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ALPINDUSTRIA: RUSSIAN ADVENTURE TEAM EVEREST 2003 Normal route, Tibet Expedition chronicle:
7 May , 2003 Alexander Abramov reports: "2,May.
Take counsel with your pillow; sleep on it! We were able to discuss and solve
all the problems with sherps in the morning. We promised them to add some tips
and they signed the agreement. They will go working to ABC tomorrow. There are
many talks about new illness. The border China and Nepal has been closed. We do
not know exactly how to return home. According to the weather forecast a storm
is expected at a height of 7000 and 8000m. We decided to have a rest in a village
for three days at a height of 4000m, so we are going to move there tomorrow. I
suppose we need to wash, sleep in warm place and eat fresh meat. During the whole
month we are eating dried meat of yaks, not washing, not shaving and leading natural
way of living. 6 May , 2003 Alexander Abramov reports: "1,May.
The situation is difficult. The sherps went down. Our activity is stopped. I communicated
with the cook Passanga. He said that the problem was evident sherps wanted to
raise their bonuses. I knew from another expeditions that our bonuses were quite
normal and some expeditions paid less than we did. I decided not to climb 7900m
for acclimatization. We moved down to the BC where our sherps were. Pashkov, Larin,
Kaimanchikov, Gudjabidze helped to organize the negotiations with the sherps.
At first the sherps were offended and asserted that they were not the yaks and
the matter of their strike were not bonuses, after that they blamed the leader.
There were the moments when we wanted to dismiss all of them but we had to continue
the expedition. Some days were lost because of their strike. 2 May , 2003 Alexander Abramov reports from ABC: "30,April.
I like Sherpas and Nepal very much. But very likely I will become racist soon.
We were planning the third ascent to the North Col. I gave sherps oxygen cylinders,
18kg (five oxygen cylinders) per man. It was an agreement that they should carry
the load of 20kg to the North Col but suddenly sherps began to shake their heads.
They did not want to carry 18kg per man only 11kg(three oxygen cylinders). It
exasperated not only me but also another members of our expeditions. It was the
matter of principle either the sherps would work or go back to Katmandu. 30 April, 2003 Alexander Abramov reports from ABC: April
29. It has been snowing all night through - justifying weather forecasts. This
morning at 10 a.m. we were informed over the radio that Sergey Larin and Slava
Pashkov had left for Camp 7500 to spend a night there. Three more members of our
expedition - Moskalev, Soifer, Litinsky - are going for an acclimatization hike
to 7500 today as well.
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