Happy Friday and congratulations to the Mountaineers Books, the publishing arm of the Mountaineers in the Pacific Northwest. It turns 50 this year!
This publisher is the best provider of english langauge print information on mountaineering knowledge and general outdoors skills. This article in the Seattle Times reports on their celebration and that the organization is in good financial shape so it will continue to provide the information we need (and crave!) for some time to come.
I’m about to make the monthly payments for the mortgage and the loan for my beloved 2010 Subaru Outback, and like every so often I ask some serious questions, if only half-heartedly. So where might I go if these debts weren’t begging for steady income? Well, this mountain daydream takes us the northern edge of India:
Alpinist Conrad Anker said to The Outsider that there are far fewer challenges today in mountaineering, but one such place that he has attempted and would like to return to is Meru (21,850 ft./6,660 m.) in the Gangontri Region of the Himalayas. Specifically, he is interested in conquering the Shark’s Fin route.
The Shark’s Fin route is the central prow of Meru’s middle peak. It involves alpine rock, ice and snow. The crux of the challenge has been beating the weather, supplies, and the bare Shark’s Fin above 19,029 ft./5,800 m. Russian Valery Babanov soloed the route in 2001, but circumvented the fin proper to reach the summit – the Shangri La route. Regardless, he rightfully won the Piolet d’Or for this route.
Well, if you go send me a note at SuburbanMountaineer@yahoo.com, leave a comment, and don’t forget that you can follow this site through Facebook and even Twitter (@SuburbanMtnr). Happy exploring!
Some of you may recall that I enjoy good food. This probably stems from living and working in one of the nation’s fastest growing citites. Well, Jeff Ries of the American Alpine Institute has some great advice on gourmet backpacking foods on the Institute’s blog. He gets it. Here is his post…
Before leaving the trailhead, I like to have everyone enjoy the option of a treat from a nice bakery and offer everyone a scone or something similar. On the hike in on the first day I offer grapes and bing cherries at the first rest stop. They are a bit heavy to carry further but the water and sugar content are both well appreciated.
A good first lunch is some fruit and pastries, rather than a larger meal that could slow strenuous activity. I prefer eating a little around 11am and a little more around 2pm, so I offer snacks like fruit, gorp and energy bars. Gourmet crackers with flavored cream cheese, like Laughing Cow products work well.
It doesn’t take as much effort to carry a little more weight to the first camp, I splurge a bit with beef stroganoff on the first evening. I grill some fillet mignon medium rare a couple days before the trip; it will cook the rest of the way just before it is served. Then I cut it up into 1 inch cubes and freeze it. It will keep other foods cold on the hike in. I cook a stroganoff noodle mix and then add fresh sour cream, a little white wine and then the fillet mignon. The rest of the wine is served with or before the meal. If it is cold and rainy, I also serve soup. If it is hot and the climb has been tough, it is a good time for Frito’s or baby carrots dipped in french onion dip (made with the rest of the sour cream). Variations I have used for the first evening include grilled salmon instead of fillet mignon and apple slices dipped in carmel dip as the appetizer.
For the next morning, eggs and hash browns work well, especially with some tomatoes. I always have some flavored oatmeal for people who don’t like to eat eggs. A little ham and/or cheese is nice to put in the eggs. I boil some water for tea, coffee or hot chocolate before the main course.
The second lunch is a good time for fresh fruit; apples or oranges. I also like to provide some quality dinner rolls or flavored bread (last trip the bakery had spinach feta) with some flavored cheese spread.
Dinner on the second night is a good time for ham as it keeps well for 2 days and a night (as long as temperatures are not too hot). I serve soup if it as cold and cold beer if it is hot. If I have a campfire, I wrap some potatoes in foil and put them in or by the fire while cooking fresh broccoli. If there is no campfire, I slice the potatoes and boil them. Chocolate covered blueberries make a great dessert.
The rest of the trip breakfasts offer a choice of precooked Mountain House scrambled eggs with bacon (sometimes with potatoes – the skillet selection), flavored oatmeal, granola and of course coffee/tea/hot chocolate.
Lunch on the third day includes flavored wheat thins with extra sharp cheese and salami. If there is any fresh fruit left over, we finish it up today.
The third night’s dinner is time for something that keeps well for a few days. I prefer precooked flavored chicken breasts in a foil pouch, available at some grocery stores. I serve them with instant flavored potatoes and baby carrots. Chocolate covered espresso beans are a hit with the coffee drinkers.
