The MountainWorld™ Blog

Blind and Naked

I've heard, strangely, many people remark about Erik Weihenmayer's 2001 climb of Everest that it really wasn't that remarkable.

Sure, he's blind, people say, but it's only Everest...and he had a ton of guides dragging him up.

Guides or not, the reality is Erik climbed Everest. He crossed ladders in the Khumbu Icefall, scurried up the Lhotse Face, climbed the Hillary Step, and stood on top of the world. Blind or not, Erik's a pretty darn good climber.

But, Everest, schmeverest. That wasn't enough for him. Since 2001 (and before), Erik has done some amazing climbs, like Losar, the 14 pitch stunning ice climb near Namche Bazaar, which he climbed with Rob Raker in 2008.

But, probably his most impressive climb that I know of happened just recently when he did the famed and feared Naked Edge in Eldorado Canyon to raise money and awareness for The Access Fund. Filmmaker Cedar Wright was on hand to document it (along with my friend Charley Mace, who said it was a stunning climb, too!)

Check out the video below...and let me know if you still think Erik's accomplishments are trivial!! Oh, a while you're telling me that, write down when you last climbed the Naked Edge...with a blindfold on.

Jake Norton is an Everest climber, guide, photographer, writer, and motivational speaker from Colorado.

The Basics of Altitude: A Primer on AMS, HACE, & HAPE, Part III

Members of Nepal's cabinet will meet on December 4th in Gorak Shep in an effort to raise awareness about the effects of climate change on the delicate Himalayan environment. The move is quite similar to the underwater meeting held by the Maldives' cabinet a few weeks ago.

While the cause is worthy, it's more than a bit concerning to think of Nepal's ministers hopping in a helicopter from Kathmandu (about 4,600 feet) and flying - with a brief pit-stop in Lukla for a medical checkup - to 17,000 foot Gorak Shep. Even though the meeting is supposed to be brief, clouds come in quickly in the Khumbu, and helicopters there can only operate in VFR, and thus are grounded when the weather comes in. Thus, even though a short meeting is planned, the weather might make other plans...and the potential for AMS, HACE, and HAPE increases dramatically. 

So, that brings us to the final part of this series on altitude sickness: how do we avoid - or at least reduce the chances of - getting AMS, HACE, and HAPE in the first place?

As a high altitude physician once said to me, the first thing to do is choose your  parents. This is because medicine is now discovering that much of high altitude physiology, of who does well and who does not do well at altitude, may depend on your genetic makeup.

Unfortunately, no matter how much we want to, none of us can choose our parents! So, we've got to take some other steps when traveling to high altitude to reduce the chances of getting sick.

• Rule #1: Plan. This is pretty basic, but important. The altitude rule of thumb is to ascend no more than 1,000 feet per day to allow your body time to properly acclimate.
  
  So, set your schedule accordingly, especially if your itinerary involves altitudes higher than you've been before. If you must go up more than 1,000 feet in a day, try to fit in a day of rest and acclimatization. And, of course, monitor yourself and your teammates for any signs and symptoms.

• Rule #2: Hydrate. Water pretty much helps with everything, altitude included. And, keep in mind that at high altitude, the air is drier, resulting in increased fluid loss. So, drink up...and keep it to water or other non-alcoholic and decaffeinated beverages!

• Rule #3: Know Your Body. This is perhaps the most important rule. While I, as a guide, can watch my clients for signs of trouble, only they can truly know and understand what their body is telling them. Likewise, your teammates can only know so much about you and your body. So: know your body, listen to it, trust what it is telling you.
  
  If you have a headache at altitude, take an aspirin. But, remember that the headache is your body telling you something important: it's not getting enough oxygen. It may be dehydrated. So, take the aspirin, kill the pain, but remember to breathe and drink.

• Rule #4: Let your body do the work. In today's world, we tend to want to pop a pill and let chemistry solve our problems for us rather than letting our bodies do the work. Often, this can be counterproductive.
  
  I can't tell you how many times I've had clients on a trip who, on the advice of a physician, are popping Diamox prophylactically without ever having tried to let their bodies adjust to altitude first. As a result, many have suffered the side effects of Diamox (tingling in the extremities, antsyness, dehydration, etc.) without ever knowing if they could have gone to altitude without chemical help.
  
  So, my rule here is let your body try. Give it the benefit of the doubt. Breathe a lot. Take it slow. Monitor for any signs and symptoms and treat accordingly. And, finally, take Diamox when and if needed, but give your body a fighting chance first!

