Himalayas few weeks away

With just a few weeks to go until my trip to the Himalayas, things are going well for the expedition. The first time in 2000 I never believed there was so much work to do, so much to prepare for. I was organising a fully oxygenated, fully supported expedition for 6 climbers with nearly 4 four tons of gear. It took 46 yaks and 22 porters just to get all the kit to Base Camp. We had mess tents, store tents, fresh yak brought in weekly, climbing Sherpas, cooks, even people to dispose of our blue toilet barrels every Saturday.

That expedition was successful, we were the first team to summit Everest in 2000 but I personally turned back from the South Summit, 100 vertical metres from the top of the world.

In 2002 on the North Side with just Will and our one cook Tirta, things were simpler. We took a car filled with all our climbing gear across into Tibet and pitched a tent at Advance Base Camp and we climbed the mountain without oxygen and without any Sherpa support. I wanted to prove that I could climb Everest in a more purist way, without the mass of support that normally surrounds expeditions there.

I learnt that climbing Everest with and without oxygen is utterly different. Being totally responsible for yourself on the mountain, putting in your own supplies and gear, making your own judgements about when to move, and having no back-up other than what you can provide for yourself, makes it as different as chalk from cheese; and I much preferred it. Will was a fantastic climbing companion but it was the dislocation of his knee just above the height of the Second Step, about 100 metres from the summit, that prevented us from summitting.

No matter, our descent was dramatic and I came away understanding that we had in fact achieved something quite remarkable in just getting off the mountain. Will was a hero. The number of people who survive accidents on Everest, without oxygen, are virtually nil.

So the idea of going back seemed natural.

This time though it is an ascent on the more commonly climbed SE Ridge, without oxygen and without Sherpa support and alone. It's not strictly a 'solo' ascent since that would indicate putting in my own route; I will be following the well trodden path of the SE Ridge and there will be fixed lines. That doesn't mean I am being complacent about it though ! Not many people climb Everest without oxygen - about 5% statistically over time (western climbers) - and fewer still do it alone.

Now I have my kit packed and it's a lot less than the 2000 trip ! And a lot less than the 2002 trip ! In fact just a few bags in my hallway, and all my new Berghaus clothing to rely on. I'm supported by Berghaus and looking forward to trying some of the new lightweight kit they are pioneering.

I'll just have a mobile satellite phone this time - no laptops or fancy gear - and I'll ring into a website so my messages will be recorded by Everest IT expert Richard 'Baz' Sheane as MP3's on my website. It's www.everestpost2005.co.uk.

I have my permit - it cost $10,000 - and I have to pay a portion of the Icefall Doctor fee and the Nepalese Liaison Officer. Because I have no base camp support, no cooks, no Sherpas - then I only have to buy food for myself ! I'll just pitch my tent on the Khumbu Glacier for 8 weeks and I'll eat in the lodges and have some bagged food to boil up in my tent while I'm high on the hill.

No doubt I'll be taking a book along aswell. A lot of climbing Everest is spent sitting waiting to acclimatise and trying to stay healthy.

I'm flying to Kathmandu in a few weeks for about ten days to make the final arrangements, pay the royalty fee and buy a few bits'n'bobs around Kathmandu. Spare batteries, food, gas canisters, books. Then I'll go up and take a look at the projects which I'm raising money for.

I'm training every day - about three hours at the moment - mostly cardiovascular stuff, and I'm getting my head round the whole thing. A lot of the success is in preparing mentally for climbing Everest. I feel better this year though, I've been up there twice and I've still got my fingers and toes which must mean something! Course, I could have used up my lucky lives !

Departure date for going is 24th March to Calcutta, I'll then travel overland to Delhi and Kathmandu, then fly to Lukla and start trekking upwards.

Gavin Bate