Welcome to our December issue
of the ‘OTWT’ Newsletter, our headline image for this issue was taken during a
wild crossing of Teshi Lapcha, in October 2014. All the images used in this
edition of our Newsletter will identified at the end.
The Storm of
October 2014
Sadly another
tragedy has hit this trekking season in Nepal. In October the bad weather in
the Bay of Bengal pushed the departing monsoon back into Nepal. This hit the Himalaya
with a vengeance resulting in an enormous snow fall, which affected all regions
however, Annapurna, Mustang and the Damador Himal fared the worst. This was in
the main because over 5 feet of snow fell in 24hours and struck one of the most
popular trekking routes at the height of the season. Many people regard the
Annapurna Circuit as an easy trek and it is often disparagingly called the
‘Coke Cola Trail’ due to the fact that there are lodges for most of the way
selling coke cola. Over the last few years there have been an increasing number
of trekkers taking on this challenge not only solo but also without a guide. A
lot of these people are totally unprepared, have no experience and little idea
as to what to do when things get out of control. This was the case on the
Thorong La, 5416m in the northern part of the Circuit. Some trekkers pushed on
regardless trying to beat the storm, many got lost descending into Muktinath;
the descent was rather like crossing the Cairngorms in extremely bad weather,
except at 5000+ metres, these sad soles perished as a result of exposure, some
died from asphyxia because they kept the stove going in the tent all night with
no ventilation, other were caught in avalanches. Many groups did not set out at
the appropriate 5am start time but started several hours later and were caught
in the most vulnerable position and in their most vulnerable condition when the
storm was at its fiercest. Some survived but were badly frost bitten. Nepali
guides, porters and local people were also killed, however many were rescued by
the Nepal Army based in Jomsom.
The main
reaction from the trekking industry here in Nepal is again ‘ban solo trekkers’.
I think this is totally wrong, trekkers should learn to take responsibility for
their own actions and therefore the consequences. If anything is to be done
then I feel TAAN or ACAP should build an information center each side of the Pass
into which all trekkers should book. Within the building there would be an
advice desk when weather information, route conditions and maybe other support
could be provided. This storm was forecast but few listened to the weather
reports or enquired locally about conditions across the La.
It has to be
said that despite those conditions several teams did complete their treks
safely, one group in Damador adjusted their route at the onset of the storm,
sat out a couple of days to let things settle and then safely completed their
‘escape’ route. Sarita was taking an Off the Wall group to Everest Base Camp
and although they also got the snow they managed their trek successfully with
all reaching their goal. However, there was another group going to EBC at the
same time and they had to be rescued due to team members suffering from
exhaustion as a result of ploughing through the deep snow. They were slow and got
caught in the dark and then lost the trail back to Gorak Shep.
Crossing the Teshi Lapcha 5755m
The Tashi Lapcha
is the high pass linking the Rolwaling Valley with the Khumbu. It was first
crossed in 1952 by Hillary and Riddiford who were members of the British Cho
Oyu Expedition led by Eric Shipton, in preparation for the British attempt on
Everest in 1953. They opened up 11 new peaks and explored several valleys and
passes in the Rolwaling area. Even with today’s equipment and knowledge this
trek is still a formidable and challenging undertaking in a remote setting.
After a 10 hour
bus journey from Kathmandu we arrived at the small community of Chhetchhet,
this is the point that the route ascends for four days to Na, initially through
agricultural land but then into dense woodland before opening out into the
upper valley. The trail is there but we
needed to keep a watchful eye as it deviates in places and that could land the
unwary into all sorts of difficulties. It was on our second day that the storm
struck but for us at that altitude it arrived as very heavy rain. That was
enough of a warning to start the process of considering possible options if our
secondary objective of crossing the Teshi Lapcha proved impossible. The first
objective of climbing Pachermo (6273m) was already beginning to become a
diminishing dream.
The rain fell in
the preverbal ‘stair rods’, the small area of land known as ‘our camp site’ was
soon under water. The boys arrived, the tents were wet, sleeping bags damp and
the ground getting increasingly soggy, and the leeches were on the rampage
despite it being the second week of October. Over the next few days the weather
settled down and we dried out.
