April 30: Photo upload from basecamp
Hello all, attached is some photo’s from the last ten days. You can click on each image to to enlarge and also hover your mouse over the image to see the name or caption of the image (I hope!).
Cheers!
Axe
Posted on April 30, 2012, in Everest 2012. Bookmark the permalink. 30 Comments.
Grant Axe Rawlinson 
Cool! I notice the route up North Col is a little more bendy this year, and steeped, nt to mention many more ice cliffs here and there – global warming? Do you find your fresh laundry freezes like fish planks before they get dry? I usually pop those in the spaces between the inner and outer fly of my tent. They get dry from the sun, and not frozen from the windchill…
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Hi Dave – good idea about the laundry! The route up the col is a little more direct than last year. It would be a fun climb at 3000m! Are you keeping busy in singapore? Any travel coming up?
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Great pics as well as colorful posts. I read em all and loving it. Keep going Grant its really fasinating stuff.
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Cheers Richard. I can blog ok from basecamp but up on the mountain only by short sat phone messages.
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Are yaks friendly? I was told they can have a bad temper.
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Yeah they have a little temper and big horns boss! Better to stay away from their front ends.
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favourite photo – yaks in the snow – cool colours!
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Cheers Lyndy Loo…
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Great to hear all is going well Axe and the photos bring back a lot of memories. The Nth Col route looks a bit more challenging but no doubts you’ll nail it. Hope all goes well for the next round of acclimatization. Cheers Dave Gordon.
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Hello David. Thanks for the message, am sitting in Jamie’s tent now actually. North Col is a real grunt. Climbed it 4 days back. Hope all is well in Australia!
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fantastic pics and descriptions. gotta give it to you man, your blog reads like a wondrous tale. keep writing, and you’ll find yourself with a great book. best
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Hello Flor, I still have not tracked down Albanians, do you know any of them by name or personally?
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hi grant. how you doing man? i guess you must be on the move, since there have been no posts these three days. I really hope you and everybody else are doing fine.
now, about my albanians 🙂 this is the first team ever to make an attempt on Everest. this year our country celebrates the 100th anniversary of independence, so its quite a big thing what they are doing. the team leader is called Gjergj (Djerdj – Albanian version of George, and he also happens to have the same name of the only Albanian national hero, Gjergj Skanderbeg). he’s quite an individual. we went to the same grad school and high school, but he was a bit older. anyways, some ten years ago he saved the public utility for electric power, which was going bankrupt at the time. the guy is a great administrator, but politicians have no love for great administrators, because they make them look bad. So, he withdrew from public life, he grows tomatoes and looks after his cows, and goes climbing. But he’s also a very humble person. So i’m very proud of our team, i must admit it. i really hope you meet up with them at some point.
thanks axe, and take care with every step
From Albania With Love, 🙂
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Love reading the blog and getting the photos…you are a true kiwi legend!
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At the moment or should I say for months I have been laid out with back problems. You have no idea what a kick I am getting out of your blogs and photos.I spend each day armed with a good climbing book and my IPad which is currently taking me up Everest day(and sometimes night).Your blogs are so descriptive and together with my imagination I am having a great time.I have heard it said that life’s a bitch and then you die, not true. Sometimes,and I daresay Debra has felt it a time or two since her accident, it can be a bit of a bitch but with folk like you around you can colour in the black patches.Thanks again for helping a’ Yorkshire lass ‘ enjoy her inactive hours.All I want to know is, what’s next?
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Hi Kate, thanks for the nice message, glad to hear you get so much enjoyment out of the posts. Debra has just returned home for your info and is getting used to being at home without the assistance of the hospital staff. It sounds like you know what being at home with severely reduced mobility is like. What’s next? good question!! One day at a time here! Take care Kate.
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Great blog Axe. A family member is making the climb with you and it’s a pleasure getting your updates.
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Hi Tanya, its a mystery what family member it is!! No one owns up to having a Tanya in the family in my team!
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He’s with the 7 summit group. His name is Fedor. Push on !!!
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Oh ok, I tht you meant he was in my team Altitude Junkies. If I see Fedor I will say hi from you Tanya. Have a nice day and thanks for reading the blog!
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Awesome photos, especially the panorama ones.
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What an amazing journey! I’m an American who has never tried climbing anything but stairs but I have always been intrigued by the beauty and danger of Everest. I am loving your blog. Praying for you and the others on Everest, as well as your families awaiting your safe return.
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Hi Shelly, thanks for the comment and your kind words. Axe
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Helloooo Granty! If you could hear Dahlia, that’s what she’ll say to you! Yup, Kelyn and the gang have taught her how to say Halloooo… really cute…. I prefer her Hi’s though. Life is getting pretty predictable at home but at the same time, I’m loving it. Each day I am reminded of how much I’ve missed being at work while Dahlia zoomed through the first year of her life. I’m glad I can spend more time with Boo and my fur babies too, not to mention with Ivan when he’s home. Well, enough about us, do take care of yourself and we can’t wait to see you back home safe and sound AND with stories of how you reached the summit of Everest… of which we KNOW you will. Just stay safe my friend!
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Hello Ibu! Thanks for the message and great to hear you enjoying life at home, it sounds like its working out really well for you which makes me happy. Say hi to all the whanau for me and I look forward to seeing you guys in warm, windless Singapore soon!
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Hi Axe, really enjoying reading about your adventure on Everest .Felt for you in your previous blog, seems you had a tough time with the wind and feeling rather hungry!! Good to see you have a good appetite! What about that Yak ? Is the poor thing dead or just having a rest? Silly me! I am just compassionate where animals are concerned and donate to many charities. Keep going Axe and take care! Love Mica.
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Hi Mica! Yes it is a dead Yak. I dont know how it died. I also wondered when I walked past it what happened. The Yaks do such a great job here carrying ton’s of equipment up to the Advanced Basecamp in the freezing cold weather. They all seem to be generally healthy and well fed though. Have a nice day Mica and thanks for your nice comment.
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Great stuff Axe! Great photo’s and love the updates. Update from Singapore: Yesterday; Hot, sweaty and busy. Today; Sweaty, hot, Rain and busy. Forecast for tomorrow; Rain, Sweaty, Hot and busy. Talking of freezing I remember putting newspaper on the windscreen of my car in Snakes Gully so I could pull off the ice in the mornings. That was fun.
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Hi Darren, thanks for the update from ‘Sweatypore’.Good to hear you are busy cos I know what kind of things you get upto when you have freetime on your hands!
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