EightSummits.com
Adventure 2010
January 25, 2009

Dear Family & Friends:

I have invested a lot of time and energy over the last six months thinking about my next adventure.  At first, I was sure my next trip would be ski treks to the North and South Poles, pulling a sled with my food, fuel and provisions.  Completion of these treks, combined with climbing the highest mountain on every continent, is called the “Grand Slam.”  Some day, I hope to complete the Grand Slam.

Everest has pulled me back.  My original plan was to complete a double traverse: ascend on the South side (Nepal), descend on the North side (Tibet), and then ascend on the North side and descend on the South side.  This has never been done. Unfortunately, the Chinese are not issuing traverse permits in 2010.  So, this adventure is out of the question.

My current plan is to complete a double ascent of Mt. Everest, which has also never been done: ascend and descend on the North side in Tibet, travel to Nepal and then ascend and descend on the South side. I will be joined by my good climbing friend from Mexico, 30-year old David Liano.  David is a highly accomplished mountaineer, having climbed the Seven Summits and summitted Mt. Everest twice from the South side. Mingma, who was my Sherpa last year, and is now part of my family, will be my Sherpa again this year on this unguided climb.

I have chosen to climb the North side first for three reasons: (1) if I am able to make only one summit (e.g., because of weather or fatigue), I want it to be on a North side climb since I have already climbed Everest from the South side, (2) generally Everest teams on the North side summit earlier in the season than teams on the South side and (3) I will be able to acclimatize on the North side without having to go through the deadly Khumbu Icefall three times (the North side does not have an icefall).        

As I write this, I admit to being a bit unprepared, as I have been busy over the last several months with work and family matters.  Nevertheless, I am confident that I can be ready by early April when I will leave for Kathmandu. “Ready,” of course, means physical, mental and spiritual readiness.  The latter two are in the bag. My hero and Training Partner, Ollie, is taking care of the former.

For those of you who have inquired about Ollie, thank you.  He spent over 7 weeks in two hospitals last year and was eventually discharged with no answers.  He is home now having episodes every few minutes.  This is very stressful to his entire, loving family.  I recently took Ollie for a walk in my neighborhood and brought my video camera so I could film his episodes for the doctors.  When he has an episode, his body goes limp and he sits down. He had an episode on our walk and sat down.  Sensing that this was someone special, a neighborhood feline ran up to be by Ollie’s side.  Take a look at the sweet video.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnUXdE0l8Tg

Please keep Ollie in your prayers.   He means everything to us. His devoted Mom, Amy, keeps everyone updated on her blog: http://www.ohwhatalife.com/  Please feel free to log on now and then and offer words of support and encouragement to the family.  You can also read Amy’s humorous account of how Ollie gave me a black eye in the hospital.  

If you are interested in following my 2010 double summit attempt, please register on my website (“eightsummits.com.”) and you will receive e-mail notices when I post expedition reports from the mountain.  I have posted the 2010 “Itinerary,” “Route to the Summit” and “Team Members” on the website.

Oh, in case you are wondering, I turn 68 in March.

Bill

Channel 24 Program
Date: January 16, 2010
 
Dear Family and Friends:
 
Channel 24, the local Costa Mesa television station, has aired a short program on my 2009 Everest climb.  You can view the program here.
 

 
I will be making a 1-1/2 hour presentation to the Orange County Hiking Club on my Everest climb on February 2, 2010.  The presentation will be made at REI in Santa Ana (1411 Village Way) and will begin at 6:45 pm.  The program is free and is open to the public.
 
Bill
Discovery Channel Program
Dear Family & Friends:

Tonight, and again on December 30, beginning at 5 pm (pst), the Discovery channel is broadcasting a program on a South side climb of Mt. Everest this year.  The program features, among other things: (i) the tragic death of our Sherpa, Lhakpa Nuru, who was swept away in an avalanche in the Khumbu Icefall on May 6, (ii) Dawes Eddy’s successful attempt to become the oldest American to summit Mt. Everest, a record which he held for two days and (iii) the summit attempts in the storm/cyclone on May 23rd, which is the day I summitted.

While the Discovery channel focused on two other teams, they were able to film a dramatic moment on May 24 as I was rapelling down the Lhotse Face, just below the famous Yellow Band.  My crampons failed to accomplish purchase in the steep ice, and my feet slipped out from under me.  I swung sharply left on the fixed line, directly across the Lhotse Face, and was dangling helplessly, looking at a 3,000 foot fall down a sheer ice face.  After some tense moments, as I attempted to regain my energy and composure, I recovered, but the event was harrowing, to say the least.  You may see this in the Discovery program, as their film crew was right behind me during this portion of my descent.  Needless to say, not my finest moment on the mountain.

In the next couple of weeks, I will post a message about my plans for 2010.  Stay tuned for a shocker.  If you would like to receive an e-mail notice of this post, please register on my website: eightsummits.com.

As I was thinking about a proper message for the New Year, I realized that I cannot possibly improve on my January 12 message this year.  So, here it is again:

During the darkest days of World War II, King George VI came to the microphone of the BBC to deliver the annual Christmas message to the British Commonwealth. He spoke these eloquent and immortal words:   

“And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year: ‘Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown.’ And he replied: ‘Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the Hand of God. That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way.’”  