Arriving in Na
(4180m) on day five we were getting into the swing of things, heads were good,
stomachs were good and the bodies, well they were surviving. It was at Na that
we, considering our recent soakings, decided to put in an extra day to
hopefully allow conditions to settle. The first Na rest day allowed for a
little light exercise and a survey of the route for the next few days. However,
the afternoon of the second day saw the tail end of the bad weather that caused
the chaos in the Annapurna range, move across Rolwaling and put down another
layer of snow. Again the gremlins were playing with the mind as none of us
wanted to repeat the journey back to Chhetchhet and especially not the bus ride
back to Kathmandu. Our concerns were not helped by a group of four experienced
French trekkers who had been rebuffed by the conditions going up to the La and
kept muttering ‘impossible, impossible’ while preparing to descend back to the
road head.
The following
day, the 17th October, dawned bright, all-be-it with a bitter wind.
Everyone left Na at their own pace soon to be caught up by the porters who
would pass us by and then immediately stop for a rest, usually taking up most
of the path with their baskets, legs and occasionally sprawled out bodies.
After the steep climb to Tasho Rolpa the trail leveled out to Kalung (Chukim)
and despite the indication that the days’ trek would take 6.5hrs we managed it
in 4hrs – spirits were high, the weather seemed to be holding and the
conditions under foot were better than expected. However, at Chukim we had to
start on the process of stamping out platforms for the tents, a process that
would be waiting for us at the end on the next four days trekking. From Chukim
the trail climbs a deceptively long way up the hill side to get round a
landslip, only to descend on the far side. However, from the vantage point at
the top of this climb we had excellent views of the way ahead and the route up
the Trakarding Glacier. ‘Interesting’ was I think the adjective used. Once on
the glacier it became evident that progress would be at a slow pace. There were
big holes and small holes, blue ice and nevé, frozen glacial gravel and loose gravel, big boulders and little
boulders and all covered in a layer of snow. Route finding was fairly straight
forward but it was torturous weaving around all the features you’d expect to
find on a Himalayan glacier. Eventually dusk was moving in and bodies were
definitely getting tired, mainly from all the sliding and falling around in the
deeper snow. A small space was found on the moraine that provided some flatter
areas where tents could be pitched and the boys were able to get their big tent
suitably anchored down. The night was good but the morning came with high
clouds, the sort that keep you on your toes as they have a habit of creeping up
on you when least expected.
As we progressed
up the glacier we were getting closer to the head wall of the valley and the
mighty west face of the Teshi Lapcha Danda, a giant wall of a 1000m linking
Pachermo to Bigphera-Go Shah and supporting many hanging seracs, at least we
hoped it was supporting them. Despite
keeping a weather eye on the clouds, we were also keen to locate the key
passage out of the lower valley and into the upper valley of the Drolambau
Glacier. This does not appear obvious until you are upon it with apparently
nowhere else to go. The route climbs a rock buttress known as Noisy Knob, an
apt name considering the proximity to all those hanging seracs, this is technically
easy but with the new snow and the exposure it was prudent to fix a rope for
the safe passage of all. Once on the top of the buttress a short descending
traverse led us to a 100m gully, which dropped into oblivion so another fixed
rope was put in place. At the top of the gully the climb was steep and over
mixed ground, the snow made it interesting and care was required to avoid an
argument with Newton! Another two hours took us to 5400m where the snow
tramping dance began, tents were pitched and food prepared. An early night was
on the cards, firstly in preparation for the 4am start in the morning and
secondly because it was the warmest place in view of the fact that those
morning clouds were delivering their loads of snow as expected.
The bitterly
cold morning arrived and with it the first problem of the day, all the geodesic
tent poles sections had become frozen together. However, we were on the move by
5am and dawn was not that far away although it would be several hours before
the sun reached the recesses of the glacier.
Finally after
four hours we were at the beginning of the climb up the lower slopes of
Pachermo and on the way to the Teshi Lapsha. The snow was deep, the sun getting
hotter and not helping our cause but a slow mechanical routine saw us making
steady progress. At Na we were told about the problems unfolding on the Thorong
La but at that stage few facts were available. However, the seriousness of the
situation was graphically brought home to us half way up the slope when the
rock, as I thought it was that I was heading for, turned out to be a porter
basket complete with its load. The basket was covered in snow and virtually
buried; the snow around it had not been disturbed. Inner thoughts crept into
the mind as to the welfare of its owner. Porters don’t normally leave their
loads behind for fear of getting a bad reputation which could seriously impact
on their future earning potential.
Eventually the
top of the La arrived and our ideas of putting off an ascent of Pachermo were
confirmed, a couple of bites from our chocolate bars and swallowed with
difficulty was all we could manage before the descent into the Khumbu. Again
progress came to a halt after a short time as we felt we needed to again fix a
rope to safe-guard our descent down towards Thame.
