GOLDWIN Inc. is an official supplier of the Miura Everest 2013 Project and provides the team with The North Face climbing wear and gear.
On Thursday, May 16, 2013, members of the Project took eight hours and half to successfully clear the Khumbu Icefall, regarded as the first deathtrap of the climbing route, and reached Camp 1 (C1) at an altitude of 6,050 m. They advanced to Camp 2 (C2) at 6,500 m on the following day, May 17. The original plan was to spend three nights at C2 for recovery and altitude acclimatization to prepare for the final trek scheduled for Friday, May 24. It was decided, however, to change the date to the 23rd because the weather forecast was more favorable on the day earlier. They moved up to Camp 3 on Sunday, May 19, 2013.
Prior to this expedition, Yuichiro Miura had acclimatized himself up to 6,000 m in elevation, and the elevations of C2 and higher presented him with the first taste of high altitudes. He is careful not to waste energy and overburden his body, closely monitoring and adjusting his physical conditions. He takes supplemental oxygen from time to time for a maximum benefit. He feels great and is advancing at an even faster pace than in his two previous expeditions, which he tackled at ages 70 and 75. C2 is the base camp for the last portion of the trek with a dining tent served by a chef. Yuichiro says the food is good and he has more appetite than he did at the base camp.
The route from C2 to C3 at 7,000 m was through the Lohtse Face, a solid ice wall rising at an average angle of 45 degrees. Yuichiro followed the rope and climbed straight up for almost four hours, with his eyes on the soles of the climbing shoes going before him. He was at a great pace, overtaking several younger climbers, and reached C3 as early as two o’clock in the afternoon.
Yuichiro’s comments: I feel great and have made it to an altitude of 7,000 m without any problems. Staying in a tent at C3, I have no symptoms of altitude sickness even without oxygen and don’t feel that tired. C3 is a camp notched in the snowy wall of about 50 degrees; it looks like a bird nest. We will stay overnight here and head for C3 Dash (7,500 m) that is set up on our way to the South Col. We will then go through C4 and C5; we are aiming to attack the peak on the 23rd.
I am happy to report that Gota and other members of the team are also doing well. Gota especially says he feels 100 times better than he was at C3 in the previous expedition (2008) thanks to the fact he hasn’t overexerted himself this time.
Schedule
Thursday, May 16: BC/C1 6050
Friday, May 17: C1/C2 6500
Saturday, May 18: C2 6500
Sunday, May 19: C2/C3 7000
Monday, May 20: C3/C3′ （Pistol Rock） 7530
Tuesday, May 21: C3/C4 （South Col） 7980
Wednesday, May 22: C4/C5 8500
Thursday, May 23: C5/summit/C4 8848
Friday, May 24: C4/C2 6500
Sunday, May 26: C2/BC 5300
Voice messages and journal entries from the expedition are uploaded to the official website below from time to time:
http://www.miura-everest2013.com
