June 2021 – badkneeclub

We live close to the bottom of Solsbury hill.. yes that’s the one in the Peter Gabriel song. It’s official name is little Solsbury hill. While confined to our local area during the various lockdowns and travel restrictions it became a favourite little amble and clamber onto the trig point.

In January this year while walking up there with a friend, she said you must have scaled the height of Everest with the number of ups you have done.

So began the Solsbury hill official tracking of 56 ascents.

Clearly we have to start at sea level so it will take 34 ups to get to base camp at 5400m. Our house is at 30m and Solsbury hill summit is 190m so we figured net up (ignoring the odd down and up in between is 160m)

From sea level to base camp and to the summit = 56 x Solsbury hill from our house

To make an ascent official there needs to be a record, obviously, so maybe I actually did more than 56 but only those with a pic or video clip counted. Also as we decided the first official ascent happened on 8th May 2020 (the first one of the first lockdown) there needed to be some way to remember when the ups had happened.

Ascent #1 – the first of a few zoom gatherings.

Don’t panic I am not going to post 56 pics or video clips.

Ascent #2 coincided with the big 50

Ascent #2 although i didn’t know that at the time

August 7th ascent #14 and a timelapse sunset. Not long before we are reaching Lukla the start of the trek to base camp.

In the end the rest of August, September and October saw zero ascents so reaching the start of the main trek was rather delayed.

Lukla at 2850m was reached on Christmas morning (Ascent #18)

A glorious Christmas morning trying to forget we were supposed to be elsewhere with family. Ascent #18 & arrival at Lukla.

Cheating a little bit on New year’s eve as we had a fireworks show to do from half way up so we didn’t actually walk from the bottom but we made it to the top for some great shots of the show.

Base camp was reached on 6th March 2021

I made it to Camp 1 on ascent #38 on 15th March

The milestones coming thick and fast with Camp 2 at 640o m on the 17th March and Camp 3 on the 23rd and into the Death zone at Camp 4 on 4th April, way ahead of schedule to make the summit within the year of the first ascent on 8th May last year.

I summited on 18th April accompanied by some fellow mountaineers courtesy of the rule of 6.

Thanks for the loan of the flag – Ascent #56

Since then there have been several more ups but I have stopped keeping track. Seems fitting to close this blog entry with another birthday celebration and sunset one year on from ascent #2.

This time with a few more people for company.