Apa Sherpa To Hike Great Himalayan Trail

Two famous Sherpa mountain guides are preparing to embark on another epic adventure in mid-January, when they set off to hike the entire length of the 1700km (1056 mile) Great Himalayan Trail. Starting on January 15th, Apa Sherpa and Dawa Steven Sherpa will begin the trek, which is expected to take roughly 120 days to complete.

Touted as the highest altitude long distance trail in the world, the GHT isn't likely to pose much of a problem for these two men. Apa has reached the summit of Everest an astounding 21 times, while Dawa has been to the top of the world's highest peak on two occasions himself. They've chosen to undertake this latest challenge in an effort to raise the profile of the trail and bring economic investment to its development. They'll begin their journey in eastern Nepal in the village of Ghunsa and will march west until they reach the town of Darchula. Along the way, they'll pass through 20 different districts, surrounded by the unmatched mountain landscapes of the Himalaya.

Along the way, Apa and Dawa will also be looking to raise awareness of the impact of global climate change on the region as well. That has been a particularly important topic with the Sherpas over the past few years, as mountain glaciers retreat, taking their fresh water supply with them. This is an important issue for Nepal, particularly in remote rural areas, where villagers often have to walk for hours each day just to collect fresh water.

Hopefully the two men will post updates along the way and will share their journey online. In the past Apa has often posted about his Everest climbs online, and if he does something similar with this trek, I'll post regular updates on their progress here.

The GHT sounds like an amazing experience and I hope that it garners more attention amongst trekkers and backpackers.

Ski The Himalayas S3E12: Climb Up, Ski Down!

The final full episode of Season 3 of Ski the Himalayas finally gives the team, and the audience, what we've been waiting for – namely climbing and skiing on Thorung Peak, a 6157 meter (20,200 ft) mountain in Nepal. After enjoying some fresh powder at about 19,000 feet, the team rests up over night, then goes all the way to the summit, where they enjoy the view just long enough to step into their planks and start skiing back down. As you can imagine, the scenery is once again spectacular in this episode.

Ski the Himalayas S3E11: Altitude Sickness

Episode 11 of Season 3 of Ski the Himalayas opens with the team still on the trail to Base Camp, and crossing through Thorung Pass, where the scenery is simply breathtaking. Watching this episode will both inspire you to visit the Himalaya and discourage you at the same time, as the effects of altitude sickness are hitting the climbers to some degree or another. It is also a great demonstration of how strong the Sherpas are, as they shuttle the very heavy loads up to BC.

British Ultrarunner Sets New EBC to Kathmandu Speed Record

British ultrarunner Lizzie Hawker has set a new speed record from Everest to Kathmandu, by running from Base Camp to the capitol of Nepal in just under three days. Hawker started the run last week and finished the 320km (199 mile) route on Friday.

Officially, Hawker's time was recorded as 2 days, 23 hours, 25 minutes, which shaved a bit of time off her previous record, which was set back in 2007, when she made the same run in 3 days, 2 hours, 39 minutes. Her latest time includes an unexpected stop over in the village of Bupsa, where Hawker spent 8 hours waiting out the rain. At that point she thought her chances of breaking the record were slim, but she managed to get back on the trail and make up the time.

Perhaps even more impressive, Lizzie, who is amongst the top ultrarunners in the world, completed the run without sleep and while suffering from what is described as a chest infection, which she contracted while on the Everest Sky Race. My guess is that she had a bad case of the Khumub Cough, which I can tell you from my own experience is quite nasty. I don't envy her on that run.

Considering the trek from EBC to Lukla takes about four days by itself, this is super-impressive. Most of us then board a plane and fly back to Kathmandu from Lukla, but Lizzie kept on running, finishing up the whole journey in under three days. Amazing.

Thanks to Outside Online for the tip on this one!

Ski The Himalayas S3E10: Trekking The Annapurna Circuit

Ben Clark and Jon Miller continue their Himalayan adventure in Episode 10 of Season 3 of Ski the Himalayas. In this video, the boys and their rest of their team, climb up above 16,000 feet and play in the Himalaya snow a bit. In this latest video of the series, we get a good look at the Annapurna Circuit, one of the more popular treks in Nepal and one of the best routes in the entire world. The scenery is simply gorgeous in this episode.

Two More Korean Climbers Die In The Himalaya

ExWeb is reporting the sad news today that two more Korean climbers have died while climbing in the Himalaya. Mountaineers Hyung-Il Kim and Ji-Myoung Jang fell to their deaths on the 6640 meter (21,785 ft) Cholatse, a peak located in the Khumbu region of Nepal.

