Spring Climbing Season Begins in the Himalaya

by Kraig Becker on

The arrival of spring means different things in different parts of the world. In northern Alaska it marks the end of the long darkness, with the returning of the sun. Further south, in the Mission at San Juan Capistrano welcomes the swallows home, while in the Midwest, the last of the winter snows give way to blooming flowers.

Likewise, each spring in the Himalaya is marked with a ritual of its own. The end of March is the beginning of the climbing season in Nepal and Tibet, a time when hundreds of climbers and trekkers descend upon Kathmandu, where they complete the final preparations for their expeditions, before heading out to their mountain of choice, where they’ll spend as much as six to eight weeks preparing to make their summit attempts.

The majority of the climbers come for Everest, the tallest mountain on the planet. But the Himalaya are rich with challenging, and high, peaks, and plenty will have their sights set on lesser known, but no less challenging, mountains such as Cho Oyu, Shishapangma, and Annapurna.

At this very moment, the worlds top climbers are arriving in Kathamandu and organizing their gear for the climbs ahead. By the first of April, most of them will be catching a flight to Lukla, a remote town in Nepal that marks the beginning of the trail that leads to Everest. On the Nepali side of the mountain there are no roads that lead to base camp, and climbers are forced to make a 10+ day hike up the Khumbu Valley to reach their eventual destination. At night they’ll stay in traditional tea houses, and the long trek helps to begin the acclimatizaion process, which will serve them well on the mountain. By the time they reach base camp, they’ll be at 17,575 feet, and their real adventure will just be getting started. If everything goes according to plan, and the weather cooperates, by mid-May they’ll get their chance at the summit, and with a little luck they’ll be home by the first of June. But until then, they’ll work very hard, concentrate on acclimatizing, and hope that before the season ends, they’ll be standing on top of the world.

Argentine Doctors Study the Effects of Altitude While on the Mountain

by Kraig Becker on

Two Argentine doctors have conducted a unique medical study to examine the effects of altitude on the human body by taking their test subjects to a unique laboratory, the 6739 meter (22,109 feet) tall volcano named Mount Llullaillaco located in the Atacama Desert along the border of Argentina and Chile.

Dr. Leandro Seoane and Dr. Rolando Nervi took a team of climbers to Llullaillaco on January 18th of this year and began their ascent of the mountain, conducting various tests at predetermined spots along the route to the summit. Over the next nine days, they took blood pressure, heart and respitory readings, as well as blood oxygen saturation measurements. They also examined the climbers vision, took blood tests, and assessed the team for Acute Mountain Sickness. The baseline tests were conducted at Tolar Grande town, a village located at 3500 meters on the mountain, and then again at Base Camp (4900 meters), Camp 1 (5500 meters), Camp 2 (6000 meters), and then one final time at 6400 meters.

The results showed the body’s remarkable ability to adapt to the changing conditions on the mountain as climbers acclimatized and adapted to the lower levels of oxygen as they moved higher on the mountain. As they became accustomed to the environment, the lack of oxygen became less of an issue, and the climbers worked more efficiently at higher alittudes.
Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS) is also known as altitude sickness, and it can effect just about anyone that climbs above 2400 meters (7875 feet). The exact causes are as of yet unknown, which is why tests like this one are so important. We do know that it does relate to exposure to low air pressure at altitude. Symptoms include loss of appetite, light-headedness, insomnia, headaches and more. In its most extreme forms it can result in pulmonary edema that can, at high altitudes, result in death. Generally the only way to treat the condition is to move back down the mountain to lower altitudes and richer oxygen levels.

Mount Llullaillaco is the fourth tallest volcano in the world, and a challenging climb, but it doesn’t compare to the larger peaks such as Everest. A similar study to the ones performed by the Argentines has been conducted on the worlds tallest mountain over the past couple of years, recording similar results at even higher altitudes. That research study is known as the Caudwell Xtreme Everest project.

AMS continues to be a great concern for all climbers at altitude, and even for travelers who visit remote locations that also happen to be thousands of feet above sea level. But with continued studies like these two, we can hope to understand the causes and develop more effective treatments.

Missing Climbing Team in China

by Adrienne Wilson on

News in the climbing world hasn’t been too cheery as the search for three climbers in Oregon’s Mt. Hood continues (one was said to have been found dead) and the search is also on for two highly experienced U.S. climbers in China as well. Not to take away from the domestic search, but I’ve heard little to nothing on Christine Boskoff (one of the world’s top female high-altitude climbers) and Charlie Fowler (well-known mountaineer in the U.S.) who set out or Southwest China in October and are missing. The pair was last heard from on November 9th. As in the case with Mount Hood the weather provides less than favorable conditions for rescue teams to find anyone and avalanches are also a huge factor in the Fowler-Boskoff scenario. The area is said to be very prone to avalanches. There isn’t much more to comment on now, but if you’re following this story in addition to Mount Hood and would like to help someway or somehow it appears as though mountainfilm in Telluride has created a search fund for those that wish to donate and help expand the serach effort in China.

My hope is that both teams are located and safe from harm.

via CBS News