• Rule #5: Be flexible and relax. Altitude, like mountain weather, is a fickle thing. I've climbed with people who have done fine on big mountains and then suddenly got sick at an altitude they had been to before. Simply put, you never know. There seems to be little rhyme or reason to altitude sickness.
  
  So, be flexible. Rest if needed. Build extra days into your itinerary. If you get stopped by a storm, don't rush upward to make up days as soon as the sun comes out. Take your time, relax, make sound, safe, smart decisions...and enjoy the hills!

And, if you want to learn more about altitude and oxygen, be sure to stop on by the American Mountaineering Museum and see our new exhibit, Thin Air!

Jake Norton is an Everest climber, guide, photographer, writer, and motivational speaker from Colorado.

The Remotest Place on Earth

On South Georgia in 2004...Felt pretty remote to me!

I've been to some pretty remote places...or so I thought. Western Tibet. South Georgia. Borneo.

But, according to an article in this month's issue of New Scientist, these aren't really that remote. Or, at least not that remote according to the criteria used in a new study by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre in Ispra, Italy, and the World Bank.

The study identified "remoteness" based on, as Michael Robinson points out in Time to Eat the Dogs, "information on terrain and access to road, rail and river networks. It also consider[ed] how factors like altitude, steepness of terrain and hold-ups like border crossings slow travel." It didn't necessarily take into account access to cell phone networks (now available on the summit of Everest) or other technological advances that may limit aspects of remoteness."

Nonetheless, it is a pretty interesting piece. Some findings tell us how small indeed our world has become:

• less than 10% of the world's land is more than 48 hours of ground-based travel from the nearest city
• in the Amazon, extensive river networks and an increasing number of roads mean that only 20% of the land is more than two days from a city - around the same proportion as Canada's Quebec province

And, according to the study, what is the remotest place on earth? It's a tough spot high on the Tibetan Plateau at 34.7°N 85.7°E, sitting at about 17,500 feet, and from here it takes 3 weeks on foot to reach Lhasa. Pretty remote!

View Larger Map

Jake Norton is an Everest climber, guide, photographer, writer, and motivational speaker from Colorado.

Thursday Thought: Hegel, MLK, Obama, and the Dalai Lama

I definitely tend toward the left side of the political spectrum, and identify myself more as a Democrat than otherwise. But, I make a conscious effort not to be partisan...I try my best to praise the positive things the "other side" does and accomplishes, and make my voice heard when the leaders I support are, in my estimation, making bad decisions.

This, to me, is the very essence of democracy: The ability - and, in fact, the need - to voice our disagreement with those in power, whether they be friend or foe. As the historian Henry Commager wrote: If our democracy is to flourish, it must have criticism; if our government is to function it must have dissent.

So, it was with dismay that I heard President Obama chose not to meet with the Dalai Lama while he was in Washington to accept the Lantos Human Rights Prize. I'm a supporter of Tibet and it's quest for spiritual autonomy, but, even more so, I feel strongly that, for us to be a leader on the world stage, we must be willing to make a stand, to defend our beliefs and our ethics...regardless of the political capital on the table.

Certainly, President Obama felt that a meeting with the Dalai Lama would create friction in US-China relations. It almost certainly would. But, our ethics and beliefs should transcend our short-term priorities. By meeting with the Dalai Lama - which has been done by all sitting US presidents since George H.W. Bush - Obama would have sent a clear message to China, and to the world, that we as a nation believe what we say, stand up for our core values, and have a true desire to make the world a better place for all people.

Today's Thursday Thought offers a little advice on taking a stand to President Obama, and indeed to all of us, from the great minds of Georg Hegel and Martin Luther King, Jr:

To be independent of public opinion is the first condition of achieving anything great.
- G.W.F. Hegel

Cowardice asks the question: Is it safe?
Expediency asks the question: Is it politic?
Vanity asks the question: Is it popular?
But conscience asks the question: Is it right?
And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular,
but one must take it because it is right.
- Martin Luther King, Jr.

And, for those who are interested, here is a video of the Dalai Lama accepting the Lantos Prize on Tuesday:

Jake Norton is an Everest climber, guide, photographer, writer, and motivational speaker from Colorado.

The Loss of a Legend: Dr. Charlie Houston, 1913-2009

Dr. Charles Houston, 1913-2009
From Alpinist Magazine

This morning, from several people, I heard the sad news that a climbing legend, Charlie Houston, passed away yesterday at his home in Burlington, Vermont.

