Taking on Everest is a major mission in more ways than one, incorporating months of physical training and a variety of training climbs, intended to gain further experience and test the capabilities of my body at extreme altitude.
#1 Mont Blanc, France
Summit: 4,810m
Route: Three Summits
Start: Saturday 20th July, 2013
Duration: 8 days
Camps: Refuge des Cosmiques and Refuge du Gouter
Notes: Alpine and glacier skills training and an ascent of Mont Blanc
About: Mont Blanc is the highest mountain in the Alps, Western Europe and the European Union. It rises 4,810m above sea level and is ranked the 11th in world in topographic prominence. It is also sometimes know as “La Dame Blanche” (French for “The White Lady”).
Result: Summited 25th July
#2 Aconcagua, Argentina
Summit: 6,962m
Route: Vacas Valley / Full Traverse
Start: Saturday 21st December, 2013
Duration: 24 days
Camps: Base (4,200m), Camp 1 (4,850m), Camp 2 (5,400m), Camp Colera (5,970m)
Notes: Multi-day expedition at extreme altitude over the Christmas period
About: Named “Aconcagua” (The Stone Sentinel) by the Incas, Aconcagua is the highest peak in the Southern and Western hemispheres, and the highest summit outside of the Himalaya. Numerous hanging glaciers fall from its huge massif, and the surrounding mountains are steeply sloped and incredibly arid. This is an environment for mountaineering enthusiasts, a potentially extreme and isolated place, and worthy of its climatic climbing challenges. Aconcagua’s height alone (6,962m) is a magnet for climbers and trekkers alike…but the enormity of this giant should not be underestimated.
#3 Everest, Tibet
Summit: 8,848m
Route: North Ridge
Start: Saturday March 29th, 2014
Duration: 70 days
Camps: Base (5200m), Advanced (6,500m), Camp 1 ‘North Col’ (7,000m), Camp 2 (7,500m ), Camp 3 (8,300m)
Notes: Acclimatization, climbing rotations and then onwards the summit when the weather is favourable
About: Everest, even its name conjures up images of steep icy ramparts, jagged rock faces, and cold rarefied air. Strong winds scour and pummel the mountain as the summit pokes into the jet stream. This giant casts a shadow some 250 miles long. It straddles the borders of Nepal to the south and Tibet to the north and at 8,848 metres (29,035 ft), it’s the highest mountain on earth. Everest also happens to be the most famous mountain on earth. Drawing climbers for almost a century, it is known as Qomolangma Peak in Tibet and Mount Sagarmatha in Nepal. The first summit of Mt Everest was by Sherpa Tenzing Norgay and New Zealander Edmund Hillary with a British expedition in 1953. They took the South Col route which is used by the majority of modern expeditions. To reach the summit of Everest, I will need to spend almost two months on the mountain acclimatizing as much as possible to the extreme altitude. The reduced levels of oxygen on Everest especially above 8,000 metres causes a major physiological and psychological demand on the body. This demand along with the adverse weather conditions, high level of physical risk, disrupted sleep and loss of appetite all add to the sheer extent of this challenge. I will be climbing Mount Everest with an accomplished and professionally led team organised by Adventure Peaks (UK). No stone will be left unturned over the next nine months as I close in on the departure date in late March 2014. I will leave for the mountain as physically and mentally prepared as it is possible to be.
Training Plan
The training plan below highlights the training and experience milestones that I must achieve in preparation for an attempt on Everest. Progressive altitude training will provide the opportunity for me to learn how my body response to the lack of oxygen and multi-day ascent training will provide the opportunity to practice the skills required to climb and survive at altitude. In between each milestones, there will be plenty of physical exercise and many long days in the hills to ensure that my body is not just ‘hill fit’ but ‘Everest fit’ before the major expedition…your support will be welcomed through the tough times.
THEROADTOTHETOP 