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Tom @ C2
(7100M) Cho Oyu, 2004
5 Sept
0800HRS, Kathmandu, Nepal
Katharine
and I arrived yesterday, while Mac and Kevin arrived on the 2nd.
All our luggage arrived with us, no damage or loss. This
is one of my biggest worries now, after what happened in Pakistan!
I met yesterday with Mr. Rai and the staff at Thamserku.
What an impressive set-up they've got here... They organize
logistics, equipment, transport, staff, and permits for dozens
of expeditions each season. Their shop space is like a bee-hive;
dozens of people getting ready piles of kit (food, tents, stoves
and fuel, Oxygen bottles, radios and sat-phones, etc...).
Amazing, really. Today we'll make our last-minute purchases here
in Kathmandu; Katharine needs some down pants and mittens, I need
some new CD's and a player, we all need candy-bars, drink mixes,
cookies, and maybe a bottle or 2 of Champagne to have at BC for
the end of the climb! I love the feel, the vibe, here in Kathmandu
at the kick-off of an expedition season. It's like being
in Paris the week before the Tour de France. A quiet excitement,
a buzz of energy. I just saw a team of Russians with a rickshaw
full of coils of fixed rope. A team of Koreans getting expedition
patches sewn onto their down one-peice suits. And a trio
of hard-core Polish alpinists in the grocery store, adding up
their meager purchases with a calculator to make sure they're
still under budget... These are the people I'll be reading
about after the climb; new routes, near misses and epic escapes,
summit success, and sometimes tragedy. I learned yesterday that
there's going to be some familiar faces on Shishapangma; Dean
Staples and Mark Whetu will be guiding Russel Brice's HimEx group.
I know both of these Kiwi guides from Cho Oyu and Everest expeditions.
Great guys, and you can't imagine better guides to have on the
mountain. Now I'm off to my favorite Indian barber-shop for an
early morning shave.
1 Sept
2300HRS, Jackson Hole, Wyoming
The last
day before leaving on a big expedition is always the same...
Coffee,
the bank, post office, more coffee, visit friends around town,
e-mails, more coffee, pack equipment, last minute shopping, phone
calls to my family, the bank again, more coffee, clean out the
refrigerator, pay blls, and more coffee...
Nothing
feels better than finally boarding the plane, and realizing that
you're on your way. Getting closer to the mountain.
It's definately
the end of summer here in Wyoming. There's been frost on
the grass the past couple mornings, and it's staying pretty chilly
all day in the shade. When I come back in October, the fall
colors will have come and gone, and there's probably going to
be fresh snow on the peaks. Time to staple plastic up on
the outside of the windows and get the flower gardens ready for
winter. Time to put away the kayaks and mountain bikes and
tune up the skis. And the flow of tourists will be slowed
to a trickle, which is a great break for the local population.
Tomorrow
morning we leave at 4AM. Total travel time about 36 hours.
It should be warm in Kathmandu, and the steady monsoon rains should
be nearly finished. The rhododendrons will be in bloom.
I can't wait to be there.
31
Aug 1200HRS, Jackson Hole, Wyoming
It feels
like I just got home yesterday, but it's been a full 2 weeks.
Spending almost every day in the mountains. Gotten to do
some great Teton climbing, including the Exum Ridge on The Grand
with Katharine and the SW Ridge of The Enclosure with Paul Horton.
Between climbing and some work for JHMG,
this has been more time than I've spent in the Tetons in years!
Back to my roots...
So I haven't
told many people yet, I guess this is sort of the official anouncement...
I'm off to Shishapangma on Saturday. I'll be there with
Mac Dean and Kevin Cullen from Montana, and Katharine Donan from
Jackson Hole. Katharine's bringing her snowboard, and I'll
be skiing. It's been a dream of mine to ski down an 8000'er,
and I think Shisha's a pretty reasonable choice.
I thought
that maybe Nanga Parbat would keep the rat fed for a while...
Wrong.
Leaving
early Saturday morning. Flying Idaho Falls-Minneapolis-Amsterdam-Delhi-Kathmandu.
We'll have a couple days in Kathmandu befor the overland journey
to the Tibetan frontier at Zangmu. Then on to Nyalam and
CBC (Chinese Base Camp).