Beef steak nuggets, Bakers breakfast cookies and dried fruit (different types) make great lunches an later days of a trip. Bagels and cream cheese also keeps well. Soup is always nice when it is cold and stopping for a long lunch, I sometimes build a campfire to warm bodies and dry clothing.
For dinner on the fourth and subsequent nights, I offer a variety of Mountain House brand freeze dried dinners. I want the backpackers to try different entrees so I bring several 2 serving choices. If anyone is still hungry after emptying the foil pouch in which it cooks, I add an envelope of instant potatoes and the appropriate amount of boiling water to make sure everyone has had enough. This keeps dish cleaning to a minimum as there are no dishes to clean these nights.
–Jeff Ries, AAI Backpacking Guide
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I could not say it any better than our friends at NEIce: The ice has arrived in Huntington Ravine on the eastern flank of Mount Washington in New Hampshire. For northeasterner ice climbers, the season is beginning in earnest. Check out the photos on their site and their reports throughout the season!
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Happy holiday, everyone, whether you’re celebrating Thanksgiving or Columbus Day!
A local news station put out the total number of hiking deaths for climbing Colorado’s 14ers. It came to 10 for this season. As a percentage it is likely a small fraction, but the danger remains nonetheless.
The article (see the link above) quotes an outfitter observing that many hikers and climbers probably do not feel they can get lost today.
I agree. Disorientation is rare today. With our cell phones, maps and the majority of our population living in urban centers, we take what open space and natural hazards mean.
The bottom line is, even for a day hike, plan ahead, pack the Ten Essentials, let someone know where you are going and when you are expected back, and if bad weather rolls in, take shelter or go home. Stay safe.
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K2 on Fire. (All rights reserved)
I just finished reading The Last Man on the Mountain: The Death of an American Adventurer on K2 by Jennifer Jordan (2010). Jordan will be at National Geographic tonight presenting on this book. I was planning on going to see her, ask some questions and report to you tomorrow, but unfortunately, I have a conflict that is unavoidable. In any case, here is my review of her take…
Jordan tells the story of Dudley Wolfe, the wealthy American on the 1939 K2 expedition lead by Fritz Wiessner. However, the story of Wolfe on K2 is the story of that tragic expedition and its leader.
Wiessner was a German-immigrant and was the finest mountaineer in America at the time. Until later in life, he always struggled with debt and having sufficient income. He deferred the leadership of the 1938 K2 expedition to rival Charlie Houston because of his business obligations at the time. The team in 1938 was experienced stars, but for a variety of reasons, personal and economic, Fritz could only put together a second-rate team – most of whom, except Wolfe, never went higher than Camp IV.
I have read a couple of different takes on the 1939 attempt and Jordan’s book follows the pattern of most others, but brings the available research together more thoroughly. The questions Jordan tries to answer, or at least provide the best information about, was whether Dudley Wolfe belonged on the expedition, was he qualified to reach the high camps and remain there for an extended period of time even though his outlook on summiting was dim, and lastly, was he stranded out of negligence or the occupational hazard innate in mountaineering?
Wolfe reached Camp VIII only with Wiessner’s assistance. Eventually, Wiessner had to descend for supplies – or possibly help to get Wolfe to the top. There is a lot of speculation here on why this really happened. Wolfe managed to descend to Camp VII and he never climbed any lower. He would spend nearly two months in those high camps withering away and likely suffering from cerebral edema.
Wolfe was the first casualty of climbing K2, and for a variety of reasons (both justified and muddy) he was left stranded and helpless in Camp VII. Jordan discovered his body at the base of the peak while visiting the K2 base camp in 2002 while writing her first book Savage Summit.
This book paints Dudley Wolfe in a more favorable portrait. Ed Viesturs and David Roberts in K2: Life and Death on the World’s Most Dangerous Mountain make Wolfe seem more incompetent – but to say he was unqualified (which Viesturs and Roberts do not) to be high on the mountain is wrong too. It is worth the read to see the relationship between Fritz and Dudley. Wiessner wanted to the summit desperately for glory and notoriety. Wolfe was an adventure junkie and needed Wiessner to get him as close to the top, if not the top itself, as reasonable. This arrangement, and the affects of altitude, which were not fully understood, was their collective undoing.
As a mountain junkie, I don’t recommend this book unless you are either interested in the mysteries of the 1939 expedition or want to know everything about K2 specifically. There are other more informative K2 books, like Viesturs’ and Roberts’ story, and better climbing stories in general. On the other hand, Jordan’s story might also appeal to readers that enjoy the age of romance in mountain exploration as it tugs at that string.
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