Hi Folks,

We really apologize for the delay in posting, but rest assured that the May 8th team is doing great.  They have been moving strong and yesterday carried a load of food, fuel and supplies up and around a key feature of the route, namely a massive, steep ridge of rock and ice that drops down off the West Buttress called Windy Corner.

Windy Corner is just that, a corner of rock that the climbers must pass around to gain the relatively small glacier that pours down out of the broad basin containing the 14,200′ camp.  This feature is important because if it is very windy, it can form an impasse that can prevent climbers from getting past.  By all accounts, today it did not live up to it’s ominous monniker, and the team hiked past it, enjoying the views of the rocky crags above and the broken icefall that dropped away far to their left as the moved up.

Today, they are planning to move their camp up and around Windy Corner and establish themselves in the bustling 14,200′ camp.  It will make for a pretty big day, as they will climb for about five hours and then have to work hard to fortify a camp, but the rewards of being at this elevation are great, the views are stunning and the team will feel like they are now tangibly in reach of the summit.

Thanks for your patience with waiting for this!