It's going
to be in Kathmandu after the changes in the Royal Family and the
elected Government. Last time I was there (June '05), tensions
were high regarding the Maoist insurgency. Armed military
patrols on the streets, and curfews and transportation strikes
were commonplace. I've been hearing that these are things
of the past, and everyone is amazed at how tranquil the city and
countryside are now. We'll see...
I got my
hands onto a set of coffee-table-books by Japanese photographer
Shiro
Shirahata. 2 big, beautiful books of large-format mountain
photography; one is titled Karakoram; Mountains of Pakistan,
and the other is titled Nepal Himalaya. Amazing
work! It's hard to not be inspired by such pictures...
12
Aug 1400HRS, Santiago, Chile
Great to
have a couple free days in Santiago. Maybe my favorite city;
a lot of good memories here over the years, and some tough ones,
too... Ghosts in the streets.
Went to
the Mercado Central for lunch and ate chupe de locos,
a typical Chilean seafood dish. It's like a cheesy casserole
made of shredded Abalone. Along with a great glass of Sauvignon
Blanc. Fantastic!
8 Aug
2000HRS, La Paz, Bolivia
We arrived
back to the city of La Paz last night and are enjoying the comforts
of civilization. When I get out of the mountains after a
trek or climb, I always crave the same 3 things; ice cream, a
beer, and a movie. The beer and the ice cream were great,
but there's not much of a movie selection here. Superman
or Pirates of the Carribean...
The solitude
and desolation of Lake Titicaca and the Altiplano pulled our minds
even further away from family, home, and work, and made it easier
for us to focus on the challenge of Sajama.
I don't
think it's possible to be more removed from the "comfort
zone" as the group was on the mountain. 2 weeks of
dust, foreign food, open-air toilets, sleeping in tents, rough
roads. Everyone they'd met speaking Quechua, Aymara, or
hopefully Spanish. And finally, to arrive to a mountain
bigger than anything they'd ever seen, and with the intention
of climbing it!
This was
their first real mountain-climb... They'd done some rock-climbing
training in Australia before the trip, but never snow, glaciers,
crampons, or altitude.
Only 1
of the 13 members actualy made the summit... We had some
pretty tough route conditions, even for experienced climbers;
snow pennitentes and loose rock and scree. Everyone reached
a personal high point, though, and more importantly reached their
personal best, in many ways. There was no collective "high",
each person had a point at which they decided that they'd gone
high enough and it was time to go down. And each person
will go home with a slightly different memory of what the "top"
looks like, and each person has pushed themself to a slightly
different finish...
We've
all had a great trip, and I think everyone's a bit sad to see
it nearly finished.
30
July 2300HRS, Cuzco, Peru
We´ve
just arrived back to the refined civilization of Cuzco after our
Salcanty trek and visit to Machu Picchu. In just 5 days, we experienced
about every kind of landscape and weather you can imagine; from
cold blowing snows on the 4500M pass to hot dusty trails at La
Playa to the cool rainy jungles of the Urubamba Valley. And to
make a great trip even more wonderful, we had a misty morning
at the Machu Picchu ruins, which added a sense of mystery and
drama yoiu wouldn´t find on a clear blue day. Tomorrow we
head south to Puno, on the shores of Lake Titicaca. We´ll
visit Isla Urus and the Islas del Sol y Luna before continuing
through Bolivia to climb Sajama, the nation´s highest summit.
23
July, 1400 HRS, Santiago de Chile
On a somber
note...
I'd like
to take a few minutes to reflect on the the tragedy that conspired
on Nanga Parbat during the past 10 days. A full account
of the details can be found here.
Johannes,
Toni, and I shared our BaseCamp with Jose and his partner, Edgar.
After I'd arrived back in Jackson and heard that he was going
to attempt the summit alone, I was pretty suprised. From
what he told me in our last conversations, it seemed he was going
to try to summit with the Koreans, or not at all. He knew
how risky a solo summit push would be, and I really didn't get
the feeling that he wanted to take that risk... But I can
imagine that some days of good weather in BC, and hearing that
the Bulgarians had made the summit, might make a person feel bolder,
more invinceable. I can only guess what he was feeling,
though, when he decided to leave BC alone...
