May 13, 2008 - 8:58pm — MountEverest2008
Two Miles Down
Pangboche
After descending over 10,000ft in a few days, the team entered a Khumbu spring and is now enjoying thicker air, returned appetites, and comfortable beds at a pretty little riverside village by the name of Pangboche, elevation of 13,000ft. It is at this location, however, that we will be parting ways with one member of our Everest family... my fellow climber Kent Groninger. Kent, as mentioned before, is an accomplished mountaineer and a strong member of the team. From his experience, he is skilled (much more so than I) at assessing the status quo inclusive of how he is feeling physically and mentally in regard to the expedition at hand. Taking all into account, he has decided to opt out of our spring attempt on Everest and will be returning to his home in Boulder a few weeks early. The remaining team respects Kent's decision, will miss him (both on the mountainside and playing cards in the dining tent), and I personally look forward to catching up with Kent in the states as he and I will be, relatively speaking, neighbors in the state of Colorado. Thanks for the pleasure of trekking and climbing with you Kent - you're a man of wisdom, character, and a mountaineer I admire.
If a picture is worth (you know the rest)... a video sent near real time from Everest must be like gold, right? Well, perhaps if I had the gumption to lug a monopod up the Lhotse Face with me so I could take some reasonably stable footage (reminder, the Lhotse Face is the steep incline we must ascend to reach Camp III and Camp IV). Fair warning, I am a novice video guy... cutting my teeth on Everest. I've not even filmed a kid's birthday party. I'm simply a guy with a camera in a cool spot... and my makeshift cast (fellow climbers) and I are on-the-fly capturing shots we think are neat and interesting. My goal, as stated before, is to give a real sense for what it's really like here. No hype, just raw Everest. I hope you like the recent additions... my goal will be to add a few more over the next few days. Special thanks to to my brother-in-law Greg for some cool background music.
Also, congratulations to my cousin Patrick and his wife on their recent marriage in NY. Much of my extended family is in upstate NY and when I think about the source of my drive and determination, my dad and my uncles (his brothers) immediately come to mind. These guys are all tough, all hard working, and are some of the best guys you'll meet. I figure if they can wake up dead early in the morning and work their tail off all day long... at the age of 60+... I ought to be able to suck it up and scale a mountain here and there. From the job I had selling sweet corn in NY when I was little to the giant bags full of tasty, homemade beef jerky they used to provide us, my family in NY has always been supportive. Thanks to all of you - and for the nice comments you've been posting. You guys are great.
Finally, I'm happy to say that tonight I have a roof over my head. I am looking forward to a great night's sleep. Goodnight...