Bernard-Paul Heroux: “There is no trouble so great or grave that cannot be much diminished by a nice cup of tea.” I cannot agree more!!

This leads me quite nicely onto the point of this post, and I am happy to say that it is good news. I was proud to be asked if I would be an ambassador for Lifeboat Tea and their new “Extreme Tea Campaign”. Unsurprisingly, the response was an immediate, YES!

Lifeboat Tea directly supports the RNLI which is the charity I will be climbing Everest for in 2011.

Being part of this campaign is such an honour, it really is. The RNLI is such a brilliant charity, and if buying this excellent tea supports them then it seems like a win-win situation. A good cuppa as well as supporting the extremely courageous volunteers that make The RNLI such a distinctive and invaluable charity.

Every pack of Lifeboat Tea gives 7p to the RNLI.

So go on then…next time you are thinking about buying some more tea, think Lifeboat.

www.lifeboattea.co.uk. I cannot recommend it enough.

First of all I want to direct you all to my Everest 2010 video. It is a compilation of some of the video clips / pics from my expedition and I hope it gives you a good insight into what life is like up there. If nothing else, you can listen to the demise of my voice!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZL1OLMt8H8 (it is in 3 parts – this is the link to Part 1)

I just wanted to write another blog having returned to the UK and had time to reflect on, I suppose, “what might have been.”

The past week hasn’t been the most tasking of my life I have to admit. The skies are blue, the sun is shining so unlike in the past two months I can relax outside without the fear of being blown away. Plus, there is actually grass here – I know, unreal!!

It would obviously have been nicer and probably more relaxing to have made the top but sadly things just don’t always go to plan. It is about how one reacts that is the key. On my other mountains I have been fortunate in many ways and always had success so I suppose it is a shock to the system that I am now facing the inevitable reality of not succeeding in the original objective.

I am purposefully avoiding the terms, “failure” or “lack of success” because I do not see it that way.

I gave it my all, yes, and did not make the top, yes. Saying that though, the lessons I learned from the exped will assist me in any other ventures I choose to undertake. Human life is way way more important than the summit of any mountain. Peter Kinloch’s family (Scottish climber who died on the mountain a few days after our ascent) will, i’m sure, testify to that. I said in my last blog that it would take a cold person to pass teammates who are altitude sick and delirious, but sadly some people, in their selfish pursuit of the summit, do precisely that. Rather a sobering thought I must admit.

It was an incredible experience, it really was. Yeah, Everest has changed a lot. It isn’t the purists dream it once was. The North is much better than the South but still, it isn’t great in a commercial sense. Hypocritical I know…I suppose I am part of that conveyor belt. Still though, being up there, alone in the dark on the Northeast ridge is, I can assure you, an immensely lonely place and one that I won’t forget. Passing bodies on the edge of a rock face with a mile long drop either side is again, not something i’m going to forget.

I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to go to such amazing places.

So, the question I am being asked a lot right now is….what next? A fair question I agree, I would probably ask it as well…in fact, I do ask myself it, a lot. Everest is still there. It will be there next year, it will be there in 2012 and guess what, it will be there in 2020 as well. You get the drift.

What i’m saying is, yes, I will go back, I have no doubt at all about that. Having got so close, having not made the top for reasons outside my control, means that Everest is unfinished business. I know for sure that I can do it, more now than before in fact. It has only increased my desire in fact.

2010 on Everest wasn’t my year but I hope and believe that one day, hopefully sometime soon, I will stand on top of the world.

Thank you again to my sponsors for all their support. Thank you for all the messages I have received in the past few weeks, hearing such sound advice and kind words from so many people I respect is touching. Thank you also for following my blog and giving me so much support – in the meantime, if you are interested, check out the video I made.

All the best,

Geordie

First of all i want to apologise for the delay in writing. I wrote a blog when I was at ABC on the way down but our email access was limited because of the weather so it never got sent. I hope to enlighten you all now on what happened from ABC upwards and then back down again to safety -  it was quite a tale to say the least.

