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Thursday, October 9th, 1997
Pitching Camp 3, 24.280 ft. (Per Bager).
In the time of October 5th to 8th, Per Lyhne, Michael K. Jørgensen, Nima Rita
Sherpa (our high-altitude sherpa) and myself climb up to Camp 2 with the aim of
establishing the difficult and demanding Camp 3 at Makalu La in an altitude of
24.280 ft.
Per and Nima arrive in Camp 2 one day later than Michael and me
to help with the coming Camp 3. As for that time being there was only room for
two persons in Camp 2, Michael and I have come up one day earlier to improve
Camp 2 so there will be room for four persons. Late on the 6th, Per and Nima
arrive in Camp 2, tired, but in good spirits! The same day Michael and I leave
for Makalu La to prepare the site for Camp 3. During the day Michael reaches
Makalu La with his load, among this the tent. Unfortunately I have to turn in
about 23.000 ft. for fear of frostbite.
Because of the frantic wind and
merciless cold prevailing the pass, Michael starts the descent to Camp 2 as fast
as possible. At this time the storm is so hard in Makalu La that Michael desists
from pitching the tent. During the night of the 6th, when we all stayed put in
Camp 2, the weather deteriorated considerably, a powerful wind with drifting
snow.
In the morning of the 7th, the weather is still very bad, and our tent
is almost buried in snow drifts from the night's snowstorm. We decide to take a
rest day in Camp 2. Thus we stay in the tent for the whole day, only leaving
when we have to relieve ourselves. The storm is blowing continously. Per,
Michael and I pass the day playing mountain parcheesi and chess - the spirit is
high! In the early morning of the 8th we all prepare for the further ascend
towards Makalu La, the storm gone as the sun slowly rises from behind the
majestic mountains, the weather is fine, but cold!
Per is working himself to
the bone as always, all the time climbing up and down to the big benefit of the
expedition. Absolutely indomitable! Per and Nima leave Camp 2 about an hour
before Michael and I. As we start to climb, we note that Nima already has put a
great distance between himself and Per, and before long we catch up with Per. At
about 22.700 ft., I advise Per to return to Camp 2 as he seems dizzy and
apparantly is not able to reach Camp 3 in time. I try to catch up with Michael
and Nima, who by now have passed the 700 ft. steep rock band where the wind
again is gaining strength. Above the rock band and fully exposed to the wind, I
gain another approximately 300 ft. before my toes start to get numb. I decide to
turn back to aviod frostbite and return to Camp 2 about an hour after nightfall,
happily welcomed by Per having fresh hot tea ready.
Michael and Nima reach
Makalu La in the afternoon, and finally Camp 3 is pitched. Here they wait for
Per and me, but as the day goes by, they adapt themselves to the fact that we
have turned back, to the great concern for Michael and Nima, as Per and I were
carrying food, gas and the stove. Essential things at an altitude of 24.000 ft.
Especially the gas and stove is needed to be able to melt snow for the essential
fluid to avoid altitude sickness. Michael tries to contact us by radio, but in
vain! Thus Michael and Nima concludes that both of us must have turned back from
our attempt of reaching Camp 3 in Makalu La.
To the luck of Michael and Nima
there is another tent pitched in Makalu La, belonging to the Swiss expedition.
In the Swiss tent Nima finds a stove, which they use to melt snow and get some
fluid to mend their banging headache, a result of dehydration and the altitude.
On the 9th, the whole expedition is gathered together in ABC for the first
time in more than two weeks, so a party is held, the conversation in full swing
of the coming summit attemps.
