Logistics team blog

The only job that I really wanted to do today was remove a huge lump of rock that was at the back of the generator shelter. Rhys and Bobby had done an excellent job of rebuilding the ?hooch? after a terrific storm we had a week or so earlier. Problem was though, that the front of the shelter floor was falling away into the valley below and there was a risk that the generators would go the same way.

The two boys had chipped away at the left hand side of the shelter floor in order to line up the Honda units, but the right hand side was blocked at the back by this rock and so only 3 generators could be lined up.

I looked at the lump for 5 minutes or so and weighed up my options. It must have weighed 250kg, maybe even more and there was no way that I was going to shift it with brute force. Time to use my brain.

I went over and spoke to Pema, who has as part of his equipment here, a large metal bar used to smash ice and lever rocks out of the way. Armed with this tool, I made my way back to the generators and after removing all of them to clear a way, set about trying to prise this mammoth lump of rock out of the shelter.

It was hot work, as I struggled to move it an inch at a time. Using an old ice axe I managed to move it about two feet from where it had originally rested. Problem was I couldn?t seem to get it to move any further and it was now completely blocking the shelter and I couldn?t get any of the Honda?s back under cover. It was time to call for help.

Jules, who plans to hang up his stethoscope and become an Officer with the Parachute Regiment and Mark Edsell, who has just returned from working in Australia came to my aid. With much pushing, lifting, shoving, crushing of fingers and swearing, we cajoled the beast for 5 feet until eventually we tipped it over the edge and down the scree slope. It was a job well done.

As we congratulated ourselves, Kay called over to me to say that the weather forecast had come through. I quickly glanced at it and called both Mike, who was now at Camp 3 and Paul Richards at Camp 2 to standby to receive.

?Monday, i.e. tomorrow, we can expect anything up to 20 or 30 centimetres (10 inches) of snow as from 08:00 hours. This bad weather will continue for the next 5 days and it should snow continuously throughout that period. It sounds pretty bad Mike, what are your plans??

?I?ll get back to you on that one,? he replied.

It was soon decide that rather than sleep at Camp 3 and risk being caught in the bad weather, they would return to Camp 2 and then all make their way back to Base Camp in the morning.

It seemed the sensible thing to do, but looking out of the tent to the clear sky, I couldn?t help think that it didn?t look like bad weather. Anyway, who am I to question the Swiss meteorologist who sends these reports.

With the skies clear, the stars shining brightly and a half moon guiding our way through the pathways that criss-cross the camp, I decided to call it a night. I do hope that it snows heavily tomorrow, now that we?ve decided to call the whole team back to Base Camp. It doesn?t look that snowy!