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Morning Alpine Ski

Wow-that was tough. Up there for one of my hardest days in the mountains, ever. Yelly and I both felt terrible at C2, and waffled for hours on whether to go up and try to summit or just call it and head down. Yelly decided not to go up, and I decided to give it a shot. Resting in our tent at c2 was hard-my heart was racing from the elevation and maybe some illness i picked up while waiting out the storm in base camp. A planned 9:30pm alarm meant I did little more than lay awake before getting up. 

The main weather worry was wind. Because we climbed throughout the night, wind and cold in the early hours of the morning is what I was worried about. It was one of those days where from the first step you know it’s going to be a struggle. The climbing was surprisingly sustained-never crazy steep but very few purely walkable steps. After 7 hours of going very slowly uphill, we crested the summit right as the morning sun peaked over the horizon. The only thing missing was Ayelet Bitton 😢

Truly a stunning mountain and it boggles that this route has become a trade route that sees dozens of climbers a day. The main objective hazard was the other people-waiting behind others and dealing with ice and snow raining down on you. 

Now we’re so, so ready to re enter civilization, get a massage and hot shower, and reflect on the great month we spent in the Khumbu.

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Leo Franchi

Ama Dablam summit

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Sunny asphalt

Edges holding

Boot Demo

Gear check

Morning Alpine Ski

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