Expedition Update

May 31st
Expedition Team "Steps Out" in grand style--Traditional Everest Summiteers' "Yeti Foot" placed in prominent place in Rum Doodle restaurant in Kathmandu

In Kathmandu, one of the most famous and popular restaurants is Rum Doodle in the Thamel district (heart of the tourist district). One of the special privileges that mountaineers receive when they become Everest Summiteers is the chance to place a wooden plaque in the Rum Doodle with their signatures and team information on it (photo above). Crafted in the shape of a giant Yeti foot, these expedition plaques crowd the walls of the restaurant, and make fascinating reading for diners and visitors. Each team of course likes to find an especially prominent place in the restaurant to attach their Yeti foot plaque.

Tom McMillan reported by sat phone from Kathmandu that today the Friendship Beyond Borders Expedition Team was honored with a big party at Rum Doodle, courtesy of Peak Promotion Director Wongchu Sherpa. The team was presented with a beautifully made Yeti foot plaque that included the names of all the expedition team members, including Linda and Lincoln who are now back in California. The owner of the restaurant was also on hand and directed the team to place their plaque in the most prominent and visible part of the restaurant.

On May 30th, Dr. Luanne Freer of the Himalayan Rescue Association (HRA) volunteer clinic at Everest Base Camp (and one of our delightful campmates there) also was honored with a party at Rum Doodle the previous day. She received a service award from the HRA along with an Honorary Yeti Foot.

Here is more information about the Rum Doodle restaurant, where our expedition's history is now officially enshrined:

"Rum Doodle Restaurant and 40,000 1/2 ft Bar is a favorite hangout for mountaineers and trekkers alike. Rum Doodle is famous for the Everest Summiteer's Club with a large collection of Everest Summiteers signatures. Everest Summiteers like Sir Ed. Hillary, Messner, Tabei, Ang Rita, Rob Hall, Garry Ball and many of the famous climbers have all left their footprints behind. Nearly two-thirds of climbers who have reached the summit of the highest mountain in the world have added their names to the walls of the restaurant, a tradition started in 1983 by New Zealander Sir Edmund Hillary, who scaled Mount Everest on May 27, 1953 with Sherpa Tenzing Norgay. Since then, more than 700 of the 1,200 men and women who have reached the summit have added their names to the wall. Rum Doodle has also been host to former U.S president Jimmy Carter and Rosalyn Carter, and Former Japanese premier Ryutaro Hashimoto."

What? You never heard of the 40,000-1/2 foot high Rum Doodle? Read all about the legend of Rum Doodle...

"A bumbling group of British mountaineers mounts an assault on Rum Doodle, a slightly higher neighbor of Everest, in Bowman's parody novel. First published in 1956, The Ascent of Rum Doodle quickly became a mountaineering classic. As an outrageously funny spoof about the ascent of a peak in the Himalayas, many thought it was inspired by the 1953 conquest of Everest. But Bowman had drawn on the flavour and tone of earlier adventures, of Bill Tilman and his 1937 account of the Nandi Devi expedition. The book’s central and unforgettable character, Binder, is one of the finest creations in comic literature."