I'll keep
with me the momory of the last time I talked with Jose on the
mountain. Johannes and I were going up to C3 on our summit
push, it must have been 1 or 2 July. Jose had been carrying
loads and acclimatizing, alone for the past week, and was on his
way down to BC for a rest. We passed each other on the fixed
rope in the rocks above C2 and had a few quick words. He
told me in a mix of Spanish and English how much he'd enjoyed
his time alone up in C2 & C3, and how he felt that Nanga was
somehow a special mountain for him. I could see that there
was a special kind of peace he'd found there, and that he was
happy.
My thoughts
and prayers go out to Jose's wife, children, family, and friends.
Jose,
I'm happy I had the honor of spending time with you in one of
Creation's most beautiful places. Vaya con Dios, amigo...
19
July, 2000 HRS, Santiago de Chile
I've arrived
in Chile, and am making the final preparations for my group to
arrive from Australia on Saturday. Duncan Chessel, the other
guide on our expedition arrived this afternoon, and he's traveling
tomorrow to Cusco to meet with the local logistics provider and
await our arrival.
Winter
here is a great break from the heat of Islamabad and Jackson Hole.
Also, I've almost forgotten how much I LOVE Chilean cuisine; fresh
seafood and salads are agreat break from the oily curries I'd
gotten used to in Pakistan.
Later today
I'll go out to the Coast to visit my friend and colleague, Joaquin,
and his family.
16
July, 1430 HRS, Jackson Hole
One of
the reasons we travel is to more accutely appreciate our own homelands.
I'm always happy to come home after months out-of-country, but
this time the homecoming was especially sweet. Jackson in
the summertime is really a heaven-on-Earth, and I've been enjoying
my days of R&R. I've had just enough time here to rest,
un-pack, clean and repair my kit, and re-pack. Tomorrow
afternoon, I fly to Santiago, Chile, to lead a trekking and climbing
group in Peru and Bolivia.
I've also
had time here at home to organize my Pakistan photos. I'm
developing my own black-and-white pictures in the Community Art
Association darkroom, shich has been a good creative exercise.
I went
to see the Al Gore movie, "An Inconvenient Truth", yesterday
and was pretty impressed by his presentation. Even more
than by his message about climate change and warming, I was moved
by his addressing the moral issue of why it's so hard for us,
as a society and as individuals, to do the things we know are
right and good to do. Hmmm, lots to think about...
OK, I'm
going to try to keep up-dating this site during our trekking and
climbing in South America. I hope you've enjoyed a bit of
news and my views now and then.
5
JULY, 1000 HRS, Base Camp
We're back
in Base Camp, our summit attack stopped by arm-pit deep snow above
Camp 3. We've cleared our high camps, & are packing
to leave Base Camp tomorrow. Tents & equipment are drying
in the sun, & I'm enjoying brewed coffee (thanks Simone)
& Ibuprofen. I can only be thankful that there was no tragedy
this season.
2
JULY, 1800 HRS, Camp 3
Tomorrow
we'll make the long traverse to Camp 4, and be in position to
try to summit on 4 July. Nobody's been to Camp 4 since 25
June, lots of new snow.
27
JUNE, 0800 HRS, Base Camp
We've had
a couple hard days here. As we were leaving Base Camp for
our summit push, the Germans radioed to tell us that there's extremely
deep & dangerous snow conditions above Camp 4. They've
abandoned their summit attempt. It's our turn now to go
up & evaluate. As a team of two, we need to be conservative.
22
JUNE, 2000 HRS, Base Camp
Yesterday
carried food, gas, & tent to the top of fixed ropes. On our
2000 meter descent to Base Camp, the temperature climbed dangerously
high. By the time we were back to the main coulior, the snow
was like waist-deep oatmeal. Deadly avalanche conditions.
We spent the next 2 hours clipped to a piton on the cooler, shady
side of the coulior as dozens of avalanche raced by us.
By 6 pm, it was cold enough to continue our descent to Base Camp,
& we arrived on the edge of darkness; the longest day of the
year & we'd used every minute of it. After a week up
above, forget-me-not's are in bloom & cover the ground like
a blue carpet. Two new expeditions in BC; Venezuelans &
Bulgarians. And, great news: Toni has arrived safely! Johannes
& I will now rest in BC until our summit push.
20 JUNE, 2000 HRS, Camp 3
I worked
alone most of the day fixing rope along the spectacular ridge
to 6700M. No wind & wearing a t-shirt. Solo in
my element, so happy today.
