Mt. Elbrus Northside: Van Deventer and Team Back Carry
Posted by: Pete Van Deventer, JM Gorum
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Elbrus Northside
It rained last night. Then it fired off a couple blinding flashes of lightning with a throaty growl of thunder that rolled on and on for what seemed like minutes. Then it rained some more.
We did the only logical thing we could think of this morning and put on the brightest clothing we all could find and crawled out to eat a breakfast of champions: cocoa puff and coffee.
The rain eventually diminished and we grabbed empty packs and returned to our cache to be reunited with the rest of our gear. An afternoon of rest and staying dry led to dinner, which showed promise with a brief glimpse of the sun. But it was not to be; within 30 seconds of putting out the dinner call, the hail began, which became rain once again.
Despite the 110% humidity, spirits are high, and we keep looking upwards at our next step, the glacier climbing towards Lenz Rocks and eventually the summit. We shared our current reading endeavors, learning about the reality of fish farming, and the Russian stereotypes portrayed by Dostoyevsky. Tomorrow we will try for an acclimatization hike and small carry to Lenz, with an eye towards making that move the day after to start our summit push. We'll see if that lines up with the weather's ideas.
Best from a soggy camp one,
RMI Guides Pete Van Deventer, JM Gorum, and Team
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