Scott Hamilton Friday, May 21 Lobuche, Nepal

The E-3 team is camped in a Yak pasture next to the Italian Research facility located at Lobuche. The team made the long journey from Mt. Everest Base Camp yesterday, and is now engaged in a full day of additional high altitude medical research. Dr. Ken Kamler and Dr. Chris Macedonia treated a tuberosity fracture of the shoulder of a yak driver who was injured when a balky yak knocked him down and dumped its load on his upper body. Life is tough in these regions! Several trekkers have also sought aid from the doctors of the E-3 Project, although we have not encountered anything unusual and exotic...so far.

parts. Our plan is to head out early tomorrow morning to descend to the village of Pheriche for lunch, and then continue to Deboche for the night. Our total vertical drop in altitude during the day will be almost 4,500' and should be a welcome return to the land of blooming flowers, trees and enhanced oxygen content. The team is looking forward to it! The following day our plan is to continue our trek past the Tengboche Monastery, through Phungi Thangka, then along the high narrow trail to Namche Bazzar. It is sure to be an arduous couple of days. Because we'll be on the move, the E-3 team will not be able to deploy our satellite communication gear and will therefore not be able to provide another web update until we arrive in Namche on 5/23.

Once we arrive in Namche Bazaar we will spend another full day engaged in medical research. On 5/25 we plan to trek to Phakding Village, then to Lukla on 5/26. If the Gods' are willing, the E-3 team will fly back to Kathmandu on 5/27 via chartered STOL Twin Otter Aircraft. More adventure awaits us between now and our arrival in Kathmandu, scheduled for six days from now. We'll continue to send updates whenever we can as our journey to the land that lives below the clouds continues.