Our team arrived in Bali to learn that the helicopter we had chartered months ago for their flight into Base Camp in Mount Vinson needs to have some service done to it.  This is a routine maintenance, required at certain hourly intervals, that had been planned for mid-month, but was moved ahead due to increased use in recent weeks.  While helping with our team is a priority with the flight crew and the helicopter company, we obviously want any ship we board to be in the best possible condition, so we are delving into contingency plans.  Carstensz Pyramid expeditions are well-known for requiring contingency plans…

The team flew to the city of Timika yesterday, located on the south coast of the island of Papua.  We have been in touch with our secondary helicopter company, to see if we might be able to fly into the mountains in another chopper, but as yet, negotiations are not yielding much in the way of a helicopter option.  This might leave us with our “Plan C,” which would entail flying to a remote airstrip and hiking into the mountain.  The trek has been successfully conducted in recent years, but has not been our first choice for access, as there are many variables at play, and the more variables at play, the greater the likelihood of something going awry.

We are awaiting word from Timika, as to which way the team will decide to proceed.  As is usually the case: there’s never a dull moment on Carstensz expeditions…

More soon.