CTSS EBC Camp
April 13
ITS EBC DAY! ITS EBC DAY!!!
It is hard to keep organized when you are switching between different duffel bags, pull out just some things for high camp, merge back into low camp, then need to somehow just CRAM everything back into your bags quickly and send on to the next place. Oh well, will have total reorg at EBC
The Dream Team started out, after a hearty breakfast. We had a 4-5 hour hike to Base Camp, a couple stops here and there. A lot of helicopter action today. I noticed the copters are flying much lower today. Then I realized… “wait, they’re not lower, we’re just higher”! Hiking at 17K, that’s how we roll!
I felt like a little girl right before Xmas. I listened to my “Keep on hiking girl” playlist, trying to keep my excitement under control for goodness sakes “be cool Buchanan, be cool”. The winds picked up and the temps gradually dropped as we wound the glacier backbone closer and closer to our new home. We spotted camp from an hour out, the Climbing The Seven Summits huge white dome, a beacon in the city of bright tents atop a moving glacier. We finally reached our compound, hungry and amazed. CTSS is NO JOKE! I don’t know how we will break it to the people back home HOW luxurious our accommodations are! Holy crap! (Ok, in all reality, my friends in NYC and LA might still claim “harsh conditions”, but in comparison to all previous expeditions, this blows my mind!) Look, the better rested we are, the better our performance will be come summit day. CTSS pays attention to every detail and I could not be happier with the team they selected, the guides they have retained and the comfort they’ve provided. BTW, I am gluten free (for 15 yrs, not because trendy). The head cook has gone out of his way to make sure I have appropriate options (working with rice flour, buckwheat, etc)!
Um, so, CTSS offers 3 different options of accommodations on at basecamp. I choose the “executive” plan, meaning an igloo looking dome, and power during certain times of day. My goal is to work on writing my book during downtime at basecamp, so I opted for the “pretty princess dome” (my nickname). IT HAS A BED IN IT? what what? Ridiculous! I have a little boot room and a plastic wall view of the Khumbu Ice Fall. Feeling spoiled, and a bit ridiculous, but I’ll get over it FAST! The regular tents are incredible as well! Higher ceiling height so you can stand up and a nice thick cushion so climbers are protected from the cold of the glacier.
It is all so surreal. I’m finally here. After 2 years of prep, I’m finally here. Better get everything unpacked and organized because this is my home for the next 4-6 weeks.
Lady Everest, are you ready for us? Because we’re ready for you!
New Nickname:
– Narim is for sure “Attaché”: named after the preferred carabiner of our guides, by Petzl. Also our right hand man! Narim is one of our legendary certified Nepalese guides
– I (Meghan) am rightfully named (by Casey) as “Walkie Talkie”: Think I’ve mentioned this before… as we hike up, I just chat away! And my voice carries. I will wear it as a badge of honor!
About the author : Kim
