Today dispelled any notion that one could simply pay money and get to the top of Everest. Getting past the Khumbu is the first thing we do as we get onto the mountain proper, and it involves climbing ladders, ascending fixed ropes, abseiling… all done in darkness with crampons and expedition down mitts on, all on a living, moving river of ice (up to 1m a day). And this is just the START of the climb!
Our training was conducted on the lower sections of the Khumbu Glacier, preparing us for our “cycles” up the mountain, each one going further and further until our summit push cycle.
I was pretty nervous about the training, mainly because I didn’t want to look like a complete ass. I’m the only member of the team with NO high altitude experience. Hell, I’ve never even used an Ascender device (small device that allows you to move it up the rope, but not down - used on fixed ropes). I’ve never climbed on fixed ropes, always more traditional mountaineering with belay and anchors or roped together for glacier travel.
I’ve also been recovering from a cold which stopped me from completing one of the acclimatization trips. The slightest thing at this altitude becomes and problem. I had a bad finger infection that got progressively worse. Eating too much makes you nauseous very fast, drinking to little gives an instant headache.
Tomorrow? Why back to the Khumbu for more of the same training!
One step in front of the other.. and if you feel sleepy don’t stop keep going lol. We want you back in one piece.
Dean “Rocket” Hall during his Puja ceremony today, proceeded by a local lama. Flour is spread on each others faces, hopefully signifying the individual reaches old age. Rocket is completing this devblog from Everest Base Camp during his attempt on the summit of Mt Everest.
Devblog from…
Vader’s Little Princess by Jeffrey Brown [amazon]
This post has been featured on a 1000notes.com blog.
HAHA this is how i would picture it
(Source: brain-food)
This is actually a pretty cool short film.
I’ve been watching the super long recording of Joel and Rev playing Day Z FOR 3 HOURS NOW AND IT’S AMAZING.
HAHA so true!
Either a new form of Hadouken or Ken’s really fallen on hard times.
Nice! haha
Everest view from above Namche village
These vegetated surfaces don’t just look pretty. They have other benefits as well, including cooling city blocks, reducing loud noises, and improving a building’s energy efficiency.What’s more, a recent modeling study shows that green walls can potentially reduce large amounts of air pollution in what’s called a “street canyon,” or the corridor between tall buildings.
For the study, Thomas Pugh, a biogeochemist at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Germany, and his colleagues created a computer model of a green wall with generic vegetation in a Western European city. Then they recorded chemical reactions based on a variety of factors, such as wind speed and building placement.
The simulation revealed a clear pattern: A green wall in a street canyon trapped or absorbed large amounts of nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter—both pollutants harmful to people, said Pugh. Compared with reducing emissions from cars, little attention has been focused on how to trap or take up more of the pollutants, added Pugh, whose study was published last year in the journal Environmental Science & Technology.
That’s why the green-wall study is “putting forward an alternative solution that might allow [governments] to improve air quality in these problem hot spots,” he said.Compared with reducing emissions from cars, little attention has been focused on how to trap or take up more of the pollutants, added Pugh, whose study was published last year in the journal Environmental Science & Technology.
That’s why the green-wall study is “putting forward an alternative solution that might allow [governments] to improve air quality in these problem hot spots,” he said.
I want one :-)
