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Clean up with Ken at Base Camp
On the 20th of April Ken Noguchi came and visited us at
base camp just for the day. Before lunch we organized a
group of about 10 people to do some clean up at base camp.
A couple of days earlier, the ICIMOD Research Team One,
Pertemba and I had scouted around base camp and found that
the pinnacles on the periphery of base camp were the dirtiest.
So we decided to focus our clean up there. We found that
the garbage was focused in clusters. We figured that these
clusters were probably old camps on the mountain that the
glacier slowly pushed down all the way to the base of Mt.
Everest. Some of the items we found were cans dating back
to 1962, old sheepskin boots, and part of an old Italian
helicopter that crashed at Camp 1 as part of an Italian
expedition. All in all - over 7 big sacks full of rubbish
and debris - all this before lunch.
Garbage Retrieval from Mt. Everest
For over a week now, our Sherpas on the Eco-Everest Expedition
have been setting an example by bringing down garbage from
higher up on the mountain - mostly from Camp 2. We have
already collected more than 200 kilograms of garbage and
debris from the mountain and still counting...
Now, the other Sherpas have also begun to join the effort.
Amongst the more interesting articles of garbage/debris
are oxygen cylinders from the French expedition of 1974
and also a couple of oxygen bottles that were apparently
thrown off from near the summit. Since there is a 2000m
drop straight down from the summit to Camp 2, even the reinforced
Kevlar body of the bottles didn’t survive and have
been totally smashed up.
Whirlwind visit of Namche and Khumjung
On the 23rd of April, I did a fast descend down to Namche
from Base camp arriving at Namche around 8 pm. I was asked
by ICIMOD to give a talk at the ICIMOD workshop in Namche
. Many representatives from local associations and organizations
were present. I had the opportunity to speak to them about
the vision of the expedition and the progress of the expedition
so far. I also talked about the different technologies that
were making my expedition cleaner and also saved us a lot
of money on energy costs. I communicated that these technologies
are not only environmentally friendly but also meant real
financial savings.
My father, Ang Tshering Sherpa, had also managed to trek
up to Namche and Khumjung. It was a great pleasure to be
in the Khumbu with him. The last time I was here with him
was when I was a small boy. Although we were only there
for a day we visited my late grandparents’ home and
ate potato pancakes there.
Apa Sherpa
Apa Dai, (Apa Sherpa; 17 time Everest summiteer and thus
world record holder) also managed to attend the workshop.
Back in 1985, when Lake Dig Tsho burst, half of Apa’s
farm was washed away and he and his wife had to flee their
home with only a sleeping bag to protect themselves against
the harsh elements. At the function he said in his very
simple and modest manner: ".... global warming is melting
the ice in our mountains and the ice is turning into big
lakes... when Dig Tsho burst in 1985 my neighbors and
I lost a lot. I am very happy to support in spreading awareness
about this problem...."
Apa Dai is not only helping to spread the word but is also
expected to join the Eco Everest Expedition in the first
week of May to help us take our message to the top of the
world... for him for the 18th time, another world record.
Everest Base Camp snippets:
- The solar cooker has worked exceptionally well at base
camp. Ten liters of water come to a boiling point in 30
minutes!
- The photo exhibit is a huge success with all those visiting
Everest Base Camp. Sherpas and porters alike are able to
relate to the images - even if they are unable to read the
captions. They can "see" the changes that have occurred.
The Sherpas can be heard discussing the images among themselves
and describing the conditions of a particular ridge when
they climbed it several years ago.
Elderly Sherpas tell about the ice pinnacles enroute to
base camp being nearly 100 meters tall in the early days.
These same pinnacles stand hardly 20 meters tall now.
- The Eco Everest Expedition team has cleaned base camp
for a large extent and High Altitude Sherpas are bring down
garbage and debris from above base camp.
Dawa Steven Sherpa,
29 April 2008
Base Camp
Eco Everest Expedition 2008
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