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4/27/2017 0 Comments Am I an asset or a liability?This is not a trivial question to ask yourself when it comes to mountain climbing and every mountaineer, especially the neophytes like myself, must ask this question with most honesty. Climbing a mountain is an individual endeavor in which you are expected to carry your own weight, both physically and metaphorically, but it is also truly a team effort. When there is a risk of falling on steep, hard snow or ending up in a crevasse, it is essential to travel via rope team. It is called the “Brotherhood of the Rope”. It usually involves three or four people tied together so that if one falls, the others can stop him/her from falling further down the mountain. The other key component of roped glacier travel is speed; it is not a good idea to move slowly or stop in an exposed area with crevasses or risk of rock/icefall. But a rope team can only travel as fast as the slowest of its members. Evidently, no one wants to be the weakest link because it can have drastic consequences not only for you but also for the entire rope team. That is really what this question is about.
I have been in training my entire life, whether swimming, biking, running or hiking, but I recognize that my next adventure requires a different set of skills. While I still do some good cardio workouts like swimming and biking, I had to incorporate workouts specific to mountain climbing. In early March, I started running the famed Harvard Stadium stairs once a week with an increasingly heavy backpack each time. I now carry a 50lbs backpack and can complete the entire 2200 stairs up and down in less than one hour. Once a week, I also walk for one hour on a treadmill at a 25% incline with a backpack. Finally, on weekends, I go to Mount Wachusett (a 1hr drive from Boston) and hike up and down the mountain in three hours. With this regimen, I have definitely been seeing improvements in my leg strength and my ability to carry a heavy backpack for hours on end. There are obviously other parameters when one wants to climb big mountains, such as weather, the climbing route, mountaineering skills, altitude, and the “fear factor” or in other words, how to deal with exposure and danger. By signing up with RMI, some factors are out of my control, as the lead guide will be responsible for choosing the best and safest route and the summit window with the best weather. I will learn the basics of safety and mountaineering with the RMI guides just before the actual climb. I do not have the luxury to travel to Colorado to get acclimatized at a higher altitude prior to the Rainier climb but I have never had altitude sickness in the past despite being as high as 12,000 feet. Being in an exposed environment where danger is ever-present and a misstep can have serious consequences will be new to me. I cannot really prepare for that other than ensuring that I am in the best shape possible to prevent running out of energy during both the ascent and descent. That physical “cushion” will give me the confidence I need when things get tough mentally. So, am I an asset or a liability? I don’t know the answer to that question yet but I do believe that I will have done everything I can to get ready to climb that mountain, both literally and figuratively.
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4/4/2017 0 Comments Rainier #2I have always been fascinated by mountains. There is something magical about standing on top of any mountain, a feeling that is hard to explain. After all, why would anyone endure freezing temperatures, mild to severe discomfort, danger, physical exhaustion and even risk an accident for a few minutes on the summit of a mountain? There is essentially no reward involved; no money nor fame that our western society considers paramount to a successful life. So why put ourselves through such difficult situations and challenging times for no logical/practical reason? One quote says, “Those who ask will not understand, those who know cannot explain”. For me, it’s a combination of physical challenge, the sense of adventure from going somewhere few people can go, and being able to enjoy the view from above the clouds. The more challenging, the better, because it adds the factor that is the unknown, which is a little frightening, yet very exciting. Uncertainty is a key component of my 15-dream project and, although Kosciuszko didn’t have much of that, the # 2 on my list has plenty to offer.
Mount Rainier is the highest mountain of the Cascade Range in the Pacific Northwest, and the highest mountain in the state of Washington. The summit stands at 14,411 feet, almost twice as high as Kosciuszko. It’s no small task to climb Rainier. Following is an excerpt found on summitpost.org: “Mt. Rainier is a heavily glaciated mountain and anyone attempting to climb it should have solid mountaineering and glacier travel and crevasse skills. In addition to the mountain traveler's knowledge of weather, route finding, winter camping, etc., one should be proficient in the following techniques for safe glacier travel: ice axe use, self-arrest, belaying techniques on snow and ice, use of crampons, rope work (knots, roped travel), ascending a rope with Prusik cords/mechanic”. This is all foreign to me. As you may have guessed, I’m a complete rookie when it comes to mountain climbing. But when I created my wish list, Rainier was an essential element and a prerequisite to future climbs because it’s one of the top training peaks in the world for beginner mountaineers, given its high-but-not-insane elevation, glacier, and manageable distances from start to finish. Although one can climb Rainier alone, I recognized that this could not be an option for me. Of the three main guide service companies on Mount Rainier, I chose RMI Expeditions because it’s the most recognized company on Rainier and a little less expensive that Alpine Ascents or IMG. Usually, you have to book a trip to Mount Rainier almost one year in advance, because of its very high demand (10,000 attempts per year). After checking the RMI website for months last year with no slots available, I had decided to postpone Rainier and have a go at another Race Across the West bike race. But after coming back from Australia, I checked once again and out of nowhere, there was one slot available for a five-day Summit Climb. I couldn’t believe my luck and immediately signed up. The climb is scheduled for May 6-10, with the first 2 days dedicated to learning the ropes (figuratively and literally) of mountain climbing. Then on day 3, we start climbing from the Rainier Base Camp in Paradise at 5,400 feet to Camp Muir at 10,060 feet. Day 4 is spent at Camp Muir acclimatizing and doing light training. Day 5 is our summit bid, where we start around 1 a.m., hopefully summiting in the early morning and then climbing all the way back down to Base camp. I cannot express how excited and nervous I am about this climb. In my next blog, I will divulge more about my training and the details of preparing for the climb. |
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