Dr. Charles Snead Houston was a legend in every sense of the word. From pioneering climbs like Nanda Devi in 1936 and K2 1938 & 1953 to pioneering the field of high-altitude physiology, Dr. Houston never stopped forging ahead, breaking new ground and being a leader in all that he did.

I've written a great deal about Charlie on this blog, and there's too much to recount about his life here and now. So, here's a few resources if you are interested:

• The Brotherhood of the Rope post
• Post about Houston's memoir, The Brotherhood of the Rope
• Post about the passing of Bob Bates, a compatriot of Houston
• Thursday Thought from August 27, 2009, about Dr. Houston
• Interview with Houston on PBS NOW
• Books by and about Charlie Houston at Amazon

And, as I think he would like it, I'm going to head out into the hills today, and think about life, about mountains, and about the ever present and ever important Brotherhood of the Rope.

Dr. Houston...thank you for the memories...for the inspiration...for the joy and the stories and the legacy you leave to all of us. You will be missed.

Jake Norton is an Everest climber, guide, photographer, writer, and motivational speaker from Colorado.

Off to the Rainier Mountain Festival

I'm off tomorrow morning for a few days of fun and photography at the Rainier Mountain Festival.

Always a fun event, the Mountain Festival brings together a slew of great climbers (I'm included...but don't let that confuse things...there are really some greats coming!) as well as a lot of fun events.  Some of the many things going on over the weekend are:

• Slideshows by Dave Hahn, Seth Waterfall, Tyler Jones, Zoe Hart, Jake Norton, and more
• Book signings by Jim Whittaker and Ed Viesturs
• A massive Post Monsoon Sale of great gear
• Erect-A-Tent and Sled Pull Alpine Games
• And lots more...check the event schedule for more information and times

The Mountain Festival will, as always, be held at Rainier BaseCamp in Ashford, Washington, at the foot of Mount Rainier. It'll be going on starting at 9:00 AM on both Saturday and Sunday, September 12th & 13th, 2009.

Come on down if you're in the area and enjoy! See you there!

Jake Norton is an Everest climber, guide, photographer, writer, and motivational speaker from Colorado.

A Legend Needing a Hand: Layton Kor

The name associated with the climb was often more terrifying than the rating, or even the climb itself.

To me, gazing up at a route first climbed by the legendary Layton Kor was to know inherently that the route would bring stout climbing, perhaps scant protection, and would include reaches that only Layton - and perhaps a pterodactyl - could hope to make gracefully, if at all.

But, without fail, the Kor routes I have climbed have been some of the best ever...perhaps due in large part because I knew I was climbing in the footsteps - and handholds - of a legend.

From The Diamond of Long's Peak in Coloradoto Castleton Tower and the imposing Titan in Utah to a winter ascent of the Eiger's North Face, Kor climbed harder and climbed more in a decade than most will do in a lifetime.

Sadly, however, Layton - now 70 - needs help. Suffering from kidney disease, Layton is in need of a transplant...but is having trouble paying his bills for dialysis and everything else. Fortunately, other legendary climbers - namely Stewart Green and Steph Davis - have stepped up to the plate and started the Layton Kor Fund to raise money for his treatment and transplant.

If you don't know much about Layton, read Stewart's article, or a new one by Alison Osius in Rock & Ice Magazine, or the countless other musings about the man on The Mountain Project, SuperTopo, and elsewhere on the web. What you'll find is that, his climbing aside, Layton was - and is - a great person, and one who gave a great deal through his grit and enthusiasm to the sport of climbing.

Pat Ament recalled in an interview with Climbing Magazine a letter he once received from Layton describing a frenzy of climbs in Yosemite. At the end, Layton offered some advice, saying:

Be sure to use lots of protective pitons. Climbers lead a hard and lonely life, and it only takes one fall to end everything.

Layton has lived the climbers life...Let's not let him fall now.

Visit the Layton Kor Fund now and do what you can to help him out.

Jake Norton is an Everest climber, guide, photographer, writer, and motivational speaker from Colorado.

Brad Washburn's last photos

As any of you who follow the goings on at the American Mountaineering Museum know, a selection of Bradford Washburn's favorite and iconic images is on display through October, 2009. These are some amazing images, hand picked by Bradford himself to be in a select collection, and on permanent loan from Cody Smith.

