Here at ABC we've had light snow, mostly falling at night. Up to six inches can be on the ground by morning, but then the sun burns through the clouds, at times during the day, sublimating most of the snow, heating our tents to unbearable temperatures. Then it's simply gone, this mighty landform less than one mile from our camp. Now and then we can hear a muffled powder avalanche or a serac fall, but mostly it's quiet. The winds shift, sometimes upvalley, sometimes down, as if we are in the middle of a big, lazy low-pressure system, undulating slowly, but in no hurry to move on.
Life is pretty slow here.
Reading, eating, resting, playing bridge, and miscellaneous minor fretting are the predominant activities. Paul's team is the most impatient. They were ready to move onto the route and establish Camp 2. Now they are waiting. Due to the climbing team rotation, the rest of us don't mind the chance to recoup a bit.