Climbing Everest South Face (Nepal): life at base camp

In the spring of 2021, Expeditions Unlimited is organising an ascent of Mount Everest (8,848 m) via the South Face, on the Nepal side. After a magnificent acclimatisation trek over the high passes, the five members of the expedition, guided by expedition leader Bernard Muller and accompanied by some of the most brilliant Sherpas in the Khumbu region, reached Everest Base Camp. In the weeks that followed, François Trouillet, one of the participants, gave us a poignant first-hand account of the main stages of the expedition. In this article, François describes life at the Everest base camp, with all the teams and the Covid atmosphere of 2021.

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Everest Base Camp (5 365 m) © François Trouillet

The Base Camp stretches across an entire tongue of the Khumbu glacier, facing the Icefall at an altitude of 5,365 metres. It is organised into expeditions, which, as Covid dictates, are fairly compartmentalised: No entry! 

The puja at the centre of the expeditions

The layout of each expedition is fairly similar: a puja takes pride of place at the centre. It's a sort of altar where the lamas and Sherpas come every day to meditate. When we arrived at the base camp, we performed the official ceremony to protect and launch the expedition. This ceremony is a moment out of time, where we spent four hours with the lamas, Sherpas and legends of the Himalayas... A rite of adoration to the goddess Sagarmatha, before a great event, which ends with dances and the sharing of offerings. Our mountaineering equipment was blessed and from then on we could set foot on the mountain. We had the privilege of meeting two Himalayan legends: Nirmal Purja, who broke the record for climbing 14 peaks over 8,000 metres in 6 months, and Kami Rita Sherpa, who has climbed Everest 24 times. A truly unique moment. It's worth noting that our team is not short of talent, with Bernard Muller as expedition leader, Ngima Nuru Sherpa, one of the expedition guides and a 22-time Everest summiter, and Mingma Sherpa, expedition manager and 8-time summiter...

Every day, juniper trees burn in the puja to protect us. Each time we leave, we pass by it to pay our respects, and we always have to go round it to the left. When we return, we touch the altar with our head. Every morning and evening, a Sherpa with a censer walks around the camp chanting mantras. From the altar, a bundle of prayer flags covers the whole camp. 

Puja ceremony at Everest Base Camp © François Trouillet

The Icefall almost just outside our tents

Guests’ and Sherpas do not live together in the camp. So the camp has a ‘client’ area: a line of personal tents and two toilet tents (men's and women's). Then there's a mess tent where we meet for meals, chat and charge our electrical appliances. Solar panels and a generator provide the camp's power supply. Then there's a kitchen tent where a chef and two helpers prepare meals for everyone. There is a large pantry tent, a shower tent and the Sherpa corner. 

The physical set-up of the camps is jealously debated between the expeditions. Some are 45 minutes from the entrance to the Icefall, ours has a front row seat. 

Expeditions Unlimited camp at Everest base camp and Icefall entrance © François Trouillet

It's not unusual to be woken by the sound of an avalanche

The team of Sherpas did everything they could to make our stay pleasant, but the conditions were pretty harsh. 
Just imagine a day: the nights are freezing and the air we're exhaling condenses in the tent and falls back as ice crystals or, at best, moisture. Everything quickly gets soaked! During the night, it's not unusual to get up two or three times to pee! This is the natural phenomenon of acclimatisation. But getting out of the tent is out of the question. We use ‘pipi bottles’ that we empty later (but not too much as the urine freezes). 

During the night, it's not uncommon to be woken by an avalanche that makes a hellish noise and continues in a roll that seems to stop at the edge of the camp. 

Wake up early, the light is bright from 5 o'clock. We can have a hot drink at any time of the day or night in the mess tent. 

We then hang out for a while, and if the weather is good, the wifi is accessible, we check the news from our friends and their comments and encouragement on the social networks (a big thank you to all 🙏). 

We go back to sleep and then the helicopters begin their ballet in the sky: refuelling, evacuation... 

Camp Expeditions Unlimited at Everest base camp © François Trouillet

We meet in the mess tent

Breakfast is served at 8 o'clock. We meet up in the mess tent, most of the time with shaggy hair and drawn faces. How have you been? Slept well? Any headaches? 

We take our oxygen saturation and it's often a stressful moment. You might think, ‘Gosh, 70’ or ‘Great, 83’.
Eggs, coffee, tea... then the day begins. 

At 1pm, lunch is served buffet-style. Then it's back to the tent. 

When the sun is shining, the heat in the tent quickly becomes unbearable. Even in your pants with the doors open, it's still very hot. Reading, nap... The ritual begins again, then the sun hides behind a peak, and immediately a concert of ‘ziiiip!’ can be heard in the camp: the tents close, we get dressed and snuggle down in our duvets as the temperature plummets. 

At 7pm, it's time for dinner. We're handed mint-scented hot towels. What a treat!

Then the meal is served. Often a buffet, but sometimes with a ceremony worthy of the finest tables: meat flambéed with rum! 

Next day's briefing, a plan for the next few days and we're back in our freezing tents for another night. 

Camp Expeditions Unlimited and mess tent at Everest Base Camp © François Trouillet

Waiting to approach the coveted summit

We'd all like to be at the summit by now, but our bodies aren't ready. 

So we have to wait. Above all, we mustn't use up negative energy by complaining about our situation. We have to accept it 100%.

Yes, we can stay in our tents, reading, sleeping, thinking, meditating, talking with or thinking about our loved ones... We've chosen to be here, so let's live it to the full. 

For my part, I'm trying to live in the moment and be happy. 

In any case, if you want to pick up the pace, you pay for it in cash. Every effort, every sudden movement results in breathlessness and almost dizziness. Getting your shoes on can be a feat!

But every day we feel our bodies getting used to it, so let's be patient and, in a few days' time, we'll be heading back to the high altitude camps to slowly approach the coveted summit. 

Join the next Everest climb via the Nepalese South Face or the North Tibet side.

Camp Expeditions Unlimited in the mist at Everest Base Camp © François Trouillet