Alpinism
Alpinism
Branko Šeparović
Mountains above 3500 m above sea level
are considered to be high mountain areas.
Why is this number a limit?
Because most of the ordinary people cannot function normally on this or
above this level. There are many reasons why this part of the Earth is
inaccessible to some (most) of us:
Decreased atmospheric pressure
Explanation: at the sea surface level,
on 0 m sea level, the air pressure is 1 bar, at 10000 m height it is
approximately 0 bar. Therefore (approximately) at 3500 m the pressure is
0,65 bar, at 5000 m it amounts to 0,5 bar, and at 8000 m to 0,2 bar. Partial
oxygen pressure at 1 bar is 0,21 bar, at 0,5 bar is 0,105 bar, and at 0,125
bar (8800 m) is 0,025 bar. People carry in there genes how much decreased
atmospheric pressure they can take. Some can take 3500 m, some 5500 m and
some 7000 m. Some fortunate individuals can get used to 5000 m without any
difficulties, and can acclimatize to 7000 m. But above 7000 m no one can get
acclimatized. This is the death zone. A person can shortly stray in this
zone (one, two or three days) but during this stay the body inevitably
becomes weaker and weaker. If the person do not returns below 7000 m, he or
she cannot survive. To put it simple: there is not enough oxygen. How the
body responds? It adjusts till a certain point or it shuts down (illness…
death). Altitude illness develops which it leads to an adjustment, up to a
certain point (a person gets used to it), or the condition gets worse. The
best cure is to descend to valley.
Consider the following example (it is not fictional): experienced European
mountaineer, who climbed at 4000 m, wishes to see Tibet which is at
approximately 5000 m sea level, where people and children normally live… He
contracts altitude illness, because he climbed to a plateau too fast or
because he cannot adapt to this altitude at all. He is getting worse and the
solution to the problem is to descent to Nepal, which is, let’s say, 1000 km
behind him and there is no airplane or car … He can aid himself with oxygen
from the bottles (which cannot be found in Tibet, because people live there
normally and have no need for those bottles). Friends are giving him all the
medications they have, but eventually he dies during the trip…
Decreased temperature
Environment temperature (temperature
of air, earth, rocks…) drops at the higher sea level. Here is a simple rule
for lover areas: 1 ˚C on each 100 m of altitude. Therefore, if the air
temperature at the sea is 20 ˚C, it would amount to -68 ˚C, at the top of
Everest, on 8850 meters. This is just a rough estimate which applies better
on lower altitudes, but is not far from the truth.
Example: Basic camp on Everest from the north side (below the mountain) is
on 6600 m. Air pressure, partial oxygen pressure, temperature? (do the math!),
and there is not a single place where you can warm up – no climbers’ chalet,
inn, tavern or a coffee shop … There is only a tent where Sherpa cooks food
and melts water, but there is hardly a space and it is far from being warm.
Imagine that this is the best, most comfortable place in the next 60 days
and it is only getting worse.
High mountains morphology
Needless to say, all high mountains are steep. We are all familiar with few examples of those which are somewhat more placid (more accessible): Mont Blanc, Kilimanjaro, Aconcaqua… and that is it. All other high mountains in the world are steep. All threatening in the same way as are the lower mountains: there is danger of slipping, falling rocks, exhaustion, getting lost, fog, hyperthermia… But on high mountains it is much colder, there are considerable fewer natural passages and crossings, less oxygen, more avalanches, less people and no mountain rescue…
Isolation
We go to high mountains (along many
other reasons) to avoid crowds, to finally be alone on some mountain top.
This kind of solitude has its downsides.
Example: Group of people are trying to summit some trekking peak in the
Himalayas, nothing in particular, just 5 or 6 thousand meters. They all try
but they give up one after another, they are not able to accomplish their
objective. Only the best succeeds, only he is able to climb to this altitude.
He gets sick (altitude illness, strains his ankle, his toes get frozen…) and
he cannot climb down. His friends are not able to help him because they were
not able to climb to the top with him. They are hailing for the helicopter,
but a helicopter cannot fly at this altitude. Organised mountain rescue does
not exist. They are watching each other through binoculars and communicate
with radio stations, they are talking to their homeland via satellite phones,
but all is in vain…
The stated problems regarding the stay
in high mountains contain cruel examples.
Therefore if you wish to visit those places be careful to the following:
• Learn everything about lower
mountains – be experienced
• With the exception of several mountains which are not steep, all other
require knowledge of alpinism
• You never go alone in the high mountains
• Get to know your partners well
• Have the best possible equipment (not the best as you can but the best
there is)
• Study your objective – if this is possible
• Success depends on physical readiness
• Success depends on psychological readiness
• Success depends on technical readiness
• Learn how to administer first aid
• Success depends on luck
• Be persistent
• Reaching the top is less than a half way
• Give up while you still can
• You cannot use internet in high mountains but you cannot go to high
mountains through internet