Visit to the Russian Corner

December, 25. Today all people in base camp are joyful and polite since morning. Everybody says: Merry Christmas! But despite of it, pressure continue to fall. My partners offer to take tents and go on for summit attempt. But I feel, that the previous situation repeats. Fine weather - on arrival. And when we passed in camp 1 - weather spoils, but we do not want to trust in it. For the third day we get in a bad weather on the way from the first in the second camp. I have decided today go simply for acclimatization. Besides we want to check our equipment masks, glasses, gloves and etc. So, we wake up in 12 a.m., when the sun rises above a ridge. It becomes bright and warm. Warmly on local, Antarctic notion. We have sorted all products which have decided to lift as a depot. And at 3:30, we, having roped, leave upwards. Thus, all other teams, have left a bit earlier and approximately with the same plan. We climb in good pace and have caught up groups left earlier.

At an exit on a flat part at height of 3800 meters, there is a place which I name « Russian Corner». Our tent has stood almost week during bad weather period, with Victor Bobok and Vladimir Pushkarev inside it. And here, again the bad weather begins, the strong wind starts to blow. We could rise only 50 from this place when have realized, that go further senselessly. By those wind we could just have face frostbittens. We come back on «Russian Corner” and in one of cracks we drip shelter for ours depot, putting in it gasoline, products and some personal things. Then we went downwards, at 8 p.m. in camp 1, after eating it was already 10 p.m..

The pointer of a barometer has stiffened on position «bad weather », but does not fall further. The sky is partly clear, partly is completely hammered by clouds. In general, everything is not clear, what we shall do tomorrow - not clear. There is a quite good plan: tomorrow, 26-th to rise in camp 2, 27-th climb the top and 28-th go down into base camp and to depart in Patriot Hills camp. So we shall wait for next morning, and now simply say:
Merry Christmas!