Spring 2019: Mountaineers gearing up for summit push despite bad weather

1. Project: The Line

American climber Cory Richards (37) with Ecuadorean climber Esteban "Topo" Mena, aiming to summit Everest via a new route, are now at Advanced Base Camp (6400m). They reached up to 7300m during earlier rotations.
 
2. Nepali Sherpa, Kami Rita Sherpa (49) who holds the record of most numbers (22) of Everest summits by any individual made in last spring, is aiming to summit Everest for the 23rd time this year. He is also now at Everest Base Camp.

3. Project: The Dream of Everest

Four Arab women, Joyce Azzam, and Nelly Attar from Lebanon, Mona Shahab from Saudi Arabia and Nadhirah Alharthy from Oman with Elia Saikaly, aiming to Everest, are now at Everest Base Camp. Previously, they reached Camp-3.

4. Project: Two Widow Expedition

Nima Doma Sherpa (36) and Furdiki Sherpa (42) are aiming to summit Everest to finish the unfinished climb of their dead husbands. They summited Lobuche (6119m) on 9th May, morning, as the process of acclimatization.

5. Amputee climber Sergeant Kirstie Ennis, former US Marine Corps, who lost a leg due to a helicopter crash in Afghanistan in 2012, is aiming to summit Everest. She was at Camp-1 on 9th May, 2019.

Makalu:

Up to Camp-3 route is open. Fixing up the route beyond Camp-3 is underway. Favourable weather forecast: 12-16th May. Peruvian Climber Richard Hidalgo was found dead at Camp-2 on Makalu on 8th May. According to Pashang Sherpa from Seven Summit Treks, Hidalgo was climbing without supplemental oxygen.

Annapurna:

The first summit was recorded on 23rd April. According to the Seven Summit Treks, a few climbers are still waiting at the Base Camp for favorable weather which is likely to clear all the clouds by May 13-15.

Project: Black Yak Annapurna Expedition 2019

Polish Adam Bielecki (35) with German Felix Berg (38), aiming to summit Annapurna via new route on the NW Face, have reached Camp-1 (5300m) of Langtang Lirung (7227m) on 30th April, 2019. They choose to summit Langtang Lirung to get acclimatized for their main goal to climb Annapurna. Adam posted in his Facebook Page that, probably they would go for the summit of Langtang Lirung on 11th May.

Lhotse:

South Korean mountaineer, Hong Sung Taek (53), is aiming to climb Lhotse South Face again, for the 6th time. He was at Base Camp with his team members on 5th May, 2019. We are yet to receive further updates from the team. Previously they stayed Camp-2 (7200m) on 26th April, 2019.

Muhammad Ali Sadpara, who was previously aiming to summit Makalu, as a member of the rope fixing team of Seven Summit Treks, decided to go for Lhotse first, then to Makalu on 28th April, 2019. He came back to the Base Camp of Lhotse after fixing the rope up to Camp-2 on 2nd May.

Dhaulagiri:

The route is fixed up to Camp-2. Route opening of the upper camps is underway.

1. Romanian alpinist Horia Colibasanu (42) with his country mate Marius Gane (51) and Slovak Peter Hámor (53), aiming to summit Dhaulagiri via a new route without supplemental oxygen and Sherpa support, are now at Camp-2 (6000m). They have decided to make this the last supply camp on their route.

2. Project: 14/7 Project Possible

Nirmal Purja in his ambitious project, aiming to climb all 14 eight-thousanders in 7 months, has headed for Dhaulagiri this time (probably). He summited Annapurna on 23rd April, 2019. After the summit, he joined the rescue team to rescue Malaysian mountaineer Wui Kin Chin, who was stranded on Annapurna during his descent from the summit. He was brought back safely by the rescue team but, unfortunately, died in Singapore on 2nd May, 2019.

Kangchenjunga:

Expecting the first summit on 13-14th May. Sherpa team with climbing members have already left the Base Camp today to reach Camp-2 to fix up the route beyond Camp-4.

Cho Oyu:

Due to high wind, route opening was delayed. Route opening beyond Camp-2 is underway. On 12th May, climbers will leave the Base Camp for summit push to reach the summit on 15-16th May.

Photo Courtesy: Sergeant Kirstie Ennis

This news was revised on 23-05-2019