The Rest of Everest: Episode 61

I'm back from my week long vacation to the Ozarks, and have plenty of things to catch up on, but first things first. While I was away, Episode 61 of The Rest of Everest was released, and while I always look forward to new episodes, this one was extra special, and not just because Jon is once again joined by team leader Ben Clark.

The title for the episode says it all: The End of the Expedition. The climb is over, base camp has been packed-up, and the boys have returned to Kathmandu, where they are invited to join the 50th Anniversary celebration for the first ascent of Everest. While posing as members of the press, Jon and Ben score some great footage of the celebration, including some great shots of Sir Edmund Hillary, the first man, along with Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, to stand on the summit of Everest. As the celebration continues, you'll see some of the traditional dances and hear some of the music from the region. You'll also see more celebrities, such as the son of Tenzing Norgay and Reinhold Messner, who Ben calls the greatest climber to ever live.

The episode begins to wrap up with some final shots of Ben and Jon with some of their friends before departing from home. Jon promises a DVD is in the works for Everest: The Other Side the film that the podcast is based on, and that while this 2003 expedition is over, The Rest of Everest will continue, with new episodes based on other mountaineering projects, both to Everest and other mountains as well.

Along those lines, Ben announced that he's off to China, to continue the exploration of the area that he was climbing in earlier this year. He's also taking an HD camera along to get some great footage to share with us.

Jon made a few announcements of his own. First, he's taking a break from the podcast for a few weeks to regroup and recharge the batteries. He promises that it'll be a short break, and that we'll get new episodes again soon. The other announcement, which is even bigger, is that Jon and his wife Heidi are expecting their first child, and their son Sam will join the Rest of Everest family in just a few months time. Congratulations to Jon and Heidi on this awesome news, and congratulations on closing one chapter of The Rest of Everest, and opening another one. I can't wait to see what you have in store for us my friend.