Q&A: Jonah Fisher at Everest Base Camp

The Chinese climbing team lights the Olympic torch on top of Everest

Tibetan and Chinese climbers have carried the Olympic torch to the summit of Everest.

Jonah Fisher, along with other foreign journalists, was invited by the Chinese authorities to cover the event from the Everest base camp. Readers asked him questions on the ascent and about being at the camp.

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Q. I'm extremely envious of you being at Base Camp. I've always dreamt of summiting Everest and have hopefully got quite a few years ahead of me to build up to it. I am interested in how you found the altitude getting to Base Camp (or indeed did you go any higher?) and whether you felt the need to take Diamox to aid acclimatisation.
James Mantle, Cambridge, UK

The group of international journalists moved from close to sea level in Beijing to 5,300m near the base of Mount Everest in four days. That is much faster than doctors recommend. My colleague Peter Emmerson and I did take pills called Diomox which are supposed to help the body adjust to high altitude. For the initial few days at high altitude we were both sick to different extents.

The advantage we had over trekkers is that we were driven all the way to Everest, and once there we had no need for great physical effort. Of the first 24 hours at high altitude I spent almost all of my time lying on my bed to try and give my body a chance to adjust.

After a few days at high altitude we stopped taking medication and though we were no longer feeling sick we still became breathless at the slightest physical effort.

Q. Is this the first time the torch has been to Everest? What other places are left for the torch to visit in the future? The moon?
Alex Ireland, Macclesfield, UK

This is the first time the torch has been to Everest. In the past it has been underwater at the Great Barrier Reef and flown on Concorde. It will be interesting to see what London's plans are for the torch in 2012. It's going to be very hard to top sending the flame to the summit of Everest.

Q. How do the local Tibetans feel about the torch relay?
Channel, Shanghai, China

I really wish I could answer this question. But everyone we met during our two weeks in Tibet was carefully selected by our Chinese minders. At Everest itself we were extremely isolated - so there was no question of walking off to chat with some locals. Even the Tibetans who were helping look after journalists became extremely worried if you asked them something political.

Q. Could you tell us how climbers from different parts of the world reacted when they were forced to stay at base camp by the Governments of Nepal and China until the Olympic flame reached the summit?
Yougraj Bhatta, Nepal Kapilvastu, Taulihawa

From what I've heard climbers waiting at Everest base camp in Nepal have been extremely frustrated. There is now real concern that with the route to the summit re-opening lots of climbers will attempt the top. With a number of bottlenecks delays will increase and hence the chance of a tragic accident.

Security at Everest base camp in Tibet is so tight that there are no climbers waiting to ascend. Given the political situation in Tibet it looks unlikely that any international climbers will attempt the summit from the Northern side during the May weather window.

Q. How did China choose the team to make this ascent? Are they the elite of Chinese and Tibetan mountaineers?
John Franklin, Congleton, UK

Everest marks a great success for China in the troubled torch relay

The Chinese had an extensive selection process which culminated in the announcement of the 31 member team to complete this mission. Of the 31, 22 are Tibetan mountaineers. The organisers were keen to stress the diverse ethnic backgrounds of the torchbearers. Most of the climbers had been to the summit of Everest at least once before.

Q. There are quite a few people suggesting that this is a propaganda stunt. How is the guy with the torch climbing at 25,000ft? How do you get all those people up on top? With respect to all the guys out there, what proof have they shown you that they are actually up there?
Mark, UK

Conditions at the top of Everest are so challenging that it was always unlikely that anyone apart from the climbers and the Chinese state broadcaster CCTV would witness it. When the journalists were prevented from watching the climbers leave base camp and denied information I started to wonder myself how we'd know whether the climb was for real or not.

Last year there was a full rehearsal which made it to the summit with a prototype torch. CCTV was also involved then - so when bad weather delayed early attempts I started to wonder whether they might show that footage again. But having been at base camp when the torch made it to the summit this year I have absolutely no doubt that the climbers made it to the top.

Firstly when I arrived early in the morning at base camp, I saw a number of flashes coming from near the top of the mountain at the same location that the CCTV coverage was placing them. The mountaineers were obviously taking flash pictures of each other. A photographer colleague of mine also took a digital photo of Everest from base camp at high resolution and then proceeded to zoom in on the key area. It was just possible to make out some of the climbers crossing a snow slope before the summit.

Having been thoroughly messed around by the Chinese, the group of international journalists who were at base camp would have been the first to question the validity of what happened, but no-one who was there expressed any doubts whatsoever.

Q. What is the safest and best time of the year to go up Mount Everest? Is oxygen always necessary? Do you know of any diabetics who have reached the top?
Michael Boshell, Abu Dhabi, UAE

The main window for climbers is in May. I don't know about diabetics, but I would not be surprised if several had been to the top. Everest has been climbed by people with all sorts of disabilities including amputees and the blind.

Q. I must congratulate China for this feat, they deserve a lot of respect. How long did it take from one camp to another and for the final assault? Was the climb more difficult than the usual face?
Am Malik, Karachi, Pakistan

We were not told the exact details of the climbers progression up the mountain. What we do know is that they were spending most of their time at Advanced Base Camp which is 6,500m above sea level. From there, moving at a steady speed it is possible to get to the summit in two days. On this occasion the final night was spent at 8,300m before beginning to climb at three in the morning. The team reached the summit at 8,848m six and a half hours later.

Q. How did the journalists get provisions of food and water?
June, Birmingham, UK

Food for the journalists was trucked in from Tingri county about 120km (70 miles) away. Water was taken from a nearby stream melted straight from a glacier. The local Tibetan women who looked after us delivered flasks of hot water to us every morning and evening.

Q. We would like to know how the Olympic torch stays alight while it goes up the mountain? What is the temperature there now?
Year 5 and 6. Bladon CE Primary School, Bladon, Oxfordshire, UK

If the same torch that travelled the world had been used it would have gone out due to the high winds and low oxygen. So scientists designed a special set of flame carrying equipment for this event. The flame was carried up Everest in lanterns which were strapped onto the backpacks of the climbers.

They were burning solid fuel - and just in case something did go wrong there were several reserve lanterns on standby. At the summit a special wand was used to transfer the flame from the lantern to a specially designed torch. These torches also used a special fuel and could burn for about seven minutes each. At the top of Everest it's extremely cold. At the time the torch reached the top it was about -30C.