Getting closer to the summit

The summit of Mount Cho Oyu is only 3,000 metres away from the three Maltese challengers taking part in Challenge8000.

The challengers - Marco Cremona, Robert Gatt and Gregory Attard, reached base camp yesterday, a Chinese camp where they are spending three nights in individual tents.

So far, they have only had to deal with minor physical ailments including slight nausea and headaches as their bodies adjust to the new altitudes. The base camp is 15,000 feet above sea level.

The team reported that it snowed lightly this morning and the temperature at sunrise was five degrees Celsius.

They said that from now on, waiting was the name of the game.

In the first week of their expedition they have already climbed to over 5,000 metres and the summit was just over 3,000 metres away. But they were 3,000 metres which needed some six weeks to be tackled - physically and mentally.

These six weeks were expected to get exponentially harder as the team climbed into harsher and more unforgiving terrain and as the solitude and physical difficulties increased.

The team is climbing Cho Oyu in preparation for their attempt to climb Mount Everest next year. Should they succeed, they would be the first Maltese to have reached the summit of Mount Everest.

They are being guided by world-renowned Scottish mountaineer Victor Saunders.

The three Maltese have taken up the challenge to raise awareness about asthma and air quality in Malta - it is estimated that 10 per cent of the population is suffering from this pulmonary condition - through its association with the Society of Maltese Asthmatics and the Stop the Dust campaign.

See also:

http://www.timesofmalta.com/life/feats-and-challenges/challenge-8000