원정 개요

BC southeast of mountain on Hinku Glacier on moraine at "a" of "glacier"
ABC on steep glacier moraine below face
Biv on SE Face
High point at East Face 70m below South Ridge.

10th-14th Nov climbed Mera Peak "under extreme conditions." If it had not been so easy, never would have made it because very windy as well as cold. Returned to BC 15th and 5 members moved up to ABC, last tented camp on steep glacial moraine below snow line. 18th up to 5550m on face and made biv at 2:00 pm because in shadow and cold. 19th at about 9:00 am 5 members tried to reach plateau at 6300m on SE Ridge, but very deep snow, very windy and very cold (-14 to -18), so turned around at 6200m and back to biv. Clark, Coulton and Groom slept at biv while Drennan and Turner to ABC to sleep because so cold. Should have had tents but at biv, only sleeping bags. Were not expecting weather to be so cold. 20th Clark, Groom and Coulton tried to gain ridge by slightly different route on face. Found the way to ridge and reached 6200m but strong winds and team would have been exposed to such severe conditions. "I felt it wasn't worth it," so down to ABC that evening. Coulton had turned back at 5700m because of bad diarrhea so down to ABC that afternoon. 21st all returned to BC and climb finished. "Could have done it (gotten to top) if had the tents. Then 5 members to Kusum Kanguru but "that was even worse" with fierce winds and didn't even get into this mountain, after spending 4 nights there. 5 had been on Mera in January 2000 and not anywhere near as cold as this.

(5-10 km plume of snow being blown off Everest and Makalu had its plume blowing east).

Asked whether he is still a plumber, as he wrote on his bio form, Groom said "I haven't touched my tools in 12 years." Lectures about episodes in his "life story," such as learning to walk again after amputation of 1/3 of both feet because of frostbite on Kangchenjunga in '87.

When Groom turned around to look down, he found they had gone down to C1 taking important gear with them, leading Col and Groom with only 1 short rope and 3 ice screws, not adequate for remainder of climb and Groom not comfortable with this situation "since Clark was the least experienced technically of all of them." Also windy that day; if had more experienced climbing partner, Groom probably would have continued climb, so abandoned climb.