Where to start? What a day. I was able to speak to Randy, Paula and Alex at separate times. Lots to report, some ups and downs, and I guess I will start with some very encouraging news.
The Barrs: They are doing awesome! As Paula said, "I thought we'd all feel horrible and gross by now, but I'm feeling surprisingly good." And today was a very, very big day because they climbed all the way up to 15,000 and back down to sleep at 13,000 at the Barranco Camp. The purpose of today was acclimatizing, get up high and sleep lower. Dan and Caroline each had a little headache today, which is to be expected as their bodies adjust to skinny air, but of course our rock star Paula did not have a headache. She said she definitely feels the altitude as she's climbing and trying to keep her breath, but she really feels strong. And even some of her injuries she'd been concerned about are not bothering her at all like her knee and her plantar fasciitis. She again said the whole thing is just "amazing" and she's "so happy to be here". Paula is always one to notice natural beauty all around her. When we hike and even when we walk around Delaware, she is always the one first one to point out a flower or a pretty tree. She definitely takes time to "stop and smell the roses". One day Randy went hiking in Shenandoah with Paula, Lori and me and couldn't believe the three of us never stopped talking all day, looking at all the flowers, the bushes, the beautiful settings by the stream, most of them pointed out by Paula. We wonder why we never see a bear and it's because we never stop talking; we scare them all away! So not surprisingly, Paula is continually marveling at the diverse landscape, the glacial waterfall, and the crazy vegetation. She said as they ascend it's like being in a sci-fi movie, or on the moon, or in a Dr. Seuss book. Everything is so dramatic and so some things so unusually HUGE! Below is a picture their guide posted of the team on the RMI website. You can see what Paula means about the startling landscape.
I asked her how Danny felt about it all because early on he wasn't as gung-ho as Paula about the expedition. He signed on because Paula was so excited to try it. But Paula said he is totally into it and doing great. Today he said he wouldn't want to be anywhere else. Very cool! Even the Best Western in Luray, Danny?? And Caroline is also doing so well and staying strong. In Randy's opinion, the three of them are doing "awesome" and "certainly on the path to summit, although of course no one can predict what happens in next few days." They still have a very tough road ahead, which I'll recap at the end. Summit day is not until Sunday -- the 15th anniversary of 9/11!
Now, one of the challenges of the day: Alex
I had reported that Alex's stomach was starting to act up yesterday. He ate a light dinner last night, as bland as possible. Then he and Randy tried to go to sleep early around 9pm. At 11pm Alex woke Randy because he was so terribly sick. I apologize if this is TMI, but he threw up and had diarrhea all night. Randy got him water, rubbed his back, helped him as much as he could, and the two of them basically stayed up all night. Randy evaluated Alex's symptoms and assessed that this was an intestinal issue and not altitude sickness, so gave Alex some Cipro, more Imodium, and later Pepto Bismol. Alex was curled up in his sleeping bag in their little tent, feeling just horrible, sort of moaning, trying to stay positive, and wondering what this meant for the rest of their trip. Thank God Randy was with him. He told Alex not to worry, let's just get you healthy and we'll figure it out out in the morning.
Alex described it as "the worst night of my life". Not to mention they were in a sparse, dusty camp, 12,000 feet up into the sky, in the middle of nowhere. He was not in his private clean bathroom at home, or even (and this shockingly seems more appealing), his hygienically-challenged dorm bathroom at Boston College. Need I say more?
At 6AM they spoke with the head guide, Mark, who was not too worried. He'd seen this many times before, thought Cipro would really help soon. The problem was Alex was completely depleted because of the difficult night. And they also really didn't know if his stomach was better or if he'd start having problems today on the steep ascent. Randy told Alex there was zero pressure to continue, but it's possible he'd feel better as the day went on. So believe it or not, Alex decided to go for it. Randy packed all of Alex's stuff up, packed his backpack, took Alex's water in his own pack to lighten Alex's load, and off they went, straight uphill.
Alex said Randy helped so much, that there's no way he could have kept going if Randy wasn't there with him. It was a struggle to climb, especially at first, but he just tried to put one foot in front of the other and hope the medicine would do the trick. At one point, Mike had one of the porters take Alex's backpack so Alex could just focus on getting himself up the mountain. That helped quite a bit. Alex drank lots of water, ate only had a handful of pretzels and some gummy bears the whole entire way, but he hung in there. Randy said Alex really was a superstar to push through this day. They ended up hiking for 7 hours and 47 minutes, 6.5 miles, climbed up 2224 feet then descended 1584 to camp.