As soon as we started
it became evident that the one fixed rope would soon become three. All time
consuming and resulting in another long day of 13hrs thus arriving at camp at
6pm in the dark. This was to be our last camp on the snow with all the
performance of having to heat snow to produce water, a time and kerosene
consuming activity.
Now the air was
warmer and richer in oxygen, the going was easier and we knew that we wouldn’t
have to retrace our steps back to Chhetchhet and that bus journey back to
Kathmandu.
Thame came and
went and then Namche Bazaar came into view. Camping on the hill outside the
village was no barrier for seeking out the Panorama Lodge for a meal, all under
the guise of giving the boys a night off! The next day dawned and it was down
the big hill to Phakding for the last night under ‘canvas’ before the final day
up the trail to Lukla, a lodge for the first time and the flight to Kathmandu.
A real ‘Off the
Wall’ experience in some pretty tough conditions. Thanks to Ian and Lynda Gray,
Cherring Bhote, Wonchu Sherpa and the boys for their sterling efforts in making
this a great and successful trek.
In September I completed a crossing of the Tilicho Passes. This was a
trek I had wanted to do for some time and I was fortunate enough to do it with
a friend of mine Tripple Gurung. The
image above is of Annapurna summit 8091m in the middle background with Khangsar
Kang 7485m on the left with the connecting ridge to Tilicho Peak 7134m leading
out to the right.
Tripple Gurung, explorer, researcher and instigator of new route
development in the Annapurna region. Tripple comes from Manang and his family
has close ties and a long history going back many generations in the Manang
area. Tripple now runs Om Home Hotel in Jomsom, an oasis worthy of any visit
for home comforts after the trials and tribulations of completing the Annapurna
Circuit. This image, Tripple with Dhaulagiri in the background.
The Gai Jatra Festival
In August, beginning on the first day of the waning moon in the Nepali month of Bhadra the Newar community celebrates the Gai Jatra Festival. In Kathmandu this festival takes place in Durbar Square and Freak Street. A legend has it that King Pratap Malla initiated the festival in the 17th century. The Queen was deeply saddened by the loss of her child, the King, making a point that it was not only they that had lost a child, asked all the subjects that had lost loved ones to come out with cows and mimicry, particularly aimed at helping the queen overcome her grief over their son’s death. It is believed that the celebration of Gai Jatra opens up the way to heaven for the deceased family members. Apart from its religious values, Gai Jatra is also marked as the festival of humour and satire. The satire is aimed mainly at the malpractices of society and political anarchies, among other social subjects.
Gai Jatra is
still celebrated and the idea of satire with comedians pointing fun at modern
society and social subjects is still highly visible, but, how much of this
‘making fun’ actually points to a change in social attitude in this still
markedly conservative community?
The Essence of Freak Street lives on
The Hippy Trail, as it was known, generally
catered for tourists seeking alternative ‘adventures’. The young, and not so
young, would travel overland, as cheaply as possible, generally linking
together towns and cities that were known to have a subculture of people who
participated in smoking ‘relaxing substances’!
In its hay-day thousands of travelers would arrive in Kathmandu where
they would, in general, mix with the locals and chill out as opposed to
participating in the usual tourist activities. In this past era Basabtapur or
‘Freak Street’, as it was nicked-named because of the characters that
frequented the area, became the epicenter of Kathmandu’s ‘Hippy’ world. From
the early 1960s to late 1970s the main attraction drawing tourists to Freak
Street was the government-run hashish shops. Freak Street was a hippie Nirvana,
marijuana and hashish were sold legally and openly in government licensed
shops. During this period of social and
political frustration the young and restless from all over the world could
escape to Kathmandu to experience the fascinating culture, art, architecture
and the unique hashish induced life style
The Nepal
government then imposed a strict regulation for tourists regarding dress codes
and physical appearances. After imposing such regulations by law hippies felt
vulnerable and the hippie culture of Nepal died out. It was under this
directive that the Nepali government came to ban the production and sale of
hashish and marijuana in Nepal.
The laws of the
late 1970s might appear to be a bit draconian. However, considering that only
two years ago Nepal’s police were so concerned about the amount of ‘drug’
related crime that they rounded up people with dreadlocks and forcibly provided
them with ‘free-hair cuts’! It makes you wonder if the nation has really moved
on.
