"7 Summits + 2 Poles" project news - Page 97

Alex Abramov, the expedition leader:

The first Everest 2019 team, 6 members and Abramov as guide, came to the ABC Advanced Base Camp. The mood is cheerful. One problem, the Chinese still haven't fixed the ropes to the top of Everest. So probably tomorrow it will be a Day of rest in ABC at 6400 m. Waiting for a miracle.

 By the way the ABC camp we have a very comfortable, warm and dry. There is satellite Internet, gas heaters and even jacket potato…

Artem Rostovtsev, guide of the expedition:

The second team starts from the base camp towards the summit. We are promised good weather and fixed ropes to the top. We hope and believe.

 Standing: Igor Smirnov, Mircea Baciu, Vadim Vokriachko, Sergei Larin (will work in a camp on the North Col), Eugeny Staroselsky, Pawel Janczarski, Artem Rostovtsev (guide).

Alex Abramov, expedition leader:

Hello from Everest!  The first team left the Base Camp for the summit assault:  Alexander Abramov, Irina Zisman, Dima Ghinculov, Arno Ter-Saakov, Andrey Polyakov, Ivan Pominov, Bartolomiej Paczoski. According to the plan, the summit bid for the first team is scheduled for May 22 or 23. The second team led by Artem Rostovtsev leaves the base camp tomorrow. Plan – the summit for 23 or 24 May.

Alex Abramov, Everest-2019 expedition leader: we have rest days now. We decided not to hurry, the weather is bad…

Today there was really strong wind on Everest…

The team of the 7 Summits Club celebrates Irina Zisman's Birthday on the bank of small river, where the team members catch trout…

The next two or three days, our team goes up to Everest…

Alex Abramov, expedition leader:

 Hello! Expedition Everest-2019 continues. Also my Project “7 summits for 7 months” continues.   But our vacation down in the village is over.   On May 9, we were already at the Base camp and celebrated the Victory Day there.  It was fun. About 100-150 people were visiting us. We danced, sang war songs. And the next day, on May 10, we rested from rest, restored the spent forces.

 Now a period of waiting for good weather is coming.  First of all, we expect the Sherpas to hang all the fixed ropes.

Greetings from Everest!  Today our recreation time is over. For three days we slept, ate, drank, fished and relaxed. Tonight we are holding a party in honor of May 9th at the Base camp.

Andrey Berezin, a guide of the 7 Summits Club:

Greetings from the Elbrus Region!  Part of the group was able to change tickets and make a second attempt to climb Mount Elbrus.  Let me remind you: the first attempt was stopped at an altitude of 5300 meters due to the high avalanche danger. The weather forecast was favorable on the weather Internet resources. In fact, the weather was not what the weather sites said. Tonight a large number of people startede. But in the end on the route to the top we met only a few people. Wind, snow, fog and frost are our companions of this ascent.

Bottom line: we're on the top! Elbrus climbing season is open!

 From April 15 to May 5, the team made three acclimatization rotations: 5800, 6400, 7000 m. All 17 members climbed the Northern Col of Everest and spent a night there in severe weather conditions: wind up to 90 km/h, avalanche-prone slopes, snow up to 0.5 meters. Dozens of other expedition tents were torn by the wind. For the 7 Summits Club 100% tents  were without any loss. All this thanks to the experience of guides Sergey Larin, Artem Rostovtsev and wise intuition of Alex Abramov  - it is his 20th expedition on 8000 m mountains and attempt for  the 10th ascent to the top of Everest.

Tomorrow morning all 17 members going on rest for 3 nights in the village  of Tashijong to a height of 4200m. And May 9 our expedition invites all 160 people from the base camp of Mount Everest  to celebrate Victory Day!!!

Viktor Ershov, guide of the 7 Summits Club:

Hello everyone from Kilimanjaro! Today around 8 am the whole group of “Falcons-2019” climbed the highest free-standing mountain in the world! Than lived up to the name of group - it was fast, clear, a real Express! Now we went down to the camp Horombo, all wildly tired, because not every day you pass about 20 km in the mountains with a large difference in height. Tomorrow we run down and rest! Hurray!