As we enter this new year, following a year of unprecedented turmoil, hardship and stress for many Americans, and others abroad, I take comfort in these words, and look forward to the future with great hope, promise and anticipation for the good things to come.   

I wish all of you God’s blessings, and I hope you have a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous 2009.

I make the same wish for 2010.  May God touch every one of you at each point of need in the New Year.

Bill Burke
My Training Partner
Dear Family & Friends:

My 9-year old grandson, and Mt. Everest Training Partner, Ollie, suffered his first seizure last week.  From his birth, we had hoped and prayed that this was a chapter we would never open in his precious, little life.

This is a recent photo of Ollie in the Childrens' Hospital of Orange County, hooked up to brain monitors.  

Please keep Ollie in your thoughts and prayers.....and hug and kiss your children every day.

As Ollie's Mom has repeatedly said "God is good."

Bill

ollie.jpg
Update on Lhakpa Nuru 2
Dear All,
 
I hope this email finds you well. I am writing to update you on Lhakpa Nuru's body recovery and funeral.

As you all know, Lhakpa's body was found in the icefall on Thursday (10th Sept).

On Friday (11th Sept) 4 Sherpas, under Naga's leadership went up to retrieve the body. On the team were Naga Dorje, Pemba Tenzing, Pemba Tshering and Sonam (Samden) Bhote who were all on the Eco Everest team this year. 

Naga told me that the body was found in that deep gully just above where the boot was found on the last day. Some 200 meters below where they were standing when the avalanche struck. It was the same gully that Ang Mingma, Phurba (bulldozer) and myself had looked in.  

(Saturday 12th Sept) The body was only partially visible and the Team dug him out of the snow. His body was in surprisingly good condition due to the cold temperature. They wrapped him up and carried him out on an icefall ladder. Naga and the team carried the body until 11 pm that night when they reached Lobuche. 

(Sunday 13th Sept) The next day they continued to carry the body down and were met by the Lhakpa's Brother and other male relatives who took over and brought the body down to Pangboche. Needless to say, Naga and the boys were exhausted and pretty shaken up by it. But we are all very happy that we could bring the body back to the family, something we so deperately wanted to do back in May. It was already late when the body arrived in Pangboche and the it was laid on the top of the ridge, inside a tent, at the cremations site. All night 2 Lamas prayed at the site as all the male members stayed up at the cremation site to carry out the funeral rituals and prepared the funeral pyre.

From Kathmandu, I went up with Phurba Yangji (Lhakpa's wife). We reached Pangboche on Sunday together with the Police constable from Khumjung. Lhakpas brother, cousins and myself identified him and finally the police produced his death certificate which has been pending for so long! Lhakpa's relatives amd I advised Phurba Yangji not to see the body as it would not be a nice way to remember her husband. She agreed.

Finally, on Monday morning (14st Sept), Lama Geshe, the old priest that some of us met in Pangboche, carried out the last rites and at around 9 am the cremation took place. In Sherpa culture, monday is considered a good day to start a new journey!

I did not personally stay for the cremation as it is a very personal affair for the family. Phurba Yangji is still in the Khumbu so I am very happy that finally the family can have closure and the Lhakpa has had a proper farewell. 

Thank you all for your support, during the difficult event and after.

Best Wishes,
Dawa Steven

IMG_5866.jpg
Lhakpa Nuru on the Summit of Mt. Everest on May 21, 2007
Update on Lhakpa Nuru
As you know from my expedition reports, the first death on Mt. Everest this season was Lhakpa Nuru, our Sherpa, who died in an avalanche in the Khumbu Icefall.

Here is a message I just received from Dawa Steven, the Managing Director of Asian Trekking:

Dear Friends,

I hope this email finds you all well.

Yesterday, we received a call from the Sirdar of an Expedition on Everest who had reached base camp a few days ago. They informed us that they spotted the body of Lhakpa Nuru in the icefall. They couldnt give us any further details but said with certainty that it is Lhakpa Nuru.

Today, we sent up 4 sherpas under the leadership of Naga Dorje to retrieve the body. They will reach Base camp tomorrow morning. I am taking Lhakpa's widow with me to Khumbu and help with the arrangements of the funeral. Unfotunately our flights were cancelled this morning due to the weather in Lukla. We hope to fly tomorrow! Though its difficult for his family to have old wounds opened again, I hope that having a proper puja and cremation will give them the needed closure and bring peace to Lhakpa's soul.

If anyone would like to contribute to help Lhakpa's young family, their bank details are:
Himalayan Bank, Thamel.
A/C holder: Urgen Tenzing Sherpa (The account is in his Son's name)
A/C No. 01902302580011
SWIFT No: HIMANPKA

Please let me know if you make any contributions and I will follow it up from here. Thanks to many of you who have already contributed.

I will keep you informed you about the retrieval and the funeral.