I suppose the most important thing is that, to my disappointment, I did not make the summit of Mount Everest. I can assure you this was not for the lack of effort but more on that in due course.

So we all (except for the four that had previously left us) set off from Base Camp for the last time with anticipation and excitement in the air. We had been waiting for literally two weeks so to get the green light was a massive relief and people suddenly started to drift into their own worlds, mentally preparing themselves for the forthcoming undertaking. For me, I was delighted to be doing that 16 mile trek to ABC for the last time. That in itself was a massive relief – “one more time I would tell myself…one final push then home!!”

It is important to note here that since the first night at the North Col, and anyone who spoke to me on the phone will be testiment to this, let alone my teammates, I have hardly spoken – a period of nearly 4 weeks. I had a throat infection which sadly refused to heal at altitude. More on that later as well.

Next day we moved to the North Col. Less hot than last time which was a relief and we meandered our way up to Camp 1. Away from mess tents, cutlery and email access and onto freeze-dried meals, solitude and summit focus. The calorie deficit was beginning – not as beneficial as some female readers might want to think.

From the North Col things changed somewhat. Some of my team went on oxygen from there on up – something I would later regret not doing – and some also got their bags carried. There is a scale of the difficulty of how one climbs Everest from solo without o2 to full sherpa support. On this exped I have seen both and there was one or two people who, at this stage, started to fall below the level they would probably like to think they stand in…not for me to judge though.

I moved from 7000m – 7800m with Matt and Pete. Somehow Matt had recovered from his HAPE earlier on in the trip and was level with us all now. He has become a very good mate so it was great to have him alongside when entering virgin altitudes for us all. Plod plod plod up the neverending north ridge. It is an enormous snowslope and trying to find the motivation to continue on such similar terrain is tough. Imaine walking up  a red ski-slope – one foot in front of another!!

Hit 7500m and things change. On goes the oxygen and it becomes a different ball game. Each step is that much easier and finally we stumble into 7800m camp. Throw snow onto stove, get into sleeping bag and attempt to stay hydrated. It had been a long day, almost 10 hours and off to sleep we went. Dreams at this altitude are very vivid and very random but after a somewhat restless sleep we were up, changed and ready to move again.

The terrain had now changed. Instead of snow slopes it was a rocky, snowy, shale ridden track which was anything but enjoyable to ascend. This time it was Ian and I who ascended slowly along to high camp at 8300m. When I say high camp, I really do mean it. High Camp on the north side of Everest at 8300m is the highest camp in the whole world and is not for the faint-hearted. We stumbled in, coughing and spluterring.

I was sharing with Matt and Pete who, once again, were immense tentmates and friends. It had been another 10 hour day and I was then informed we would be going for the summit in 3 hours time. 3 HOURS! S**T! I had had two 10 hour days, was feeling awful and was informed that I would be taking on one of the most challenging human endeavours in three hours time.

The routine was the same, sleeping bag, snow to water and eat. At this point however, I couldn’t speak (literally) as my throat has now closed up which means eating and drinking was also agony. I was exhausted but three hours later a sherpa came round and this was it…

SUMMIT DAY

All the years preparation etc etc had led to this moment. On went the crampons, hand warmers, harnesses – we had prepared for this. Final handshakes between Matt, Pete and myself – headtorches switched on and into the darkness we went.

Following the snail-like line of bouncing lights, one foot in front of the other.

Two or three hours later, I was alone. There was a group way in front and a group way behind. Somehow no Sherpa was with me – unlike everyone else. At this point, my headtorch went out. New batteries, no luck. Another set of new batteries, surely these will work? No luck!! Then for an hour or so I was following fixed ropes, being guided by moonlight (very minimal to say the least) and somewhat scared to say the least – as well as moving rather slowly.

