Episode 012: A Major Problem
Altitude is the Wildcard. Today was a difficult one. Overnight Major has become too ill to stay at Everest. As the sherpas begin to organize all of the expedition’s food, Major lay in his sleeping bag...
View ArticleEpisode 013: Construction and Conversation
Heavy Lifting. Well, Major left Everest Base Camp yesterday and we have no idea how he’s doing. In the meantime, we’ve begun building a stupa for our camp. This alter will be used in our blessing...
View ArticleEpisode 014: Calling Karma
Can You Hear Me Now? Ben has brought a satellite phone with him to Everest, and we were able to call Karma back in Kathmandu to get a status report on Major. Apparently Major’s doing fine, but it was...
View ArticleEpisode 015: The Puja
Asking Everest’s Permission. This afternoon we had our Puja ceremony to try and get the mountain’s blessing before beginning the climb. A couple of monks arrived from the Rongbuk Monastery down the...
View ArticleEpisode 016: Puja Party and More Packing
Party Over Here. With our Everest puja concluded, we finished things off with a party the likes of which I’d never seen before. Really, I’m no stranger to the occasional rager, but we really kicked it...
View ArticleEpisode 017: Weighing The Expedition
Things Are Getting Heavy. Climbing Everest is not like a typical backpacking trip. We have so much gear and food that you can almost hear the mountain groan under our weight. This is pretty much par...
View ArticleEpisode 018: Yak-Tastic!
Yak Yak Yak. Yesterday everything we own here was weighed to discover how many yaks will be needed for the trip up to ABC. Today, it’s time to pack up and ship out! All of our yaks and their herders...
View ArticleEpisode 019: The Climb Begins
Time To Climb! Finally, the Everest climb has begun in earnest. Today, the team consisting of Lhawang, Ben, Lhakpa, Boca Lama and Pasang started up the trail to Advanced Base Camp. Well, the five of...
View ArticleEpisode 020: Technical Technicalities
O Generator, Where Art Thou? Everest Base Camp might be in the wilderness, but there’s more technology here than in some small countries. Luckily, our little generator has arrived from Kathmandu. When...
View ArticleEpisode 021: ABC FYI
“Pretty Mellow”. A climb of Mount Everest truly begins at ABC. Advanced Base Camp is the first major camp past BC, and where many climbers spend most of their time. It is about 22km from this gravel...
View ArticleEpisode 022: French Cooking, Part 1
Do You Want Fries With That? A few days ago the final 4 members of our Everest expedition arrived at BC. Two Frenchmen, a Belgian and a Sherpa drove up from Tingri. Kind of sounds like the opening to a...
View ArticleEpisode 023: Climbing The North Col
Seeing Spots. I might not be a mountaineer, but it’s time for me to climb Everest. Well, up to ABC anyway. The altitude up high is making my vision and balance a little funny. We left BC a couple of...
View ArticleEpisode 024: 7900 Meters
A Personal Altitude Record. I awoke on this first morning at Everest’s North Side ABC with the most beautiful sight. No, it wasn’t the world’s highest peak, but the intricate lace of frost that had...
View ArticleEpisode 025: Back To Base Camp
Give It a Rest. Even here at ABC, I still can’t believe I’m here at Everest! This is one of the problems with being a photographer: sometimes you need to put the camera down and experience things for...
View ArticleEpisode 026: Trouble By The Foot
My Meat Foot. Ok, Ok, Ok, so maybe I shouldn’t have gone all the way to ABC at 21,000 feet. The funny thing is that the altitude wasn’t a problem. Only in the morning. I’d wake up and would have my...
View ArticleEpisode 027: You’ve Got Mail!
Mountain Man. Wow is it windy these days. We’re experiencing some of the worst weather events in recent memory up here! It wouldn’t be so bad if you could just be outside a little bit. I don’t think...
View ArticleEpisode 028: “He Was Good Boy”
This Is The Turning Point. It’s become obvious that Everest is trying to separate the wheat from the chaff up here. The wind is non-stop and it’s starting to affect more than our morale. Not long ago,...
