We just had an excellent second rotation up the mountain. We had a pleasant trip to Camp One at 20,996. Most of us were faster and arrived feeling better than on previous trips there.
The night at Camp One was quite cold. We slept with our down suits on, and then crammed our selves into now tight sleeping bags. I awoke several times feeling desperately short of air. I would rip off my hat, tear open the collar of my down suit, then sit up and pant until I felt relief. Repeating this every hour or so during the 12 hours of tent time made for a long night.
As the sun rose the next day, we ate a small breakfast and loaded our packs for the tough climb to Camp Two. We snapped on our crampons right at our tents and began the 2,600 foot snow climb. Much of the route had lines fixed by the Sherpas, so the climb was not technically difficult. But, in the middle was a steep ice cliff that sure got our attention. We climbed in our down suits expecting a cold breeze. But instead, the sun beat down upon us mercilessly – sweat and dehydration soon overtook us.
As the hours passed, we slowly gained altitude. By 3 pm our team had all trickled into Camp Two, and the thin air of 23,600 feet made itself known. It was all we could do to sit up and drink water, or even worse, to go outside to answer nature’s call.
When evening came, I sensed a spectacular sunset going on behind the thin nylon walls that encased us. It took all my will as a photographer to struggle out of the tent. As the cold stung my nose, I snapped some shots of the sun setting atop the clouds far below us. That night, the cold really grabbed hold: my water bottle, pee bottle, and camera all froze solid.
As a demonstration of how the low oxygen limits your physical capacity, consider this: our ascent up to Camp Two took seven hours. We descended the same slopes back down in less than two hours the next morning.
So now, we rest. We are back in ABC for 3-4 days to let this recent altitude stress disperse, and to regain our physical strength. It is nice to just relax, eat, read, and sleep. But it becomes boring quickly, and we get tempted to rush back up the hill too soon.
This is when the Discipline of Rest is crucial. We have to fully recharge our bodies and our minds. If we succumb to our anxiousness about the weather, or our desire to summit sooner, rather than later, we may find ourselves two-thirds of the way up and burned out. We may very well have just blown our one shot. So, we must be as disciplined in our rest as we were in our active training.
It’s not easy. There is no more physical training or preparation left. But, there is some critical mental training we can still do. The four-day summit push ahead will require all the mental and spiritual strength we can muster. We know we will crash into our physical limits over and over again, and only mental and spiritual power will see us through those bleak times.
That’s where you come in.
I am trying to build a broad and deep arsenal of inspirational thoughts and images to help me power through those desperate moments high on the mountain. So I request your help in the following way:
Please share your favorite inspirational thoughts and comments here at this blog. What history, people or stories inspire you most? As I make my final mental preparations for the challenge ahead, I appreciate whatever help you can give.
I have but limited time left to apply the Discipline of Rest, before we must vigorously apply decisive action.
Be well, and thanks for your help.
Jim