Best Wishes,
Dawa Steven
KOCE Interview


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNDaUW58P4w
Speaking in Costa Mesa on Sept. 13th
Bill_Burke_Flyer_.jpg
Mt. Everest Documentary Presentations

Dear Family & Friends:

My DVD is finished.

I was able to condense over 2,500 photos and 6-hours of video into a 27-minute documentary of my climb to the summit of Mt. Everest in 2009. 

I plan to post the video on my website (eightsummits.com) and, if you are registered on my website, you will receive an e-mail notice when that is done.

In the meantime, I am giving two presentations to community groups.  I will discuss the challenges of scaling the highest mountain on planet Earth, the adjustments that I made this year that allowed me to reach the summit, and the significant events that occurred in the 2009 expedition.  You will see an incredible 360-degree video from the summit taken by my teammates who summitted two days before me. 

The focus of my presentation, however, is not on me.  I plan to stress the importance of living your dream and never giving up.  Faith is the keystone to success: faith in God, faith in family and faith in yourself.  The indomitable will to succeed will overcome all obstacles.  That is my message.

Here are the details:

East Valley Community Center
Vineyard Room
2245 East Valley Parkway
Escondido, California 92027
2-3:30 pm
Saturday, August 15, 2009  

Neighborhood Community Center
Costa Mesa Room
1845 Park Avenue
Costa Mesa, Ca. 92627
3-4:30 pm
Sunday, September 13, 2009 

I hope to see you there.

Bill Burke

Recap of the Trip

Costa Mesa, California

June 17, 2009 

Dear Family & Friends: 

Here is the recap I promised. 

My Performance on the Mountain

Alex Lowe, the late, great mountaineer, always said that the best climbers are the ones that are having the most fun.  Judged solely by this standard, I was one of the best climbers on Mt. Everest in 2009. 

The trip was a dream come true.  From the standpoint of my performance on the mountain, I would not change a thing.  I felt healthy and strong the whole trip.  Never once did I have any symptom of altitude sickness--not even the slightest headache.  My appetite was good, and I only lost 10 pounds, as opposed to the 30 pounds that I lost in 2007.  

When I was climbing the steepest sections of the route, e.g., the Lhotse Face and the Southeast Ridge on summit day, my breathing was always under control and I never felt tired.  Not once did I doubt that I would reach the summit.  Well, I take that back.  I had some serious doubts on May 22 when I was parked in my tent at the South Col hoping and praying that the wind would abate so we could make our summit attempt.  See discussion below.  My time from the South Col (26,000 feet) to the summit (29,035) on May 22-23 was really good.  We left the Col at 10 pm and arrived at the summit between 8:30 and 9 am, well ahead of the 2 pm turn-around time.  By way of contrast, in 2007, I left the Col at 9 pm and did not arrive at the South Summit (28,750) until noon the next day.  That is where I called it quits because I was totally wasted physically.  My decision to take the rest day at the South Col was a huge factor in my success this year.    

Tragedy

The year was also filled with drama and tragedy.  The loss of our beloved Sherpa, Lhakpa Nuru Sherpa, in the avalanche in the Khumbu Icefall was a blow to our entire team.   His body was never found, despite 4 search attempts.  He has a wife and 2 children.  As soon as I have information about donations to his family, I will let you know in case you would like to help.  As discussed below, two of our team members were evacuated by helicopter from Base Camp.  Our team took their departure really hard because they were both strong climbers and total team players.   

Our Team

On the subject of the Eco-Everest 2009 Team, we had what can only be described as a “Dream Team.” As pointed out in my trip report, we bonded immediately and functioned as a cohesive team the entire time we were on the mountain.  Everyone really liked each other.  There was never once even the slightest of arguments or disputes among team members.   However, every personal foible was exploited in good fun in the dining tent.   Our leaders at Base Camp--Dawa Steven Sherpa, Pertemba Sherpa and Apa Sherpa (who summitted this year for a record setting 19th time) were terrific and joined in the fun. 

As promised, here is an accounting of how each team member performed on the mountain: 

---Bud Allen from Columbus, Georgia.  Bud made it to the South Col and left for the summit around 11 pm.  He was moving strong towards the Balcony (27,700) when he encountered a problem with his oxygen system.  He attributed the problem to the regulator that is attached to the oxygen bottle.  When he could not resolve the problem, he descended to the South Col and ended his summit bid.  In his tent at the South Col, he discovered that the problem was simply ice build-up inside his oxygen mask.  This issue could have been solved easily by breaking the ice loose so the oxygen would resume flowing into the mask.  There is no doubt Bud would have made it to the summit had he not encountered this problem.  He will be back in 2010 or 2011. 

---Jesse Easterling from Seattle, Washington.  Jesse was taking the wrong medicine while trekking to Base Camp, resting at Base Camp and moving up the mountain.  The details are set forth in my reports.  The doctors at Base Camp ordered his immediate evacuation by helicopter.  Good thing, as he spent several weeks in the hospital in Kathmandu, including 4 days in the Intensive Care Unit.  He suffered from internal bleeding and other ailments.  Given his condition, he is lucky to be alive.  After I arrived back in Kathmandu, I visited him twice in the hospital.  He is now home with his family recovering well.  Jesse is a strong climber who easily reached Camp 3 on the Lhotse Face before he became ill and was evacuated from Base Camp.  He will undoubtedly be back and will summit in the future.   

