Hello Everyone,

just a quick update from Chris's sister, Amy- I received a voicemail from Chris this morning.  He indicated he did post an update, but it apparently did not stick - he sounded good and from the schedule it looks like they are still trekking their way to base camp and should be there by the 26th.

hope this finds everyone well,
best,
Amy

The team has all arrived and it has been a whirlwind of activity. Today we went for a blessing with the Lama Rinpoche, where we received the traditional Kata, a hearty blessing, and an amulet that provides for protection from rock fall, avalanches, and protects the wearer from bad things happening. It seems to work because a gust of wind came up during lunch and knocked an umbrella over, the way the umbrella fell almost took out Robbie because he had taken his off to jump in the pool. We were told that we would have an auspicious climb. After that we came back and finished our packing. I believe it was about the 8th time repacking for me. Then we headed out to the Ministry of Tourism for our briefing, we were introduced to our Liasion Officer and handed our permit in a little ceremony.

Now we have a few hours of downtime and then we head out for a group dinner with the entire team including the sherpas. Tomorrow we will fly out from Kathmandu to Tumlingtar, where we will jump in jeeps for an 1.5 hour drive and set up camp. The next day we will drive until the road becomes unpassable. As Chhiring said today, when the truck starts slipping going up we will start walking.

Attached is a team portrait of the American Team taken at dinner last night, and a picture of Eric Meyer with the Rinpoche.

This will be last update from civilization, I have tested the satellite phone connection and it appears to be working. The goal will be to send an update about every two days.

Chris Klinke, Kathmandu

The whole team is almost in Kathmandu. Brad Johnson arrived today, Ann Wagner as well. The French Team arrived yesterday, and Eric and Robbie are in the air making their way to Nepal.

I have had a few new experiences this time around in Kathmandu. First and probably the scariest thing I have ever done was ride on the back of a motorcycle( For Cris and Beth, yes the Bitch Seat) through Kathmandu. There appears to be as many of motor vehicles in Kathmandu as people and only about 1/8th of the required roads to accommodate them all. Imagine driving through Chicago with no stop lights, no police, and a mere suggestion on the rules of the road. Riding on the back of a motorcycle while navigating this makes life very interesting for all concerned. Helmets are only required for the driver of the motorcycle. Therefore I had to beg to get a second helmet and the Sherpa’s all laughed at me. I figure that they think if you are going to need it, it will not do any good anyway. So I basically jumped on, closed my eyes, and prayed that I would survive. I actually think climbing a mountain is a safer past time.

The second new experience has been doing long distance night rides on a bike. I was invited out to a few amazing dinners with my friend, Billi, her friends Sam, Maske, Richard, and Stephanie. Maske is an amazing cook, and the meal was simply outstanding. But the real challenge came riding my bike home at 11:30 pm at night without a head lamp. There are no street lamps and the roads are very similar to single track mountain bike trails with potholes, various posts scattered in the middle of the road like big tree roots, and oncoming traffic that sometimes have their headlights on.... 


Oh and I watched a motorcycle almost achieve a hat trick. It took out two cyclists and himself in quick move trying to dart between the two cyclist. Everyone appeared to have walked away.

The conclusion to this entry is that I have improved my mountain biking skills, reaffirmed my dislike for riding on the back of a motorcycle and am looking forward to get into the mountains.

Well, I am back in the land of sounds, smells, and climbers, although at this point they are not responsible for the smells of Kathmandu. Give it a few months and it will be all their fault. I have been meeting wtih Chhiring Dorje and his amazing crew gettting all the last minute preparations ready to go. I have been able to meet his family and share a few meals. I have also been staying with my great friend Billi Beirling. She bikes around Kathmandu interviewing all of the teams heading out to the mountains for Miss Elizabeth Hawley who has been chronicling 8000 meter peaks since Sir Edmund Hillary's time. It is really quite amazing the information they provide on an ongoing basis.

The rest of the team will be coming in over the next week and we will be heading out to the Makalu on the 14th of April. I am not sure if my satellite email is working yet, I have tried it a few times and emails are not seeming to go out. So hopefully I can get that resolved so we can keep everyone in touch.

Chris Klinke, Reporting from Kathmandu