A British mountaineer has revealed the reason she and a fellow climber survived after getting stranded on a 10-inch ledge in the Himalayas for days.
Fay Manners was found alive and well with an American climber three days after they were stranded on a mountain having lost their equipment.
Ms Manners, 37, and US climber Michelle Dvorak, 31, had been unaccounted for since Thursday when they got into difficulty while trekking up India’s Chaukhamba mountain.
The pair sent a panicked message back to base camp to say they were in trouble having lost their climbing equipment, tent and food down a gorge.
The mountaineers have now been found safe after being stranded at 6,015 metres on their climb to the peak in Uttarakhand.
Ms Manners, who lives in Chamonix in France, joked that it’s lucky they are good friends because ‘body warmth and cuddling saved’ them.
She said: ‘It was so difficult … seeing the helicopter gave us hope but then as they flew away the sound faded.’
Fay Manners, 37, (right) and US climber Michelle Dvorak, 31, (left) are found safe and well after getting into difficulty on India’s Chaukhamba mountain
The pair were rescued through a joint operation by the Indian Air Force (IAF), the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and the State Disaster Management Authority
The mountaineers have now been found safe after being stranded at 6,015 metres on their climb to the peak in Uttarakhand
Ms Manners (pictured) has been found safe and well after going missing three days ago
Ms Manners was stranded for several days at 6,015 metres on her climb to the mountain’s peak in Uttarakhand
She told The Times: ‘It was just a sinking feeling … and the horror of facing another night here with no food or water and freezing to death.’
Ms Manners said all she wants to do is eat ‘spicy Indian food’ and rest before she goes home.
Incredibly, she hasn’t ruled out attempting Chaukhamba III again, one day – ‘but not for a while yet’.
Kapil Malhotra, their tour operator, said they were so exhausted that they looked drunk when he saw them emerge from the helicopter.
They were evacuated through search efforts by the Indian Air Force (IAF), the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and the State Disaster Management Authority.
Speaking in a video after their rescue, Ms Manners said: ‘We were pulling up my bag, and she had her bag on her, and the rockfall came and cut the rope with the other bag, and it just went down the entire mountain.’
The pair were believed to have sent their SOS message to mountain rescue from a pager when they were 20,350ft up the mountain.
Michelle Theresa Dvorak and Ms Manners, both experienced climbers, sent a message via pager to their liaison officer, saying their bag with food and vital gear had fallen into a gorge
American Michelle Dvorak, 31, (pictured) was also missing alongside Ms Manners
British mountaineer Ms Manners seen on the mountain in a sleeping bag
Chaukhamba is in the Indian Himalayas, near the northern border with China
The Brit, from Bedford, left the UK to move to the Alps to pursue her passion for climbing and became a professional alpinist, sponsored by brands including The North Face and Petzl.
She has become the first person to complete a number of complex routes up various alpine mountains since she moved.
‘My ambition is to inspire women to pursue their interest in alpinism,’ her website reads.
Ms Manners is also a data consultant ‘by night’ according to her Instagram – which has over 15,000 followers.
Her companion, Michelle, is also an experienced climber as well as a teaching assistant at the University of Washington – according to her social media.
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