Farewell Hong Kong....Kathmandu See You Soon!

Hong Kong oh what fun! I stopped here for a few days to meet with my friend and fellow Everest Base Camp trekker Melanie and her friends Tristan and Mylene, who will also be joining us on the trek to Base Camp. It was great to catch up with Melanie, who I had not seen since our Kilimanjaro trip in 2009! Thank you Melanie for a wonderful time and your hospitality!! :) We are all now ready for this next chapter of our adventure. As you can see from the photos, Hong Kong Rugby Sevens was the highlight of my weekend here- this is a fantastic event and highly recommended. Cheers to the champions New Zealand!! It was a great time to be in Hong Kong and the city was vibrant with celebrations galore :) I did also get to explore various parts of the city like Won Chai, Lan Kwai Fong, Central, Victoria Harbour, Victoria Peak :) The hike up Victoria Peak was lovely and it had been over 5 years since I had been there. I also got to do last minute gear and technology shopping while I was there for items I will need on the trip and finish up on some work items and more.

Well now I sit in Singapore, waiting for my dad to arrive in just another 1.5 hrs and then we fly to Kathmandu!! The others are on their way! Pam my good friend and tent mate is in India on a layover, Kathy is in route, and Melanie, Mylene, and Tristan all leave HK tonight! It's finally here :)

I am fighting a minor cold, highly due to lack of sleep from last week, but I have medication and hope to get some good sleep upon arrival in Kathmandu. We are due to arrive just before midnight local time on the 29th. Fingers crossed all the gear makes it!!

Well I will write more once I make it to Kathmandu and the entire team is there. Just a quick thank you for all the love and support coming in!! I really cannot thank everyone one enough and it feels like you are all coming on this journey with me :) When I climbed Aconcagua one of the things I remembered most was that on summit day I never felt alone...it was like all of my loved ones were right there by my side. I was so grateful and it definitely helped me keep going. So now, I just thank you all for your support and encouragement...you will all be in my thoughts and I promise to keep in touch as best as I can and I LOVE hearing from you....so keep it coming.

Here are the latest updates from Peak Freaks, you can follow their blog at (in times where I cannot blog myself, you will have the latest and greatest here): http://peakfreaks.com/everestnews2011.htm

March 28, 2011- Tim checks in: "Martijn and Nelson are now here as well as Javier and Angel." "Our Sherpa staff have successfully built base camp in our usual spot. They have been battling keeping the snow under control. It's been snowing hard dumping quite a bit on the tents and making it hard to organize tent platforms. Flights have also been a cancelled in and out of Lukla today due to the precipitation in the Himalayas. Need snow, need water, can't complain. I also checked in with Ncell the company who installed the new 3G network in Gorak Shep situated near base camp. Here are the tariffs: A Nepalese Rupee today conversion today is: 1.00USD = 71NRS. Impressive savings over the satellite phone but we will still use them as backup." Prepaid International Tariffs International Calls Price(Rs/minute) India 2.99 Bahrain 6 Bangladesh 6 Canada 6 China 6 Hong Kong 6 Saudi Arabia 6 Singapore 6 Thailand 6 USA 6 Australia 15 Japan 15 Qatar 15 UAE 15 United Kingdom 15

March 27, 2011 Tim reports from Kathmandu. He has arrived safe and sound and his skype check-in was brief. Generators are running as usual due to power conservation practices. Elizabeth Hawley keeps a close eye on Tim. Immediately upon his arrival the phone rings and they made a date. He has so far met up with Conor Robinson who is climbing Island Peak with us and BG from Sweden on the Everest team has also arrived. Several others are arriving today including guides Javier from Bolivia and Angel from Argentina. Remember you can check photos on Tim's Facebook.

