Resting, Weather and Prepping for the Summit Rotation

May 11, 2021

From high on Lhotse looking down the Western Cwm with Shishapangma and Cho Oyu (Thunang Lomi Sherpa)

Expedition Leader Jonathan Schrock checked in to let us know the Team is now resting at EBC and will wait for the weather to give us the green light for heading up on our summit rotation. While the team rests, they will go over the oxygen system again and make sure they have it dialed. Kaji made his famous Momo Dinner for everyone today. A Momo is a chopped meat and vegetables wrapped in dough and then steamed, similar to a pot sticker. They are delicious! The team is now settling in to watch Terminator 3 on the projector.

: Looking up the Lhotse Face (Rawan Dakik)

: IMG Guide Andy Politz drying his socks at Camp 2 (Rawan Dakik)

Currently the Jet Stream is to the South of Mount Everest. Over the next week, it is showing signs of moving over the summit and then to the North. Once the Jet Stream moves away from the summit, we will put ourselves in position to head to the summit!

Everest Base Camp with low level clouds (Jonathan Schrock)

All is well on Mount Everest!

Greg Vernovage

Lhotse Summit Fixed; Climbers continue to do Camp 3 Rotation

May 10, 2021

Descending a section of the Khumbu Icefall (Kevin Kayl)

Expedition Leader Jonathan Schrock checked in to let us know that 6 Sherpa have now fixed to the summit of Lhotse! This means that both Everest and Lhotse routes are in and ready for climbers to go when the weather allows.

The Icefall labyrinth (Kevin Kayl)

Our Team is doing great with climbers at both Camp 2 and EBC. The remainder of the Team will be back to EBC in the morning and will then take time to rest and prepare for their summit rotations. The Camp 3 rotation is challenging for everyone and by completing it, climbers have put themselves in position to head up for the summit rotation.

IMG Senior Guide Phunuru Sherpa (Kevin Kayl)

The current forecast has the Jet Stream to the South of Mount Everest and slowly working its way back to the North. We will rest at EBC and wait for the Jet Stream to move across the summit. This is a typical pattern for this time of year and we are looking forward to getting a little rest while we wait!

All’s well for IMG on Mt Everest.

Greg Vernovage

Fixing Team reach the summit; Cold and Breezy on the Lhotse Face

May 8, 2021

Upper Icefall to the Lhotse Face (Phunuru Sherpa)

Good news today from up high on Everest, with the 12 members of the fixing team reaching the summit. Congratulations to these men, they are the first Everest climbers in nearly two years! Now the route is open and hopefully the various teams will soon start making their summit bids. By getting the fixing work done early in the season, there will be more time in the coming weeks to spread out all the summit bids, which should mitigate any traffic jam problems (like in 2019 when late fixing and bad weather caused the summit bids to get compressed into just a few days).

Our IMG climbers are doing well on their Camp 3 rotations. Today our Team 1 made good time on a cold and breezy climb of the Lhotse Face to Camp 3, where they took a nice break for eating and drinking before returning to Camp 2. Tomorrow they will descend to Base Camp as the Team 2 climbers move up into position. Over the next couple days the Team 2 climbers will also be climbing to Camp 3 and then descending to Base Camp.

With the route fixing done and the Camp 3 rotations underway, the final phase of the expedition is now beginning to take shape. The IMG climbers will all be back to Base Camp for a final rest before heading back up for the summit bids when the weather looks reasonable!

Greg Vernovage

The Lhotse Face

May 6, 2021

Looking up the Western Cwm (Phunuru Sherpa)

Camp 2 on Mount Everest (Phunuru Sherpa)

Expedition Leader Jonathan Schrock checked in to let us know that the team at Camp 2 is prepped and ready to climb the Lhotse Face to Camp 3 in the morning. Getting to Camp 3 the first time is a hard day of climbing, but the climbers are feeling strong and the conditions and weather report look favorable for tackling this highly anticipated section of the route. A solid performance by the climbers during this rotation will give them confidence and will mean that they have qualified for the summit bids, once the fixing is done and the their weather window is open.

