Our base camp turned into a winter wonderland overnight. Yet there seem to be no signs of stopping. While we wait for the weather to turn, Anna took us to practice some basics of mountaineering.
When it comes to mountaineering, you need to relearn everything you know before. From simply walking in a straight line to going downhill, all actions needed to be done with the highest efficiency. Especially useful was the skill of self-arrest. This life-saving skill to help you to stop yourself from sliding down when you fall. Anna carefully made sure that we understood all the steps to a successful arrest. Despite all the peaks I have climbed, I have never properly learned mountaineering skills like this. Unfortunately, I failed to arrest miserably when Anna’s test pulled me down. Perhaps this justifies further mountaineering schooling for me in Scotland or Chamonix?
It seemed that our prayers of good weather were not answered. The skies of Caucasus turn grey then to black. Then suddenly a golden line thrusting through the darkness, lighting. Anna carefully checked to make sure that the lightening was high and far away from us. Though safe to continue training, we were worried about our chances.
The 4pm weather forecast came in, there was no chance. Only a 2-hour clear weather window was open for us today, and maybe around 8 hours the next night. 2 hours is impossible for us and 8 hours was still a stretch. Anna made the executive decision to postpone our summit attempt till the weather turns.
Anxiety built but patience grew short. The extra day was great for recovering and acclimatizing but bad for morale. We weren’t sure when or if we will have enough time for a successful summit attempt. We can always try and turn back surely, but who wants to go home with failure?
Several of us went down to the cafe to drive out our boredom. So are the two Flemish climbers who climbed all the way up from the valley without guides (we took the lifts). A very courageous feat. (Though I personally do not recommend summiting without guides unless you are super experienced. Many big crevasses are on the mountain. A slight walk off the trail might cost your life because of these crevasses. Remember, they cannot always be seen.)
We nervously ate our dinner that day, not knowing if we will set off to achieve our final goal that night. After half an hour of anxiously waiting and quick chewing, Anna walked in with the news: we are going tonight! However, none of us cheered at the news. We were glad we still had the 8-hour window that night but we knew we had to make it FAST. That, will not be easy above 5000m. Chit chat immediately followed after a period of silence. Snowcats could help us get back to where we acclimatized to increase our chances of success, but how high should we take it to? Or more accurately, how high should we take it that we would still consider it a true summit ourselves?
I and another experienced Chilean climber decided to take it to 4800m to ensure our summit success. The majority of others would take it to 5100m. The one brave souled Dane will attempt it right from the hut. Anna accepted the challenge of organizing the complicated logistics between climbers starting at different altitudes. The brave Dane will start climbing the first 3 hours ahead. The rest of us will take the Snowcat together. Me and Chilean will climb at a faster pace to catch up with the group starting at 5100m.
After dinner, all was set and done. Now we either sleep or toss and turn till our early morning call.