Ama Dablam Summit push is ON!

It’s the evening before we leave for our Ama Dablam summit push and I am sat in my tent trying to soak up the last bit of warmth before we begin our ascent of the stunning snow-covered pyramid centered firmly in my horizon. We’ve been here at Ama Dablam base camp less than a week and have spent the time resting from our Makalu adventure, eating, sleeping, carrying loads up to Camp 1 and preparing our minds and bodies for the forthcoming challenge. Being acclimatized has certainly helped make the journey up this mountain thoroughly enjoyable supported by a stellar team of Sherpas, fantastic guides and wonderful team mates who are always ready to share a laugh. 

The forecast for our expected summit morning is fantastic with almost 0 winds and a balmy -17 celcius temperature (practically tropical!). The ropes are all in place, our bags are packed, the puja blessing ceremony scheduled for the morning…  I won’t deny it – I’m psyched and ready to climb..! 

We’ll spend 2 nights at Camp 1 and then 1 night at Camp ‘2.7’ before making our final push to the 6800m summit on the morning of 26 October, Nepal time. If all goes well, we will be back in Base Camp that late-afternoon.. ready for a few glasses of rum!

The People You Meet....

Throughout this journey I’ve been inspired by so many of the people that I’ve met along the way. These people have inspired me to push on to find additional strength and motivation to reach the summit of these mountains – or make my way as far as possible up their snowy slopes…! These people have included the likes of Sir David English,  Christine Mills, Isabelle Santoire, Sir Stirling Moss, Charles Finch, the Sherpa, Piers Morgan, Peter Elliott, the team of builders volunteering their time at the Khumbu Climbing School, Captain Ashish, our cook Tashi, guides Adrian Ballinger and Chad Peele… plus many, many more. Some of these people have dazzled me with their genius and art. Others have shared with me insights about how I can live. Others have devoted their life to helping others. Some have conquered mountains while others have built business empires. Some are great artists while others have entertained with their brilliant musical talents. One thing that they all have in common is that they are passionate, talented, and amazing people who have helped to gently shape the moments that have made up this journey – both at work and at play.

Without the tremendous support of these people life would not be nearly as fascinating and mountains would be significantly higher.

On that note, I will post this final blog in the hope that my next will be accompanied by a summit photo and tales of base-camp mojito celebrations. Many many thanks to you all for following along on this  ‘mountaineering journey’. It’s not just the mountain but the mosaic people you meet along the way that make life such an incredible adventure….

Will post again in 4 days time..! ;-)