Going, Going, Gone

Of course the biggest issue before you leave is not packing, but  trying to keep healthy. At altitude, coughs get worse, cuts and scratches don't heal, and generally sleep is quite difficult due to lack of oxygen - so being in the best shape prior to departure is somewhat important. As anyone with school age children will know, if the kids go to school, they come home with all and everything.  Thankfully enough,  David and Adam were lucky enough to get this year’s flu (David x 2) and have been laid out in bed for the last 48 hours. Adam had an extreme fever yesterday that left him hallucinating (about climbing/current deals/family cat) and with several phone calls that he has no recollection of.  David took the more sensible approach –weight loss is key – every gram counts on summit day, and he shed his fair share.  Alas we are recovering, but would have been happy to avoid the forced weight loss program.  Cross the fingers, all will be OK when we start out.