---Yury Pritzker from Chicago, Illinois.  Yury is a very strong and motivated climber who summitted on May 21.   He was the first person on our team to summit.  In fact, he reached the summit so fast and so early that he had to wait for the sun to come up so he could take pictures and shoot some video.  He was lucky to summit on a clear, sunny day.  I am lucky too, because I can now use his photos and video for the movie I am preparing for family and friends.  At 54, Yury was the second oldest member of our team.   

---Henry Voight from Germany.  Henry was the strongest member of our team.  He had to delay his first rotation up the mountain to have a wisdom tooth extracted at Namche Bazaar.  Then, at Camp 2, he suffered a concussion when he fell on the rocks in front of his tent.  No one saw him fall; and we assume he fainted because he fell directly on his face and made no effort to break his fall.  On the way back to Base Camp after the fall, he collapsed.  At that point, he was carried down from Camp 2 to Base Camp in a sled.  He was evacuated from Base Camp by helicopter on the same day as Jesse’s evacuation.  Henry will reach the summit of Mt. Everest on his next attempt. 

---Mogens Jensen from Denmark.  Mogens, who suffers from asthma, had been on Mt. Everest 3 times before this trip, and he summitted from the North side in 2008.  He was featured in the Discovery Channel program on Mt. Everest last year.  His plan this year was to summit from the South side of the mountain without oxygen.  He was carrying a United Nations flag on human rights.  Needless to say, Mogens is an accomplished and experienced mountaineer.  He is also a really nice and genuine person.  I particularly appreciated the wonderful way Mogens treated Jesse when Jesse fell ill at Base Camp and was later admitted to the hospital in Kathmandu.  Mogens was using oxygen when he turned around at the Yellow Band, which is between Camp 3 and Camp 4.  He had problems with his lungs, most likely related to the asthma.  I do not know if he plans to return in 2010, but, if he does, he will make it to the top for the second time.      

---Will Cross from Pittsburgh. Will is an accomplished mountaineer and adventure enthusiast who has previously climbed Mt. Everest and trekked to the North and South Poles.  He has type 1 diabetes.  He is also a great guy and a terrific motivational speaker.  After the avalanche at Base Camp that took the life of our Sherpa, Will decided that conditions were not right for his climb and he opted, for safety reasons, to terminate his Mt. Everest expedition.  Instead, he decided to climb Cho Oyu in China, which he had not previously climbed.  At 26,906 feet, Cho Oyu is the 6th highest mountain in the world.   Will was not able to climb past Camp 2 on Cho Oyu because of the fierce storm/cyclone that also slammed into Everest on my own summit day--May 23.  

--Nicholas Cunningham from Minnesota.  Nick is a super strong climber who works part time as a climbing guide and part time on his family’s farm in Minnesota.  He summitted on May 21, right behind Yury.  Nick has some great photos and video of his summit day.  I really enjoyed being on the same team as Nick as he was always full of youthful exuberance and enthusiasm.  He was fun to be with on the mountain.   

---Krushnaa Patil from India.  At age 19, Krushnaa was the youngest member of our team.  She did a great job climbing Mt. Everest and summitted on the same day as Yury and Nick.  Her Mom, Grandmother and Aunt greeted her in Kathmandu when she came off the mountain.  Krushnaa is now quite the media star in India and is most likely still basking in the glow of her great accomplishment.  

My Summit Day

Mingma, Bud, Puchhanga and I reached the South Col on May 21, and ran into Yury and Nick moving back down to Camp 2 after their successful summit.  We spent the night at the Col on oxygen.  The next day the wind picked up and we were trapped in our tents.  I knew that if we were prevented from making a summit attempt on May 22 my trip was over.  The whole day I hoped and prayed that the wind would abate.  It didn’t.  In fact, it got worse.  Mingma and I delayed our departure for the summit from 8 pm to 10 pm.  Still, no change in the weather.  At 10 pm, Mingma came to my tent and asked me whether we were going up or down.  Without hesitation, I said we are going up. 

We moved up the mountain towards the Balcony (27,700 feet) and, for awhile, the wind abated.  After about five hours of climbing, we arrived at the Balcony, and I switched to a new oxygen bottle.  Then, we headed up the Southeast Ridge towards the South Summit (28,750 feet).  After a couple of hours, the sun came up and I was celebrating the fact that we were going to summit on a clear, sunny day.  My plan was to shoot lots of photos and video and call my family from the summit using my satellite telephone.  That’s when the wheels came off. A huge storm, Cyclone Aila, slammed into the mountain, and it started snowing really hard.  The winds were ferocious, visibility was low and it was cold.  It pretty much stayed that way for the rest of the trip to the summit and back down to the South Col.   

