Scott Parazynski Everest Update: 30 April 2008 – Back at Base Camp
Keith Cowing 30 April 2008 10:20 pm EST: I just got a phone call from Scott Parazynski at Everest Base Camp. He reports that he and his team feel great and that they returned to Everest Base Camp yesterday from Camp II after a 4 day stay.
This was their second rotation up to Camp II which is also known as Advanced Base Camp. Camp II is located at 6,065 meters (19,900 feet)
These forays up and down the mountain help them acclimatize to the ever-decreasing oxygen levels. By the time they make their push for the summit itself they will be better adapted to the arduous demands that will be placed on their bodies.
Over the next week or so he and his team will rest at Base Camp and do some additional acclimatization climbs on some nearby peaks.
Once the Chinese have completed their climb Scott and his team will resume acclimatization climbs on Everest itself. They will push up to Camp III and possibly spend a night there before descending. Camp III is located at an altitude of 7,470 meters (24,500 feet)
After that, their next foray onto Everest itself will likely be the push for the summit.
Weather has been very good and it would seem that this will not present an issue around the middle of the month when most summit attempts are usually made.
As for the acclimatization process itself, Scott reports that he is doing fine in this regard as has been the case on previous climbs that he has participated in.
The NASA Trek team is now in Nepal and on their way to Everest Base Camp. They are due to arrive at Base Camp somewhere around 5/6 May. This is before Scott is expecting to make the climb up to Camp III so he is looking forward to seeing his friends.
Scott noted that it is hard to be away from home for long periods of time such as this and that he has “a lot of admiration for the ISS expedition crews who do it for 6 months at a time”.
When the familiar faces show up at Base Camp Scott said “it will be a lot like a visiting shuttle crew to the ISS in the middle of a long expedition – lots of friendly faces from home”.
I also passed on some hellos from folks back home including some of his fellow astronauts at NASA who often refer to him as “Doogie” (as in Doogie Howser M.D. – Scott is a M.D.).
Scott can also expect several bags of chocolate covered expresso beans (per his request) that I bought at a local Starbucks and some additional waterproof journals.
I expect the next report from Scott in a few days.