I hit the northeast ridge where the route becomes more precarious and decide to wait. Half an hour goes by and still nobody reaches me from below. 45 mins and finally a light comes towards me. A sherpa, no wait, a sherpa and Keith. Ironically, and I say that with gritted teeth, it was a sherpa and Keith. Keith’s headtorch (same make as mine) had also shut down. The next stage really should be part of a comedy sketch, one which I begrudgingly seem to be starring in, as a sherpa walked behind Keith and myself shining a light between our legs moving unbelievably slowly. It was blind leading the blind time, but at 8500m in one of the worlds harshest environments, it wasn’t that funny!

Finally sun comes up – we can see again – but disaster once again. The sherpa who had helped us starts to get altitude sick and throws photos of his family off the mountain as well as refusing o2. We have to stay with him until support comes thus wasting more time. We finally make it up the 1st step but time is at a premium – we should have been several hours further up the mountain.

At this point I would like to add that my throat has all but ceased up. Every breathe is painful, I  really really wish I was lying. As soon as the route got vaguely difficult and one’s heartrate increased I would be doubled-over hyperventilating because I couldn’t get the oxygen through my throat to my lungs. I was coughing up blood regularly. As I said, i wish I was joking!

Fast-forward a few hours and I am at the bottom of the 2nd step. One of my teammates is suffering from altitude sickness as well and I am forced, morally that is, to stay with him. Eventually the guy starts to talk with his rucksack and literally forgets how to put it on. Im not joking, he was so badly affected he just started prodding his rucksack because he didnt know what else to do with it. More time lost but eventually support came and off I went…to the 2nd step.

Please google image what this is like, it is difficult to explain. I was forced to wait another 45 mins for people to come down the step before I can head up -  it was time I didnt really have to lose. Halfway up the ladder, I glance down and see a body. I had never seen a body. Tangled in ropes, the same boots as mine, down-suit as fresh as mine, he lay there in the faetel position. I was scared. My legs started to shake uncontrollably. “I dont want to end up like that, I dont want to end up like that.”

I was alone, halfway up a ladder at 8600m on one of Everest’s most notorious obstacles and was absolutely petrified!

I made it up, eventually, only to find another teammate who had run out of oxygen. More time lost waiting for help. Finally it came and on I continued. My leader, having made the top, passed me half an hour later. I continued only to be told by a sherpa there was 4 hours to go – my deadline was 2. It was over.

I sat down, I say sat down, collapsed to the floor through exhaustion and despair would be more appropriate. It was over. My dream was over.

I hope I haven’t bored you by now but an accurate timeline of events is important if you want to understand what happened on summit day. I made it down, staggered into high camp, and cried.

So much effort, so many hours of work and this was it. A series of ridiculously unfortunate incidents through other people’s inability to prepare themselves at altitude and my throats inability to recover after a month and the summit of Everest would remain elusive to me.

As for the top – some of my closest friends from the exped did make it. Matt, Pete and Max all topped-out and I am delighed for them. Very few people deserve it more, well done.

I am writing this now in Kathmandu, pretty reflective, and contemplating what happened and what I could have done differently.

The answer – very little. I take solice in knowing that I gave all I possibly could, and a lot more, to achieve the summit. On summit day itself it would have taken an extremely cold man to not stop and help when I did and I know that I made the right choices at the right time. Somebody else’s life at 8600m is more important than the summit of Mt. Everest but I agree that it is a shame I had to experience that.

Thank you for following my progress, I hope you all know I gave 1,000,000% to get to the top and will, im sure, get there in the coming years!

Dear all,

It’s been a difficult few days waiting on news of Geordie’s climb, and we knew yesterday that he had been doing well and had reached about 8,700m of 8,848m. The break in communication was down to an illness to another team member and difficult weather conditions.

We have just learned however that Geordie had to turn around at only 150m or so from the summit. The turnaround time was 11am local, after which Geordie had been climbing non-stop for 12 hours, and we can be glad that he had the strength of mind to do so.

To reach such a height deserves great admiration and we can all be proud of his achievements. There are some discussions currently as to whether some may attempt another summit but we cannot be sure this will happen.

