Everest Base Camp, and the amazing high country around it, are high on the bucket list of hikers everywhere. Embark led a fantastic trip there in 2011, and here trip leader Jim Ronning narrates a series of amazing photographs from the trip.
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In 2011 Embark led a climb of Island Peak, or Imja Tse, in Nepal. Here, trip leader Jim Ronning narrates a spectacular photo display from the climb. This is what being in the Himalayas is all about.
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Maybe it’s just human nature that young people want to move on, go where the action is, and express themselves in a way different from their parents. Once they get a chance to do that, there may be no stopping them.
In Ladakh, a remote corner of the Indian Himalayas, this has created a sudden and dramatic change in the culture. Long isolated from the outside world, Ladakh saw its first road from the outside in 1960, and starting in the 70s, outsiders came in for amazing trekking, adventuring, climbing, and even mountain biking. To us, it’s a paradise; but to the locals, it’s home.
We read a story from ANI (basically India’s AP) called “Need to preserve Ladakhi Culture, amid “shifting sands,” and we thought a few things. One was that it’s hard to begrudge young people seeking greater prosperity in cities and the outside world; the nomadic or rural life probably sounds better than it really is. We also cringe when we hear about the problems that come in with irresponsible and unplanned tourism. Another thought was that maybe this is all inevitable, and one day just about all of us will live in cities.
But what really struck was how quickly these traditional cultures can disappear, once exposed to the outside world. So we applaud groups like the Charkha Development Communication Network, whose mission is “Improved social and economic inclusion of rural marginalized communities in development processes.” In Ladakh they are helping youth and women to make their voices heard, to encourage responsible development and preserve cultural traditions.
We want to adventure: to trek Ladakh’s valleys and climb its peaks. And we want to do it before it becomes just another corner of TouristLand. But we also support initiatives like these, to empower local people to have greater say over their future, and to remind everyone that no one wants the whole world to look and act like westerners.
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Sometimes you hear expressions like “I could do that with one arm behind my back,” but nobody ever really means it. So when we saw this headline — Texas Woman Climbs Mount Everest With One Leg — we stopped everything to read the story.
Well, the more you read, the more impressed you’ll be. Turns out Rhonda Graham is 61 years old, and her leg was amputated due to a staph infection in 1980. She got a prosthetic with pictures of mountains on it, to keep the dream alive in her mind. And by the time she finished the climb, the altitude had taken out most functionality of the leg itself. She pretty much literally did this on one leg.
We think just trekking to Everest Base Camp is amazing, and walking the Khumbu Region a rare adventure for most people. To do any of that, at 61, and/or with one leg, would be a cause for wonder. But to climb Everest? Rhonda says she did it to inspire people, and it sure worked for us at Embark. We love her message: “A leg doesn’t define who you are.”
Next up for Rhonda? She plans to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in July. Go, Rhonda!
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Embark is exploring trip options to Ladakh, a trekking region in northern India that borders Tibet and Pakistan. Ladakh plays peaceful host to Indians, Pakistanis, and such a great number of Tibetans that the region, so strongly influenced by Tibetan culture and religion, is called “Little Tibet.”
Embark adventurer Ken is currently reporting from the city of Leh in the Ladakh region, which is surrounded by the giant Himalayas. His colorful blog includes great photos and personal observations, including: You land at 11,580 feet and the affects of the altitude are immediate (headaches, chills); every other bag at baggage claim on arrival is a 50-pound bag of rice brought in by locals returning after a bitter winter; and the hotel provides a hand bucket for the toilet and a red bucket for bathing.
Clearly Ladakh is no tourist trap–in fact it is one of the most sparsely populated regions in Kashmir–which makes traveling there both hard (not as many restaurants, easy-to-read maps, etc.) and luxurious (no tourists). Embark is excited to continue to explore this rugged terrain in the hopes of offering up an affordable but breathtaking step off the beaten path.
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RIP, Joe Puryear.
The Seattle-based Mount Rainier climbing ranger reportedly fell 1,500 feet to his death earlier this week on the 24,170-foot Labuche Kang in the Himalayas. His blog has yet to be updated.
The Seattle Times article says Puryear, who was 37, had been hooked on climbing since the early ’90s, and that he’s written several guidebooks as well. Details of the fall have yet to emerge, other than this passage from Puryear’s wife:
On Wednesday October 27, David and Joe started their route on LaBouche Kang. It was finally a clear and beautiful day. Joe was very excited about the climb as he and David set out. Early on in the climb they were ascending a knife edge ridge and Joe went ahead to scout the route. David said Joe was smiling and kept looking back giving the thumbs up. Joe went around a rock outcropping and disappeared from sight. David following came around the corner and what appeared to be a continuation of the ridge, had given way and revealed a cornice. Joe had apparently stepped out onto the snow, which gave way and he fell 700 feet to his death. David was able to repel down to Joe’s body. David reported that Joe died on impact and did not suffer. He was able to retrieve the SAT phone and call. David is devastated, but strong and in good health. He has returned to base camp and is awaiting help from Global Rescue.
The discrepancies in how far he fell have yet to be sorted out.
Puryear spent his life, up to his final moment, doing what he loved. Our thoughts are with his friends and family. Trust details, and a letter from Puryear’s wife, can be viewed here.
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In January 2010, artists and adventurers Renan Ozturk and Corey Richards packed up their bags and headed to the Khumbu region of Nepal to tackle Tawoche, a 21,463 foot peak that stands in the shadow of Ama Dablam.
But they decided to send their own dispatches, with their own footage, writing, edits, and production, literally as their journey happened, instead of relying on experts back home to take all their footage and compile it into a third-person narrative months after the action.
The result is stunning and intimate, not to mention all the more thrilling knowing that even they do not know what will happen next. Check out the compiled mini dispatches below. It’s well worth the 16 minutes.
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