I’m very happy to report that Bianca and Paul made it safely through the icefall and are now resting at Camp 1.
The Icefall is one of the most dangerous parts of the climb as there are crevasses to cross, but more significant is the risk of a huge iceblock falling and burying you. This is why climbers try to pass through this section at night – when it is coldest and hopefully most stable.
I must admit it was a nervous night for me as I laid in my sleeping bag at Basecamp after seeing them off, I could hear all kinds of avalanches and movement from all around. It’s very hard to tell where the sound is coming from though so I was refreshing their tracker and didn’t get much sleep. Fortunately I was able to see that their movement continued upwards!
I’ve now got confirmation (via satellite text) that they are safely at camp 1, resting and enjoying some chicken noodle soup. Although it was still difficult and very tiring, they both felt stronger this time through.
They plan to rest at Camp 1 for the afternoon and sleep there tonight, and then head up to Camp 2 leaving early tomorrow morning.
