The Quest Begins

The Quest Begins

After several years of planning, anticipation, and fortitude we have arrived at this moment that will surely tranform our lives. The Sojourners; Paul Hermsmeyer, Bogue Hermsmeyer, Seth Hermsmeyer, Logan Cannon, and Cameron Taylor all share incredible passion for mountains, travel, adventure, culture, ethnic food, and all things novel. These common passions have forged a bond and an opportunity for an adventure unlike any other. The trip will entail two of the most famous sections of the Himalayas, The Annapurna Circuit/Sanctuary, and the Khumbu/Everest region. We will traverse well over 500 miles and experience some of the most dramatic vistas and amazing cultures on the planet. With this being said, it is important to note that we realize we are incredibly privileged to be able to embark on this journey and will conduct ourselves with the utmost respect for both local culture and the environment. We would also like to note that this would not be possible without the incredible support from our family and friends(especially the parents) who have been there for us throughout the duration. This blog is intended to be informative, keeping our friends and family updated, and show our enthusiasm throughout our experience in the beautiful "Mountain Kingdom of Nepal".

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Unite the Clans!

We had new vigor after we left Gokyo and hiked extremely hard the next few days. We stayed the evening in Macherma where we stayed in a warm tea house warmed by dry yak dung. The warmth of heat greatly outweighs the smell and smoke from the primitive chimneys. The next day we dropped all of the way down into Phortse Thanga where we had lunch in the same spot we had seen Cam and Bogue only three days before. We then made our way out of the river valley and climbed hard all of the way to Pangboche. The trail dropped for thousands of feet below us into the river valley and relaxing didn't appear to be an option. We were the only guests at the tea house and we had a warm fire and were greeted by many mice throughout the evening. The next day we had our easiest hike since we separated from the group and arrived around noon into Dingboche. We were only two hours from Chukkung and decided to rest and then hike up the next day and see how Bogue and Cameron were doing.
The next morning we arrived at Chukkung early and enjoyed the some of the most spectacular views of the sojourn. Lhotse Ridge and Ama Dablam are magnificent and the sun was intense with warmth. We had lunch and then took our shoes off and allowed our feet a brief moment of reprieve from the constant pounding of trekking. Then, only an hour after we arrived, I heard Bogue's voice approaching and just like that we were back together again. We gave each other hugs and congratulated them on their successful climb of Island Peak. They were absolutely exhausted and ate and relaxed the rest of the afternoon. The group came together again over tea and the others were sad that father had already left for Kathmandu. We regrouped and planned our attack on the Everest Valley. We were motivated to set a hard schedule and cut a couple of days off of our trek. The season was changing quickly and the cold was taking a toll on our morale. We were yearning for a hot shower, a shave, a beer, sandals, and other simple comforts of Kathmandu. We also wanted to get out and see how the old man was fairing down in Kathmandu. The next morning Chukkung Ri, and then onto Everest Base Camp.

Orange Tang...See You Again

Leaving father in Namche that morning was a sad moment indeed. We had hope that he would meet us in Phortse Thanga, but it didn't feel right heading back into the mountains without him. We gave him a big hug and then we started a new journey and adjusted our minds to the challenge. We made amazing time out of Namche around the ridge and up the steep climb go Mong La. Then we saw the tiny village way down below where we were to meet Cameron and Bogue. Phortse Thanga rested on a roaring river at the bottom of the valley. We ate Dal Bhat and waited for the others to arrived at a nice tea house in Phortse Thanga.
The sun was falling behind the ridge when we finally met up with them. We waited for our porters to arrive and Cameron and Bogue shared some warm tang with us as we discussed what day would be ideal to meet. We would meet in Chukkung on the 9th of November where we would regroup and head toward Everest. The guys were excited to hear that father may be giving it another go and it gave the group strength with the possibility of seeing him again. We split our gear up with two porters coming with us up to Gokyo and one heading to Chukkung. We gave a warm farewell and wished each other luck as we headed in opposite directions, planning to reunite the clans in one week.
Then, after our short meeting, we hiked up the steep ridge to Dole with our new team of Logan, Indra, Osca, and myself giving each other encouragement and building a group bond immediately as we joked and laughed in our attempt at Nepalese words and jokes. We slept at Dole as we looked at the stars feeling lonely and hoping that everyone would alright throughout the upcoming week. We started early into Gokyo and passed many groups throughout the day. Our acclimating had clearly paid off and we were cutting estimated times by half. We climbed over 2,300 feet into Gokyo where we stayed at the Namaste Lodge. The aqua lake of Gokyo was magnificent and Gokyo Ri rose steeply next to the town. We checked the internet and received very sad news. Father wasn't feeling well and his cold had deteriorated rapidly. He was going to have to descend and his trek was officially over. The news hit hard and we talked about the disappointment. We knew how much it meant to him and we had been looking forward to meeting him in a couple of days.
The afternoon was a bit gloomy as we ate in the warmth of the tea house. We decided that we would summit Gokyo Ri early in the morning and then begin our descent to Macherma and over to the opposing valley to speed up our itinerary. The morning was magnificent weather and we slogged straight up Gokyo Ri. We climbed the Ri quickly and arrived at the summit with only a few others on top. The view of Everest was amazing. We also saw Makalu and Cho Yo which gave us views of 3 of the biggest mountains in the world. We took the view in with some coffee and enjoyed the sacred experience of eating a snickers bar in the Khumbu after a difficult climb. After a few hours we descended and said farewell to Gokyo excited that we accomplished our first goal and were heading toward the Third river valley of the trek.

New Plans Forged

After a night of restful sleep in the warmer lower elevations of Namche we awoke and went to see if we had received and email from Bogue and Cameron in Gokyo. To our great relief we received communication explaining that they were both safe and had made it over the pass successfully. However, their success the following day had left them completely exhausted and incapable of descending down into Namche for our rendezvous. Logan, Paul, and I were completely unsure of what our plans were and Paul needed a day to assess his health and see if he would be able to ascend back into the high mountains. After a good breakfast and a hydration session we went to the medical clinic and they did some simple diagnostics on Paul. His oxygen levels were in excellent shape and all of his baseline functioning seemed to be entirely back to normal. All except the side affects from the Diamox seemed to back to normal. Unfortunately, Paul had contracted a severe cough and was feeling the weakness of those days before a bad cold.
We sent emails throughout the day trying to find out a way to meet up with Cameron and Bogue and still achieve all of our goals. We felt relieved that Paul had been cleared by the nurse and the doctors via phone from Kathmandu. It was his decision on whether or not he should ascend or descend. After several emails and a conversation on the phone with the separate contingents, it was decided that the Sojourners would again separate and try to reunite together later on in the trek. Father was going to rest a few days in Namche while he got his strength back together while Logan and I were to head back up toward Gokyo to climb Gokyo Ri. This plan would allow us to meet up with Bogue and Cameron as they descended out of Gokyo and allow us to switch gear and talk about our new plan in person. Cameron and Bogue would carry on to Chukkung for an attempt at Island Peak, while Logan and I would explore Gokyo and then descend and meet father in Phortse Thanga where we would head up as a group of three to meet Cameron and Bogue after their Island Peak summit bid. Then, we would all travel into the Everest Valley and climb Kala Pattar and see Everest Base Camp as a group. The plan had been set and our aspirations strongly desired to make this plan of action come into fruition.

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