19
JUNE, 1900 HRS, Camp 3
After three
nights at Camp 2, we've made the move to Camp 3. The German
team went down this morning from Camp 2, so we're alone up here
at 6450m (21,120').
17
JUNE, 1600 HRS, Camp 2
We're sharing
Camp 2 with a guided German group. At this point we'll join
forces; they like having another guide around, and we need help
breaking trail in the deep snow. We all rested today.
This is the new high point of the climb, 6000m. There is
some rope fixed above us from an earlier attempt, but surely burried
under 1 meter or more of snow. We still need to establish
Camp 3 (6700m) and Camp 4 (7200m) to be in a position to summit.
The snow is getting deeper as we go higher.
16
JUNE, 1930HRS, Camp 2
Looking
out from the tent tonight I can see the sunset behind the Hindu
Kush range; new sights as we move higher. Today's climb
through the Kinshofer Rocks was tougher than we expected.
There's comfort in knowing that there's nothing this hard above
us, & we only need to climb it one more time.
13
JUNE, 1000 HRS, Base Camp
Korean
team arrive while we were at Camp 1, & a solo Italian climber
last week. Base Camp totals: 5 teams, 25 climbers, 14 local
staff, 8 nationalities. Books I've read so far: Hitch-hiker's
Guide to the Galaxy, Still-life With Woodpecker, It's Not About
the Bike, Memoirs of a Geisha, The DaVinci Code, Harry Potter
& the Sorcerer's Stone, & (my favorite) Arctic Dreams,
by Barry Lopez. Favorite music on my MP3: Jimi Hendrix,
Norah Jones, Beck.
12
JUNE, 0800 HRS, Camp 1
Still waiting
for better weather & safer avalanche conditions. Every day
in June has snowed at least 30cm. Camp 2 is out of
the question for a few more days.
9
JUNE, 0700 HRS, Base Camp
The jetstream
is coming around to the north; just what we've been waiting for.
Our plan is to go to Camp 1 on Sunday, and hopefully to Camp 2
on Monday if the avalanche hazard is low.
6
JUNE, 0700HRS, Camp 1
Silent
morning; we're in a dense cloud & the snow has stopped.
A meter of new snow fell in the past few days. We saved
our tent by coming up last night to dig out. One tent here
is flattened, others need work. We'll go down to Base Camp
& wait for the storm to end. The avalanche hazard will
be high for a few more days.
5
JUNE, 1000 HRS, Base Camp
Our two
days in Base Camp have been restful, but also poor weather.
20 cm of snow each day in Base Camp; double up on the mountain
. Forecast says two more days of the same. We'll
go to Camp 1 today to check on our tent and sleep there.
Then return to Base Camp and wait for good weather.
There will also be a day or two of avalanche hazard.
3
JUNE, 1600HRS, Base Camp
We're back
in Base Camp after a failed attempt to reach Camp 2. What
appeared to be snow in the upper coulior is in fact hard blue
ice, barely covered by a skin of snow. Difficult climbing!
We'll take two days of rest in Base Camp, then go back up.
A farmer boy was selling chickens today in Base Camp; I bought
one for dinner.
1
JUNE, 1830HRS, Camp 1
We didn't
make it as high as we hoped we would today. Since we're
the first commercial team here, there's still rope fixing to do;
250m today!
31
MAY, 1500HRS, Camp 1
We just
moved into our new digs at Camp 1, 4750M. Spectacular view
of the mummery rib, scene of an early attempt to climb the mountain.
We'll sleep here tonight and climb to camp 2 tomorrow with light
loads. Between here and camp 2 is the Kinshofer wall, the
technical crux of the route.
29
MAY, 1800HRS, Base Camp
We just
arrived back to Base Camp after our 1st portage to Camp 1 (4650M).
The route to Camp 1 involves some pretty tricky crevasses, likely
to change soon. We carried up: one tent, high altitude stoves,
12 canisters of gas, and nearly half of our high altitude food,
drinks, and energy bars. A total weight of 25kg.
27
MAY, 1930 hrs, Base Camp
We ventured
on to the Diamir glacier today, exploring the route to camp 1.
This afternoon we practiced fixed-rope ascent and descent technique.
