Everyone is now safely off the mountain and have survived the travel back home. The trip turned into quite an ordeal for many of the climbers in our group. Aconcagua can be a very difficult mountain and she did not make it easy for anyone in our climbing group. The combination of serious medical issues for some and very poor weather conditions made it impossible to summit. Nevertheless, thank you to all who made this climb a fundraising success with nearly $27,000 raised! The 22q13 Deletion Foundation appreciates you.
Dan Fisk reached an altitude of 16,300 feet and is now returning to Mendoza. Extremely high winds turned back the majority of the 17 climbers that were apart of our group.
Dan Fisk is still climbing and going strong. Here's a link to Cern's photos (Aconcagua Photos).
Cern Basher returned early from Argentina. "I abandoned my climb on Aconcagua. I had some congestion before I left and was not able to shake it before the climb despite trying to soak up the warm temps in the high 90's in Mendoza. This turned into a major problem for me, as I was not able to sleep very well or at all once we got higher up. This impacted me physically, so by the time we walked into Base Camp, it meant that I wasn't acclimatized very well and very tired. Since I didn't believe that my congestion would go away once we were above 14,000 ft (in fact, it
would have likely gotten worse) I made the decision to abandon the climb and
return home.
While the emotional consequences of the decision were hard, the actual
decision to abandon the climb was easy. I believed that my safety would be
compromised if I continued to push on and I didn't want to be a drag on the
rest of the team. So, exiting at Base Camp was the right decision to make -
leaving the climb higher up would have been more difficult and might have
had consequences for the rest of the team. I didn't want to jeopardize
anyone else's chances of making a summit attempt. Just getting me out of
Base Camp was a huge task for our guides to arrange and fortunately, didn't
impede any one's forward progress.
My friend Dan is still there and when I left him, he was feeling strong, eating well and sleeping well. I'm cheering him on to make the summit."
Our Mt. Kilimanjaro climb was a huge success. All four climbers reached the summit on May 29, 2007. The goal of our climb was to raise awareness of the 22q13 deletion and Phelan-McDermid Syndrome (www.22q13.org) and raise money to help fund the 22q13 Deletion Foundation.
So, we are doing it again. This time it will be Cerro Aconcagua from Feb 7 - 27, 2010. At 22,841 feet (6,962m) Aconcagua in Argentina is the highest peak in the world outside of the Himalaya and is the highest mountain in the Americas. It is 3,500 feet higher than Kilimanjaro. And, it will be a lot more challenging. Known as the highest trek in the world, it will take 21 days and require 14,000 feet of elevation gain to reach the summit. Add unpredictable weather – Aconcagua is known for its blasting winds - and getting to the summit is not guaranteed, even for well-prepared climbers.
I invite you to share this journey with us. It's a journey of both known and unknown challenges. Since our Kilimanjaro climb, the Basher-Dulaney Family has faced numerous challenges. My father battled and won his fight with leukemia, Cindy's father lost his struggle with renal cancer and Cindy herself successfully fought breast cancer. For the climbers, the discomfort and challenges are short-term. For Dane and others with the 22q13 deletion and Phelan-McDermid Syndrome, and those that care for them, the challenges are life-long.
I am climbing Aconcagua to honor my father, Cindy's father, Cindy, our son Dane and all those affected by the 22q13 deletion and Phelan-McDermid Syndrome.
This website has information about our climb team, the mountain and Dane. And, if you are so inclined, please make a donation to the 22q13 Deletion Foundation to help us begin to unravel the mysteries of this syndrome.
Please consider donating to support the 22q13 Deletion Foundation. Our
Firstgiving online donation site can be accessed here.
Also you can buy some cool 22q13 Climb merchandise at our
22q13 Climb Shop.
All proceeds from the shop go to the 22q13 Deletion Foundation.
Photo credits: Many of the photos found on this site were kindly provided by Dan Kenady (DK Imagery), an accomplished photographer and mountain man.
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