Final Post from Nepal

As our climbers are headed back home, future updates about Nepal will be on the front page or our website and Facebook page.

As noted earlier Alpine Ascents has donated our base camp supplies of tents, food stoves etc., and they have been making their way to the village of Thame and other villages nearby.

Please consider a donation to the “Thame Fund” – we have a $20,000 matching grant in where Alpine Ascents will match up to $20,000 (total) in donations:

Alpine Ascents Foundation
109 W. Mercer Street
Seattle, WA 98119

Or online:

www.Sherpaedfund.org
please note “Thame Fund” in the notes

Thank you for your consideration.

Wrapping up in KTM

Hi everyone,

The team all arrived back to KTM on the 1st of May.

We are wrapping up the trip as positively as possible, realizing that the most important thing is all of us, our staff and Sherpa are safe.

Climbers are beginning to head home as of yesterday, and continuing thru the 4th.

Yesterday a few of us joined Sara to visit some of the young girls in North Kathmandu, who are sponsored by Empower Nepali Girls. It was great to visit them, and to bring some small supplies to help those affected by the earthquake. Always a good day when you can bring smiles to those in need, especially young children.

There is so much need here, many more remote village areas are heavily affected. With the monsoon rains less than a month away, the immediate needs are tarps, tents, temporary shelter, and food/ clean water.

As many of you may know we have set up a fund to help rebuild in the village of Thame, where our beloved Senior Guide Lakpa Rita, and many of our Sherpa, are from.

This effort will be a long term project.

Thanks to all of you – our community, for your thoughts, prayers, donations and help during this difficult time.

We are blessed to live and work with such an amazing community of people.

The 2015 Everest Team

fullsizerender

fullsizerender1

fullsizerender2

fullsizerender3

Again we thank you for all of your support. Our team has made it to Lukla and is waiting for flights back to Kathmandu. We working to make arrangements to have our base camp supplies (food, some tents, stoves etc.) transported to villages.

Please consider a donation to help rebuild the village of Lakpa Rita, Apa and many famed Sherpa. We are looking to help the village of Thame. We will work with the community of Thame to determine their needs over the coming months

To donate by check: (note “Thame Fund”):

Alpine Ascents Foundation
109 W. Mercer Street
Seattle, WA 98119

Or online:

www.Sherpaedfund.org
please note “Thame Fund” in the notes

Thank you for your consideration.

Everest Team Update

Our team rested well at base camp as we partnered with IMG to clear the rest of Camp I gear via heli. Most of our Sherpa team has returned home to their villages, and the climbers are doing well given the circumstances. We are starting to make arrangements  to move from base camp and hopefully homeward in the next week

Thanks greatly for your support!

All safe in Base Camp

Hello everyone,

All climbers, guides, and Sherpa are now off the mountain and in Base Camp.

Today Fishtail Air, Manang Air, and Simrick Air are pulling together an incredible operation to heli everyone down from Camp 1. If the weather holds as many as 160 climbers will be evacuated today. As we left camp 1, teams were arriving from Camp 2 after descending down the Western Cwm.

The events of the last 2 days are very hard to put into words. We are incredibly fortunate to be here, and are all relieved to be down, and that are whole camp and staff are alright.

Half of Base Camp (not our end) is destroyed, and many lives are lost. Most of our Sherpa have lost their homes, but fortunately no families lost any lives.

Now that we are all down safely we have sent our Sherpa team down valley to be with their families, and to assess the damage to their homes and villages.

With Kathmandu, and villages down valley in chaos, the best place for us right now is in base camp.

Over the next week we will do our best to get climbers homeward bound, and to assess what we can do down valley to help our Sherpa communities.

In the coming weeks, months, and years there will be a consolidated effort from Alpine Ascents to help rebuild in the Sherpa villages.

Climbing Everest seems pretty trivial compared to the destruction, and loss of life that has affected this amazing region. It reminds us all that despite how much we may want to climb a mountain, the most important part is the human aspect.

Below are a couple of shots from the 25th while we were ascending the icefall- about 40 minutes before the earthquake struck.

Thanks for keeping us all in your thoughts and prayers. We will keep you updated as things evolve here in BC.

The team

fullsizerender66

fullsizerender67

Back in Base Camp

We just received word that climbers are back in Base Camp. We have a few staff members/Sherpa that were at Camp II and should have arrived at base camp as well or to be flown shortly. Team will remain at base camp and regroup while assisting with ongoing efforts.  Other groups have also been flown down and some awaiting heli flights with the hope that climbers and Sherpa from all teams are back in BC in the next few hours.

Alpine Ascents Team Update from Camp I

I spoke with guide Eric Murphy early this morning and team is well at Camp I. Alpine Ascents guide Damian Benegas along with other climbers and guides  tried to establish a route to base camp through the ice fall but tremors made this impossible. At this time;  the teams at base camp feel a route through the ice fall will be very difficult and thus we are looking to use helicopter transport to move our and other teams from Camp I to base camp. Though a few climbers have already been transported,  Eric informed us that the heli transport on a large scale should begin tomorrow. Non Alpine Ascents teams that are at Camp II will be moving to Camp I and all outfitters such as International Mountain Guides, Rainier Mountaineering, Madison Mountaineering, Adventure Consultants and other brethren outfitters are working together both at Base Camp and Camp I. We have heard of life lost at base camp and of course we all share this loss with our fellow climbing teams – offering support and condolences as we can – to the climbing community and the larger community in Nepal.

Alpine Ascents Teams at Camp I and Base Camp Staff

I was able to speak to Lakpa Rita at base camp and along with other teams we are assisting with those effected by the avalanche at base camp. Those located in the center of the sprawling tent camp were most effected. Our larger tents are being used a medical tents and will report should there be any further development. All our climbers and Sherpa staff are OK.

I did speak with guide Eric Murphy earlier, where our climbing team is at Camp I. They will remain at Camp I for now, with hopes to assess ice fall conditions and route down through the ice fall in the next few days.

Team Has Checked In — Doing Ok

Our team has check in again and they’re doing ok at Camp I. No other news to report at this time, but we’ll provide updates as soon as we have them.

We thank you for your thoughts and prayers.

Nepal Earthquake – Alpine Ascents Climbing Team OK

We have heard from our climbing team at camp I and team at base camp, and both are OK. We have no further news at this point but will post more when we receive further information.