I switched to a new oxygen bottle at the South Summit, and we reached the summit an hour later, between 8:30 and 9 am.  We spent about 30 minutes snapping photos and then started back down.  It was still snowing, and the wind was blowing so hard that I could not take off my glacier glasses or oxygen mask because the ice crystals felt like pellets when they hit my face and eyes.  I changed to a new oxygen bottle at the Balcony and we made our way down to the South Col.   

May 23 was the last summit day for the 2009 Everest season, so I feel fortunate that I was given the opportunity to move up on May 22 and made the decision to go for it even with the wind blowing across the South Col at 30-40 knots.  On the way down from the Balcony to the Col, Mingma and I came across a Sherpa who was in trouble.  He was stopping every few feet completely exhausted and he fell a few times.  So, we followed him down the mountain to make sure he arrived safely at the South Col.  The Sherpa was in the lead, moving very slowly, he was followed by Mingma, and I was behind them both.  At that point, everyone passed us, and no one else was on the mountain.  So, I am pretty sure I was the last person to come off the Mt. Everest summit triangle this season.   The storm continued for another week, and I was trapped at Base Camp for a few days.  I was one of the last foreigners to leave Base Camp.                       

Eleven Sherpas, who were part of our team, also summitted Mt. Everest this year, including my Sherpa (Mingma Sherpa) and Bud’s Sherpa (Puchhanga Bhote).  This was Mingma’s seventh time on the summit of Mt. Everest and Puchhanga’s first time on the summit.   (Puchhanga is technically not a Sherpa since his last name is Bhote) 

Photos and Video

I have over 1,500 still photos and hours of video footage from the trip this year.  This includes some photos and video from my teammates, Yury, Nick and Puchhanga.  I am so grateful to have the photos and video from Nick and Yury since they had good weather on their summit day.  I plan to post some photos and video on my website.  I will also prepare a movie of my 2009 climb for family and friends, using still photos and video footage.  I will let you know when that is available.          

What’s next?

Everyone asks that question, including my nervous family.  Here are some adventures I am considering, in order of priority:

---The “Grand Slam.” This involves reaching the peak of the highest mountain on each continent and trekking to the North and South Poles on skis, pulling a sled with all of the provisions.

---Doing a traverse of Mt. Everest, ascending the South side in Nepal and descending the North side in Tibet.  This was my plan for 2009, but I could not obtain climbing permits from China for the North side descent.  My friend, David Liano from Mexico, who has summitted Mt. Everest twice, is planning to do a double traverse in 2010, and I would like to join him. 

---Through-hiking the Pacific Crest Trail from Mexico to Canada.

---Climbing the highest mountain in each state in the United States, qualifying me for membership in the High Pointers club.       

Thanks

The first thing I did when I reached the summit was drop to my knees and thank the Lord for getting me to the summit safely.  I also prayed for a safe journey down and for the safety of everyone on the mountain caught in the storm. 

There are so many others I want to thank. 

First, thanks to my wife, who is my life and Everest climbing partner.  Today, we celebrate our 47th wedding anniversary, so it seems appropriate that I write this note of thanks.  Sharon has supported me on all my mountain adventures, but especially these past three years as I have attempted to climb Mt. Everest.  She has faithfully posted my expedition reports so I could keep all of you up to date.  She also knows more about Mt. Everest than me.  After I summitted the mountain, she did two radio interviews and four television interviews.  I spoke with Sharon almost every day by satellite telephone.  It was such a comfort to hear her voice and words of encouragement.  She also gave me advice while I was climbing, sometimes unsolicited.  For example, when I returned to Camp 2 from the South Col after I summitted, I called her from my tent in the morning.  She asked me what time it was, and I told her 8 am.  Her response was “get your butt out of the tent and down through the Icefall before the sun comes up and it gets dangerous.” My Sherpa, Mingma, had been saying the same thing in gentler terms as he tried to coax me out of the tent so we could safely return to Base Camp.  So, thanks Sharon, and I love you.   

My family has been so supportive, and I thank them for allowing me to make this wonderful journey to the top of the world.  Sharon and I are so blessed!  We love you so much.

 

My Sherpa, Mingma, is just the best.  He was always near me on the mountain, and I depended on his advice and good judgment as someone who had summitted Mt. Everest six times before my trip.  He is like a brother to me, and my family loves him dearly. 

Thanks to the management and staff of Asian Trekking for organizing such a great trip, and a special thanks to all the Sirdars, Sherpas, Base Camp Managers, cooks, porters and yaks who did all of the work and made my trip a success. 

Scott Farner built my website and kept everything running smoothly during the expedition.  Thanks Scott.                 

Thanks to all of you who followed my odyssey this year, and maybe even for the past three years.  I thought about you all the time while I was on the mountain.  You were all a huge source of inspiration and encouragement to me.  I appreciate your thoughts, prayers and comments posted on my site.  I extend my special thanks to the students and teachers who tracked my steps up the mountain.   

Finally, I thank my grandson, Ollie, who turned 9 yesterday.  He helped me train these past three years and is truly my hero.  A good friend of the family set up a fundraiser for Angelman Syndrome which can be found at http://www.angelman.org/BillBurkeTrainingPartnerOllie/   All proceeds, which are tax deductible, will go to the Angelman Syndrome Foundation for research.     

