737 Leg 7 Everest - Day 150

We all slept well last night at camp 2. Steve, Andy and I climbed to the bottom of the Lhotse face, 6790m. The main group arrived at camp 2 this morning on their summit bid. Sadly they climbed over the body of the 82 year old Nepalese man that we met on the trek in to base camp, his body was on the icefall. He must have died yesterday. It has made me sad as he was lush and we had a good chat. Heavy snow at camp 2 this afternoon. Steve’s looking good, we are both finding the days in tents challenging but its all about patience and perseverance here and one day at a time!

NEWS
from Associated Press confirms 82-year-old death:

An 82-year-old former Nepalese foreign minister has died on the slopes of Mount Everest while attempting to become the oldest person to climb the world's highest mountain, an official said Tuesday.

Shailendra Kumar Upadhyay was returning from the first camp set on the slopes of Everest back down to the base camp when he collapsed Monday evening, Mountaineering Department official Tilak Pandey told The Associated Press by telephone. He was going back to the base camp to get medical attention because he was not feeling well.

Upadhyay's climbing companions gave him some water and oxygen after he collapsed on the icy trails, but he died, likely from high-altitude sickness, a common cause of death among mountain climbers, Pandey said. His body was expected to be airlifted to the capital, Katmandu, later Tuesday. Upadhyay served as Nepal's foreign minister from 1986-90 and was the country's representative to the United Nations from 1972-78. He was trying to break the record set by a Nepalese climber who scaled Everest at the age of 76.

EVEREST WEATHER UPDATE:

General situation: The subtropical jet over the Himalaya is weakening.
In the next days Richard and Steve will experience a phase with low to moderate winds and rising temperatures.

Weather forecast: Today and tomorrow: Expect deep convection. This means big cumulus clouds in the afternoon after quite sunny forenoons. In the afternoon some showers of snow. This effects also the high camps. Amounts of fresh snow are similar to the last days. The wind in the summit area is weak with around 10 to 20 km/h. Strong thermals close to showers lead to locally stronger winds. Temperature on the summit: Around -25c.

Thursday to Sunday: Diurnal cycle of convection. Sunny in the forenoon and cumulus clouds in the afternoon with local showers. The cumulus clouds won't reach higher altitudes, so in the high camps and in the summit area it stays mostly dry or only small amounts of snowfall. The wind is still weak to moderate with around 20 km/h in the summit area. Towards the weekend the wind is getting a bit stronger to about 30 km/h (maybe 40 km/h in gusts). The temperature is rising to about -22c.