This morning Mum, Dad and I all went for a short walk to the Everest base camp rock. I still feel a bit fatigued but I guess that’s normal and expected. The human body is not designed to live at 5300m so I guess it just has to work harder.
We spoke with some old friend’s of Mum and Dad from when they climbed Everest in 2006 and 2007, then walked back to camp.
We have been given lots of protein shake mixes, and electrolytes, so we are having as much as possible. It’s very hard to eat so drinking the protein is much easier. Of course we still eat the food, but at least we can have more protein for muscle recovery. Everyday I wish I could be fed out of a tube so I don’t have to eat anything. I feel full all the time.
I did some schoolwork, then went to the coffee tent as usual. Ben got a package from England delivered, with lollies, snacks and Monster energy drinks. I must admit I was a tiny bit jealous, especially of the energy drinks, but he gave me some 😌🙏. At least when I get home, all of the food and drinks will hit harder because of my extensive deprivation of them.
Many people from our dining tent have left tonight for their summit push. Dad and I choose to stay because we want to avoid queues (which I’m sure you’ve seen photos of), which limit our chance of summiting. We will wait a few more days until the weather is better. We said goodbye to our friends who left for the summit. At this point, we have known many of them from other expeditions as well, and seen each other grow into stronger mountaineers. They are all like family now. I am lucky that I have my Mum and Dad by my side here, but most others are alone, so we are really all we have here. We gave each other some big hugs, as they tried to sleep early before their push at 1am.