Scott Hamilton Sunday, May 9 Everest Base Camp, Nepal

The balance of May 6 was spent performing medical research in the Italian research facility located at Lobuche, a great place to work. Dr. Christian Macedonia completed 3_d Doppler ultrasound scans of the carotid, brachial and tibial posterior arteries of a number of research subjects. Dr. Javier Davila performed stress cardiac output tests while Jennifer Kreshak used the I-stat portable blood chemistry analysis unit. Dr. Jennifer Grin completed a full set of visual acuity tests, and Grant Goldin administered psychometric inventories on all expedition members.

Early in the morning of May 7th the E-3 team left Lobuche to trek to Gorak Shep, which literally means "dead crow" in Nepali. It is a tiny hamlet of just two buildings labeled "A" and "B", and serves as an outpost at the end of the world for yak drivers, porters and trekkers from around the world. After making camp on a windswept yak pasture the E-3 team entered building "B" for a most interesting dining experience. The tiny dining room had a dirt floor, blue plastic ceiling and a couple of filthy bunks which served as dinner seats. Attached to this room was a group "dormitory" stuffed to the rafters with an incredible cross section of humanity, their eyes reflecting the light emitted by our kerosene pressure lamps. Heat was provided by a small stove made from an old oil drum. Fuel was provided in the form of dried yak chips which burned well, while emitting an interesting odor. The team was quite happy to return to their tents after dinner.

On the morning of May 8th the E-3 team headed out on the final leg of its journey to Everest Base Camp. Although relatively short in distance, the trek was a difficult and treacherous traverse along the lateral moraine of the Khumbu Glacier, and eventually moving out onto the icy slopes of the glacier itself. The difficulty was compounded by a late afternoon blizzard, heaping nearly 6 inches of snow onto the narrow track and obscuring visibility. By 4pm the entire team had arrived at Everest Base Camp and immediately set to work erecting tents and establishing the medical clinic and research center.

From first light on May 9th the E-3 team has been hard at work establishing its medical and research facility.One of the tents collapsed overnight due to a excessive snow load, and members were awakened several times during the night by massive avalanches thundering down the steep slopes of Mt. Nuptse, located right next to Base Camp. The solar power system was hooked up and appears to be functioning well in spite of the ongoing snow squalls. Dr. Kamler and Dr. Nick Craig sorted all the medical supplies and established a first-class medical facility. Dr. Chris Macedonia performed an ultrasound analysis on a sick climber from another group, and the E-3 team conducted it first telemedicine conference with Yale University. Tomorrow the medical research team goes into full swing. Stay tuned, as we hope to be able to provide daily updates now that we are established at Everest Base Camp.

Scott Hamilton