Sir Ranulph vows 'never again' after second Everest attempt is abandoned

EXHAUSTION brought on by sleep deprivation has forced explorer and adventurer Sir Ranulph Fiennes to abandon a second attempt to conquer Mount Everest.
Sir Ranulph, who lives near Exford, was trying to raise £3 million for the Marie Curie cancer charity from his feat.
Now, he has vowed not to try to climb Everest again.
He had hoped to reach the 29,000 feet summit at 03.30 BST on Saturday, but the 64-year-old had to turn back after contending with heart problems and vertigo.
Sir Ranulph suffered a heart attack during his first unsuccessful attempt to scale the mountain three years ago.
He had set off from base camp on Tuesday and was accompanied by guide Kenton Cool and medic Robert Casserley.
They reached the final stopping-off point in the ascent after negotiating the ‘death zone’.
However, they had not had enough rest as the team had to set out on the final stage of the ascent in the dark because of impending bad weather.
Despite being only a few hundred yards from the summit, they were forced to turn back to base camp after resting
Sir Ranulph said: “I am not exhausted, I just had not had enough sleep.
“You have to accept these things. I am not crying over spilt milk but it was agonisingly close to the summit.
“Luck is not with me on Everest. I was within an ace of doing it. The following day I got back down to base camp in one go. I have got punch if I have had a chance to recharge my batteries.”
His wife, Louise Fiennes, told the BBC that he was keen to return to the UK immediately.
She said: “He just called me an hour ago and asked me to arrange to get him back to Kathmandu. He is desperate to get back to the UK.”
Iswari Paudel, who owns the company which organised Sir Ranulph’s climb, told the BBC he would be flown out by helicopter on Sunday morning.
Sir Ranulph was making his second attempt on the peak despite suffering from vertigo and heart problems and currently being in remission from prostate cancer.
He was the first man to reach both the North Pole and the South Pole by land, ran seven marathons in seven continents in seven days shortly after heart surgery, and journeyed to discover a lost city in Arabia described as ‘the Atlantis of the Sands’.

• Our photograph shows Sir Ranulph on Everest. Photo by Kenton Cool.

Sir Ranulph poised to conquer Everest at second attempt

SIR Ranulph Fiennes is poised for the final push in his second attempt to summit Mount Everest and in the process raise £3 million for the Marie Curie cancer charity.
The Exmoor adventurer, who lives near Exford, expects to reach the 29,000 feet summit at 03.30 BST on Saturday.
Sixty-four-year-old Sir Ranulph and his team set off at dawn for the Khumbu Icefall, one of the most dangerous parts of the route.
The route will take them across Western Cwm, a glacial valley, where they will stay overnight before tackling the six-hour, 650-yard climb to Camp Four.
Then, it will be a case of waiting for the right weather before completing the last part of the climb in around 12 hours, aiming to reach the summit on Saturday.
As the team heads closer to the mountain’s ‘death zone’, the air becomes thinner and the temperature plummets.
Sir Ranulph admits his main concern is exhaustion due to the altitude.
He said: “On past expeditions, particularly long polar treks pulling very heavy weights, the exhaustion factor has come in - but not nearly as bad as here because this is altitude exhaustion.
“So I need a mental defence against the wimpish voice in my head.
“At times like this one has an inner voice saying ‘stop, we have got to stop, it is not sensible to carry on’.
“That is when you need a mental defence. Mine has always been the memory of my grandfather and my father.
“Their spirits are around and watching and I do not want to do anything that will shame them, such as giving up unnecessarily early.”
Sir Ranulph holds several endurance records, among them the successful completion of seven marathons in seven days on seven continents.
Three years ago he was forced to abandon his first attempt on Everest after suffering a heart attack.
Sir Ranulph is raising funds for the Marie Curie ‘Delivering Choice Programme’, which was launched in 2004 with the aim of doubling the number of people who can die at home.
The charity wants to develop and help provide the best possible services for terminally ill patients, allowing them to be cared for in the place of their choice.

• Our photograph shows Sir Ranulph on his earlier Everest attempt. Photo submitted.

Everest Base Camp is first stop for Sir Ranulph

EXMOOR adventurer Sir Ranulph Fiennes has arrived at Everest Base Camp to begin his second attempt to climb the world’s highest mountain.
Sir Ranulph, aged 64, who lives near Exford, hopes to raise £3 million for the Marie Curie ‘Delivering Choice Programme’.
It took an eight-day trek through the Sagamarta National Park for Sir Ranulph’s team to reach Base Camp.
He will now begin the long acclimatisation process which will eventually see him make a bid for the summit in May.
Sir Ranulph said: “By the time we first saw Base Camp in the distance it was a very welcome sight.
“Lots of people try to make it to the Everest Base Camp and a lot do not because of the various problems with altitude sickness - not just headaches but sickness.
“I am feeling confident. The feeling of altitude - even walking in light boots from the tents to the mess tent, you are completely out of breath and you wake up in the night with panicky type breathing.
“It does not bode well, but you have to think of each day as it comes and hope that when the leader takes you over the next bit you are up to it.”
Everest Base Camp, at more than 17,600 feet, is perched on a creaking, shifting glacier at the bottom of the notorious Khumbu Icefall.

• Our photograph shows Sir Ranulph at Everest Base Camp. Photo submitted.