View ArticleEpisode 029: Waiting Out The Weather
Everest Is Boring. It turns out that Everest can be as much about sitting around on your duff as it is about climbing. Why are we here, again? You mean we didn’t come up here to sit around drinking tea...
View ArticleEpisode 030: A Little Help From My Friends
It’s All About Communication. I don’t know when the team is going to be able to resume the climb again, or even if their gear has been blown off the mountain. This storm is still raging and it feels...
View ArticleEpisode 031: Weather Report
“The train is coming tomorrow…”. The weather reports we are getting are dismal. The thing is, you can’t just keep waiting and waiting for good weather. It’s time to put up or shut up. Tomorrow, Ben and...
View ArticleEpisode 032: French Cooking, Part 2
“The People With the Boat, They Coming With the Fish”. Tonight Ben, Bertrand, Allan and I were treated to some fine French Cuisine at Denis’ camp. It was wonderful. Our camp has the finest Nepali food...
View ArticleEpisode 033: Climb On!
There Are Butterflies At Everest. It was a long time coming, but the wind has finally calmed down enough for the climb to resume. It’s not gone, mind you, but just diminished enough to step outside...
View ArticleEpisode 034: New Friends, Old Weather
Hot Males, Hotmail And Virucide. Not long after Ben left camp this morning we were visited by some Chinese military officials. Apparently there were here to disinfect Base Camp. I mean that...
View ArticleEpisode 035: Picking Up The Pieces
Yard Sale at 23,000 Feet. Lhawang, Lhakpa and Ben were finally able to return to the North Col today. It was a scary climb, not because of any technical moves but because of what they might find at the...
View ArticleEpisode 036: The Highest Theater In The World
BC, DVD’s and RNRM. Today I was visited by Dave, a member of the Royal Navy/Royal Marines (RNRM) camp. He was curious if I could play DVD’s on my laptop. Well, of course I could, so he asked my if I...
View ArticleEpisode 037: Base Camp Broadcast
I Feel Slightly Used. Today I was a participant in the first live broadcast to China from the Chinese camp. CCTV Channel 1 is just a couple of hundred yards from our Nomad Expedition camp. This morning...
View ArticleEpisode 038: The Wrap Party
Tastes Like Chicken. The live broadcast seems to have gone off without a hitch, but the propaganda continues. Immediately after the on-camera introductions everyone was corralled and photographed. In a...
View ArticleEpisode 039: Reality TV Reality
A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words. After the party was over we spent some quality time kicking back watching some TV. You know, most teams don’t think of taking a dozen television sets with them to...
View ArticleEpisode 040: Another Reason For Everest
Catholics, Protestants and Everest. Not long after enjoying some chicken over at the St Petersburg camp, I filmed an interview with my friend Richard. Richard is the head of the Northern Ireland team...
View ArticleEpisode 041: “Our Town”
Miller, Party of Five? When I arrived at Everest I couldn’t get over how desolate it seemed to be here. More than a month later it feels like home. When you first step foot at Base Camp, you haven’t...
View ArticleEpisode 042: A Day In The Life
Stone Throne. Many people have asked: When you’re in the wilderness for months at a time, what’s the toilet situation like at Everest? Well, as I’ve said before, it’s better than you’d expect and worse...
View ArticleEpisode 043: 20,000 Leagues Above The Sea
Bob’s Your Uncle. Today I spent most of my time filming over at the Royal Navy and Royal Marines (RNRM) camp. What an amazing operation they have out here! They are a really good group of people and...
View ArticleEpisode 044: Predicting The Future
Is The Window Opening? One of the specific terms that gets thrown around in Everest conversations at BC is “Weather Window”. This is referring to the coveted series of nice days where people will be...
View ArticleEpisode 045: The Russian Concert
Does Anyone Know ‘Free Bird’? Tonight a bunch of us gathered at the St Petersburg camp and enjoyed an evening of music. It was one of those things. At first someone said they wished we had a guitar,...
