Yesterday the May 29 team was able to put in their last cache at 16,200′ (4937m). They began their day by climbing up the snow slope rising behind Camp 3 for 1,200′ (365m) which usually takes a couple of hours. Here they arrived at the bergschrund below the fixed lines where the Headwall begins. A bergschrund is a wide crevasse that forms where a glacier meets steep ice and snow, they are usually especially large, overhanging at the upper lip, and span across the whole mountainside. They are visible from quite a distance. At the bergschrund, teams affix themselves to the ropes with their ascenders. Each climber has an ascender tied to their harness, and attached to the fixed lines. An ascender is a progress capture device, that allows climbers to move up the rope but when pulled down the rope, its teeth engage and don’t allow descent, which prevents a fall. The fixed lines are 600′ ropes, one for going up and one for going down, that span the length of the Headwall at about 50* in steepness. The fixed lines are anchored into the snow and ice every several meters. Once the team reaches the ridge they were able to chip in a cache for their supplies and ready themselves to move to High Camp.

They plan to take a rest day today.

Climbers from a Mountain Trip team in 2021 navigate the bergschrund and start up the fixed lines.

Here’s Carlos:

recording