Bond, Annabelle Bond, Conquers Everest: Well, she did it. Annabelle Bond got to the top of Everest, and now her dispatches (May 15, May 16, and May 17) chronicling the climb are in. Read all about the fixed ropes, the way the Sherpas herd everyone up, the tears at the top of the world, and the blisters on the way down:

“I SOON MANAGED TO GET CHULDEN ONE OF THE SHERPAS TO PACE ME AND I PRESSED ON UPWARDS INTO THE WINDY NIGHT UPTOWARDS THE BALCONY. AS WE WERE THE FIRST GROUPS TO GO THE SNOW WAS PRETTY DEEP WHICH MADE IT REALLY ARDUOUS AS YOUR FEET SUNK IN WITH EACH STEP. ALSO, EVERY TIME I THOUGHT ABOUT TURNING BACK I LOOKED AT THE LONG LINE OF FLASHLIGHTS BEHIND ME AND DIDNT FEEL LIKE EXPLAINING WHY I WAS TURNING BACK AT THIS EARLY STAGE TO EVERYONE, AFTERALL ITS REALLY A ONE SHOT MOUNTAIN AND THAT BORE HEAVILY ON MY MIND!!…I WAS NOW WITH ERNESTO AND NURU WHO HAD MY OXYGEN WHICH I WAS WATCHING LIKE A HAWK AND WHENEVER I COULDNT SEE HIM I WOULD YELL AT HIM TO WAIT FOR ME!! I KNEW I WAS READY FOR A CHANGE SOMETIME SOON AND I HAD NO INTENTION OF RUNNING OUT. FINALLY WE REACHED THE SOUTH SUMMIT WHICH WAS AMAZING AND YOU REALLY FEEL LIKE YOU ARE GETTING CLOSE. I STOPPED AND SWITCHED OXYGEN TANKS AND MADE A MENTAL NOT OF HOW LONG I HAD WITH THE NEW TANK AND WE HEADED TOWARDS THE HILARY STEP. ANDRONICO, MISAIL, KIKO AND PALDEN WERE A LITTLE BEHIND US.I GASPED WHEN I SAW THE HILARY STEP, NOT THAT ITS TECHNICALLY DIFFICULT BUT ITS IMPOSING AT THAT HEIGHT AND THERE ARE TWO BIG ROCKY CONES THAT YOU NEED TO NAVIGATE PRIOR TO ARRIVING ON THE LONG SUMMIT RIDGE. OUR SHERPAS TASHI AND LAKPA RITA FIXED THE ROPES ON THE HILARY STEP AND THE SUMMIT RIDGE AND SOON I WAS MAKING MY WAY TO THE HILARY STEP CAREFULLY JUMPING OVER ROCKS AND CREVASSES TO GET TO THE BOTTOM OF THE FIXED LINES AND DESPERATELY TRYING TO AVOID WALKING ANYWHERE NEAR THE TERRIFYING LOOKING CORNICED RIDGE THAT DROPS DOWN INTO THE KANGCHUNG FACE”

The Everest industry. It ain’t necessarily pretty, but it’s damn efficient…



“Hey, check it out! My summit pose!”