Alexander Abramov, leader of the Everest expedition of the 7 Summits Club:

Greetings from 6400 – from the ABC camp on Everest! During the day we descended from our last acclimatization rotation, after spending a night on the North Col.  Altitude 7000m.  Yesterday in the evening the weather deteriorated.  All night long our camp (all members and guides) groaned and coughed under snow. But this was not heard, because of the strong wind and heavy snow.  In the morning we were forced to punch the trail down and pull the rope out of the half-meter layer of snow.  It wasn't easy. But no one tent of our camp was tumbled down. In previous days, dozens of tents were demolished and torn down by many expeditions. Tomorrow we go down to the Base camp…

 Greetings from Elbrus!  Today, according to the program, we had a day of ascent. After looking at the weather forecast for the main and reserve days, we decided to go climbing today. Wind and snow were our companions all the way.  Eventually we reached the saddle, where the snow on the trail was about 80 cm.   Climb higher was  too dangerous.  We decided to come back. The principle is known: the mountains stood and will stand. And we will come back and climb to the top of the highest point of Europe next time.

Guide the 7 Summits Club Artem Rostovtsev:

Team Everest-2019. We have adopted for it the name of "Change the bottle!"  We'll climb up for acclimatization from Base camp to the North Col. Today there will be climb from ABC camp to the Saddle, there we will spend a night at 7000 meters. The wind is blowing very strong, which worries us.

Guide Viktor Ershov: Hello from the wet  Tanzania from the group of Sapsan-2019! In the morning we started from the hotel to the entrance of Kilimanjaro National Park under heavy rain.  On the way we stopped at the supermarket for batteries and repellent. Then we checked in at the Park reception.  The rain stopped and we moved to the camp of Mandara.  We got there quickly in 3 hours, but the shoes were soaked through. In the evening we passed the medical check, all the members have excellent performance and good health, and  we tasted a delicious dinner. We hope that there will be no more such heavy rains..

Two groups of the 7 Summits Club climbed for acclimatization rotation on the Pastukhov Rocks. They slept in different refuges and climbed in different ways and at different times.  May Elbrus showed itself in all its glory: it is a bright sun, and the wind with snow grains, and clouds, and frost. From the Rocks of Pastukhov (4600m) climbers could see the Western and Eastern peaks and the saddle between. After admiring the magnificent panorama, all people went down to rest in the camp.

Today there was the last day of rest in our comfortable Base camp.   And tomorrow we go to ABC camp and then to the North Col (7000 m) of Everest.

Also today it marks exactly 20 years since the wedding of Igor and Natalia Smirnov. We congratulate them!

Greetings from Elbrus Region!  Today a group under the leadership of guides of Andrei Berezin and Alexander Dorozhukov climbed the slopes of Mount Cheget, visited  cafés Ay.  There they drank delicious tea and ate local pies. During the ascent, they came to the observation point, overlooking the Elbrus. It impressed many of the team members. The second group with a guide Sergey Avtomonov for acclimatization rotation climbed to a height of 3100 on the slopes of Elbrus.

 Artem Rostovtsev, guide the 7 Summits Club:

 The team returned to the base camp. The strategy of successful ascent is the same for all: consistently rotation after rotation to get used, as far as possible, to new heights. And then rest at base camp. So the day before we got used to the height of the Advanced camp (ABC) at 6400. We also got acquainted with our team of Sherpas, and conducted training with them using fixed ropes.  And now we will observe the forecasts and may have to speed up the climb to the North Col. It is exciting!

Alex Abramov, expedition leader of the expedition:

 Today our team rested in the Base Camp.  Official representatives of the Tibetan mountaineering federation came to us and took money for the arrangement of fixed ropes way. So far, the route is not equipped, even to the North Col. They say that avalanche danger exist.

 Life in the camp went on as usual: shower, massage, bar, visiting. The neighbors played Rugby, which was the first time here. And we were learning a new invention: “Sherpa rope”. So we called a short link between the membert and Sherpa. It was my idea to improve security. Now the responsible Sherpa will be connected to his member with a 3-meter rope.

Alex Abramov, the expedition leader from the base camp:

Yesterday our team climbed to the camp 5800 m. This is the so-called Intermediate or Middle camp. All members felt good.  It snows half a day, but this is usually in April.  We spent a night in the Middle camp and returned to the Base camp, in absolutely comfortable conditions.

Alex Abramov, the expedition leader from the base camp:

Today we climbed a little higher than the base camp and held training sessions. All members have worked well, we have mastered a new for many system climbing on fixed ropes. We checked the readiness of people and equipment.

Tomorrow early in the morning the team leaves to spend a night in camp 5800. The health of the members is excellent. The weather is bad, no visibility, periodically it snowing strong.