Pune-based mountaineering club reaches Camp 1, en route to Mount Everest

PUNE: The team from city-based mountaineering club -- Giripremi has reached Camp 1, en route to Mount Everest, as part of their Lhotse-Everest 2013 expedition.
The team, which left Pune on March 21, halted for a brief period in New Delhi and Kathmandu after which they began their trek in the last week of March. They climbed the foothills of Khumbu and passed through places like Ringmo, Tragsindho, Kharikola, Surkhe and Lukla.
On April 6, the team began their trek from Namche Bazaar, which is at an altitude of 11,286 feet. They continued through Tengboche, Dingboche, Lobuche and Gorakshep, a statement issued by the group said.
After covering more than 50 km over fifteen days and traversing up and down the altitude graph from as low as 5,000 ft to as high as 18,000 ft, the team finally reached Everest Base Camp on April 12.
From there, the team climbed to Khumbu Icefall on April 16 and then on to Pumori High Camp, situated at 18,537 feet. On April 20, the team was all set to make their way up, when they experienced heavy snowfall forcing them to take shelter inside their tents. The snowfall continued for the next three days, freezing all the paths up the mountain, the statement said.
Due to harsh weather conditions, the team was held up at the Everest Base Camp for a few days. When the weather cleared, they finally reached Camp 1 on Wednesday. In next few days, they will move up to Camp 2 and will return to the Base Camp for rest. This is an essential phase in climbing called acclimatisation.