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Expedition Dispatches
Satellite phone updates from the 1998 American Everest Expedition

Wally Berg

Setting Up House
Friday, April 10, 1998 — Base Camp (17,500')

	Hear Wally Berg's call from Base Camp Click for [RealAudio] or [NetShow]
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Hi Mountain Zone, it's Wally Berg calling on April 10th, and today is the big day. We did walk into base camp today.

Everest base camp
[click to zoom]
(photo: Corfield)

I am calling you at about 5pm, a little later than that, Nepal time. We walked into base camp, a beautiful, sunny, clear morning. We walked into base camp between 10:30 and 11 this morning. It was a joyous occasion, fun to be reunited with the bulk of our climbing Sherpa team who we've all know in the past but we haven't been with yet this year. Of course they have been here at base camp getting things going for some time — great feeling for the team to be here.

Right now we have accomplished a great deal, the Sherpas, of course, had a functional camp set up, but we had to unpack a lot more gear and begin to get organized. It has been quite a hectic day. Fortunately, we all arrived at base camp healthy enough to just roll up our sleeves and kind of pitch right in and get to work. Took a break for a quick lunch and continued organizing and unpacking today. This place is still a little on the cluttered side I would say. There are mounds of duffel bags and boxes and crates, but it's slowly coming together. I'm calling you from the communications tent which is just actually a few feet away from a beautiful Mountain Hardwear Satellite Dome which we are using as our main dinning tent. We're feeling excited to be moving in — with a lot to do, of course.

Here is the plan over the next 48 hours. Tomorrow will be a really busy day for Sherpas and members continuing to get organized; we'll be working pretty hard.

Sherpas tend to a rock altar constructed in base camp
[click to zoom]
(photo: Berg)

More rock work to be done as we buff out our camp, a lot more unpacking and organizing of loads that we'll begin to carry and equipment to be moved in for our operations here at base camp — that will be a hectic day tomorrow. That will lead us up to the Puja on Sunday.

The Lamas have determined that this coming Sunday, the 12th of April, is an auspicious day and the entire team, Sherpas and members, will do a Puja to bless ourselves before we begin climbing, and the climbing will begin Monday morning when the Sherpas do the first carry through the Khumbu Icefall.

Stay tuned on this Puja; I'm going to attempt to give you virtual, real time images from the Puja. We'll use the digital camera, gets some photographs and try to upload them so during the morning hours on Sunday from Nepal we should be able to have some images of what is always a very photogenic and wonderful, ceremonial time as we do a Puja with the Sherpas. Ok, we'll continue to stay in touch. Once again the team is very excited to be here, very happy to be here. We have a lot of work to do.

— Wally Berg, Expedition Leader

DISPATCHES