March 26, 2011 Welcome to our Everest 2011 blog. The one thing we love about this business is the interesting people we ge to meet and know over the course of an expedition and this year is no exception. There are a couple of very worthwhile projects at which fund raising and awareness are driving some climbers to give Everest their best shot. We urge you to take a moment and read through some of their profiles. Other projects: Everest continues to be a place for learning. There are two studies some of our members will be participating in this spring. (1) High Altitude Cognition study and (2) a watch for the Bar Headed geese known to fly over Everest. Sherpa Culture: Our dear friend Lama Geshe is back in Pangboche. His home and the highest monastery in Nepal. Lama Geshe now in his early eighties, suffered a stroke last year. His prayers, outs and the people of the Khumbu have been answered allowing him to return to his home where he will continue to bless climbers and Sherpa families for safe passage on Everest this spring. Everest Logistics: Once again commercial teams are working together to purchase rope and finance a team of Sherpa's to fix the route to the summit jointly. The payment process will or should be in advance and shared by everyone, much like the ice-fall doctors who maintain the ice-fall ladders and ropes. The difference being the expedition leaders and guides will continue to control safety standards of fixed lines higher up by continuing to do it ourselves with a team of select Sherpas and guides. April 11-Moment of Silence: Russell Brice has initiated a moment of silence and collection for Japan this day. This date marks one month since the earth quake and tsunami. It's hard for some of us to be out continuing doing what we do when there are so many people at risk. Mountain Weather: It's been a dry cold winter. This is not exactly what we like to hear. This could mean the glaciers crevasses will be wide open. April 1st, the ice-fall doctors will start working in the Khumbu glacier and will be able to give us a report on expected conditions. Ideally we would like to see a lot more snow to help mend things and fill in the cracks. It's cold! The temperatures in Namche Bazaar are freezing, -2c and lightly snowing today. Looks like it will be holding similar trend for the next week. Sorry climbers, no T-shirts and shorts this time around. The Team: Everyone is on their way now in the next day or two. Tim is on his way arriving March 27, Angel and Javier on the 28th and everyone else should be there on or before the 30th. We will keep family and friends and readers posted. The Itinerary: On April 1st everyone, trekkers and climbers, will be flying to Lukla and this will signify the official beginning of Everest 2011'. From here it is an 8-day walk to Everest Base Camp. We will be providing daily reports as they progress up the valley. We will also have three GPS Spot trackers sending signals to watch. Over and out, our first blog this spring- Becky Rippel

Team Roster 2011 We keep our climbing team size smaller and our Sherpa team larger than most. We believe this will not only enhance our participants experience but more importantly allowing us to put priority on keeping risk factors at a minimum. We hope you enjoy following us this season- to the top- and back again. CLIMBERS:1. Matthew Wozniak, USA- Bio 2. Nelson Delis, USA/UK - Bio 3. Mark Schiable, USA- Bio 4. Jan Sinivaara, Finland/Germany- Bio 5. Kevin Farebrother, Australia - Bio 6. Laura Ross, USA - Bio 7. Georgina Miranda, USA - Bio 8. Pamela Pappas, USA - Bio 9. Kathy Setian, USA - Bio 10. Bengt-Goran Hakansson, Sweden - Bio 11. Mark (Mango) Mangles, Australia - Bio 12. Martijn Ebbing, Dutch - Bio 13. Roger Wright, Australian- Bio GUIDES Tim Rippel- Expedition Leader- Canadian Angel Armesto- (UIAGM) Mountain Guide- Argentina Javier Carvallo Contreras- (UIAGM) Mountain Guide- Bolivia SHERPA CREW Ang Namgay Sherpa, Phortse Palden Namgye Sherpa, Phortse Tashi Thundu Sherpa, Khumjung Lhakpa Sherpa, Solu Phu Tashi Sherpa, Phortse Pemba Nuru Sherpa, Solu Sonam Phinjo Sherpa, Khunde Mingmar Sherpa, Okhaldunga Lhakpa Bhote, Mahakalu Reader Lhamo Bhote, Mahakalu Dawa Chering Sherpa, Khunde Zangbu Sherpa, Godang Ang Dawa Sherpa, Khunde Tsering Namgye Sherpa, Khumjung Dawa Cheri Sherpa, Khumjung Lhakpa Tenzing Sherpa, Khumjung Minga Noru Sherpa, Khunde Chowang Karma Sherpa, Solu Dami Sherpa, Solu Thele Bhote, Mahakalu Sangye Phuri, Godanga, Tsultrim Dorgi, Khunde Shere Sherpa, Solu Karsung Sherpa, Khunde Lhakpa Gyaltsen, Khumjung Desh Kumar, Solu Sonam Dorji Sherpa, Khunde Nawang Nuru Sherpa, Solu Tsering Lopsang Sherpa, Solu Ang Nima Sherpa- Khunde TBA TBA TBA

Until next time....Hugs to all!! You can support our efforts on http://www.climbtakeaction.com/ G