Paula thought Alex was "a trooper; one tough cookie" and she couldn't believe his strong will to keep going. She'd checked in with him to see if he was OK and he would say, "Well, I'm still walking!" Besides how relieved I am to have Randy there with Alex, and thankful Randy is feeling so strong and healthy and can focus on Alex, it is reassuring that the Barr family, especially Paula, is there too -- nice to have a Mom around!
I spoke with Alex right before his dinner tonight and he thought his stomach was settling down and the Cipro was working, so he was planning to go eat a very bland meal and sleep as soon as possible. I haven't heard from them since so hopefully that means they hit the hay after dinner.
So who knows? Hopefully this was just a short term intestinal infection he picked up from the water or the food, and Cipro will do the trick. It always amazes me that Randy, with his very compromised arthritic knee, is so strong and tough. Ironman endurance. Evidently all those injections from Dr. Galinat did the trick. Randy said he feels better than ever, very strong, and definitely within his capability to keep going. He's just concerned about Alex and assured me whatever happens, they'll stay together. We had both told Alex that if Randy for some reason can't summit, Alex should just stay with the team and keep going if he feels good. But I don't think Randy would leave Alex.
This is the kind of stuff that makes MY stomach hurt even though I'm at about 11 feet altitude and safe at home. What is comforting is that I have so much faith in Randy and Alex to make the right decision about continuing. And I have faith in their guide Mark who has extremely impressive experience.
Positive thoughts and prayers for my little guy. Yes, I know he's 23, strong and fit, but he's the youngest of our four kids with such a kind and warm personality, so he is still my "little guy". Most importantly, I want him to be safe and feel good, but for his sake, I'd love for him to be able to keep going. He's worked hard for this. And please send positive thoughts to Randy and the Barr family and the rest of the team to stay healthy, safe, and keep on keeping on. Everyone did commendably well on a tough day.
Here's a couple of pictures their guide posted from the Barranco Camp at 13,000 ft.
Tomorrow they climb the 300 meter imposing and notorious Barranco Wall and end up sleeping again at 13,000+. Next day they climb another 2000 feet up and sleep at 15,000. And then they get up in the very wee hours on Sunday (the 15th anniversary of 9/11) and hike 7 or 8 hours up to 19,341 feet, then turn around and go 4 - 6 hours back to 10,000 feet. In one day -- just a walk in the park!
Can't wait to hear from them tomorrow, hopefully with good news about Alex's health and everyone's safe and successful day!
Comments: Several have asked re leaving comments. I fixed it so all you have to do is click on "no comments" or "1 comment, etc" below each post and fill in the text box. I can pass on your encouragement if you 'd like to comment.
Till tomorrow, Judy
The Barrs: They are doing awesome! As Paula said, "I thought we'd all feel horrible and gross by now, but I'm feeling surprisingly good." And today was a very, very big day because they climbed all the way up to 15,000 and back down to sleep at 13,000 at the Barranco Camp. The purpose of today was acclimatizing, get up high and sleep lower. Dan and Caroline each had a little headache today, which is to be expected as their bodies adjust to skinny air, but of course our rock star Paula did not have a headache. She said she definitely feels the altitude as she's climbing and trying to keep her breath, but she really feels strong. And even some of her injuries she'd been concerned about are not bothering her at all like her knee and her plantar fasciitis. She again said the whole thing is just "amazing" and she's "so happy to be here". Paula is always one to notice natural beauty all around her. When we hike and even when we walk around Delaware, she is always the one first one to point out a flower or a pretty tree. She definitely takes time to "stop and smell the roses". One day Randy went hiking in Shenandoah with Paula, Lori and me and couldn't believe the three of us never stopped talking all day, looking at all the flowers, the bushes, the beautiful settings by the stream, most of them pointed out by Paula. We wonder why we never see a bear and it's because we never stop talking; we scare them all away! So not surprisingly, Paula is continually marveling at the diverse landscape, the glacial waterfall, and the crazy vegetation. She said as they ascend it's like being in a sci-fi movie, or on the moon, or in a Dr. Seuss book. Everything is so dramatic and so some things so unusually HUGE! Below is a picture their guide posted of the team on the RMI website. You can see what Paula means about the startling landscape.
Now, one of the challenges of the day: Alex
I had reported that Alex's stomach was starting to act up yesterday. He ate a light dinner last night, as bland as possible. Then he and Randy tried to go to sleep early around 9pm. At 11pm Alex woke Randy because he was so terribly sick. I apologize if this is TMI, but he threw up and had diarrhea all night. Randy got him water, rubbed his back, helped him as much as he could, and the two of them basically stayed up all night. Randy evaluated Alex's symptoms and assessed that this was an intestinal issue and not altitude sickness, so gave Alex some Cipro, more Imodium, and later Pepto Bismol. Alex was curled up in his sleeping bag in their little tent, feeling just horrible, sort of moaning, trying to stay positive, and wondering what this meant for the rest of their trip. Thank God Randy was with him. He told Alex not to worry, let's just get you healthy and we'll figure it out out in the morning.
