Hardwear Sessions

Instead of coffee I kick start the day with ginger tea from Lhakpa and sit on my own outside the mess tent drinking while the staff work on brekkie. Breakfast is two tiered; first there is always porridge or rice pudding followed by any of the following, eggs (most days), bacon, pancakes, and toast. As its one of the few times that the whole team is together is a big social and breakfast will often last through to 10ish.

The morning often sees the better weather with clear skies and a hot blazing sun, but this often changes by lunchtime and as a result the morning time is the time to shower and wash clothes. Clothes washing is simply done in a huge metal bowl, but to be honest I've never been too sure of my washing skills and even though the water turns a nasty brown colour my socks smell just as bad once I've finished. The shower however is a delight, we use a big garden sprayer that is filled with hot water, a quick pump with the handle forms a great spray and a surprisingly good shower.

The lunch gong goes about 12.30 and again the team all comes together to eat. Its normally a light affair with a salad and pototes (or similar) with maybe chapattis or tibetean bread, but once again it lasts awhile as we all gossip or play cards after.

For me the afternoon is the big social time and I'm often found out roaming base camp, visiting different camps and catching up with friends. Getting too and from each camp can be pretty difficult especially early in the season when there is little in the way of defined paths. For those who haven't seen pictures base camp is perched on the edge of the Khumbu glacier and it's a maze of boulders and lakes that we have to walk round and over. As the expedition progresses paths spring up between the camps making walking around easier, but things change as every thing is slowly moving down hill and one day lakes maybe there and the next they are completely drained, there is also the danger of the bigger boulders sliding down slopes which makes positioning of ones tent important.

I have many friends that I will only see at various basecamps round the world and for me the social side of BC is very important. I always tell clients to make the most of things here as there are many days "at rest" at BC and in you embrace what goes on around then the time will fly by.

This year, like last, there is a bakery which pumps out great apple pie and is always a focal point. Mark Tucker from IMG always makes sure there is a pitch and putt in the lower section of the icefall and I can tell you it gets pretty heated. In our camp this year there has been many games of monopoly many of them have been fast and furious and there have been a number of harsh words between players, but we are all still mates (so far).

4pm sees afternoon tea and cake and many folk will remain in the mess tent after to play games and wait for the heater to be put on (5ish). Dinner is any time between 6 and 7 and again I often either eat "out" or with my Sherpa crew. Eating out is kind of fun and people put a big effort into hosting folk. A few days back I was eating fondue with my old friends at Mountain Madness. It was a great evening until I had to walk back to my camp in the dark with no head torch. Bedtime comes early over here as the temps drop quickly once its dark, people slowly drift to their tents from about 8.30pm and a late night is considered to be anything later than 10pm. I will always spend an hour or so reading in my tent before I turn off my headlamp and snuggle into my sleeping bag and fall asleep. If you take one tip from me for staying at BC or climbing the mountain its this: make sure your tent is comfy. I have 2 big sleeping bags, a super soft blanket, a duvet and no less than 3 mattresses of different types. I look forward to bed every night safe in the knowledge that I will be getting a warm comfy night sleep.

That's BC for you Guys, you should come and visit one day--it's an amazing place.

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