Carstensz Day 8: Camp 5 to Base Camp

What was supposed to be a relatively short 6 to 7 hours climb to Base Camp ended being a gruesome 9 hours day. Despite the early and heavy morning rain, we got off to a good start and were moving along nicely when we noticed none of the porters were in sight or following along.

On the way from C5 to BC.

We had to stop and wait on a dangerous high ridge going up towards New Zealand pass to find out what’s going on with the porters. Since they were carrying our tents and camp equipment, it was pretty dangerous to continue on without having any shelter. While we were stopped, we were struggling to keep our bodies warm since we weren’t moving and it was pouring down rain at an altitude of 4000m/13,000ft.

Climbing up to New Zealand Pass.

After nearly waiting two hours in the freezing rain, we saw the porters appearing down the valley and we started moving again to prevent hypothermia from setting in.

The steep slope of New Zealand Pass.

The terrain has now transformed from the lush greens of the jungle to the rocky granite of the Jaya mountain range. We climbed over New Zealand pass at 4500m/14,750ft and back down the other side to the Carstensz Base Camp at 4330m/14,200ft.

Coming down into Carstensz Base Camp.

It was a great feeling just to get to Base Camp. Phase 1 has been completed and we can now concentrate on our ultimate goal to Summit the Carstensz Pyramid.

Although we got to Base Camp later than expected, we’re going to take a quick rest in our tents and hope for the continuous heavy rain to let up a little bit. We are going for the Summit in just a few hours! The plan is to wake up at 2:00 AM, have breakfast at 2:30 AM and be on the go at 3:00 AM.