Whatever the result, the support of his family and friends has been invaluable in helping him reach this far. Geordie will be his own harshest critic and we can be sure he did his absolute very best. The astonishing sum raised for Help for Heroes is testament to Geordie, and will be of great value to a cause very important to him.

We hope to hear news from him at some stage, as and when he can.

Thanks again for your support so far.

Team Geordie.

www.geordiestewart.com

Dear all,

Apologies are extended for the drawn out nature of news on Geordie’s progress, and it is only with the best intentions of keeping Geordie’s friends, family and supporters up to date with the very latest news. It appears that despite a hectic and sleepless 36 hours, we will now be able to rest until tomorrow morning for final confirmation. What we do know is that he is now currently safe and that he made an attempt at the final summit, we don’t yet know whether he made it.

I have just spoken with Adventure Peaks and they have told me that the full update is very likely to come at 9am tomorrow morning, British Summer Time.

The teams are all currently asleep up on the mountain and it is very unlikely that we will hear from them again today. The messages we receive on their website come through their office in Britain, which closes at 5.30pm tonight and reopens at 9am tomorrow morning.

When the climbers wake up tomorrow morning, it will be 9am their time and 2am our time, so any messages that are sent from them will consequently not be posted on the internet until the office reopens tomorrow morning our time.

To put it succinctly, you are not going to hear any news between until at least 8am tomorrow morning, and it is unlikely that it will come today. In the meantime you are welcome to check for yourself at the website where we get all of our news:
http://www.adventurepeaks.com/news/everestnews2010.html

The wait may now finally be over. Apologies again for the uncertainty over the last 24 hours, we have simply been updating you as best we can on what we knew. Thank you for your patience, I hope that you will hear from us again shortly.

Whatever the outcome of Geordie’s expedition, we can all be immensely proud of his achievements, and it is worth reiterating the importance of the support that he receives from all of you. On his behalf, thank you once again.

Team Geordie

www.justgiving.com/geordiestewart
www.geordiestewart.com
www.twitter.com/geordie7summits

www.swmitchellcapital.com
www.lifeboattea.co.uk
www.shackletonventures.com
www.barkers-ringwood.co.uk

Dear all,

Please forgive the mistake, but Geordie will be hoping to summit at 1AM GMT. We should hope to have news from 2am, this is in all but a few hours. We are unclear as to whether this calculation has taken British Summer Time into account or not, and so all times could be 1 hour later.

As soon as we hear news, it will be delivered. Apologies again for the confusion.

All news will be posted first on the AP website, to be found here: http://www.adventurepeaks.com/news/everestnews2010.html

Go Geordie!

So we made it to ABC ok which was the first checkpoint on this summit attempt. The aim was to spend two rest days here before heading up but this plan has changed.

There is a storm brewing over the Bay of Bengal which will apparently hit Everest on the 24th May (our intended summit day) so instead we are heading up to the North Col tomorrow and aiming to summit on the 23rd May.

This has been a long and very challending expedition but it looks like the end is in sight. I will, of course, do my very best to realise my dream.

Thank you for all your support.

And in the words of Murray Walker, the great Formula 1 commentator, it’s “go, go, go!” Sadly the comparison with F1 is going to end there. Whereas Jenson Button and co. are flying around Silverstone inches away from each other at 200mph, we will be plodding along at 0.1mph, literally, on the Northeast Ridge. It still amazes me why Formula 1 and not mountaineering gets attention from the BBC.

Onto the good news then, you may have guessed it. We are heading up to ABC for our summit push. Depending on the weather we will spend one or two nights at ABC then have consecutive days to the North Col, then to 7800m, then to 8300m and then, hopefully, to the summit at 8848m!!

The past couple of days have been fun and knowing that other teams are heading up from the South makes the reality of this situation settle in. 14 days at Base Camp is finally at an end. The other day the winds dropped and being the Brit that I am means a rush to top up that tan. Sadly karma was at it’s very best. I soon realised that at 5300m, any skin not covered by factor 50 gets fried. Parts of my torso now appear to have been lobsterised – a painful mistake! Other than that, yesterday I arose from my tent to a welcome from Pete: “Happy Man Day!!” Max declared that the 16th May would be “Man Day.” I won’t go into any great details but I can assure you that the mess tent after dinner was not the most fragrant of places.

