Bill and Sara McGahan and Jeff Martin walking out of Lukla to begin the ten-day trek to Everest Base Camp
Photographs and text by Dave Hahn, a guide for RMI Expeditions and First Ascent. In May 2010 Hahn reached the summit of Mount Everest for the 12th time, the most of any a non-Sherpa climber. This time, he is leading a Bill McGahan and his 16-year-old daughter, Sara, on a bid for the summit. Follow the team's Everest expedition in dispatches here.
Dispatch 1: Kathmandu
My little team began to combine in Kathmandu yesterday afternoon. Jeff Martin, my boss at RMI Expeditions, met my flight into hot and dusty K-Du at around one o'clock. Jeff has already been over here for nearly a week, chasing down logistical details and getting all the arrangements made. My climbers, Bill and his 16-yea-old daughter Sara McGahan, beat me into town by about an hour, having flown East out of Atlanta, while I circled West from Taos. Long, long flights no matter how you slice it ... a passel of time zones and bad airplane food. I had time for a quick shower back at the hotel before Jeff and I taxied our way over to the Ministry of Tourism. I scribbled my name a half-dozen times and shook a bunch of official hands ... swallowed the obligatory cup of sweet tea and, voile!! We walked out with an all-important Everest climbing permit.
We retreated to the hotel to join Bill and Sara for dinner. Despite the fun reunion, we got yawning and fading fast ... hopelessly jet-lagged we stumbled off to our rooms. Linden Mallory is already up in Everest's Khumbu icefalls--we'll get together with him about a week into our trek. Mark Tucker will join us at about the same time to complete the team. But for now it is just the four of us, which made today pretty easy when it came to a final gear check and and packing session.
We enjoyed an interview and conversation with Bili Bierling who is helping the legendary Elizabeth Hawley with the monumental task of keeping track of climber statistics in the Nepal Himalaya. Then we each made a few forays out into the streets to track down odds and ends—our version of sightseeing at this busy point in the expedition. We need to be ready to fly good and early tomorrow morning, up from 4,000 feet in Kathmandu to 9,200 feet in Lukla before the air gets cloudy and turbulent. My alarm is set for 4:15 a.m. and my bags are packed once again... with luck we'll be walking in mountains by mid-morning.
Everest appears behind Bill McGahan and his daughter 16-year-old daugher Sara
I come here from the google while searching for some good article.Thanks
Posted by: cash advance loans | February 23, 2012 at 05:34 PM
It was great and fun adventure on top of the mountain.
Posted by: Healthy Options | December 26, 2011 at 12:15 AM
Climbing is a good adventure that once you achieve it you can tell the world that "I have an extra ordinary experience" All of you guys is so great.
Posted by: Jezreel Ricafort | November 29, 2011 at 09:25 AM
I can imagine that the journey was even better because you achieved this with your daughter. Absolutely brilliant, my kids won't even venture off the sofa, so great achievement.
Posted by: charlotte | November 28, 2011 at 10:58 AM
I cannot think of anything more exciting than climbing up a mountain. Well done.
Posted by: ella | November 28, 2011 at 10:33 AM
I think that you have to be either brave or just mad to attempt Everest, it is one hell of an achievement if you do it, but many obstacles to come across before the end is reached. Good Luck
Posted by: sophie | November 21, 2011 at 10:05 AM
beautiful but dangerous travelling
looking for see more
Posted by: longchamp Le Pliage | July 21, 2011 at 10:57 PM
vibram Barefoot Alternative (Four Hour Work Week. com) . Joel July 13th, 2009 11:13 am Thanks Jon and Angel This weekend I added a run with standard running ビブラム and did some serious stretching before my run with fivefingers . Today, my calves do not hurt nearly as much. So, stretching and some alternating seems to be the answer. I was a little disappointed in how much it hurt ファイブフィンガーズ bottoms of my feet when I ran on a rocky trail and then a gravel path with rocks that were hard to avoid.
Posted by: vibram | July 05, 2011 at 02:40 AM
it's worth.
Posted by: boss sunglass | May 19, 2011 at 04:23 AM
I wish these 2 the best, it is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Enjoy the milk tea!
The youngest up Everest was Romero at 13. I was there in '71 when things seemed less disturbed. I think though that Everest has become a kind of commodity with 4000 plus summits, lots of garbage and quite a few dead bodies. It would be nice to see it cleaned up with perhaps a climbing moratorium. But, rupees rule.
Posted by: carter | March 31, 2011 at 11:23 PM
cool experience
so excited
Posted by: Erric | March 29, 2011 at 11:30 PM
Thanks for such a great post and the review, I am totally impressed! Keep stuff like this coming.
Posted by: Baseball hats | March 29, 2011 at 09:23 PM
Great article! One of my dreams is to be at the peak of Mount Everest. I hope it will happen. I'll save money for it. Thanks for posting and I'll be anticipating for more posts.
Posted by: fun run | March 28, 2011 at 10:45 PM
Get ready to fly good and early tomorrow morning, up from 4,000 feet in Kathmandu to 9,200 feet in Lukla before the air gets cloudy and turbulent.
Posted by: jb007 | March 28, 2011 at 03:49 AM