Wild Camp At 2170m

Day 2 of the Gold Expedition Assessment started early in the dark, for us and for the groups. James and I got into position on the hillside and waited for the groups to appear.. Jason had to work on admin and difficult logistics. I had some time to study the wildlife, marmots yesterday, crickets and grasshoppers today.

The sun soon hit the valley and everything instantly heated up - sunglasses and suncream on.

Group 1 (Team Awesome!) had the great idea of taking a short cut to reduce the walk.. Normally a good idea, except when the path disappears and turns into a loose, steep bramble fest. I watched the group - ready to step in, but they did really well and found a good route through - with only minimal scratches!

Can you see team Awesome now, making their way up the hill?

I had some more time, so I watched a cricket having a great time on my sock!!

The cricket got bored, so I got it involved and it did my nav for me...

Yet another fantastic hot day..

George looking good, powering forward.

Tom found a different way up!

Charlie was soon behind... We later found out that his massive rucsac was mostly filled with food - which he promptly started to eat.

James.

So it was a great day and all did well. They proved themselves to be fit and strong. Their training and time in the gym has paid off. They did the big climb fast, and powered into camp. They were not all impressed by the idea of a wild camp, but we couldn't have given them a more beautiful spot. However, they clearly stated that they were looking forward to their 'campsite' tomorrow!

I was drawn towards a cheeky via ferrata in the evening, and got up and down in under half an hour..