The two men fell on November 11th while attempting to open a new route on the mountain. Their bodies were later discovered at 4700 meters (15,520 ft) and arrived home in Korea today. Services are scheduled to take place on Saturday.

It has been in incredibly rough few weeks for the mountaineering community in Korea. Back in October, climbers Park Young-Seok, Shin Dong-Min, and Kang Ki-Seok disappeared while climbing Annapurna, and the country has barely finished mourning that loss, when news of these latest deaths was revealed.

Condolences to the friends and family.

Ski The Himalayas S3E9: Modest Mountain Accommodations

Acclimatization is the word of the day in the latest episode of Ski the Himalayas. With the team on their way to Base Camp at last, acclimatization becomes an important consideration as they plan their climb and eventual ski descent, on Thorung Peak. In this edition of the show, the team actually stops in a small Nepali teahouse on their route, and give us a guided tour at the same time. If you haven't ever seen one this is your chance to scope out the accommodations while trekking through the Himalaya. They are very modest to say the least.

Ski The Himalayas S3E8: Base Camp Bound

Episode 8 of the third season of Ski the Himalayas takes us back to Nepali village of Muktinath, where the team finally gets on their way to Base Camp on Thorung Peak, a 6157 meter (20,200 ft) mountain that they intend to climb and ski down. This episode also offers some great views of the Himalaya as the boys hit the trail for BC, with plenty of snow clinging to sides of the mountains. It is taking awhile for them to get to their destination, but the hope is that it will all pay off in the end.

Soldier Told He'd Never Walk Again Now Trekking To Everest Base Camp

In 2007, British solider Jonathan La Galloudec was wounded in combat while serving in Iraq. The young man was hit in the spine by gunfire, and doctors told him that he would never walk again. Not taking no for an answer however, Jonathan continued to work hard, rehab from his injuries, and focused on getting his life back to normal. His hard work paid off, and while he remains partially paralyzed, he did learn to walk once more.

Now, the former solider is making the trek to Everest Base Camp as part of an expedition to support the Help For Heroes organization, a non-proft dedicated to raising money to help servicemen and women who have suffered injuries in the line of duty. A few days back, Jonathan and his team began the trek, which will take him up to 5364 meters (17,600 ft.), the location of Base Camp on the world's tallest mountain. You can follow his progress by clicking here.

The expedition is sponsored by Energizer, who have pledged to donate £100,000 ($160,000) to the H4H organization, plus an addition £20,000 for reaching specific targets in Facebook likes. The overall goal is to raise £500,000 ($800,000) total. You can aid in that cause by going to the Everest Hero Diary page on Facebook and clicking the "Like" button.

According to the PR on this trek, since being wounded, Jonathan has struggled at times just to go for a walk in the rain, as the conditions made it difficult for him to get around. Considering that weather conditions in the Himalaya have been less than ideal lately, the young man could be having a rough go of it on this hike. Even in the best of conditions however, the trek can take its toll on those who aren't prepared. When I did it last year, I saw perfectly healthy people struggle with the altitude and steep climbs. Still, La Galloudec seems determined to reach his goal, and if everything goes as planned, he should be in EBC by November 22nd.

Learn more about Jonathan and this trek in the video below.

Ski The Himalayas S3E7: Longest Puja Ever!

Ben Clark and Jon Miller return for yet another episode of Ski the Himalayas to kick off the week, and they are slowly but surely making their way to their ultimate destination of Thorung Peak, a 6157 meter (20,200 ft) mountain that they eventually hope to climb up and ski down.

In this episode, the team arrives in the Nepali village of Muktinath, which is a popular destination for both Hindu and Buddhist pilgrims. The town is the home of a number of important religious sites, and while they are there, the climbers decided to take part in a Puja ceremony, during which they receive blessing and permission to climb in the sacred mountains. This is a common experience on Everest and other big peaks, but in this case, it turned into a three hour marathon. These kinds of ceremonies are a true part of the culture in the Himalaya, and well worth experiencing for yourself. In the end though, the guys need a little relief from all of that Puja.

Bad Weather Strands Trekkers In Lukla Again

Efforts to evacuate trekkers from Lukla, Nepal are underway today after bad weather has left many stranded for the past six days. The small mountain town has one of the few airports in the High Himalaya,  and is the starting point for most climbers and hikers who are making the trek to Mt. Everest. Rain and fog have made it impossible for planes to land at the airport, which is already amongst the most dangerous in the world, preventing anyone from returning to Kathmandu.

All told, about 2000 travelers have been stranded in the village since last week, although CNN reports that some left yesterday on foot for the town of Jiri. It is a four day hike to that location, but once there, the trekkers will be able to board buses back to Kathmandu. Meanwhile, helicopters have begun shuttling people back to Nepal's capitol, with most expected to be evacuated today and another 500 or so taken out tomorrow.

