Olympic torch on top of Mount Everest. Yes, burning.

by Iva Skoch on

Politics aside, this is actually pretty spectacular. Chinese mountaineering team, including a woman from Tibet, took the Olympic flame to the top of the world today, AP reports.

The team used torches designed by rocket scientists to take the flame to the peak of Mount Everest. Fueled by propane, the flame burned brightly in the frigid, windy, oxygen-thin Himalayan air thanks to technology that keeps rocket motors burning in the upper reaches of the atmosphere. The flame was carried most of the way in a special metal canister. As the team neared the summit, they used a wand to pass the flame to the torch.

Wow. All this effort just to say “we did it.”

The Mount Everest climbers were struggling for breath in a live television broadcast as five torchbearers each shuffled a few feet before passing on the flame to the next person. The final torchbearer, a Tibetan woman named Cering Wangmo, stood silently on the peak with her torch while other team members unfurled small Chinese and Olympic flags. They then clustered together, cheering “We made it,” and “Beijing welcomes you.”

One would almost think that China and Tibet are best friends. Almost.

Big in Japan: Tibet unrest changes Everest climbing routes

by Matthew Firestone on

From San Francisco to London and Paris to India, protestors are taking to the streets to demonstrate against China’s hosting of the Olympic Games. Angered by the Chinese government’s refusal to meet with the Dalai Lama, as well as the continued suppression of human rights in potential breakaway regions, the world is seeking to punish China on the eve of its long-anticipated coming out party.

For travelers on the ground in China, independent tourism has never been more difficult, especially since parts of the country have now been entirely closed off to the outside world. Following wave of violence that commenced on March 14th, the Chinese government has entirely barred tourists from entering Tibet. As a so-called ‘autonomous region,’ non-Chinese nationals must obtain special entry permits for Tibet.

Sadly, it’s looking like the ‘Roof of the World’ may remain in relative isolation until the Olympic Games have passed, which is a huge blow at a time when tourism in the region was beginning to flourishing. Here in Japan, this was highlighted recently in the news when Mr. Yuichiro Miura, the 75 year-old thrill seeker who once skied down Everest using a parachute as a brake, announced that he was changing his Everest climbing route.

At the young and spry age of 75, Mr. Miura (alongside his son) was planning on climbing Everest from the Chinese side in a bid to regain his title as the oldest man to climb Everest. However, despite all of the preparations that he has made, his climbing permits were canceled following the unrest in Tibet.

Mr Miura first held the record as the oldest person to climb Everest when he reached the top in 2003 at the age of 70. Although his record was broken just three years later, he is determined to regain it despite having to change his proposed route at the final hour. According to Mr. Miura, who is presently in the Nepali capital of Kathmandu, “We are here to climb and so we will.”

Of course, would-climbers on Everest are also saddened by the current political climate in Nepal, which is threatening to topple the nation’s troubled monarchy. And, China is also exerting pressure to not allow climbers to scale Everest until after the Olympic torch has been carried up and down the summit. Needless to say, a protest at the summit of Everest would not be a great PR moment for the Chinese government!

Despite all of these hurdles however, Mr. Miura is confident that he will shatter the Everest climbing record by the end of May. Mr. Miura is best known for having skied down Everest in 1970, using a parachute as a brake, footage of which later appeared in an Oscar-winning documentary. However, his latest bid for worldwide fame is perhaps even more challenging, given that Mr. Miura is a septuagenarian.

Then again, in a country where living beyond the age of 100 is a pretty common feat, perhaps Mr. Miura shouldn’t be too upset if his travel plans are canceled this year…

** Mr. Miura’s photo was taken by the Agence French-Press (AFP). Other images were courtesy of the WikiCommons Media Project. **

Don’t. Look. Down. Spain’s El Caminito del Rey

by Jeremy Kressmann on

Afraid of heights? Don’t watch this video, shot along El Caminito del Rey, a mountain walkway near Malaga, Spain. This narrow, gut-wrenching path is only 3 feet wide, pinned along the side of a gorge, nearly 700 feet above the river below.

Originally built in 1901 to allow local workers to cross between two nearby waterfalls, El Caminito has recently fallen into a sad state of disrepair. Many parts of the walkway have completely collapsed, leaving nothing but a metal beam and a wire between you and 700 feet of nothing. Not surprisingly, there have been a number of deaths along the trail, and the local government has tried to seal it off.

But for some adrenaline junkies, a warning sign, tall fences and the prospect of a fatal slip-up is nothing but a challenge. Check out this video and watch one man laugh in the face of death.

What is it about Spain that inspires thrill-seekers to the utmost feats of poor judgment?