Alex described it as "the worst night of my life". Not to mention they were in a sparse, dusty camp, 12,000 feet up into the sky, in the middle of nowhere. He was not in his private clean bathroom at home, or even (and this shockingly seems more appealing), his hygienically-challenged dorm bathroom at Boston College. Need I say more?
At 6AM they spoke with the head guide, Mark, who was not too worried. He'd seen this many times before, thought Cipro would really help soon. The problem was Alex was completely depleted because of the difficult night. And they also really didn't know if his stomach was better or if he'd start having problems today on the steep ascent. Randy told Alex there was zero pressure to continue, but it's possible he'd feel better as the day went on. So believe it or not, Alex decided to go for it. Randy packed all of Alex's stuff up, packed his backpack, took Alex's water in his own pack to lighten Alex's load, and off they went, straight uphill.
Alex said Randy helped so much, that there's no way he could have kept going if Randy wasn't there with him. It was a struggle to climb, especially at first, but he just tried to put one foot in front of the other and hope the medicine would do the trick. At one point, Mike had one of the porters take Alex's backpack so Alex could just focus on getting himself up the mountain. That helped quite a bit. Alex drank lots of water, ate only had a handful of pretzels and some gummy bears the whole entire way, but he hung in there. Randy said Alex really was a superstar to push through this day. They ended up hiking for 7 hours and 47 minutes, 6.5 miles, climbed up 2224 feet then descended 1584 to camp.
Paula thought Alex was "a trooper; one tough cookie" and she couldn't believe his strong will to keep going. She'd checked in with him to see if he was OK and he would say, "Well, I'm still walking!" Besides how relieved I am to have Randy there with Alex, and thankful Randy is feeling so strong and healthy and can focus on Alex, it is reassuring that the Barr family, especially Paula, is there too -- nice to have a Mom around!
I spoke with Alex right before his dinner tonight and he thought his stomach was settling down and the Cipro was working, so he was planning to go eat a very bland meal and sleep as soon as possible. I haven't heard from them since so hopefully that means they hit the hay after dinner.
So who knows? Hopefully this was just a short term intestinal infection he picked up from the water or the food, and Cipro will do the trick. It always amazes me that Randy, with his very compromised arthritic knee, is so strong and tough. Ironman endurance. Evidently all those injections from Dr. Galinat did the trick. Randy said he feels better than ever, very strong, and definitely within his capability to keep going. He's just concerned about Alex and assured me whatever happens, they'll stay together. We had both told Alex that if Randy for some reason can't summit, Alex should just stay with the team and keep going if he feels good. But I don't think Randy would leave Alex.
This is the kind of stuff that makes MY stomach hurt even though I'm at about 11 feet altitude and safe at home. What is comforting is that I have so much faith in Randy and Alex to make the right decision about continuing. And I have faith in their guide Mark who has extremely impressive experience.
Positive thoughts and prayers for my little guy. Yes, I know he's 23, strong and fit, but he's the youngest of our four kids with such a kind and warm personality, so he is still my "little guy". Most importantly, I want him to be safe and feel good, but for his sake, I'd love for him to be able to keep going. He's worked hard for this. And please send positive thoughts to Randy and the Barr family and the rest of the team to stay healthy, safe, and keep on keeping on. Everyone did commendably well on a tough day.
Here's a couple of pictures their guide posted from the Barranco Camp at 13,000 ft.
Tomorrow they climb the 300 meter imposing and notorious Barranco Wall and end up sleeping again at 13,000+. Next day they climb another 2000 feet up and sleep at 15,000. And then they get up in the very wee hours on Sunday (the 15th anniversary of 9/11) and hike 7 or 8 hours up to 19,341 feet, then turn around and go 4 - 6 hours back to 10,000 feet. In one day -- just a walk in the park!
Can't wait to hear from them tomorrow, hopefully with good news about Alex's health and everyone's safe and successful day!
Comments: Several have asked re leaving comments. I fixed it so all you have to do is click on "no comments" or "1 comment, etc" below each post and fill in the text box. I can pass on your encouragement if you 'd like to comment.
Till tomorrow, Judy
1 comment:
You got this Al!! So proud of you for powering through it. Love you!
Post a Comment