Statistics for Everest 2009:

  1. Number of climbers on the South side in 2009: 270 foreign climbers and about the same number of local climbers (e.g., Sherpas)
  2. Number of summits in 2009: 281 on the South side and 57 on the North side (includes foreign and local climbers).  Total number of summits on Mt. Everest for all years: 4,334 (includes foreign and local climbers)
  3. Total deaths on Everest in 2009: six.  One Sherpa in an avalanche on the South side, one Sherpa from alcohol poisoning on the South side, one climber from Kazakhstan in an avalanche at Camp 3 on the South side, and one German, one Czech and one Chinese climber on the North side, from unknown causes.      

Bill Burke

Bungee Jump Video
Click the following link to view the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HX1hSL98uG4
Going Home!!
Kathmandu
June 7, 2009

Namaste:

Today I fly home, and I am so happy!  I have been here over 2 months.

My flight leaves Kathmandu at 1:50 PM.  I make 1 stop in Bangkok, change planes and then fly to Los Angeles.  I arrive on June 7 at 9:25 PM.

Last night, I hosted a dinner at Kilroy's restaurant in Thamel and invited Mingma, his wife and 2 children (including their 2-month old baby boy), Puchhanga and Mingma's cousin, who is also named Mingma.  What a fabulous time we had.  Kilroy's is the best restaurant in Thamel.  The walls have photos of famous climbers (including Sir Edmund Hillary and Apa Sherpa), diplomats and royalty.  The owner of the restaurant came over to congratulate me on being the oldest American to summit Mt. Everest.  He then took at photograph of our entire group and said he is going to post it on the wall with the other photos in honor of Mingma's 7th summit of Mt. Everest, Puchhang's 1st summit and my summit as the oldest American.  So, now I have to come back to see that photo!

After dinner, we went back to the Yak & Yeti, and I told Mingma that I wanted to pay for his cab ride home.  He said he rode over to the Yak & Yeti with his family on his little motorbike.  So, I took a picture.  Can you imagine riding with 4 people on a motorbike (including a 2-month old infant) through the chaotic traffic of Kathmandu?  What a different life!

This morning, before I leave for the airport, Puchhanga and I are going to visit the Lhomi Kid's Care orphanage.  This is the orphanage that Lori, Amy & I visited several times last year.  The children are so excited to see me and congratulate me on the summit.  They were also excited to see Puchhanga and congratulate him on his first summit.  I plan to give the orphanage a new computer I purchased in Kathmandu and used at Base Camp to post these reports.  I can't wait to see the children again and see how much they have grown. 

Stacy, who lives near my daughter, Lisa, in Newport Beach, won the Bungee contest by being the first one to correctly guess the adventure, so she gets the prize.  I have video of the jump, which I will post on my website when I get home.  When I picked up the video in Thamel, they told me I was their oldest jumper. 

I plan to post a recap of the trip after I get home.  

See you in the USA!

Bill
 
And the Extreme Sporting Adventure was...
Click the following link to hear the report:


Miscellaneous news
Kathmandu
June 2, 2009

Namaste:

Here is some more miscellaneous news. 

Today, I returned to the Ministry of Tourism and Mountaineering to file my post-climb report as Expedition Leader.  This time, Kaju prepared me well and it went quite smoothly.  All members of the team that summitted (Yura, Nick, Krushnaa, Walter, Bernice and me) will now receive summit certificates.  These certificates, I am told, allow us to receive free meals for life from the Rum Doodle restaurant in Thamel.  So, Sharon, from now on, we will be traveling to Kathmandu every Thursday night for our "date night" dinner.

I have scanned and attached the permit that shows our team and lists me as Expedition Leader.  In my final report, I will list each expedition member on the team and recount how they did on the mountain.

Yesterday, there was a general strike ("bandh") called by the Joint Action Committee for Newa Autonomous State.  Unlike strikes in the United States, more than a single business is affected. The entire city was shut down.  There were no cars, motorbikes or bicycles in the streets, and all businesses were shut down.  Anyone caught violating the strike was subject to being beat up or having their business or means of transportation vandalized.  It was strange seeing the city so quiet and subdued.  Today, everything is back to its chaotic normal.

The day after I returned to Kathmandu, I got a haircut and shave.  The "before" and "after" are shown in the photos below.  

I found out the storm that hit us on summit day was a cyclone (Cyclone "Aila") that came up from the Bay of Bengal and crossed Mt. Everest.  It killed 217 people in Bangladesh, West Bengal and India, injured over 6,000 people and left hundreds of thousands of people homeless.  So, I guess I summitted in a cyclone.  

Tomorrow, I plan to undertake one more extreme sporting adventure.  I will keep this top secret so as to not attract flack from my family.  I'll file an audio report at the end of the day tomorrow.  I'll bring a souvenir home to the first person to correctly guess what it is by filing a comment on my blog.  Good luck.

Last night I had a great dinner with Ed Culbertson, my good friend from San Diego, who was trekking in Nepal.  

