1ST MAY - BASECAMP: POOR ANDRONICO WAS TAKEN QUITE ILL IN THE NIGHT WITH AN UPSET STOMACH AND WE HAD BOTH DOCTORS PATO AND LOU ANNE HERE FIRST THING IN THE MORNING TO CHECK UP ON HIM. LOU ANN I HAD CALLED AS I HAD GIVEN ANDRONICO A "NEPALESE GIARDIA PILL" IN THE NIGHT AND I THINK THE SYMPTOMS WERE NOW MIS DIAGNOSED AND I WAS IN A PANIC. AS I RAN ACROSS BASECAMP LOOKING LIKE DEATH AT 6.45AM TO LOUANNES MEDICAL TENT, THINKING I WOULD SEE NO ONE, I BUMPED DIRECTLY INTO ED VIESTURS. I WAS BASICALLY IN MY PAJAMAS AND A NORTH FACE JACKET AND I'M CONVINCED THAT ED THINKS I'M FULLY OXYGEN DEPLETED AT THIS STAGE.

BETWEEN BOTH DOCTORS ANDRONICO WAS TAKEN CARE OF AND HE WAS SOON RESTING IN HIS TENT AFTER 2 LITERS OF INTRAVENOUS FLUID WAS PUT INTO HIM TO RE HYDRATE HIM AGAIN. (HE IS FINE NOW)

AFTER BREAKFAST AT AROUND 9.30AM I RECEIVED A VISIT FROM TWO OF THE GREEK TEAM WHO INFORMED ME THAT ON THEIR TREK BACK UP FROM DENGBOCHE THEY HAD MET LISA AND PLERN AND THAT THEY WERE ON THEIR WAY TO BASECAMP!! APPARENTLY THEY HAD BEEN HAVING TROUBLE WITH THEIR GUIDE WHO HAD BEEN DRUNK AND DISORDERLY THE PREVIOUS EVENING AND HAD ACCOSTED PLERN OUTSIDE THE BATHROOM AND HIT THE TABLE WHEN LISA WAS SPEAKING TO ANOTHER GUY! THE TWO GREEKS STAYED AND HAD COFFEE WITH ME AND I WAS ASKING THEM ABOUT THEIR CLIMB. THEY HAVE ONE SPONSOR WHO HAS SPONSORED THEIR TEAM AS WELL AS A TEAM OF GREEKS CLIMBING FROM THE NORTH SIDE OF EVEREST, AS CURRENTLY NO GREEK PERSON HAS REACHED THE SUMMIT OF MOUNT EVEREST [actually one has] AND THE SPONSOR WANTS ALL BASES COVERED. ALTHOUGH SAYING THAT ANDRONICOS FRIEND NICO FROM ANTARCTICA IS GREEK AND CLIMBING INDEPENDENT FROM THIS SPONSOR...

DAVE AND FRANKIE FROM DISCOVERY CAME OVER AND FILMED OUR CAMP AND THEN WE ALL STAYED AND HAD COFFEE IN OUR MESS TENT. ANDREW LOCK CAME OVER AND WE WERE MEANT TO GO AND MEET THE GIRLS AT GORAK SHEP BUT AS I HEARD THEY WERE EN ROUTE SO WE STAYED CHATTING AT BASE CAMP. AT 3.00PM THERE WAS A BIG COMMOTION AS LISA AND PLERN ARRIVED ALONG WITH A HUNGOVER GUIDE! I WAS SO EXCITED TO SEE THEM AND WE WERE SOON ALL DRINKING TEA, GOSSIPING AND GETTING ALL THE LATEST MAGS AND PERFUME!!!

I TOOK LISA AND PLERN OVER TO SEE DAVID BREASHEARS WHILST THEIR TENT WAS BEING PITCHED AND DAVID CAME BACK TO OUR CAMP AND HELPED THEM WITH EXTRA SLEEPING BAGS, MATS AND MADE SURE THEY WERE REALLY WAR,. THIS IS AN ALTITUDE RECORD FOR BOTH OF THEM AND ITS SO EXCITING TO HAVE THEM HERE. WE ALL HAD A BIG DINNER AND BEERS TO CELEBRATE THE GIRLS ARRIVAL AND THEN BED...

MAY 2ND - BASE CAMP: POOR LISA DIDN'T SLEEP VERY WELL, ONE OF THE EFFECTS OF BEING UP AT THIS ALTITUDE 5,400M, ITS QUITE DISCONCERTING HEARING THE CONSTANT AVALANCHES NOT TO MENTION THE CREAKING OF ICE UNDER OUR TENTS, ALL NOT CONJUICIVE TO A GOOD NIGHTS SLEEP!!

