Connecticut Everest Expedition Summits Everest!

Update: George & Lakpa, Dave Watson and Chuck Boyd and all the Connecticut Everest Expedition 2004 are down to ABC

Update: George & Lakpa, Dave Watson and Chuck Boyd summitted Everest North side around 7 am. with Rinji Sherpa, Dawa Sherpa and Mingma Sherpa (Lakpa brother).

Lakpa 4th summit, no other woman has more than 3. for George, 6 summits in the last 6 years!

Summit Plans: leaving for the sixth Summit (For George)

©George Dijmarescu from his 2003 climb

Dear EverestNews.com, Tomorrow the Connecticut Everest expedition is leaving for the summit, we hope to reach the summit on May 20th. In 2000 I reached the summit on May 19th. All the members are reported in good condition. Anne Parnmenter and Michael Kodas arrive from the BC today and despite the effort to reach ABC they will go up with the rest of the group. Dave Watson, Chuck Boyd, Lakpa and I spent most of the day sorting out our equipment, from crampons, ice axe, several new socks, warm underwear, down equipment, Gore-Tex, headlamps, spare batteries, camera, video camera with their respective batteries, gloves, liner gloves, spare gloves, mitts, snacks, thermos, food, harness, ascender, carabineers, figure eight, toilet paper, tooth brush with paste if you care, balaclava, warm head wear, film, slides, goggles, sun glasses, sun screen, lip balm, Oxygen if not already at the last camp, mask with regulator, form me mineral water and perhaps one of the most important things THE SPONSORS FLAGS, forget that and the next year you get nothing. I will like to thank our sponsors, as a group sponsor EMS, we thank you for you generosity and commitment to this project, we hope we will not disappoint you and we are looking forward to a long term relationship. We hope to be the first expedition who put EMS flag to the summit of Mt. Everest.

To our gear sponsor, Lakpa and I we like to take another opportunity and thank you for supporting us. You been the best sponsor ever, never put pressure on us and never asked for more than what we originally agreed. We hope to do more and hope to do for longer period of time. Please accept our sincere thanks. As we all prepare to step to heights which are hostile to humans and accept the ultimate sacrifice, as readers please find a bit of time and walk with us for four days, step by step, every step accompany with a degree of danger. Reaching the last camp utterly exhausted, trying to gulp as much as possible of the thin air, some will have the advantage of the precious Oxygen, others pushing the envelope and hope will be fit enough when the bell ring at 11 PM, sherpa franticly trying to encourage us to get ready. Drink, as much as possible, hey do you have a full thermos of hot drink, here I have some hot water. Come on we have another fifteen minutes, look some climbers are already at the ridge, we must go. Make sure your crampons are properly fasten. Dawa, a voice will scream, please help me with this mask, is to tight, Mingnma, another voice will sound, I need some help with the crampons, Anga Dawa, my bottle show less Oxygen, you thing is OK?. That's the scenario, I envision, one all the equipment is in place, masks on the face a silence will engulf our team, talk and nobody will hear you, just a mumbling but nobody cares, everybody is now concentrating on his/her own things, this is it, the real thing. Is cold very cold but our modern technology keep us safely warm, goggles are also on and I can't recognize anybody, the color of their suits dim in the light won't allow me to tell for sure who's in front of me or behind. Confusion? who said before we will be confused?, stars are up and shining but the moon stay busy tonight, to bad we could save some head lamp batteries. Up we go to the wall, a trail of dim light accompanied the summit dreamers, sherpa at work, the first steps are disheartening, bodies work as hard as ever, the sherpa up front is setting a stinging pace, another is just behind and we feel the pressure, got to idle that engine, but the engine is too cold, a member stops and ask his sherpa, I think I don't have enough Oxygen, can you please have a look at my regulator, the sherpa shine his light on the dial and it show 3 liters per minute, you fine keep on going, another of our expedition separate the mask from the face and breed the thin air, for a moment feels better but within few steps he replace his mask, is warmer and it feel better. After three hours of almost blindfolded climb, we can see the distant horizon, Sun still, far, to far to warm our chilled bodied, it can't be to long until it show its shiny face just like for billions of years. We love Sun more than ever. At the ridge, we stumble upon some slow climbers, without saying a word we pass them, no idea from which part of the world they are, or perhaps we already spoke before but now there is no time for socializing. As we go along the NE Ridge, we notice a dead man laying under a rock cape, a short glimpse with the corner of our eye, perhaps a little prayer for the fallen fellow climber. He look like he decided to take a nap. Marching and forward.

