We had a very, very good day today going through the Icefall. It was very nice, clear, crisp weather starting out, but not too cold. Unfortunately it did get a little hot at the top and we were very glad when we actually got to our tents at Camp I and could get out of the sun for a while.
We had a little bit of, I suppose you could call it .... There's 15 ladders in the Icefall and, above the Icefall proper, between there and Camp I, there's two ladders, and the first one was three ladder sessions that were spanned pretty much maximum length and it was resting upon a partial snow bridge on the big crevasse. Well, that snow bridge has since fallen away and now what we were left with was three ladders that were tied together for absolute maximum extension for about eight inches of bearing on each side, spanning a huge chasm; very, very bouncy and we definitely used the high pucker factor ladder for getting to Camp I. I personally am hoping that something falls in enough to change the route before we go back down.
But, be that as it may, everybody is feeling very good here at Camp I and we're very much looking forward to getting back to camp II tomorrow. And we'll give you an update on that as it occurs, but that's all for now from Camp I on Mount Everest.
— Willi Prittie, Alpine Ascents International Guide and MountainZone.com Correspondent
