Maybe it seems as if one should be able to re-adapt immediately when coming back from an expedition. It is not the case for Xav and I. It is a huge change to be surrounded by people, cars, noise, green nature, having running water, being warm at all times. It is overwhelming for our senses. […]

8am we wake up and start packing, its a beautiful day out. Kai and the group from Dustin’s expedition have slept outside. Sunny and blue sky. The storm is not coming today. The flights start at 9am and there is no queue so we should be flying in no time. It’s sad to be leaving […]

Down 2,500 meters to base camp in 1 day. We are waiting for Dustin’s expedition to take their final decision on whether they are moving up or down. His expedition is a group of 3, one of them, Ben, is a wounded war veteran in his thirties – he has his shin fused to his […]

It is today or never, the weather is nice when Kai wakes up, then turns to snow, then good again with some blue sky at times, then not good again. We pack our bags for a summit attempt anyway. 1 sleeping bag for the team, 1 sleeping pad, emergency kit, heavy expedition mittens, all our […]

We have been constantly listening to the weather, trying to find the right window for a final summit push. It is a game between relying on the forecast – which has proven wrong almost every day since we arrived – and looking at the sky and relying on Kai’s instinct in terms of window. A […]

Morning cleaning up camp. Chelsea and Eric are going down to base camp with Marc and flying out. Before they head down, Kai, Marc, Xav and I make a little trip to the Edge of the World, a scenic point about 20 minutes walk from our camp. This scenic point feels like it overlooks the […]

Today one more rest day, recovering from the carry to the 5000m cache on the ridge up the fix lines. We have been wondering for a few days how our expedition would carry on. Marc has been sick and has been struggling to recover at altitude. After going back and forth on the logistics, the decision […]

 Not a great night of sleep too tight in the tent. I am squashed between Xavier and Marc, the snow under us is at an angle and Marc slides to my side, it sounds ridiculous but its unbearable after hours trying to sleep. 7 hours of climbing round trip from Camp 3 to the […]

Midday, we head down the mountain to pick up the cache content. Its beautiful. The Alaska range mountains fill up the horizon. Some gigantic crevasses, next to the path down, are masterpieces of nature’s art. Its Kai, Xavier, Eric and I picking up the cache, Marc is resting and desperately trying to recover from his […]

(Featured photo: our home in the mountains, a Mountain Hardwear Trango 4 tent. Officially for 4 people, but just enough space for the 3 of us and that’s with our backpack sleeping in the snow outside and our big boots in the vestibule!) Elevation 4400m Sunny and cold Rest Day to recover from the past […]