At the first step we look up and one by one without incident grabbing those fixed ropes for security. Is getting a little harder. We gather as a group again and shortly the mushroom rock is standing just, well like a mushroom. We pause here for a sip of tea, coffee and a well deserve rest, here sherpa get the opportunity to  check the Oxygen level in our bottles. Some will go on, some will have to get rid of that empty bottle, a better deal for the sherpa but not so good for our member. From here on we take no chances, is dangerous, ropes are thin and in poor condition, we must no rely on the ropes, they won't hold a fall, rocks are loose and crampons dull. Hand holds are extra security but as I try to hold on the rock come off and here it is in my mitts, I put it back and try another, same thing. Darn mountain is crumbling, the guy is getting ahead so I have to keep up. I can't think of anything else, this is one of the most dangerous place on this part of the mountain, but how much longer to the second step?, sherpa are silence and marching, mind numb, following our guide. What? who said this is non guided expedition? Her is second step, WOW, I didn't know is so tall, and what's with all these old ropes, which one is the real one, I mean the new one. Only seven millimeters. will it hold? Dawa is pulling on it hard, he give us a sign that is OK to follow. He clip his ascender and with a few pulls he disappear to the right, we follow. Dawa is taking a left turn over a large smooth rock and up he goes. One by one we are at the bottom of the ladder. Here Dawa is again the first who venture, it looks easy, he is off the ladder and hangs over the abyss. Several pulls and he is atop the step, hi signal the next brave. One of our climber climbs three steps on the ladder and stops, his breath clearly indicates the effort and that he is afraid. I should have turn my Oxygen up a bit he mumbles. Another step and another and he must depart the ladder, he hesitate and sherpa told him to trust his ascender, he pulls and the other hand grabs the rope, he didn't trust the ascender, he struggles up and just like all of us gets to the top of it. In our minds, how I get down of this?. From here the Sun greats us with warmth and pleasure, out feet started to flow blood. Good sign, I thought I lost my toes. Look, one scream, third step is just minutes away, sherpa shuck his head and continue the climb. Like a ants line we all march one behind the other, no words spoken. Is time to check Oxygen again, bottles change, bodies resting. How much longer to the summit one ask? Two hours one of the sherpa replay, the climber chin sinks. At the bottom of the third step, the steep snow, kind of prevent us from rushing it, one by one without being impressed by it difficulty we get to some yellow rocks, more rocks, and more, but all are yellow. We are in the yellow band a sherpa rely, yellow band, I read about it in many books, now I am standing on it. Wow, we are going down, we are not suppose to go down, but look at the beautiful Makalu on the left hand side, is so small and so close. The snow pyramid is here, steep and white, ropes of four millimeters are fixed and it look safe. We all march over it in less than 30 minutes. Now we turn a left and depart from what it looks then summit. This is again dangerous terrain. This mountain needs tons of glue, every rock move, how can we be sure, hm! nothing is sure on Everest, keep on going just a little more said a sherpa.

We climb a step and here is this still yellow rocks. A rope length and we are at this saddle. We stop and wait for everyone to appear, the last a sherpa keeping the tail. Smiles are visible even through the mask, the literature, the many books written cannot fool the climber, we all know we are almost at the top. Is warm and early, sherpa look at the watch and make a positive sign. We are on the move, several little hills and turns and we see few climber at the summit. I am tired but I don't care, one by one we collapse at the summit, some remove their goggles and I can see tears, embracing a male partner is not a shame, hugs, camera flashes. I am there, I was there, I might be there again. I am happy with the rest. Lets go home safe.

Is warm is early, we did good. Lets be good with each other. I will describe the real climb after. Thanks for staying chill with us tonight

Regards George Dijmarescu

Dispatches

Lakpa Sherpa is the only woman to have summited Everest three times. This year she will climb Everest again, trying for a record fourth summit, and George Dijmarescu will go for his sixth summit in six years. These are remarkable mountaineering feats for any individual, but above and beyond this, the couple will attempt to reach the summits of both Everest and K2 in the same season to complete the Top of the World Double Header -- together. George and Lakpa are sponsored for 2004 in part by Sabia & Hartley, LLC of Hartford CT.

 

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