Read all of outdoor magazine Wend online and for free

by Anna Brones on

If you are an outdoor aficionado, you may already be familiar with Wend. The outdoor magazine based out of Portland, Oregon fills its pages with stories from around the globe that peak the interest of not only outdoor enthusiasts, but anyone with a wanderlust. The latest issue covers a trip through Iceland, volunteering in Indonesia, trekking Afghanistan and surfing the Great Lakes; that’s what I call good reading material.

Being the eco-friendly souls that they are, the Wend crew finally put the magazine online, making all of the articles accessible via your computer. You can still buy the print version, but if you are out traveling — or just want to save on paper consumption — the new online version is just as satisfying. And it’s free.

Check out the virtual version of the latest issue here. And if you are feeling truly inspired, shoot them an email and pitch a story.

Getting High on Your Holiday

by Erik McLaughlin on

Sure, we’ve all thought about it and some of us do it often. Getting high on your holiday trip can be pretty fun, in fact. I mean really high, above 11,500 feet (3500 m). Not everything cool is on a beach at sea-level. Ruins in the Andes, trekking in the Himalayas and chasing back country powder are a few things you have to get high, to do. These trips are all “dream vacations,” so why risk a problem with altitude sickness?

High altitude is considered to be 1500 – 3500 m (4950 – 11,500 ft) while very high altitude covers 3500 to 5500 m (11,500-18,050 ft). Anything above 5500 m falls into the extreme altitude category. Altitude sickness is not related to physical fitness and can have some deadly consequences, if not recognized and treated promptly.

Accute Mountain Sickness generally includes symptoms of headache, worse at night or during straining, nausea/vomiting and dizziness. The symptoms are often described as a “bad hangover”.

Some conditions associated with more severe forms of altitude sickness or AMS (acute mountain sickness) include HACE (high altitude cerebral edema) and HAPE (high altitude pulmonary edema). These conditions involve swelling and fluid accumulation in the respective tissues. Swelling of the brain, as seen in HACE, can present as marked stupor and confusion. HAPE, with fluid collecting in the person’s lungs, often starts as a cough followed by progressive shortness of breath.

As with most things, prevention is better than treatment. Prevention of AMS and it’s associated conditions centers around a slow, gradual ascent to altitude. This gives the body a chance to acclimatize and adjust to the physiologic demands of life at the new altitude, even if only for a few hours or days. This can be a problem for people traveling by car or plane to an area of high altitude, simply because they ascend very rapidly.

Symptoms of AMS can begins quickly, in as little as 2-3 hours after arrival to altitude, which means you can get off your plane and begin to feel bad, even before you arrive at your hotel! In an ideal world, all travelers going to higher altitude will be able to have a slow and controlled ascent, gaining no more than 600-900 m (1,980 to 2,970 ft) per day. However, this is not always practical. Anytime there is suspicion of an altitude related illness, stop ascending, immediately. If symptoms do not improve, consider a descent to lower altitude, for a few days of further acclimatization. Some expedition physicians also believe that most all medial problems, at high altitude, are to be considered AMS until proven otherwise.

There are a few medications used to combat AMS and a few good arguments, both for and against their use. The medicine that is most commonly used is called Acetazolamide. This medicine causes an acidosis, designed to combat the alkalosis caused by hyperventilation at high altitudes. Designed to be taken a few days prior to ascent, during the time at altitude and for a few days after descent, Acetazolamide is both a prophylactic medicine as well as a treatment. There is some controversy over the ideal dose to be used and I consider this article a good source of information, along with an article that favors a higher dose.

Against Acetazolamide Use:

Everything in life is a trade off and medicine is a perfect example of this. Side effects of Acetazolamide include a metallic taste, especially with soda, and frequent urination. Acetazolamide is a sulfa-based drug and allergic reactions can occur. Some studies have show than judicious exercise, on the first few days of arrival to altitude, can be effective in AMS prevention and that only 25% of travelers to resort communities at 8,000 and 12,000 feet have altitude illnesses.

For Acetazolamide Use:

A dream vacation can be ruined by many things and with 25% of travelers in an high altitude zone experiencing AMS symptoms, why risk spending your trip with a headache, or worse. Most vacation trips to high altitude zones last 7-10 days and Acetazolamide is a cheap and very effective medication for control and prevention of AMS.

Some other treatments for AMS, HACE and HAPE include dexamethasone and inhaled asthma medications like salmeterol. For the hard-core out there, Gamow bags can be used, especially on mountaineering expeditions. Ginko Biloba is also currently showing promise in AMS treatment/prevention.

As with most travel-related illnesses, prior proper preparation prevents poor performance. Understanding altitude illness and being aware of it’s symptoms can help with early recognition and treatment, thus preventing a ruined trip and health risk. To learn more about AMS check out these sites:

The International Society for Mountain Medicine

The High Altitude Medicine Guide

CDC Traveler’s Health Yellow Book: Altitude Illness