Cho Oyu Expedition News August 2009

Team leader and updates: Zac Poulton
View Cho Oyu details and book online

The Team: Jeremy Beesley, Andrew Robertson, John Hall, Wallace Ascham

25th Sep All the team are now down at ABC. They are going to have a well earned rest tomorrow before heading out from base camp.

24th Sep SUMMIT SUCCESS!  Zac phoned this morning at 9am to say all four clients, two Sherpas and himself all summitted within 15 minutes of each other.  They are all back down at Camp 3 basking in their glory.  They aim to descend to Camp 2 later today and back to ABC tomorrow.

23rd Sep All the team have arrived at Camp 3 after a 5 hour walk from Camp 2. Jeremy decided to use an extra cylinder of oxygen and blazed up in 3.5 hours. They are looking to set off for the summit at around 12.30 am tomorrow morning Nepal time. The weather is looking perfect and all the AP staff wish them the very best of luck.

21st Sep The team left BC for their summit bid today.

18th Sep The team are now back down at ABC after 2 nights at C2 (7100m) with all acclimatization completed reaching a height of 7250m. Everyone going well and all looking forward to a few days rest. The rope fixing to C3 and beyond went in yesterday and they believe one more day of fixing required. The team are hoping to head up on the 21st, aiming for the 24th as the summit day providing no significant changes in the weather.

12th Sep Zac emailed today to update on the progress the team has made. They have just got back down to ABC after 2 nights at Camp 1. Everyone coped well – no headaches or anything. Jeremy is over his chest infection and is doing well. The team have been practicing ascending and descending fixed lines at C1. 70% of our kit is now at C1 including O2. Still getting a few inches of snow every afternoon. Puja tomorrow morning and then a meeting among the teams to discuss fixing the ropes. They are hoping to head back up on Monday to C1 and Tues & Wed at C2 to finish the acclimatisation. There are a lot more teams now arrived at ABC and so is now pretty busy. It’s been nice having the mountain to ourselves! All the team are well and watching Bruno tonight on DVD!

6th Sep Zac called to say, the team have been up as high as Camp 1 today before dropping back down to spend the night at Base Camp.  Jeremy has caught a cold, but is taking good care of himself.

4th Sep The team are now well rested and plan to head out onto the glacier for the first time tomorrow. There is still quite a bit of snow being dropped in the mornings but the afternoons are clearing.

2nd Sep Zac called in today. The team are now at ABC (5700m). They will have two days resting before pushing out onto the glacier and heading up to Lake camp (6000m). They have managed to snatch some views of the mountain so far, although the monsoon is still to clear around the 10th Sep.

30th Aug Zac called in today. The team have made two acclimatisation walks one to 5400m and the second on another peak to 5600m. They are now ready to head up to Intermediate camp en-route to ABC.

28th Aug  Text received from Zac today.  The group are well on schedule having now reached Tingri after spending a night at the border due to a large land slide.  They have been up to 4300m and everyone is feeling fit.  They plan to head to Chinese Base Camp tomorrow.

26th Aug  The team have now crossed the border into Tibet and are being looked after by the Tibet Mountaineering Association.  Everyone is well.

24th Aug  Zac phoned to say all preparations and kit checks have been completed and the team will leave Kathmandu tomorrow around 7am local time to begin their trek to the border.  Everyone is in good spirits and looking forward to the challenges ahead.

23rd Aug  The team have arrived safely in Kathmandu and are enjoying the sights before making their final preparations to leave for Tibet.

22nd Aug  The team have checked in at the airport this morning and are on their way to Kathmandu.