ANDREW SWUNG BY AND MET THE GIRLS ON HIS WAY TO KALA PATTAR, ERNESTO AND PATO HAD LEFT A COUPLE OF HOURS EARLIER FOR AN ACCLIMATISATION TRIP. WE TOOK IT EASY AFTER LUNCH AND THEN THE GIRLS WENT ON A BASECAMP TOUR.. WE WENT TO DAVID'S CAMP AND I INTRODUCED THE GIRLS TO VEIKKA AND THEN WE WENT AND HAD TEA AND BISCUITS AT THE DISCOVERY CAMP, ALL VERY CIVILIZED (SHAUNA AND BEN ARE STILL DOWN VALLEY) WE WERE THERE SO LONG IT WAS COLD BY THE TIME WE EMERGED AND WE HEADED BACK TO OUR CAMP STOPPING BRIEFLY AT THE GREEKS CAMP FOR ANOTHER CUP OF TEA AND SOME HOMEMADE SHORTBREAD MADE BY ONE OF THE CLIMBERS MOTHERS. WE MET THEIR BASECAMP MANAGER SPIROS WHO IS GREEK BUT GREW UP IN AUSTRALIA, I JUST COULDN'T PLACE THE ACCENT!! THEY ARE A GREAT GROUP AND I HOPE THEY GET TO THE TOP! WE THEN RAN BACK TO OUR CAMP, AS IT WAS BY NOW FREEZING. A FULL MOON WAS EXPECTED ON EVEREST TONIGHT AND MISAIL AND KIKO HAD GONE TO KALA PATTAR TO TAKE PICTURES OF THE MOON.. THEY RETURNED TO CAMP AT 11.00PM HAVING GOT SOME GREAT FOOTAGE.

WE HAD A DELICIOUS DINNER AND THEN OFF TO BED - LISA CAN'T GET OVER HOW EARLY WE GO TO BED HERE!!

MAY 3RD - BASECAMP: WE HAD BREAKFAST AND LISA STILL HAD A SIGHT HEADACHE SO ANDRONICO AND I DECIDED TO GO TO GORAK SHEP FOR A QUICK ACCLIMATISATION HIKE, ANDRONICO IS NOW FULLY RECOVERED. LISA AND PLERN STARTED OUT WITH US AND THEN TURNED BACK AND WE CONTINUED TO GORAK SHEP HAVING TAKEN A "NEW ROUTE" WHICH RESULTED IN SOME VERY STEEP SCRAMBLING UP A MOVING SHALE ROCK FACE - NOT FUN!! I HAD A SPRITE AND BROUGHT SOME PRINGLES AND I SPIED MY PICTURE ON A STICKER BEHIND THE COUNTER!! I REPRESENT POOL PLUS THE VITAMIN COMPANY AND ANDRONICO HAD PERSUADED THE GUY TO STICK MY PICTURE BEHIND THE CASHIER - HE KEPT POINTING AND LAUGHING AT ME AS HE MADE THE CONNECTION (NOT MY BEST PICTURE!!)

THERE ARE 80MPH HIGH WINDS ON EVEREST AT THE MOMENT AND THEY ARE DUE TO STAY UNTIL AROUND 9TH MAY, ALTHOUGH I HAVE HEARD OF ONE GUY CALLED TED GOING FOR THE SUMMIT SOMETIME SOON. OUR GROUP IS HEADING DOWN VALLEY TOMORROW TO DROP THE GIRLS OFF IN PERICHE WHERE THEY WILL GET A HELICOPTER BACK TO KATHMANDU AND WE WILL REMAIN DOWN UNTIL 8TH MAY - I'M HOPING TO GAIN SOME NEW OXYGEN LOADED BRAIN CELLS BACK!

POOR ANDREW IS SICK, I RADIOED HIM THIS MORNING AND HE SOUNDED AWFUL, I DIDN'T FIND OUT WHAT WAS WRONG. IT'S REALLY WORRYING WHEN YOU GET SICK NEAR THE SUMMIT WINDOW.

YOU PROBABLY WONT HEAR FROM ME FOR FOUR DAYS UNTIL IM BACK AT BASE CAMP - I HAVE NO IDEA WHERE WE ARE OFF TO.. OUR DOWN VALLEY TRIP SEEMS TO EMPHASIZE THE WHOLE SUMMIT DEAL EVEN MORE TO ME AND I'M REALLY STARTING TO GET NERVOUS NOW. THE THOUGHT OF GOING BACK INTO THE ICEFALL AGAIN...OVER AND OUT FROM EVEREST BASECAMP AND I'LL REPORT IN AS SOON AS I GET ON LINE...