To add to the excitement, astronaut and American Alpine Club member John Grunsfeld just returned from a Hubble Telescope mission. On the mission, he took with him Bradford's 9x12 Zeiss Maximar B folding camera. Bradford used this camera on his 1937 expedition to the St. Elias Mountains, and on many other expeditions. But, it's last photos, taken by Grunsfeld, are from a bit higher up.

Join Grunsfeld at the American Mountaineering Center on September 30, 2009, for a special evening where he will return the camera to its place in the American Mountaineering Museum, and show the last photos taken by Brad's camera. Check with the American Alpine Club for more details.

Jake Norton is an Everest climber, guide, photographer, writer, and motivational speaker from Colorado.

In Memoriam: Craig Luebben, 1960-2009

I didn't know him well, but certainly knew of him. Amazing climber. Kind-hearted man. Inventor of the Big-Bro, making off-width cracks protectable if not climbable.

And, the couple times I met him, at the climbing gym, cragging at North Table Mountain here in Golden, and elsewhere with his wife and daughter at parades, the farmer's market, etc., Craig always struck me as one of those unique figures: extremely talented, relentlessly dedicated, and yet somehow also quiet, kind, humble...

To think that he is now gone saddens me beyond words. There aren't too many details, but it sounds as if he and Willie Benegas were training for their American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA) exam on Mount Torment in the Cascades when Craig fell into a moat.

Willie was hurt, but is by-in-large alright.

My thoughts and best wishes go out to Craig's wife, Silvia, and daughter, Giulia Maria.

Read more about the tragic accident on Stewart Green's climbing page. 

- Jake Norton is a climber, guide, photographer, writer, and motivational speaker from Colorado.

An eloquent argument about the upcoming Olympics in Beijing

As nearly everyone who even occasionally watches the news, listens to the radio, or glances at a newspaper knows, there is quite a bit of controversy swirling around China's upcoming Olympic Games in Beijing. From protests in Tibet and along the long torch run to climber Brant Holland being kicked off of Everest last week by Nepalese authorities for carrying a "Free Tibet" banner up Everest.

Sadly, however, much of the mainstream news in the USA has failed to speak out strongly on the issue, preferring rather to dodge a tough issue and see what comes out of it all. I'm not advocating that China should be wholeheartedly condemned; China, amidst its stumbles and mistakes, does do a lot of things right, as schools, roads, electricity, and general development in the hinterlands of Tibet attest. However, as with any nation (and especially a big, complex, diverse one like China...or the USA), there are plenty of bad things happening in China, from the oppression of ethnic groups like the Tibetans and the Uighurs to burgeoning environmental issues that threaten catastrophe.

Just as these issues are brought out and addressed candidly and openly when present in the US and other nations, they should likewise be called out and addressed as they happen in China, for the strongest sign of patriotism is not slavish dedication to an ideal, but rather logical criticism directed toward positive change.

Unfortunately, though, China resists nearly all criticism from within and without, no matter how altruistic its framing, and much of the world press, perhaps fearful of the economic might that is modern China, follows suit.

So, to get to my point, it was with pleasure that I came across a wonderful article today in The Post Online from Cameroon. Written by journalist Sam Nuvala Fonkem, the article (China's Verbal Acrobatics On Sports And Politics) makes an eloquent argument against the policies of - and world acquiescence to - modern China.

I won't quote the whole article here, because you should read it yourself. But, I did want to pull a strong segment from the end:

China should do well to borrow a leaf from the African Union which, under the distinguished leadership of Alpha Konare, adapted the humanitarian philosophy of non-indifference, which goes far beyond the mercantile notion of non-interference.

Non-indifference signifies the primacy of humanity over mercantilist pursuits and upholds the truism that man lives by man; that you are your brother's keeper. Long live Ubuntu, the principle that good men shall not remain silent in the face of man's inhumanity to man.

Fonkem's writing reminds me of the thoughts of another great leader, thinker, and champion of human rights. He was someone we all know, and one who is revered as a person who did not shrink from controversy, who did the right thing - and advocated the right thing - simply because it was the right thing. The man? Martin Luther King, Jr. And his quote:

Cowardice asks the question - is it safe?

Expediency asks the question - is it politic?

Vanity asks the question - is it popular?

But conscience asks the question - is it right?

And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular; but one must take it because it is right.

- Jake Norton is an Everest climber, guide, photographer, writer, and motivational speaker from Colorado.