutes later John fell in a heap next to us, what no way! John was always the mountain goat of the group how could this be? I fed him a High 5 energy gel his lips were blue and his eyes looked sunk as he explained he was using more and more energy to climb until he couldn't go on after ten minutes of heavy breathing repaying his oxygen debt he heard piiiiiissssssstt his hose from his regulator had dislodged he was getting no oxygen, this had caused him to breath heavier and heavier as the cold air hit the back of his throat this  had triggered a massive asthma attack as well, only his fitness had kept him alive I'm ok now lets go, what about Garth?     

Garth had had problems with his oxygen set for days it transpires as he was climbing the mask kept fouling his view whilst climbing this isn't good causing him on one tricky bit to abseil back down and rip the mask off, on the next go, same thing this time he hyperventilated causing a build up of carbon dioxide in the mask the out come, pure terror as he couldn't breathe.... the sense of self preservation prevailed he turned back. The party now of three myself John and Pemba headed for the first step, John turned to Pemba "am I going to slow?" yes came the answer I thought so I going back (John replied), we all looked at each other now what I looked at John the oxygen thing had hit him hard take Pemba and get going "no way you take him he knows the way to the summit" I knew that should of been the end of our summit bid but how hard can the last few hundred meters be? a reluctant John and Pemba turned and disappeared. The North face now seemed like the angry side of the highest mountain in the world I knew what to do, get my head down summit as early as possible this would give me the best chance of getting back in the morning typically the best weather for the last few days, it was only once on top did I realize I had just climbed the first step then in the distance I saw the second recognizable from miles away as an 80 feet obstacle to the summit given as the reason for early summit failures I had special gloves, studied accounts of people who had climbed it, this to me was the last challenge if I could climb this on my own in the dark the summit would be rightfully be mine I could stand tall and tell the story with pride, off I went then a problem this traversing was actually quite difficult a few times I found myself hanging on by my finger tips and crampon points with only a few feet of light the drop might be 10 feet it might be 5000 feet a lone climber, Italian (I think) once appeared and learnt from one such foray by choosing a different route my appeals for help went a hypoxic long way. I slowed down at last the second step, once at the bottom I decided to stash one of my 3ltr oxygen bottles this would reduce the weight I had to climb with the only problem was I didn't have any rope so I made a whole a whole in the "cliff" and placed the bottle with every intension of retrieving it on the way back...

To my surprise I heard voices behind me an American couple (I think) by the time I had sorted my rucksack out (its tricky hanging on ropes with big gloves on if you drop it that's it!!!) they had disappeared up, my turn then the second step, I looked at the ropes carefully the black and white one looked good I hooked on my Jumar 40 seconds later I was standing on a snow rock ledge looking at a ladder, I had been told of people who fell whilst trying to get from the ladder to the shelf to the right and how its 2 moves too get off it, I collected the black and white rope again and rung after rung up I went now at the very top I was holding a sort of rope extension stuck my foot out onto a 4inch lug hold and was standing on top of the second step, was that it no way.

As I rounded the corner there it was in the morning twilight the summit of Mount Everest I now realized I had no idea where to go just because you can see the top it doesn't mean you can get there. I sat down with exhaustion.

As my eyes grew accustomed to the growing light I could see a couple in front of me about 100mts great they know the way I thought they climbed the third step slowly I could see the ropes blowing in the wind from just behind them this wasn't good with no rope or climbing partner how was I going to "stick" to the snow slope to the top, I'm not sure if they made it to the top I retreated to some rocks for shelter and to rest then I remembered there was some South Africans I knew Chris, Mike and Aundray going for the summit I could wait for them, alot of time elapsed I'm not sure how much because altitude is like that in  the distance I saw some head lights was I them? I walked back no small feet when I knew it would be back up hill to the summit it wasn't them it was a Japanese group an uncomfortable silence immediately took hold there's only one reason a lone bloke 150 mtrs below the summit of Everest would approach and that's for help. I sat next to them, then I remembered I had been given a radio by Pemba as we parted I got it out the batteries where frozen along with all my water my camera even my spare hat and gloves were rock hard I started the conversation can I use your radio.... no what's wrong with yours?, batteries, we have spare I looked at the group with full face masks and goggles it was going to be hard to infiltrate after all it could kill them, with new batteries in hand I thanked them and headed back towards the summit.

I radioed Ian "I'm at the base of the summit pyramid! I can almost touch the top" I think I thought he would be pleased.... he wasn't I cant remember the conversation but it involved the kind of talk you would expect between two brothers one about to be blown form Everest to his death, Dan Mazur was in a Sherpa tent and over heard the conversation and added his twenty years of experience "come down its not worth it"

Once again I retreated to some rocks and rang my girlfriend and again I can't remember the conversation but she told me since I was crying (again s#*t) going on about it was so close .... I think its called summit fever Back at the second step, abseil, I know how to do this it just seems not quite right, down the first pitch I think I'll just rest here a bit and sleep.... maybe a should be getting back it took another life time to decide to use the rope I was always going to use! down I went straight past my oxygen bottle ! there was no way I was going to climb back up for it fine or no fine now this traverse stuff better rest first sleep...move again its getting pretty cold then, Andy we must go low Pemba had climbed back on a one man rescue mission in the two hours I had traveled only 150-200 mts and was in a pretty bad way having now not drank for 6 hours used countless calories and my nose had blocked depriving me of oxygen through my nasal canula, things weren't looking good it use to be said you had a better chance of being rescued from the moon than the top of Everest this was now being tested! You cant rescue people in the same way on Everest as on other mountains no stretchers no helicopters you have to talk them into rescuing themselves only themselves can abseil and walk and climb.

I fell in the tent at 8300mts I have vague memories of Very MANLY tears being shed before being dragged down out of the death zone to 7700mts this act of pure heroism by Pemba Galsing almost certainly saved my life no other climber could of got there that fast and help with the rope and foot work with that dedication knowing if I fell there was a good chance 24 crampon points would come crashing down on him although I did notice I wasn't allowed my ice axe again!

The journey down to ABC was very slow with me having to stop very, very frequently to rest with the high light being when I fell in a crevasse by the north col I was roped luckily so just an incontinence its amazing how much trouble tired eyes and legs get you into in a place where on the day I nearly summated Mount Everest 14 people claimed to but 4 died trying to get down a Japanese person and a Korean where just two of them.....

I could of course claimed to of summated after all there are many disputed summit claims my route description to other summiteers is complete except the 50-100mts of snow not the hardest thing to make up it was snowing so even if my camera hadn't frozen blank pictures prove little, I do feel very lucky to have climbed high on Everest and lived to tell the tale the this story is of course only part of the bigger story involving other dead climbers and other things wch my family just aren't ready for yet. Thank you for reading, Andrew Prentice

Dispatches

 

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