April 21 Kala Pathar

The Icefall is still closed out of respect for the deceased sherpas. Together with a Chilean climber we are hiking down to Gorak Shep and from there up to a small peak called Kala Pathar. The altitude on a hill after a first peak (at 5.550m) at Kala Pathar is 5.643m. The view should be magnificent, you can see Pumuri, Nuptse and Mt.Everest.

I have spoken as much as I can with the best experts I have found and the message I keep getting from for instance my main sherpa Mingma, is that the conditions are worse and riskier this year because of the amount of snow. There was a new big avalanche yesterday approximately in the same place as the one that caused the deaths and there is more to come from the serac on the West Face.  

I am leaning more and more toward cutting short this expedition. In fact I already told my sherpa Mingma and Rishi, the organizer of the expedition so.

The sherpas decided yesterday the they would not participate in any climbing this year. If they keep that decision no-one else will climb either. There are many people, most of my group for instance, who say that the sherpas are just negotiating for better contracts with the government and the commercial organizers and that in a few days they will be ready to go. Many people seem to want to climb. 

I want to climb too, but it makes no sense to me right now, the risks are too high.