Today Kathmandu
still retains a bit of a hippy culture with tourists arriving who are still
trying to find Nirvana. It is also obvious from a night out that many of the
hippies from the 60s and 70s failed, at that time, to locate the bus home!
Nepal – A Tea House Trek
The first
commercial trek in Nepal took place in the early 1960s and was arranged under
the guidance of Col Jimmy Roberts, his first clients were three English ladies
who trekked to Everest Base Camp in 1965; they camped. Since then Nepalese
entrepreneurs have been quick to seize the opportunity to develop services for
trekkers, the most obvious being the development of the ‘Tea House’ serviced
treks.
The Annapurna
Circuit was the first trek to receive attention to meet the growing needs of
the trekkers and to develop tea houses (lodges). Now it is possible to complete
most of the popular treks in Nepal using these facilities.
There are of
course many environmental issues surrounding ‘tea houses’, the development,
construction, sustainable use and effect on the indigenous population and the
environment. Inevitably these buildings will be new constructions claiming land
that was previously used for other purposes even if it was just for grazing and
wild life, stone has to be excavated and broken into building blocks, timber
has to be either cut locally or, at greater expense, flown in by helicopter,
again with an additional carbon impact on the environment.
To keep the tea
house services up to the trekkers’ expectations the owners are always under
pressure to provide additional services – showers, battery charging, electric
lights, reliable cooking even the provision of
Many tea houses
use temporary seasonal staff, often child labour, brought in from other areas,
in many cases by-passing local labour that would probably be more expensive. Of
course most of the provisions are transported in from Kathmandu.
It is not
possible to turn the clock back, so, to reduce future negative environmental
impact organizations like the Trekking Agents Association of Nepal (TAAN) must
implement a vigorous educational plan to promote environmentally sustainable
tourism via the many Nepalese trekking agents as well as the tea house owners.
The Agents need
to manage their own clients and in particular the Nepali trekking staff to be
environmentally responsible. Finally the local Village Development Committee
(VDC) should take on the responsibility to providing environmentally friendly
waste disposal sites and incinerators. I’m sure many readers will be aware of
the rural road development plans that are engulfing the higher remote regions
of Nepal, these roads are in the main built to deliver supplies, not necessarily
for the movement of the local population. They are not always carefully planned
or their development monitored, again causing negative environmental impact.
Looking at the
positive side of tea house trekking these services add a little more comfort
for the trekkers and thus attract a certain percentage of the trekking
population who would otherwise not visit these remote areas if they had to
camp. Local income is being generated and local communities are being not only
empowered but provided with a source of income; but this must be sustainable and of course
there can be certain positive advantages as a result of being exposed to
foreigners. All the trekkers and mountaineers who visit Nepal expected to see a
good and clean environment, if Nepal loses that on trekking routes together
with the very real impact of climate change on snow and glacier melt in the
Himalaya then what will the trekkers come to see? Will they continue to travel
to Nepal or even the Himalaya?
The development
of new trekking areas and new tea houses must in future be strictly monitored
in a corruption free way. Maybe one way to develop awareness is for all new
developers to submit an environmental risk assessment to the authorities before
work begins. Any negative impact should be addressed through the developers
implementing environmentally positive proposals – planting trees to landscape
and protect the locality, terracing to manage the soil removed for leveling
purposes, environmentally friendly waste disposal plans, landscaping quarry
sites rather than leaving large exposed areas of broken stone.
However, there
are less intrusive home stay style tea houses where you can ‘share’ the communal
times with the family but then retire to your own private bed-room.
Finally to
enable the tea house owners to provide all the expected services there is a
cost, and this cost is rapidly increasing. Now you can’t stay in a Nepalese tea
house for less than 40 US$ a day, this cost can rise to as much as 200 US$ a
day if you go to the top end lodges in Namche Bazaar or other main trekker and
tourist centers. Trekking in Nepal is no longer a ‘cheap’ holiday!
SAARC
The South Asian
Association for Regional Cooperation held their regional meeting in Kathmandu
in November. In preparation for the visiting foreign dignities the Nepal
Government is said to have spent many million NRs dressing the city and
providing other facilities for the visitors, this included several bullet proof
Mercedes Benz and BMWs as well as allegedly
new overcoats for the Traffic Police!
All the roadside kerbs had been painted as had the road barriers and the
lamp posts. Kathmandu looks like you have never seen it before. Don’t miss the one
and only opportunity to see Kathmandu in its sparkling new set of clothes.
