Weather conditions atop Mt. Everest have become unacceptable for further ascent at this time. Scott and other climbers have begun to descend from Camp II and should be back [to] Everest Base Camp any moment now. Stay tuned for updates.

Day 47/May 7, 2009 (Thursday)
Joy and Pain

And then it started... snow, and wind. Lots of it. Moist air had not been forecast, but it was here without a doubt. Our summit bid was in jeopardy, as pulling up fixed lines and kicking in new steps on a summit day could be beyond exhausting. A call down to IMG Base and an updated forecast from Seattle suggested that our summit "window" was much narrower than previously hoped. Eric suggested we all descend in the next day or two, as heavy snows and winds in the coming days would prevent a safe ascent at this time. Long range forecasts now suggest sometime after May 18th would be the time to try again.

05:30 weather call to IMG base; no change in the forecast, so Danuru and I were out of Dodge by 06:30 at a sprinter's pace.

...now safely back at EBC [Everest Base Camp], myself, Keith and several of my climbing teammates plan to head down to Pheriche for a couple of days. Rest, thick air, and time to mentally prepare for another summit bid...

A thick wet snow is falling here in Pheriche on Day 52 of the expedition, and uncertainty exists as to when we can easily return to EBC [Everest Base Camp], when the weather might lift to allow teams to recommence their summit bids, and when we might get our chance... Snow up high means fixed lines will likely be covered, as will have our bootprints from multiple prior forays up the route. All 20+ climbing teams will be poised to go at the first hint of promising weather, which might result in crowding and bottlenecks. Meanwhile, the end of May and the approach of the monsoon season is less than 3 weeks away.

Uncertainty exists, but we’ll eventually prevail...

I feel just great after the rest period, which ended this morning: I've hiked back up to EBC [Everest Base Camp] (6 hours of uphill)...

The weather appears to be cooperating, as we had a beautiful, cloud-free morning --- and a typical EBC afternoon with clouds and light snow. Some teams have elected to head back up to Camp II early tomorrow, but our plan is to take tomorrow off, and head back up on May 16th. We'll then take a rest day at Camp II, and target a summit on or about May 20th (when weather is also expected to be calm and hopefully clear). As always, this too may change... I'm hopeful that several teams will try for their summits on the 18th or 19th, thus kicking in the route for us, and pulling up the snow-covered ropes that must exist up there! My main goal is to avoid traffic jams, so whatever day becomes the first major summit day of the season, you probably won't find me there!

Scott departed Everest Base Camp this morning around 4:30 am. He and his climbing partners are now at Camp II where they will spend the next day resting. He checked in this afternoon with his SPOT Personal Satellite Tracker. Current plans call for a summit around 5-6 am local time on 20 May (7-8 pm EDT 19 May).

Scott has reached Camp III which is located on a small ledge at an elevation of 7,470 meters (24,500 ft). He will spend tomorrow at Camp III resting before pushing on to Camp IV (South Col) at an elevation of 7,920 meters (26,000 ft).

The lunar sample carried by Parazynski was collected by Apollo 11 Astronaut Neil Armstrong in July 1969. Numbered as sample 10085,134 this was one of the surface and subsurface samples picked up about 15-20 feet (4-6 meters) north of the Lunar Module "Eagle" which landed in the Sea of Tranquility.

...these tiny rocks are left over from pieces embedded into so called "Small World" plaques that the US bestowed as gifts to other nations and to all fifty states in the seventies.

Photo credit: OnOrbit.com

Scott [is] at Camp IV (South Col) at an elevation of 7,920 meters (26,000 ft). The summit is still a bit away at 8,848 meters (29,029 ft). Scott's summit window still focuses on a 7-8 pm 19 May EDT / 5-6 am 20 May Local time summit.

Scott Parazynski and his Sherpa Danuru are standing on the summit of Mt. Everest as of 6:15 pm EDT - 4 am Nepal time.

Scott is using his SPOT Satellite Personal Tracker to check in. You can follow his progress all the way to the summit by checking his personal tracking page. Select "terrain" to see how close he is getting to the summit of Mt. Everest.