Bill

Expedition-permit_1.jpg
Expedition Permit

everest06022009_2.jpg
Before

everest06022009_1.jpg
After




Jesse is going home!!
Kathmandu
June 2, 2009
 
Namaste:
 
Good news!  Jesse is heading home today.  A medical attendant arrived from the states and will be accompanying him home, business class no less.
 
Some of you inquired about the drug that made him sick.  He was taking dexamethasone.  Dex is a powerful steroid drug that is intended to treat high altitude cerebral edema, which is a swelling of the brain brought on by exposure to high altitude.  The symptoms are headache, dizziness, impairment of cognitive functions, inability to walk and slurred speech.  The only cure is to move immediately to a lower altitude.  If not treated in this fashion, the person lapses into a coma and dies.  Dex is administered, by pill or injection, after the symptoms appear and helps stabilize the person for the descent.  The only function of dex is to “buy time” for the descent.  It is not intended as a preventative medicine.  Jesse was taking dex 3 times per day for the entire trip up the mountain.
 
 I will be going to the hospital this morning with representatives of Asian Trekking to visit Jesse before he leaves. 
 
Attached is a photo taken at the hospital two days ago.  As you can see, Jesse looks great.
 
Bill

everest06012009.jpg
Left to right:  Bill, Mogens, Jesse, Bud

(This "mountain man" bears no resemblance to the man that left my house to go to Nepal.  - Sharon)  
Bill the Spoiler

Kathmandu
May 31, 2009

It's great to be back at the Yak & Yeti Hotel in Kathmandu!  Last night, I slept so good in the comfy hotel bed.  Sure beats a snow-bound tent.  The warm shower was also a God-send.
 
Here's a few unrelated tid-bits I picked up upon my return to Kathmandu.

The ride from the airport to the hotel was far more harrowing than anything I experienced on the mountain.

A 66-year old man climbing with International Mountain Guides summitted Mt. Everest on May 20, becoming the oldest American to reach the summit of the highest mountain in the world.  I was told there was a huge celebration and his home town was planning quite a homecoming celebration.  Then, just 3 days later, I kissed the summit, breaking his record.  I guess that makes me the spoiler as I rained on his parade. I feel kind of guilty, but you know what they say about records.  

I weighed myself yesterday, and I weigh 72 kilograms, which is about 158 pounds.  So I only lost about 7 pounds on the mountain, which surprises me.  In 2007, I lost 30 pounds.  I must have been eating properly on the mountain and climbing efficiently.     

The day before I arrived in Kathmandu, they had an award ceremony at the "Second Annual Sagarmantha (Mt. Everest) Day."  I was given a really nice medal and scarf for my summit.  Bud accepted it for me.
 
I picked up a slight cold.  Here's how it happened.  On summit day, Mingma told me he had been suffering from a sore throat for 6 days.  I knew he was not feeling well because he had been moving very slowly, and was hacking, coughing and wheezing all the way up the Lhotse Face.   When we reached the summit, the storm had frozen one of of the vents in my oxygen mask that allows ambient (outside) air to enter the mask and mix with the pure oxygen coming from the oxygen cylinder.  Keep in mind, the mask covers just your nose and mouth.  I told Mingma about the problem with my vent, which was making it hard for me to breathe.  Mingma put his mouth over the vent in my mask and blew real hard to discharge the ice and snow from the vent.  So, into the mask, and my nose and mouth, came the ice, snow and Mingma's breath, with all the associated germs.  If there is a more efficient way of transmitting germs, I can't imagine what it would be, and I knew right then that it was only a matter of time.  But, standing on the summit at 29,035 feet, it was sure nice to breathe that ambient air again.  Actually, my cold symptoms are quite mild, and I feel really good today.
 
The government of Nepal is still in disarray from the events I described earlier.  One week ago, there was a bombing in a Catholic Church in Kathmandu and 4 people were killed.  A Hindu extremist group is taking credit.

Poor Jesse Easterling is still in the hospital.  He was evacuated by helicopter from Base Camp on May 17, along with Henry Voight.  (Henry is fine, and he flew home to Germany a long time ago).  Jesse had been prescribed the wrong medicine by his doctor in the states, and the effects were devastating.  We finally convinced him to see the doctors at Base Camp and they were appalled at his condition.  They ordered his evacuation the next day.  During his stay in Kathmandu, he suffered internal bleeding and lost 5 pints of blood.  He also had ulcers in his organs and serious blood clots.  He was in the ICU unit at the hospital for 4-5 days.  When I returned to Kathmandu yesterday, Mogens, Bud and I visited Jesse in the hospital.  He is out of ICU, looks great, has a private VIP room and his spirits are up.  He will be flying home with a medical attendant on Monday or Tuesday.  What a nightmare, but he is lucky to be alive.

On a lighter note, here's some more information on the Icefall Puppy.  He made it to Camp 2 and was preparing to ascend the Lhotse Face above Camp 2.  Thomsky, one of the Austrian members of our team, put him on a leash and returned him to Camp 2, where the puppy slept in his tent.  After that, I am not sure what happened, but I am going to assume he returned to Base Camp and his home, wherever that may be.  The reason I hold out this hope is that the same dog was seen in the Icefall in 2007.  Thomsky told us that even in the deep snow, the puppy could sense the location of the crevasses even though they could not be seen.  He would stop and then leap across the hidden crevasses. Is that an amazing story or what?

