One of the pros of climbing in Nepal is that it's possible to have great experiences just trekking to the foot of a mountain, before even starting to climb it. But it had been an unlucky year in the Himalayas for many climbers, and Mark Horrell arrived to climb Baruntse just days after it had claimed the life of one of the greatest of all Sherpas.
Some decisions are easy to make, others much harder. Mark Horrell had just failed on his third attempt to climb an 8000 metre peak, Cho Oyu in Tibet, and had returned to Nepal for the consolation of climbing Baruntse, an impressive ridge of a mountain south of Everest.
Leaving Cho Oyu without trying for the summit had been easy. There had been so many avalanches and so many climbers caught up in them, that it was remarkable no one had been killed. By contrast Baruntse turned out to be one of those "shall we, shan't we" summit attempts.
One of the great things about climbing in Nepal is that it's possible to have fantastic experiences just trekking to the foot of a mountain, before even starting to climb it. Accompanied by his regular Himalayan climbing buddy Mark Dickson, he certainly had that, but he also got rather wet and miserable in weather conditions his friend described as some of the wettest he'd come across. Then they arrived on Baruntse just days after it had claimed the life of one of the greatest of all Sherpas.
It had been an unlucky year in the Himalayas both for the author and for many others, and although it hadn't been an auspicious beginning, would he be rewarded with a successful climb at last?
The Tomb of Chewang Nima is Mark Horrell's travel diary from his expedition, and will appeal to anyone with an interest in trekking and climbing in the Himalayas, or with an interest in mountain literature in general. It includes many photographs from the expedition.
No comments:
Post a Comment