Lynn Lippert
In July 2006, I joined a group of 12 climbers and four guides to climb Mt Elbrus in the Baksan Valley of Russia, deep in the Caucasus Mountains – the highest peak in Europe (18,510 feet) and one of the Seven Summits.
We began acclimatizing by hiking to about 11,000 feet on the first two days and coming back down to sleep. On day three, we moved up to the 'barrels,’ huge old gas tanks converted to cozy sleeping facilities, at 12,000 feet and stayed there for two nights, practicing rope team travel on the glacier. On day four, we hiked up to Pastukov rocks (15,400 feet) and back down. We then moved our camp up to the Pruitt hut area and enjoyed an afternoon of beautiful weather before our summit attempt.
Day six, we got up at 2:30 a.m. and left for the summit at about 3 a.m. A storm had blown in quickly and the weather was terrible – cold, snowy, very windy, with very little visibility. After about four hours of climbing in worsening weather, we turned around above 16,000 feet. The terrible weather continued throughout the seventh day, so we stayed put at the hut. Day eight would be our last chance to summit as we had used up all of our time. When we went to bed that night, no one felt that we would make the summit because the bad weather continued.
On day eight, we got up at 12:30 a.m. and were off by 2 a.m. It was still windy and cold, but it was clear and I could see a crescent moon. It wasn't snowing, but the wind was blowing the new snow across the ground. To conserve energy, I concentrated on foot placement and efficient breathing. After about seven-and-a-half hours, the team graciously let me summit first, either because I was the oldest or the only cancer survivor in the group. Being on the summit was a special and emotional time. We only spent about 20 minutes on top before starting the long descent.
Much later at the hotel in the valley floor, we gathered for a wonderful dinner and toasted with champagne, followed by a shot of vodka (puts hair on your chest!). I had climbed well, had no altitude or other problems on the mountain, and I had come back safely. It doesn't get any better than that. I was proud of my teammates and myself. We worked well together, had fun and shared success. I raised more than $17,000 for breast cancer research at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, which felt really good.
In 2008, I will attempt to climb Iztaccihuatl (nicknamed Ixta) at 17,126 feet and Orizaba at 18,405 feet, the third and seventh highest mountains in North America, and will attempt to raise $30,000 for breast cancer research.
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