Dispatches - July 2010

Post Summit

info@calpinist.com — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 18:00:00 +0100

Many of you are wondering about my present state of health. This dispatch will address that as well as share a brief description of our summit of G1, descent, with some photos, and the obligatory ridiculousness which still seems resident even when I feel like crap… Total crap!

The real start of the summit push began on the afternoon of July 27th. Joined now by Marty Schmidt, Libor Uher, and Radek Jaros, Alexey and I climbed from Camp 2 to Camp 3 and stopped there for [...]

Returned to base camp

arlenebowie@gmail.com — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 18:00:00 +0100

Don's Home Team Reports:

Don phoned to say that he, Alexey, and all climbers who summited with him have returned safely to base camp.

CONGRATULATIONS!!

arlenebowie@gmail.com — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 18:00:00 +0100

July 27, 2010, 7:45pm MST

Don's Home Team Reports:

Don called at 7:45 am (July 28) PKT to announce that he and Alexey along with Czech climbers Radek Jaros and Libor Uher and American climber Marty Schmidt have summited Gasherbrum I. Don reported that a storm was due to come in shortly, so they would not be long on the summit. He expected the return trip to base camp would be a long, arduous one due to inc [...]

We were close, but no cigars!

info@calpinist.com — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 18:00:00 +0100

July 20, 2010

{rokzoom title=|Alexey roams around the million dollar Camp 3 view.Photo Don Bowie|}images/camp3view7-17-10.jpg{/rokzoom}

Saturday, July 17th, at 1:00am, Alexey and I awoke once again at Camp 3 on G1. The forecast for the mountain that day was to be almost perfect - if not a little cold - but low winds and no precipitation. We quickly ran through the morning rituals of alternating swinging arms through down jackets and pulling on boots in tandem. It& [...]

Unbelievable...a "blue bird day" for summiting.....!

arlenebowie@gmail.com — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 18:00:00 +0100

July 17, 2010

Don’s Home Team Reports:

Don called at 2:45 pm PKT to tell us that even though it was a “blue bird” day for summiting – no wind, no clouds, no precipitation - he and Alexey could not reach the top. They were 100m from the summit ridge, could see it, but could not get there; the snow was chest deep. After many exhausting attempts of pushing the limits, they could not wade thr [...]

"Heading Up on G1"

arlenebowie@gmail.com — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 18:00:00 +0100

July 15, 2010

Don’s Home Team Reports:

Don called at 9:30 pm PKT to report that he and Alexey were in Camp 2. They are doing well and have enough Pringles to sustain them for the rest of the climb. They will rest tonight in Camp 2 and then head up in the morning. Check Don's website within the next 48 hours for a further update.

A Little Push, A Little Gag

info@calpinist.com — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 18:00:00 +0100

July 13, 2010

{rokzoom title=|Alexey in the upper narrow section of the Japanese Couloir Photo Don Bowie|}images/Alexey_narrow_7-13-10.jpg{/rokzoom}

Our trip up to Camp 3 on GI was a very enjoyable climb. Unfortunately, there were many old ragged ropes hanging in the Japanese Couloir - some of which we used to our advantage climbing on the rock to the left of the main chute. The upper part of the couloir is narrow - perhaps 3 meters wide in places - and really nice climbi [...]

Phone Dispatch from C3

arlenebowie@gmail.com — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 18:00:00 +0100

July 10, 2010

Phone Dispatch from C3

We got up early the morning of the 10th. With this being our first time at C3, we knew that we were not super acclimatized and thought we would just go for it and see how high we could get. Visability was clear. The winds picked up and got reasonably high. Snow conditions were mixed - bullet hard snow and ice/very soft slab. We felt good, yet at times it was a little hard having gone up so fast. We reached 7500m. At this altitude we decided this was [...]

Heading up to Camp 3 on Gasherbrum I

arlenebowie@gmail.com — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 18:00:00 +0100

July 8, 2010, 10 pm PKT

Phone Dispatch from Don:

"Alexey and I are currently at C2. We climbed through a fair amount of snow in the ice field. We took it slow and didn't encounter any problems with the crevasses. Planning to head up to C3(7000m) in the morning."

Welcome Back

info@calpinist.com — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 18:00:00 +0100

July 4, 2010
Alexey and I are back in base camp now, waiting out a spell of poor weather - along with most of the other teams.

After we arrived at base camp on June 25th, Alexey and I sorted gear for a day or two, then immediately headed up the glacier to Camp 1. The route to Camp 1 seems more straightforward this year, and tackles the top of the icefall directly - which is a shorter journey than last year's more circuitous route, and requires careful negotiation of [...]