Monday, May 5, 2014

Where shall I begin? How about from the beginning....

Hello all.  I am writing you from Doha, Qatar where I finally have stable internet access.  The past few weeks proved a bit more challenging than expected.  I am not referring to the physical challenge but rather to the challenge to my patience and sanity.  Over the course of the next few days, I intend to provide a fuller perspective on the Everest Nepal expedition than I could previously.  Part of my delay stemmed from internet problems but another part came from my reluctance to post anything before I thought carefully through the situation.  A rash response would not adequately characterize the situation so I felt a brief silence would settle things down.  Also, the entire situation remains unsettled and, until some decisions come from the Nepal Ministry of Tourism (and Aviation....etc.), there is little to report about the future of Everest mountaineering from the Nepal side.

I do want to express my gratitude to all of you who support my efforts to climb, swim, ski, and sail.  Thank you all for looking at the charitable organizations that I support and thanks for supporting them if you chose to do so.  Thanks to Dan Mazur and Summit Climb for hanging in there and trying to wring out every last bit of climbing we could get from the experience.  Dan remained positive throughout the entire frenzied affair and I thank him from the bottom of my heart for his great attitude.  Thanks to Sam, Alex, Michael, Carlos and Christy for making our retreat memorable.  The friendships I gained during our trip made up for the loss we all experienced.  Our descent through the Khumbu valley reinforced that friendship and I thank all of you for making it a worthwhile journey.  Finally, thanks to all the expedition leaders like Tim Rippel who offered us some guidance in our search for planning for next year.  Yes, next year; I'm going back.  Never deterred! 

I welcome all in the Fairfax area to come join me for a pint this Friday afternoon at the Auld Shebeen. 

Expect more soon. 

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