View ArticleEpisode 046: Two Steps Forward, One Step Back
“We Got The Sh*t Kicked Out Of Us.” I finally spoke to Ben this evening at 5pm Nepali time. He was at ABC resting after getting pretty weather-beaten higher up on the mountain. However, he’s doing just...
View ArticleEpisode 047: Onward & Upward
The Summit Push Begins. I tried and tried to get in touch via radio with Ben today, with no luck. As far as I know, the guys are heading up to 7900 meters today. This is all very disconcerting for me....
View ArticleEpisode 048: May 20th, Camp 3
What’s The Frequency Kenneth? I spent the morning today trying to get in touch with my friend Julian. His parents had contacted me and were terribly worried about him. I knew Ben, Lhawang and Lhakpa...
View ArticleEpisode 049: May 21st, Camp 4
“Ya Gotta Love Climbing!” Today the team is heading up to Camp 4 from Camp 3. This means they are firmly planting themselves into the famous “death zone.” Cue scary music. At least I think they’re...
View ArticleEpisode 050: May 22nd, Summit Day
THE TOP. Everyone, it is with great pleasure and slightly misty eyes that I get to tell you that the team has made it to the top of Mount Everest and has safely descended to the comfort of their tent...
View ArticleEpisode 051: A Different Atmosphere
These Guys Know How To Party. Immediately after finishing my radio conversation with Ben, I grabbed the camera and headed off to tell all of my friends the good news. Living here for almost two months...
View ArticleEpisode 052: Back Home…
I Didn’t Die At Base Camp. It has been an intense few days out here. Ben is safe at ABC and resting up for the long walk home to BC. Last night I was invited to a late dinner by my Indian friends from...
View ArticleEpisode 053: …Safe and Sound
Theft In The Death Zone. The evening keeps getting more interesting. Now that Ben’s back, we have had the pleasure of listening to his summit day account. Man, it was epic. The weather on the 22nd of...
View ArticleEpisode 054: A Summit A Day Keeps The Doctor In Pay
Chronic Freezing. After we had caught up with Ben for a bit, Doktor Dima from the St Petersburg team came over for an examination of Ben’s feet. On summit day, Ben had tied one of his boots just ever...
View ArticleEpisode 055: The Young Ones
“Well, We Got This Done.” This morning, Jess Roskelley visited our camp. He’s a friend of Ben’s and now the youngest American to summit Everest. Jess was climbing with his father, John Roskelley, and...
View ArticleEpisode 056: The Last Hurrah
Off With Their Beards! This afternoon our camp was buzzing with activity. Quite literally, actually! See, I seem to have been the only person at BC to have brought an electric shaver with me…like...
View ArticleEpisode 057: Unsung Heros
Let Them Have Cake! I spent the morning today doing what I should have done a while ago: filming Dawa and Pempa as the cooked for us. This morning’s footage was great. Dawa even baked a cake at 17,000...
View ArticleEpisode 058: Puppies and Lamas
Little Black Book. Later this morning after breakfast I headed back to my tent and found a couple of guests standing outside my door. Puppies! It’s funny, I spend most of my time at home around dogs,...
View ArticleEpisode 059: Bartertown
Getting Ready For Goodbye. This was the last afternoon and Ben and I took advantage of it by visiting the Tibetan village at the North end of Base Camp. The little shanty village is totally temporary....
View ArticleEpisode 060: Packing Up And Shipping Out
Goodbye Everest. Goodbye Chomolungma. We all woke up early this morning to finish packing and strike the camp. It’s time to leave and I have to admit I’m totally ready. Everest has changed my life. No...
View ArticleEpisode 061: The End Of The Expedition
One Door Closes, Another Opens. The last two days in Kathmandu were some of the most exciting of my life. It was a pleasure to get back to a bathroom with a flushing toilet! Oh, simple pleasures....
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