Ang Tshering Sherpa, the owner of Asian Trekking, and Pertemba Sherpa, our Base Camp Manager, visited me at the hotel today.  They were beside themselves with happiness and joy that I reached the summit.  They are truly quality people, and I appreciate so much their support.
 
My flight home is scheduled for June 9.  I plan to move that up a few days.

I told you this report was a bit disjointed.

Bill

Race Day
Namche Bazaar
May 29, 2009

Namaste:

Today is the day of the Tenzing/Hillary Mt. Everest Marathon Run.  The race starts at Everest Base Camp and ends in Namche Bazaar.  The worlds most elite runners participate in this grueling run.

Here's the shocking story, which will come as a surprise even to my family.  Before I left for Nepal, I signed up to run this race after my Everest climb.  When I came off the mountain on May 25 after my summit on May 23, the big storm hit Base Camp and I was stuck there for 2 days.  Base Camp was inundated with snow and was in no condition to handle tents to house all the runners.  So, I asked around, and the consensus was that the race would be canceled or re-routed so that the runners would not have to start at Base Camp.  I packed up my gear and headed down to Pheriche.  That's when I learned that the race is still on and, somehow, they were going to find a way to handle all the runners at Base Camp.  Too late for me.  Given the condition of the trail from Base Camp to Lobuche, I predict there will be lots of bumps, bruises and even broken bones in the race today.

You're probably wondering how many marathons have I run and what are my qualifications to run a marathon of this type.  The answer is none, zero, zip, nada.  I am totally unqualified.  But, my thought was that I could open this race up to "runners" of my ilk by changing the race from a "run" to a "run/walk/crawl."  Frankly, given the short lapse of time between my coming off the mountain and the date of the race, I am relieved that it worked out this way.  Maybe they will be gracious and at least give me the runner's shirt given the entrance fee I paid. 

Lest you think I am a total idiot, I want you to know that, last year, I ran a 5K in Costa Mesa with Ollie, who I pushed in a stroller.  We took first place and got a nice ribbon.  Well, first place in my age category (66 at the time).  Please check out the photo of Ollie and me proudly holding up our prized ribbon.  The photo is posted on my website under "My Training Partner."

I am now off to Lukla. 

Bill
Homeward Bound
Namche Bazaar
May 28, 2009

Namaste:

I'm finally back in the land of the living!

Yesterday, I left Base Camp and started the 35-mile journey to Lukla.  The trip from Base Camp to Lobuche involved a lot of snow and a trail that was difficult to negotiate because of the snow, ice, slush and mud.  The trek from Lobuche to Pheriche was really quite a pleasant journey, especially since there was less snow and I knew that I was homeward bound.  I spent last night in Pheriche and was able to sleep in a real room in a real bed, instead of in a tent.  This morning, I took my first shower in two weeks and brushed my teeth for the first time in 10 days.

Today, I moved from Pheriche to Namche Bazaar.  This part of the trek was really enjoyable.  As I moved down, everything turned to life.  Instead of the overpowering whiteness of snow, with little sign of life other than other climbers and trekkers, I experienced lush green trees, vegetation, flowers, waterfalls, the sweet music of birds, the buzzing of insects, villagers going about their daily life and lots of animals.  I loved to hear the sound of barking dogs.  In addition, as I moved lower, the air became thicker with oxygen, and I could literally feel my body becoming stronger with each step.  I could effortlessly move up steep hills that would have tired me at higher altitudes.  

I will spend the night in Namche Bazaar and move down to Lukla tomorrow.  The day-after-tomorrow, I hope to fly to Kathmandu.  The rest of the team should have flown out today. 

Here are some pictures I hope you will enjoy.

Bill

IcefallPuppy.JPG
Ice Fall Puppy

Camp3.JPG
Camp 3

LhotseFace.JPG
Lhotse Face

Mt.EverestSummitTriangle.JPG
Mt. Everest Summit Triangle

Camp4.JPG
Camp 4

OntheSummit1.JPG
On the Summit

OntheSummit2.JPG
On the Summit

Mingma&BillontheSummit.JPG
Mingma and Bill on the Summit

PostSummitinthetentatCamp4.JPG
Post-Summit in the Tent at Camp 4

Onthewaydown.JPG
On the way down

DescendingtheLhotseFace.JPG
Descending the Lhoste Face

Mingma&Bill.JPG
Mingma and Bill

4LadderCrossingintheIcefall.JPG
Ladder Crossing in the Ice Fall

BaseCampafterthestorm.JPG
Base Camp after the Storm






Leaving Base Camp
Click the following link to hear the report:


News Articles
Orange County Register:
OC man may be oldest American to summit Everest

CBS 2:
Costa Mesa Man, 67, Climbs Mount Everest

Fox LA:
Man may be the Oldest to Climb Everest

KTLA:
SoCal Senior Reaches Top of Mt. Everest


Site Meter