Abandoned on Everest

[the Talking Can]

http://godheadv.blogspot.com/2010/04...n-everest.html

Fascinating blog post on what goes on in Everest's "dead zone" along with some unbelievable pictures.

NSFW warning...not because they're all graphic, but there are pictures of dead, frozen bodies.

You have to be crazy...

This morning, however, Green Boots had company. Sitting no more than two feet to the left of the corpse was a man who at first glance appeared to be dead. His gloved hands were on his knees, his hood and hat cast his face in shadow. The only feature visible was the man's severely frostbitten nose, already a greenish black hue. On closer inspection, the vapor from the man's breath could be seen rising.

What happened next entered the folklore of the highest mountain on earth. Every man interviewed gives a different story. What is certain is that every single one of the 40-odd climbers attempting the summit that day left the man in the cave, whose name was David Sharp, to freeze, either by choice, by ignorance, or by misjudging him as a corpse they already expected to see in that infamous cave....

[Donger]

Originally Posted by notorious

At that point it becomes ice.


or so I've been told......

It's still water, just in a different state.

[Pablo]

So...those individual ladders had to be carried up...

****. That.

[HonestChieffan]

Originally Posted by PostRockPablo

So...those individual ladders had to be carried up...

****. That.

The ladders in he icefall are set up as a joint effort by the groups and are maintained daily as the icefall moves. There is one spot I believe toward the summit that has a ladder that has been there for years...things dont rust or degrade much at those altitudes.

The high ropes are strung by the first party to summit each season

[notorious]

Originally Posted by Donger

It's still water, just in a different state.

North Dakota?

[notorious]

Originally Posted by HonestChieffan

The high ropes are strung by the first party to summit each season

I bet they felt an added satisfaction knowing that they scaled Everest while dragging huge Elephant balls behind them.

[HonestChieffan]

Originally Posted by notorious

I bet they felt an added satisfaction knowing that they scaled Everest while dragging huge Elephant balls behind them.

The sherpas do all that work

[HonestChieffan]

National Geographic did a book called Everest, Mountain Without Mercy that is as you would expect, fantastic photos.

[notorious]

Originally Posted by HonestChieffan

The sherpas do all that work

Sherpas can scale Everest in their sleep.


On Everest Beyond the Limit a Sherpa and another guy were going to scale Everest on one side, go all the way down the other side then rescale back to their original camp.


The guy that hired the Sherpa refused to go back up because he said the Sherpa was the superior climber and he didn't feel that he was worthy of the recognition.

Sherpas FTW.

[Ming the Merciless]

Wow.

[notorious]

http://www.abc-of-mountaineering.com/info/annapurna.asp




The World's Most Dangerous Mountain


Question: What is the world's most dangerous mountain to climb? Everest? NoK2? Good guess, but no. The world's most dangerous mountain is probably one that you've never even heard of. The answer decidedly is Annapurna.

Annapurna is a peak in the Himalayan Mountains that is the 10th highest in the world at 26,545 feet. So with Mount Everest peaking at over 29,000 feet and eight other mountains at higher elevation, what makes Annapurna so dangerous?

For starters, it's the fatality rate. At 41%! Yes, 58 of the 142 climbers who have attempted Annapurna died. Compare this to the 9% fatality rate of Mount Everest and 27% for K2. What makes this statistic even more sobering is that only the most experienced climbers' attempt Annapurna while Mount Everest is often attempted by relative novices who bought their way onto the steep mountain and with the aid of numerous Sherpa's.

The conditions on Annapurna are the most unpredictable of any mountain. It has been said that skill plays a small role in your ability to peak this mountain since the dangers are not predictable even by the most experienced climbers.

For starters, it is extremely difficult just to make it to the Annapurna base camp. The trek to base camp descends 2,000 feet, then ascends 5,000 feet, and then descends another 4,000 feet. This entire route to base camp is on a steep, narrow, slippery route with many long exposed areas with sheer drops on either side of the trail.

Avalanches are by far the most common cause of death on the mountain. The majority of the climbing route is on a 40-degree incline, which is ideal for avalanches. The notorious Sickle Ice Cliff sits between 23,000 and 24,000 feet in altitude. This cliff juts out over large areas of the north face of the mountain. Unstable ice chunks the size of a house are constantly calving off from the cliff. These chunks can either land on climbers thereby causing instant death or they can start an avalanche. Unfortunately, any avalanche that occurs in this area makes its way down a large glacial basin that is in the direct path of the climbing route. Furthermore, the route crosses the glacial basin many times. Avalanches in the basin can even be triggered by less obvious reasons such as the sun warming the snow or the weight of a climber. There would be no chance of escape for anyone caught in the basin of Annapurna during an avalanche.

There are many routes up Annapurna. In fact, some routes have been created in an effort to minimize exposure to the avalanche-prone basin. However, the trade-off is that much more time is spent in the death-zone an altitude of over 26,000 feet where oxygen levels are so low that the body begins to shut down. Even the act of standing up at this altitude is difficult for most climbers. This includes even your most fit climbers who have taken care of themselves by eating foods rich in natural whole food vitamins and plant based phytonutrients and otherwise have trained to peak condition. For the vast majority, no matter how fit, considerable time spent at this altitude will ultimately result in cerebral edema, frostbite, and loss of consciousness.

The route up Annapurna is also littered with crevasses. A crevasse is a large crack that is caused by two colliding glaciers. The problem is that this crack becomes covered by snow and is invisible to climbers. When a person walks over a crevasse, the snow gives way and the person falls down between the glaciers often to depths of 100 feet or more. In the case that a person lives through a crevasse fall, rescue is possible although extremely dangerous.

A final reason for the great dangers of Annapurna is the lack of aid in the case of emergency. On Mount Everest, for example, 40 people have peaked the mountain in a single day with hundreds attempting the summit throughout the course of the season. Furthermore, dozens of climbers are spread out across the mountain camps during peak season who might be able to provide assistance in case of an emergency. On the other hand, Annapurna has been peaked just over 100 times in the last 60 years. The odds of a high altitude rescue in this remote region are basically non-existent.

Tour providers are available to lead interested climbers up Annapurna. Typical tours are 7 weeks in length and cost roughly $8,000 in addition to airfare to Nepal. Sherpa's may be purchased for an additional $2,500 each. If this trip package sounds appealing, good luck to you. You will definitely need it!

Contributed by: Dr. Linda Kennedy MS SLP ND

[notorious]

Matterhorn


Screw that!

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by notorious

A final reason for the great dangers of Annapurna is the lack of aid in the case of emergency. On Mount Everest, for example, 40 people have peaked the mountain in a single day with hundreds attempting the summit throughout the course of the season. Furthermore, dozens of climbers are spread out across the mountain camps during peak season who might be able to provide assistance in case of an emergency. On the other hand, Annapurna has been peaked just over 100 times in the last 60 years. The odds of a high altitude rescue in this remote region are basically non-existent.

Liar! Don't trust them!

[cdcox]

Those ladder bridges look like something some rednecks put together just before they won a Darwin award.

[Silock]

Originally Posted by cdcox

Those ladder bridges look like something some rednecks put together just before they won a Darwin award.

Yeah, but it's probably the best way to make a makeshift bridge, considering the crevasses are constantly changing.

[-King-]

Who exactly takes the ladders up there?