High Camp

Wes and Curtis made the move to High Camp today at about 17,300 feet. They got in about an hour ago (7:30 pm Alaska time) and Wes said they had about 2 to 3 hours of work to do to finish setting up camp. They need to build their ice walls - only have them halfway built. Then they need to start making water and eat dinner. Their camp is dug into the side of the mountain. They have connected their campsite with Mike Walter's group.

Wes was getting really antsy at Medical Base after being there for about a week. He said at 3 am this morning the wind had died down significantly so he started packing things up to make the move higher. The weather ended up being really nice today. It was a long day of climbing. They left Camp IV at about 1:30 p.m. so that they could climb after the crowd had left. However, they ended up catching up to the crowd on the head wall so it was slow going from there. There are a bunch of Army Rangers in camp. Apparently they were jealous because yesterday morning Wes was making pancakes and bacon for breakfast and the aroma kept wafting into their camp. They wanted those pancakes!

Currently there isn't any wind blowing. The guys can see a layer of clouds and the whole valley below them.

Tomorrow the wind is supposed to be only about 20 mph. It may be a good day to go for the summit. On Wednesday the wind is supposed to pick up but only to about 35 mph. The guys will see how well they feel tomorrow morning and then will decide if they will go for the summit. Otherwise they may acclimate another day before their attempt.