Our second group of climbers at EBC are also ready to go and feeling strong. They have been patient and have benefited from a good rest at Base Camp. In the morning they will head up the Icefall with IMG Guide Andy Politz to put themselves in position to move to Camp 2, and then to Camp 3 on the Lhotse Face.

All is well on Mount Everest!

Greg Vernovage

Climbers begin their Camp 3 Rotation on Everest

May 5, 2021

Climbers preparing to depart EBC (Ang Jangbu Sherpa)

It has been a busy day on Mount Everest for the Team. They were up on time and out the door at 2am with light snow falling at EBC. Climbers moved efficiently up the Icefall, some stopping at Camp 1 for the night to rest up before moving into Camp 2 tomorrow while others going directly to Camp 2. Our program is built to accommodate climbers who wish to break up the climb to Camp 2, and these are great decisions made with our Guide Team.

Lhotse Face 3-9-21 (Phunuru Sherpa)

At Camp 2, IMG Lead Guide Phunuru Sherpa reported an additional 3 inches of snow today on top of a previous 6 inches. The Team at Camp 2 will stay on schedule and take a rest day tomorrow before evaluating the conditions and route to Camp 3.

Down at EBC, the rest of our climbers who needed some additional time to rest and get strong for this rotation will take one more day before heading up. The fixing team is staged at Camp 2 right now and are planning on heading up to fix to the summit on the 7^th and the 8^th.

All is well on Mount Everest!

Greg Vernovage

Ready for the Camp 3 Rotation

May 4, 2021

IMG EBC looking at the Icefall (Ang Jangbu Sherpa)

Kazi Sherpa (Jonathan Schrock)

IMG Expedition Leader Jonathan Schrock checked in this morning to let us know that our first group of climbers are ready to head up for their Camp 3 rotation. They have had a beneficial rest at Base Camp the last few days, and are feeling strong, in part due to the efforts of our Head Cook, Kazi Sherpa. Kazi has been busy working his magic, feeding the team and even baking a birthday cake for one of our climbers! The plan for tomorrow is breakfast at 1:30am and walking at 2am. With the weather trending in the right direction, we are excited to get back on the mountain.

Our Sherpa Team has also been working hard and have made carries to Camp 3, with two of them pushing up to the top of the Geneva Spur. They report the Lhotse Face was tough climbing with the recent snowfall that plastered the upper mountain. They had to kick steps and pull fixed ropes out of the snow to open the route back up, but with some nice weather in the forecast, there should soon be some better steps chopped into the face.

Greg Vernovage

IMG Everest Team in a holding pattern

May 3, 2021

2021 Everest Guide Team from left to right-Phunuru Sherpa, Andy Politz, Ang Jangbu Sherpa, Jonathan Schrock, Ang Dorjee Sherpa, Kevin Kayl

Expedition Leader Jonathan Schrock has been watching the weather and looking for the best time to have the team head back up on their second rotation. With some precipitation in the forecast for Mount Everest, the team has decided to go into a holding pattern at EBC to wait out the snow that is predicted for tonight and tomorrow.

Everest with a Lenticular (Ang Jangbu Sherpa)

The team is strong and ready to get back on the mountain for their next rotation. A day or two more of rest will only help the team get even stronger as they are going up on an important Camp 3 rotation. With the additional rest at EBC, Teams 1 and 2 are now going to be on the same schedule.

We also have some of our Sherpa Team at Camp 2 who will take a look at the weather in the morning and see if they can get a load of oxygen and gear up to Camp 3 and the South Col.

Ready to climb when the weather breaks on Mount Everest!

Greg Vernovage

Ropes to the Col and Team 1 Gets a Shower

April 30, 2021

Descending the Khumbu Icefall (Jonathan Schrock)

Camp 1 (Kevin Kayl)

Ang Jangbu checked in from EBC to give us an update. The big news from up high today was that the rope fixing team have now reached the South Col. Good news! Our IMG Sherpa Team is focused and healthy. Their plan is for another big carry to Camp 2 with more oxygen, followed by some rest days at Base Camp, and then they will move up to Camp 2 in preparation for building and stocking our Camp 3 and Camp 4 (on the South Col).

