My friggin headache was back by morning, went away, and then came back again en route to Camp III at 11, 200 ft. I decided to start a regimen of Diamox to combat the altitude. It worked on Kili, and I didn't want to risk altitude issues if I had the means by which to combat them this early. Diamox makes your blood slightly more acidic and in doing so, increases your respiratory rate and thus increases the amount of oxygen in your blood (especially at night, when a lot of folks get headaches). It allows you to acclimate faster. The unfortunate side effect is that it is a raging diuretic, so I will have to make sure that I watch my fluid intake closely!
The hike to to Camp III in snowshoes was steeper than travel to Camp II and a sled-hauling slog. You could see for a long way today and get a view of the tundra! Very cool! At Camp III, we are now camped right below Motorcycle Hill. We built a veritiable fortress by sawing blocks in a "snow quarry." We also built a business lounge (where the CMC is and where we can do our "business" in private and out of the wind); it is a true work of art! Wes was the main designer!
We saw two dudes climb up and then ski down the crevasse infested hill to the right of Motorcycle Hill. They were roped up, but it still looked kind of nutty!
OK, off to "hots" and food!
[8:40 p.m.] We had burritos again tonight--with the last of the veggies! Walter told us about his previous summit last year. He had to navigate in a total whiteout from 19,000 ft. down, justifiably very stressful and not very fun for him. After that, not a single climber reached the summit for 3-4 weeks due to crappy weather.
The other RMI team (the first one on the mountain for the season) is at High Camp at 17,200 ft. right now, suffering in the cold and wind. They have food for 6 days, so they are in wait mode for a good weather window in which to make their summit bid.
It's a tad cold here and windy. The plan for tomorrow is to make a carry to 13,700 ft., just past Windy Corner. The forecast has a system moving out with higher winds moving in up high. This may not affect us down here, so hopefully we will only spend two nights here. For the carry, we will pack the stuff we are caching (fuel, food, stuff for Camp IV) and use crampons and ice axes instead of snowshoes due to the steeper slopes and exposure at Windy Corner. We will also leave the sleds here for the rest of the climb.
The Diamox is kicking in and I feel better already! I have the pee bottle handy! It's great to be up here! The route tomorrow goes up Motorcycle Hill to the north, and then turns right (east) at the start of Squirrel Hill, which winds it's way towards Windy Corner.
Total Time: 3 hrs.
Total Gain: 1,400 ft.
The hike to to Camp III in snowshoes was steeper than travel to Camp II and a sled-hauling slog. You could see for a long way today and get a view of the tundra! Very cool! At Camp III, we are now camped right below Motorcycle Hill. We built a veritiable fortress by sawing blocks in a "snow quarry." We also built a business lounge (where the CMC is and where we can do our "business" in private and out of the wind); it is a true work of art! Wes was the main designer!
We saw two dudes climb up and then ski down the crevasse infested hill to the right of Motorcycle Hill. They were roped up, but it still looked kind of nutty!
OK, off to "hots" and food!
[8:40 p.m.] We had burritos again tonight--with the last of the veggies! Walter told us about his previous summit last year. He had to navigate in a total whiteout from 19,000 ft. down, justifiably very stressful and not very fun for him. After that, not a single climber reached the summit for 3-4 weeks due to crappy weather.
The other RMI team (the first one on the mountain for the season) is at High Camp at 17,200 ft. right now, suffering in the cold and wind. They have food for 6 days, so they are in wait mode for a good weather window in which to make their summit bid.
It's a tad cold here and windy. The plan for tomorrow is to make a carry to 13,700 ft., just past Windy Corner. The forecast has a system moving out with higher winds moving in up high. This may not affect us down here, so hopefully we will only spend two nights here. For the carry, we will pack the stuff we are caching (fuel, food, stuff for Camp IV) and use crampons and ice axes instead of snowshoes due to the steeper slopes and exposure at Windy Corner. We will also leave the sleds here for the rest of the climb.
The Diamox is kicking in and I feel better already! I have the pee bottle handy! It's great to be up here! The route tomorrow goes up Motorcycle Hill to the north, and then turns right (east) at the start of Squirrel Hill, which winds it's way towards Windy Corner.
Total Time: 3 hrs.
Total Gain: 1,400 ft.
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