Maltese climbers in weeks-long Himalayas acclimatisation period

The challenge8000 team, which is climbing Cho Oyu in the Himalayas ahead of a planned expedition to Mt Everest, reached camp 1 at 6,400 metres and then went back down again to an advanced base camp where the three team members will be spending the next four weeks of acclimatisation.

The expedition is progressing according to the original schedule.

This is the first time a Maltese team is sleeping at that altitude and none of the members has as yet reported any major issues of sickness. And they have even resisted using a pill that delays the incidence of altitude-related sickness and discomforts.

"We'd rather go through the undesirable, yet necessary, process of acclimatising naturally. I'll save Diamox for a later day. Hopefully, I may not get to use it at all," team member Marco Cremona said.

But the three mountain climbers have their feet firmly on the ground - even if this might be higher up than usual - and know that as they climb up the mountain some form of altitude sickness is almost guaranteed. For now, they are getting used to the altitude and Dr Cremona said they are coping well. "My formula is to drink lots, take a paracetamol at night and another in the morning and keep healthy," he said. His belief is that paracetamol induces sleep, although this theory was refuted by fellow team member Gregory Attard, a medical doctor who is well prepared to support his fellow climbers in the case of sickness.

At night, temperatures hover around -10°C - inside the tent - and until last Saturday the snow was continuous, making the three more concerned about the cold, the difficulty to sleep and altitude-related headaches rather than drinking the necessary amount of water to ward of dehydration. But they know that keeping hydrated is crucial to their survival in the subzero temperatures and high elevation.

They are equipped with solar panels to recharge their satellite phone batteries but the weather has been bleak, with very little sun, rendering the charging process next to impossible. According to Dr Cremona, the panels come in different voltages, sizes and shapes and they also have a portable hot shower, which he described as a "luxury" he only got to know about a few days ago. "I have been using a basin and wet wipes until now," he said last week.

For them, a typical day starts between 6.30 and seven with breakfast and a briefing, followed by an acclimatisation trek taking the expedition higher than the previous trek and then back to the advanced base camp where the team rests and spends the night.

The menu on the mountain has so far included mostly rice, biscuits and yak meat.

Over the next few days the team, which includes engineer Robert Gatt, will be moving the gear up to camp 1 in preparation for the higher climbs.

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