The next day a more serious acclimatisation walk awaited us. Near the start of the route we came to a rather interesting spot known as the „German airfield“. The place was once used as an airfield during the war, and the reason for that lay in its particular terrain. Then we climbed higher still, reaching three thousand one hundred metres. Here stood a place with the amusing name of the „stone mushrooms“. That day we were also given a lesson in using trekking poles, taught how to walk over boulders and rocks, and shown how to breathe properly, which matters especially in the mountains.
I watched with interest as nature changed with the increase in altitude. The bright, saturated colours began to fade, and more muted shades took their place. Because of the rocky ground the flora grew far sparser. As for our walk, it was pretty hard going. At the end of the day we came back down to base camp, where a good supper and a rest were waiting for us.
The following day we had to carry some of our things up to the upper camp at three thousand seven hundred metres and then return to sleep at the lower camp at two thousand six hundred metres. As it turned out, though, everyone in the group felt well, and we decided not to waste the day but to try to go up. The guides gave us the useful advice not to take anything unnecessary. I packed my rucksack quickly, took a little food and a couple of gas canisters, and was horrified by its weight. I can say with confidence that I had never had to lift such a heavy rucksack before. We set off, and one of the women in the group unfortunately pulled a tendon in her leg. I still do not understand how she managed to climb. Perhaps women really are tougher than men. Interestingly, before a walk, just as before a run, you need to warm up, and afterwards you need to cool down. I was lucky in that I had no injuries or strains at the time.
We took the same route as the day before, but now with heavy rucksacks. We tried to move slowly and at a single pace, which made the climb easier, especially with an enormous pack on your back. The vegetation had all but disappeared, and we had to walk over big boulders that sometimes rocked underfoot or rolled away. I was astonished at how quickly the body was getting used to unfamiliar conditions. Only a few days earlier I would not have agreed to walk over rocks like that without protection, and now I had a heavy rucksack on my back as well. It grew colder and colder, and ice showed through between the rocks. After seven hours of climbing we were all very tired. We supported each other, and it helped me to see that even slight young women were walking with rucksacks just as heavy. On that climb I came to appreciate how comfortable my rucksack and my lightweight trekking boots were: the weight of the pack was distributed well onto my hips, and the boots did not slide on the rocks or catch against each other. Along the way we came across a rescue service base, where we were given hot tea and allowed to rest. To set up camp beneath the well-known rocks we had to go further, across the glacier, and put on mountaineering boots for the first time. Nine hours later we managed to reach the site of the second camp. Here there was a spit of black volcanic rock in the middle of the glacier at the foot of Elbrus. The view really was extraordinary and even slightly extraterrestrial – a mass of ice, rock and cloud drifting beneath our feet. At that moment, though, we were so tired that none of it mattered. Besides, we had reached three thousand seven hundred metres for the first time, and every new step was an effort and left us breathless. We pitched the tents quickly, boiled water and crawled inside, wanting only to recover. It felt strange: there was a kind of fussiness and nervousness about us, and concentrating was difficult. I spent half an hour looking for something in my rucksack, while someone else wandered about near the tent for a long time. We must all have looked rather comical at that point. The lack of oxygen was working on our brains, and with the last of my strength I climbed into my sleeping bag and fell asleep at once.
As on the previous days, I woke again at five in the morning. My head was clear and no longer bothering me. I stepped out of the tent and was delighted by the beauty in front of me: magnificent clouds spread out below me, and above them rose Elbrus itself, shining in the rays of the rising sun. We put on our specialist clothing. Despite how light it was, it felt as though you were walking around in a spacesuit, because nothing let the wind through. Perhaps the altitude was affecting how I perceived it. After breakfast we set off on an acclimatisation walk to four thousand five hundred metres, heading for the Lenz Rocks. We learned how to put crampons on properly and how to rope up, and off we went. I can say with complete confidence that moving fast at that altitude is impossible and even harmful. After a couple of hours or so a strong wind got up and the sun disappeared behind cloud. It grew much colder and we had to add layers. The temperature stayed unpredictable: the sun came out from behind the clouds again, the wind dropped and it turned hot. In the end I overheated in warm clothing, because I had quickened my pace, wanting to reach the rest stop sooner.