Exchange rate
Over the last
few weeks the exchange rate has taken a bit of a tumble from the high of
162/-NRs to the sterling pound to the present rate of 155/-NRs to the sterling
pound.
Weather Warning
At one time even
I could say ‘next week is going to be like this week’. However, in the 10years
that I have lived here things have changed, there is no such thing as seasonal
weather, climate change is here. If you’re travelling in any of the Himalayan
regions, be prepared for all kinds of weather and in the extreme. The last four
seasons have taught us to become more aware of regional disturbances and to be
prepared for anything the weather can throw at us.
New for 2015
Annapurna Circuit
The Annapurna
Circuit has come in for a bit of a negative pounding recently not only because
of the storm in October but because of the new road and the belief that this
has detracted from this ‘old favourite’. However, many people have been working
hard to find new trails so as to keep the trekkers interested in this
spectacular district.
Our 2015
brochure includes four new adventures in the Annapurna area, all worthy of
either including in an extended Annapurna Circuit trek or as independent treks
in their own right. They are: - 1) Seven Passes Annapurna Trek 2) Rhododendron
Trek 3) Yarcha Trek 4) Nar Phu Circuit Trek. See – www.offthewalltrekking.com
for full details
A First Ascent
Yaphu Ri is a 6035m peak in the Makalu region. Off the Wall
Trekking are working in partnership with Himalaya Alpine Guides to offer this
expedition on a fixed departure date in November 2015
The Himalayan Stove Project
Working with the HSP
Off the Wall Trekking is
pleased to announce this charity trek to Dhaulagiri. See– www.offthewalltrekking.com www.himalayanstoveproject.com
And new treks in Pakistan in the Hunza district
And skiing in Kashmir for the winter 2015/2016
Please take time to look these treks up on our website
Meet two of our staff
Chhering Bhote
from the Makalu region, Chhering has been with us for several years and works
on all our treks as our senior mountain leader.
Wongchu Sherpa,
or ‘one-two’ as he jokingly calls himself is our technical climbing guide, he
comes from the Khumbu district south of Everest.
Needless to say
both are very experienced and really good guys and I’m also pleased to call
them good friends.
Image (all
copyright ©Ian Wall unless otherwise stated)
The Storm of October 2014
An injured avalanche
victim from Israel rides a bus to the airport to head homewards in Kathmandu,
Nepal.©Niranjan
Shrestha
Crossing the Teshi
Lapcha 5755m
1.
Chekigo
6257m from the upper Rolwaling Khola valley
2.
Kalung
(Chukim) the last campsite before entering onto the Trakarding Glacier 4561m
3.
The
vantage point at the top of this landslip with excellent views of the way ahead
and the route up the Trakarding Glacier.
4.
The
key passage up Noisy Knobb and the first fixed rope.
5.
Below
the east face of Angole ©Lynda Gray
6.
Our
last camp at 5400m before crossing into the Khumbu
7.
Heading
up the final section of the glacier towards the La
8.
The
final section of three fixed ropes from the top of the La down into Khumbu ©Ian Gray
The Gai Jatra Festival
1.
The crowds gathering in Durbar
Square to watch the procession pass by marking the start of Gai Jatra 11 August
2014
2.
Local children dressed up to
help the Queen overcome her grief
3.
Some very risqué appearances in
what is still a very conservative society
4.
Sights that are not that
uncommon around Thamel during the evening times these days
5.
Maybe humour and a jib at
social subjects, or maybe not!
6.
A Sardhu chilling out during
the festival of ** the only day of the years when the smoking of hashish is
still legal on the streets of Kathmandu
7.
Desmond playing live and in
2014 – he still does!
Nepal – A Tea House
Trek
1.
The village of Thame near
Namche bazaar, Khumbu – all the buildings in this image are tea houses (lodges)
©Sarita Lama 2010
2.
Namche Bazaar 2006
3.
Namche Bazaar 2014 ©Lynda Gray
4.
Sherpa Land Namche Bazaar ©Sherpa Land Lodge
5.
Sherpa Land Namche Bazaar ©Sherpa Land Lodge (attached bathroom)
6.
Home-Stay on the Tamang Trail,
Langtang
SAARC
1. Kathmandu - the ‘new pin’, the road
near the American Embassy
Hope you guys had a good and happy
Christmas and are looking forward to the New Year .. me I’m just going to
chill!
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The Happy Red Panda sends best Christmas wishes to all!
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