You may recall that hundreds of trekkers were stuck in Lukla last November as well, as poor weather can be a real issue this time of year in the Himalaya. Compounding the issue, Lukla isn't exactly set-up to house large amounts of people for days at a time, as there are limited rooms available in the tea houses and food needs to be delivered on the incoming planes.

On my visit to the village last year, we stayed over night in Lukla on our return trip from Everest Base Camp. It was one of the more well stocked and comfortable locations along the trek, but that still isn't saying much. Most people come and go very quickly from the town and I suspect with 2000 people stranded there, they had to resort to setting up tents where ever possible and rationing food and drinks to a degree. Fortunately, it seems that the issues are finally being resolved.

The other side of this story is of course the people that are stranded in Kathmandu who were hoping to go on their trek right now. They haven't been able to fly out to Lukla for the past week either, so I'm sure they are more than eager to hit the trail. No word on when that will start happening, and while the weather is improving, it hasn't gotten dramatically better just yet.

Korea Remembers Fallen Climbers

A memorial service was held yesterday for Korean climbers Park Young-Seok, Shin Dong-Min, and Kang Ki-Seok, who went missing on Annapurna last month. The three men were attempting to scale the mountain along a new route, but turned back before reaching the summit when they encountered treacherous conditions. They radioed back to Base Camp that they were descending, but were never heard from again.

Hundreds of mourners attended the memorial, including mountaineer Kim Jae-Bong, who was rescued by Park while climbing on Shisha Pangma some years back. Park was already a legendary figure in the Korean adventure community as he had become the first person to complete the "Adventure Grand Slam," which consists of not only climbing all 14 8000-meter peaks, but also reaching both the North and South Pole. Park was such a strong climber, that he once climbed six of those peaks in a single year, a feat of endurance that is very impressive indeed.

While the search for the missing climbers was brought to an end due to bad weather and deteriorating conditions, several members of the Korean Alpine Federation have vowed to return to Annapurna in the spring and continue looking for the missing men.

ExWeb also posted a report on the memorial, including a fitting quote from Park, who once said:

"Mountaineers must go to mountains, explorers must go to explore. Cities are no place for climbers. I have the destiny of the explorer, (my fate is) to explore till I die."

 Some may see this as a rather fatalistic or prophetic view of how he thought he would die, but I choose to see it more as a very insightful view of how he chose to live.

Ski The Himalayas S3E6: Acclimatizing in the Mountains

When we last left off with the third season of Ski The Himalayas the team was finally en route to their destination after spending several episodes scrambling to change their plans and organize a new adventure. Now, in Episode 6, their putting the final touches on their plans before arriving at Base Camp. The boys spends some time in the village of Mukinath, located at about 3840 meters (12,600 ft), where they acclimatize for a bit before heading to their ultimate destination – Thorung Peak a 6157 meter (20,200 ft) mountain that they'll attempt to climb and then ski down.

Search For Missing Annapurna Climbers Called Off

Explorers Web is reporting that search parties on Annapurna called off their efforts to find three missing Korean climbers on Friday after finding no trace of the men. Park Young Seok, Dong-Min Shin and Gi-Seok Gang all went missing a few weeks back after they made an attempt to summit the 8091 meter (26,545 ft) peak late in the Fall season. The last anyone heard from them was on October 18th, when they radioed their Base Camp to let their support team know that they were turning back after encountering treacherous conditions on the mountain. No trace of them has been found since.

Annapurna has a reputation for being very dangerous. The peak has the highest fatality rate of any of the 8000 meter peaks and it is particularly prone to avalanches on its upper slopes. It is believed that the three Koreans were swept off the mountain by one of those avalanches or that they fell into a crevasse while descending. Search teams spent days looking for any trace of them, going so far as to even descend into several crevasses, but they still found nothing.

My condolences to the friends and families of these three men, who perished while attempting a new route on Annapurna's South Face. They were strong climbers who died doing something they loved.

Ski The Himalayas S3E5: On The Road Again

Friday brings us another episode of Ski the Himalayas, where the climbing/skiing team finally gets their expedition underway. If you've watched the last few episodes of the show, you've seen the team stuck in Jomsom – a small village in Nepal – trying to figure out logistics and even objectives. With no porters to help them reach their intended mountain, they've now elected to go after a different 20,000-foot peak and then ski back down it. The video gives you glimpse of this new goal, which is, like most Himalayan mountains, spectacular.

With a new plan devised, and permits in hand, the boys hit the road at long last. The first leg of the trip is actually a precarious drive in jeeps along a very rocky road. Looks like a true adventure!