“Be ready when opportunity comes…luck is the time when preparation and opportunity meet.” – Roy D. Chapin Jr.

To make the top of this mountain, there are a lot of things that have to click into place. The weather has to be good, my body has to cope with the minimal O2 in the atmosphere etc etc. I have prepared in the best way I know, Everest was the next step in my 7 Summits quest and despite being the highest mountain in the world, I felt ready to take it on. That hasn’t changed. I have acclimatised well and feel excited to try and climb to the top of the world!! This mountain has plagued me every day for a number of years and I hope to grasp this opportunity with everything i’ve got.

Over 3 years since this plan came into my head, a year since this expedition has been booked, 6 weeks since leaving Heathrow and 14 days of waiting at Base Camp – this is it. I am seriously excited.

I look forward / hope / pray to be able to write you a successful message in one weeks time. All your support over the past three years has been invaluable and I appreciate it more than you know, so, thank you. I also wish all my friends good luck in their exams at St Andrews and elsewhere.

I will leave you with one of the most important quotes I have come across from one of the greatest ever American climbers.

“Getting to the top is optional, getting back down again is mandatory.” – Ed Viesturs

“In the confrontation between the stream and the rock, the stream always wins – not through strength but by perseverence.” – H. Jackson Brown

Last time I wrote we were waiting at Base Camp for that elusive weather window – I suppose not much has changed in that sense. We still wait, and in relation to the above quote, we persevere, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel!! Our forecasts come in daily, and it would appear as though the winds are dropping (as a result of a change of course of the jet stream) between the 23rd-26th May. This means that, in theory, we will depart for ABC and subsequently the summit on the 18th May. Today being the 14th means that the waiting should almost be over. I hope you all have your fingers crossed because if that weather window doesnt come then I will go insane here at Base Camp.

So what’s new? Well actually the last five days haven’t been that strenuous. Looking back…one of the other teams, run by Russians, had a party the other night. They managed to get some booze up here (I hasten to add I am still off it until that, hopefully, celebratory drink) which sent a few of my teammates over the edge but otherwise it was a really good evening and a chance to chat to the other teams. As much as anything else it means there will be some familiar faces on the route up – you never know whose help you may require.

I thought I would include a picture of one of our many epic games of Risk. As much as anything else I think the game deserves a bit of credit for the quantity of hours it has occupied here at Base Camp. As you can see here, all four warlords are contemplating their tactics for world domination.

The other day provided the greatest confrontation to date though. To start with we taught Max the rules of Poker which was all good and well. In the 2 practice games, played with cocktail sticks (1 chip), dried apricots (5 chips) and tea-bags (10 chips), he remarkably managed to come up trumps but come the real thing and the outcome was different. It came down to Steven vs. myself. As much as anything else, us both being there proved that the Scottish university systems must be doing something correct. (him having just graduated from Aberdeen and me being at St Andrews) Sadly Steven triumphed after about 90 mins of playing with just us but coming second meant I kept my $10 so it wasn’t all bad.

The other pic is of me on a walk today. 10 days of “rest” took it’s toll so I headed up a frozen river and then up and down some scree slopes to about 6000m for 5 hours or so. You can just make out Base Camp in the background and it’s scattering of tents that has become home away from home for the past 7 weeks.

Other than that, lots of reading, chatting, eating and sleeping – nothing new there. Musical debates still provide a good chunk of conversation. My insistence that “Bringing It All Back Home” by Bob Dylan is the greatest record ever made falls on deaf ears except for those of Brendan – you can always count on an Aussie. Quite a few guys are in their late 30′s now so, unfortunately for them in my eyes at least, are more partial to things like Guns n’ Roses & AC/DC – one has to feel for them.

I will keep you posted on how things are progressing pre-summit push and should write another post in a few days time.