Saari

Lowe

Hans Saari
We hiked the six miles to Advanced Base Camp. Our two-meter dome is on a lake beach with Shishapangma towering 8,000ft above. We have named this camp Advanced Beach Camp. It makes my thighs ache to think about booting up this face. There is some discussion of maybe skiing the British Route instead of the Swiss/Polish. It appears to be a bit more continuous and also closer to the beach camp.

Kris returned to Base Camp today. He was bright eyed and bushy tailed — a definite change from a few days ago. We anxiously await the return of Andrew tomorrow.

Skiers Anonymous Manifesto
1. I AM A SKIER
2. I will not talk about how great the snow conditions look until we get on the face
3. I will not talk about how great my boots are
4. I will not take another picture of Shishapangma
5. I will take things one step at a time

Quote of the day: "Never trust a climber that doesn't trundle."

Day Hike

Alex Lowe
Fine days come in many forms. Today was a magic stroll to Advanced Base Camp over expansive high plateaus studded with edelweiss, pasque flowers and brilliant, red shrubs. An amazing profusion of flora for 18,000ft. The day began clear, frosty, and chilly, but rapidly warmed as the sun crested the snowy giants to the east. We shouldered loads of gear to establish ABC and ambled for six joyous hours to a series of alpine tarns beneath the sweeping wall of Shish. We were — to a man — taken aback by the magnitude of our chosen undertaking. ABC was pitched on a luxurious gravel bar on the edge of a tarn that affords views out across the valley to enticing alpine walls. I feel their pull and if we get the big project ticked in time for alpine diversion....

The crux of the day was certainly avoiding the temptation to nap in the warm sun, but thoughts of Ang Kami's sumptuous dinner, awaiting us at Base Camp, got us up and headed down the hill, as saturnine clouds drifted up the valley and wreathed the high plateau in ephemeral mist. Tomorrow promises some fine turns on a 20,000ft peak above Base Camp followed by puja the next day — the official Buddhist ceremony sanctifying the beginning of this marvelous trip.

— Hans Saari and Alex Lowe, MountainZone.com Correspondents

EXPEDITION DISPATCHES