25
May, 0700 hrs
We had
our first views of Nanga Parbat yesterday; more grand than we
expected. Camped above terraced fields at GPS: Latitude
35° 15'33.94" N, Longitude 74° 31'00.06"
E. Plants found at Base Camp included Tundra Wilow, Wild
Rhubarb, Dwarf Buckwheat (in bloom), Rosecrown, and Cinquefoil.
23
May, 1300 hrs, Chilas
Delayed
an extra day. Waiting for jeeps to arrive. The Silk
Road has been amazing. Spices, guns, and jewels; the crossroads
of Asia.
21
May, 0830 hrs, Islamabad
After 4 days of waiting here for delayed baggage to arrive.
Johannes and I are both in good health and ready to hit the road.
High point of our Islamabad visit was probably the Faisal
Mosque, as grand as any cathedral I've seen. Built in the
70's by a Turkish architect out of Italian marble, it's definitely
the crown jewel of the city.
So today we drive up the Karakorum highway towards China for 12
hours to the village of Chilas, where we'll spend our last hotel
night. It will be good to gain some elevation above the hot Indus
valley and get a break from the brutal heat. Temps here have been
close to 100 degrees the past few days!
Tomorrow we'll start our trek towards Base Camp with porters,
and should arrive on Wednesday.
17
May 2006, 1630 hrs, Islamabad
The waiting is over. I'm finally in Pakistan.
Immediately after walking outside the airport, the sights and
sounds and smells of Asia wash over me like an ocean wave. It's
the smells more than anything that stick to the insides of my
memories; diesel, curry and spices, wood smoke, strange fruits
in the market, incense and perfumed oils. Lhasa, Katmandu, Bangkok,
and now Islamabad, they all have this common smell.
I'm in the office of Mr.
Asraf Amman, who has organized all of our logistics within
Pakistan. Ashraf was the first Pakistani to climb K2, and is a
bit of a legend in the mountaineering world.
We're concerned right now with tracking down my lost luggage.
It seems that British Airways has misplaced my 4 duffel-bags.
All I have here is what I carried-on. Next flight is in 2 days.
Johannes' flight tomorrow was cancelled, so he'll be coming in
a day late, as well.
So hopefully, on 19 May we can get back on track. I hope to make
use of my extra day to see some more of the area; hopefully I'll
go with a driver tomorrow and tour some of the hardest hit earthquake
areas.
14
May 2006 1915 hrs, Jackson Hole, WY
Happy Mother's
Day to all the mothers, and my Mom especially! I love you,
Mom, and am very proud of you!
Last night's
party was a good time. Some great surprises, especially
seeing some friends I hadn't expected; Greg and Tina, Wesley,
Nate, Ronnie and Aimee... THANKS EVERYONE FOR MAKING IT
SUCH A SPECIAL NIGHT!!!
Today was
a very busy day of weighing and organizing the bags, moving a
few things out of my apartment, getting a good e-mail list together,
and taking care of a seemingly endless list of tasks-at-hand...
I think
I'm going to go out for a last excellent dinner here in the homeland.
Maybe a Ceasar salad, a calzone, and a good bottle of red at Trio.
A few things I'll definately miss...
My flight
out of Jackson is tomorrow at 5PM (Mtn time). I'll try to
post one last entry before I take off.
Pre-Pakistan
Party behind the Jackson Hole Mountain
Guides, Saturday night, 13 May 2006.
12
May 2006 2330 hrs, Jackson Hole, WY
I'm in
my cozy 3-room apartment in down-town Jackson; packing, un-packing,
re-packing. In a few short days, I'll be on my way to Islamabad,
Pakistan, where I'll meet up with Johannes. Nanga Parbat
will be my 3rd 8000M expedition, and the 1st for Johannes.
We climbed Aconcagua via the Guanacos Route together in February,
2004. Since then, we've been on our own paths, and I'm so
happy that our paths are coming together again.
This is
the first installment of the Fresh Tracks... blog.
I hope this will be an effective tool to keep freinds, family,
fellow climbers, and arm-chair mountaineers informed and entertained
by our reports from the High-and-Wild.
I'm going
to have a sendig-off party here tomorrow. It's turned into
a bit of a tradition; these shin-digs before the kick-off of an
expedition. Being gone on trips as much as I am, this is
quite often the only time I get to see some of my good friends
here in Jackson Hole. I'll try to post a photo or two of
the festivities...
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