원정 개요

BC at low BC
C1 at Naike Col
C2 in ice cave at usual site for C2
C3 300m above and slightly left of North Col
High point at C3.

From 8th to 25th kept going up to C2, waited for winds to stop and went down again. 3 Austrian "Sherpas" and Andy Lapkass were up breaking trail to 22,000 ft; Andy down to C2 and Sherpas coming down when slab 1000 ft high and 500 ft wide and 3 ft thick broke away just below N Col at 22,000 ft, a place where wind comes over N Col and leaves snow. Sherpas went down with it and ended up on tip of it unhurt. Lapkass and one of this team's Sherpas went up to rescue them; very, very lucky no one injured and this avalanche shook up Austrians so much they left 2 days later (18th Oct). This team then skirted "deposition area" but now winds had started up. Put 2 tents at C3 and slept one night, but wind so strong no question of making summit bid next day: Both Burgesses, Moores and Lapkass had intended to go to top from this camp and back within a day. Went down and waited for winds to ease. New plan for Burgesses and Lapkass to C2, from C2 overnight to summit (spending night in shaking tent useless) with winds not so strong at night; but at C2 on 2nd Nov winds were fierce. High BC, where Austrians had been, was devastated by huge ice cliff broken off by earthquake 20th Oct. This expedition's depot at this site was translocated and would have been catastrophic if occupied.

A crevasse below C2 was opening at route of 8 inches/day and was 20 feet wide by end of expedition; another reason abandoned climb because of this danger on edge of couloir that has to be crossed between C1 and C2; ladders have now became necessary for this area.

The normal NE Face route was a dangerous place to be: a great slab of snow 300m high, 150m wide and one meter thick broke away at about 6700m, a few hundred meters below North Col (in an area that is often avalanched), and carried another team's Sherpas with it; with great luck, no one injured. About two days later, an earthquake dislodged a huge ice cliff which devastated the area around high base camp and would have killed anyone in it (no one was there at the time). A crevasse below camp 2 at about 6000m kept opening at the rate of about 20 centimeters per day, was 6 meters wide when this team abandoned their climb chiefly because of fierce winds.