Himalaya Fall 2011: Annapurna Update

There isn't a whole lot of news from Annapurna yet regarding the Korean team that ran into problems on that mountain while making an ascent yesterday. ExWeb has posted an update to their story that does offer a few more clues however, and it isn't sounding good.

That last we heard from the team of Park Young Seok, Dong-Min Shin and Gi-Seok Gang they were heading up the mountain and hoping to make a summit bid today. It is believed that they ran into bad weather however and decided to descend instead, but what happened after that is still unclear.

ExWeb reports that several Search and Rescue teams have traveled to Annapurna, where they have discovered a rope believed to have been used by the trio of Koreans, but as of now, there is no sign of the climbers themselves. While they haven't given up looking for the men, the feeling is that they either fell into a crevasse or were swept off the mountain in an avalanche. You may recall that I noted in my original report on their climb that Annapurna is notorious for having frequent and powerful avalanches.

Either way, there is a good chance we'll never know what happened to the missing climbers. While the SAR team is still holding out some hope of finding them huddled in a tent somewhere, that seems increasingly unlikely.

Sad news indeed.

Himalaya Fall 2011: Climbers In Trouble On Annapurna?

Yesterday I reported that Explorers Web had the scoop on a late season attempt on Annapurna, in which a team of three Korean climbers were planning making a summit bid tomorrow. Today, it seems, the news from the mountain could be grim, as ExWeb now reports that the team's leader could be missing.

The details are still a bit sketchy, but it seems that the team experienced bad weather on their ascent and elected to turn back. What happened after that remains a mystery at the moment, but local reports seem to indicate that Park Young Seok may have perished on the mountain. According to ExWeb, a rescue operation is underway and a helicopter has scrambled out of Kathmandu to aid in the search.

I mentioned in my previous post that Annapurna, which is the 10th highest mountain on the planet at 8091 meters (26,545 ft), is perhaps the deadliest of all the 8000-meter peaks. The fatality rate on that mountain remains quite high, with avalanches being a real danger, particularly at the higher altitudes.

Lets keep our fingers crossed that all is will with Mr. Park and his two teammates, Dong-Min Shin and Gi-Seok Gang, and that we'll get a happy ending out of this story.

Himalaya Fall 2011: Late Season Push On Annapurna

Despite the fact that most of the teams have wrapped up their climbs, and gone home for the year, there is a late season update out of the Himalaya. According to ExWeb, a Korean team is now in position on the South Face of Annapurna, and hopes to make a summit bid later this week.

A three-man team of climbers led by Park Young Seok, that includes Dong-Min Shin and Gi-Seok Gang, spent part of the fall acclimatizing on Island Peak, a 6160 meter (20,210 ft) mountain located in eastern Nepal. After the completed that climb, the men traveled to Annapurna, arriving in Base Camp on October 9th, and have been busy fixing ropes and building camps ever since. Now, we have received word that they are on their way to the summit and hope to top out on Friday. ExWeb says they are also still considering the route of their descent, either along the normal southern route or by traversing across the mountain and going down along the North Side.

Annapurna is the 10th highest mountain in the world, reaching 8091 meters (26,545 ft) in height. It provides a considerable challenge to climbers however, with only 153 summits to date. Of those, 58 have died, which gives Annapurna the distinction of being the most dangerous of all of the 8000-meter peaks.

Hopefully the weather holds out and Annapurna's notoriously bad avalanches stay well away from the Korean team while they make their summit bid. I'll follow-up on the story as we learn more.

Ski The Himalaya S3E4: On The Trail At Last!

To round out the week, I thought I'd share another episode of Ski The Himalayas Season 3. The past few episodes have been spent in the small village of Jomsom, where the team is trying to figure out what to do about their expedition, which has hit a snag thanks to the lack of porters to help them reach their intended destination.

In this episode, show producer Ben Clark, climbing partner Jon Miller, and the rest of the crew start to think about different objectives and destinations for their limited stay in the Himalaya, and then hit the trail to finally get started on what they came to Nepal for.

Ski The Himalayas: S3E3 - Stuck In Jomsom

In the last episode of Ski The Himalayas, Ben Clark and Jon Miller, along with the rest of their team, were stuck in the small village of Jomsom trying to figure out a way to get all of their gear and supplies out to a remote mountain without the aid of porters. The region was too challenging to take a team of donkeys or horses, and it appeared as if the entire expedition could come to a halt if a solution wasn't found.

In Episode 3, the team continues to struggle with the logistics of their climb and ski. With a limited window in Nepal, and no real shot of reaching their intended destination, they're left wondering what they should do next. This is a situation that can occur on nearly any expedition, and at times it seems you have to learn to make the best of what ever situation you find yourself in.