Team 1 are all doing well back at EBC, enjoying their rest days. Although not a perfectly sunny day, many of the climbers found time today for a shower and to do a bit of laundry. They will be taking several more rest days at EBC to recharge and prepare for their next rotation to Camp 3.

Laundry day at EBC (Adam Clark)

Many of the Team 2 climbers descended to Base Camp today, with a handful remaining up at Camp 2 for a bit more acclimatization. We work hard with our climbers to make sure they are setting themselves up for success, so if some require additional time to acclimatize or extra rest days, that is not an issue. The best part of the story is that all the IMG climbers are doing great and making excellent progress with their climbing and acclimatization!

Progress being made on Mount Everest!

Greg Vernovage

Team 1 back to EBC and Team 2 taking a hike to the Lhotse Face

April 29, 2021

Camp 1 (Phunuru Sherpa)

Ang Jangbu checked in to let us know that Team 1 has returned to EBC for some well-deserved rest. The team made great time coming down from Camp 2. Moving efficiently downhill is an important skill when climbing any mountain and the team is proving they have trained well for the climb.

: Climbers descending from top of Icefall (Kevin Kayl)

: Camp 2 at night looking down the Western Cwm (Phunuru Sherpa)

Team 2 had a casual breakfast and then set off for a hike towards the base of the Lhotse Face. This is a great way to get your heartrate up and help yourself with the acclimatization process. Team 2 will depart Camp 2 early tomorrow morning to head back down to EBC.

Crampon Point before Lhotse Face (Kevin Kayl)

Ang Jangbu also has 15 Sherpas carrying from EBC to Camp 2 today, putting them in position to start building Camp 3 and carrying loads to the upper mountain while the weather holds.

Continued good weather on Mount Everest and all is well!

Greg Vernovage

Climbers on the Move

April 28, 2021

: IMG Climber on the Lhotse Face with Camp 2 below (Kevin Kayl)

: Looking down the Western Cwm (Harry Hamlin)

Ang Jangbu checked in from Base Camp to let us know that our teams were doing well and everyone was active today. At Camp 1 our Team 2 was up and on the trail early this morning and had a great climb up in the Western Cwm to Camp 2. Meanwhile up at Camp 2 our Team 1 geared up after breakfast and took an acclimatization hike towards the Lhotse Face to get a better look at the bergschrund and the route. Our Camp 3 climber led by IMG Guide Sherpa Fura took off from Camp 2 earlier and had a fantastic day climbing up the Lhotse Face to lower Camp 3. The weather has been truly fantastic and all of our climbers are taking care of business on this first rotation.

Looking forward, Team 1 will return to EBC in the morning for some well-deserved rest. Team 2 will have an active rest day at Camp 2, taking the same hike towards the Lhotse Face and our Sherpa Team will begin preparations for chopping out Camp 3 and moving gear and oxygen further up the mountain.

All is well on Mount Everest!

Greg Vernovage

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Resting, Weather and Prepping for the Summit Rotation

May 11, 2021 Expedition Leader Jonathan Schrock checked in to let us know the Team is now resting at EBC...
Lhotse Summit Fixed; Climbers continue to do Camp 3 Rotation

May 10, 2021 Expedition Leader Jonathan Schrock checked in to let us know that 6 Sherpa have now fixed to...
Fixing Team reach the summit; Cold and Breezy on the Lhotse Face

May 8, 2021 Good news today from up high on Everest, with the 12 members of the fixing team reaching...
The Lhotse Face

May 6, 2021 Expedition Leader Jonathan Schrock checked in to let us know that the team at Camp 2 is...
Climbers begin their Camp 3 Rotation on Everest

May 5, 2021 It has been a busy day on Mount Everest for the Team. They were up on time...
Ready for the Camp 3 Rotation

May 4, 2021 IMG Expedition Leader Jonathan Schrock checked in this morning to let us know that our first group...