Everest Base Camp Reached By Musey On Climb To Benefit The American Red Cross

After a nearly two-week trek carrying supplies through the panoramic Khumbu region of Nepal, J. Armand Musey and eight fellow climbers have reached base camp at 17,500 feet to start final preparations for their ascent of Mt. Everest. Musey, a widely-respected securities analyst in the telecommunications and satellite industries, is climbing Mt. Everest to achieve a personal goal and to raise funds for the American Red Cross’ International Response Fund. In reports via satellite telephone, Musey said about 20 different climbing groups are amassed at the base came on the southern approach to Mt. Everest. This assemblage has created a small tent city of some 400 climbers and their Sherpa guides on the small, rock-strewn plateau.

“We’re busying ourselves setting up camp and practicing walking across long ladders that we’ll use to traverse the large crevasses en route to Camp 1 [the first stage of the ascent],” Musey said in a blog he dictated for posting online at www.museyeverest.com. “Tomorrow, we’ll help rebuild the heliport at base camp. It’s situated on a glacier that’s continually shifting, so there’s a lot of rock removal and clearing of the surface to enable emergency landings and takeoffs. On Thursday we will have our second Puja, a traditional Tibetan blessing. The first one last week was to bless our trip, while this one is specifically directed at blessing our climbing equipment.”

By April 18, Musey and his team will begin their trek to Camp 1. From there, they will return several times to base camp, as part of their continued acclimatization and also to bring supplies for the next push to Camp 2. Sponsors and supporters can follow Musey’s expedition and find information on how to make a donation to the Red Cross in support of his challenge at www.museyeverest.com. Musey is paying the entire cost of the Mt. Everest expedition out of his own funds; all money donated will go directly to the American Red Cross’ International Response Fund. Since he began climbing in 1991, Musey has scaled the highest peaks on six of the seven continents in the world. With his ascent of Mt. Everest in spring of 2008, he will complete the mountaineering challenge of the Seven Summits.