Thursday, September 24th of this wretched year of our Lord 2009, Base Camp ¨Delta¨ 11,000 feet above sea level. Today is the first day of our trip up Mount Huayna Potosi (why-na, po-to-see) 6,095 meters/19,996 feet meters above sea level.
1:30 pm
For the first leg of the trip we were delayed about one hour in Jorge Wilsterman Airport in Cochabamba as modern air travel commonly dictates. But we finally left and arrived in La Paz the capital of Bolivia where the climbing company picked us up to drive us to the shop to be fitted for gear. Then it was back on to the transport and out of town to the base camp where we were to spend the night and acclimatize.
On the way up we went through several valleys. One of the most notable things that was pointed out was the place where the Chacaltaya Glacier used to be. This was a 3,000 year old glacier that has melted away in the last 5 or so years. It was the highest ski range in the world while it existed. Now there is nothing but a bunch of broken rocks where it used to sit. I shake my head when I think that I actually know people who do believe that global warming does not even exist.
Upon arrival at the base camp we were briefed by Sabino (our mountain guide) on what the weekend schedule would be. He then served us lunch which turned out to be better than what I thought it would be. Before the weekend I plan to make an outrageous and ridiculous demand of him. I just don’t know what that will be yet. I will have to rely on my wit and creativity.
7:40 pm
Tammy and I took a nap shortly after lunch. Surprisingly we slept for 2 hours. After waking up we went on a walk around the base camp. We discovered a lake that was damned which generates the electricity for the City of La Paz. The weather was interesting as it would go from being cold from cloud cover to really hot when the clouds would roll away. The whole walk was this way in that the weather was in a constant flux of change much like the altitude headaches that would drift in and out of my head. I thank God for the coca I was constantly chewing as it helped stave off the altitude sickness.
After our walk when we got back to the cabin we met Dave the Swiss guy. But from now on we shall refer to him as Dave ¨the out house Bogarter¨.
Friday, 25th of September, 2009, acclamation camp ¨Charlie¨, 17,000 feet above sea level.
5:00 pm
Yesterday I was talking to Sabino about climbing conditions. I happened to state in a rather detached way ¨One must respect the mountain¨ to which he nodded. I then for some reason went on to state with out thinking much ¨One must respect the Pachamama¨ Then he gave me a very grave look and said ¨Yes that is the most important part of our activity.¨ The pachamama is a part of the ancient Incan religious system. Many high planes indigenous people still believe that Pachamama (mother earth) controls all that is good above ground. She controls the weather, the crops and all nature. Interestingly enough the act of mining is considered to be an act of rape against Pachamama. When a miner is under ground he is at the mercy of ¨El Tio¨ or the Devil. Pachamama has no domain of anything that happens under the earth. All of the mountain guides have really strong views on the Pachamama cult.
Tammy and I just climbed from Base Camp ¨Delta¨ to acclamation camp ¨Charlie¨. On the way up we met several other climbers coming down. They reported favorable conditions. Even so many of them were not able to summit the peak.
I feel the altitude here much more. Tammy and I took about 2 hours to do some gear orientation with Sabino. We suited and geared up and ice trekked up to camp ¨Bravo¨. The view was great. We looked down on the ¨Altiplano¨ the high planes and also ¨El Glaciar Viejo¨ The Old Glacier¨.
I also had my first hand at ice climbing. It is a very exhausting activity. Even more so at these altitudes. It is food, coca leaves and coca tea that are keeping me from being on my hands and knees wretching. Tonight we are all to be in bed at 7 in order to get up at 12:30 am to begin our final ascent up to the 20,000 foot summit.
Saturday, 26th of September, 2009, La Paz, 8,500 feet above sea level.
11:00 pm
I just had one of the longest days of my life!! I got up this morning to suit and gear up at 1:00am. 13 people were divided up into 5 groups for the climb. We set out at 2 am. We then walked for 4 hours over snow and ice for what seemed to be straight up. Our group Sabino, Tammy and I were all tethered together by a rope and personal harnesses. As the minutes turned into hours of tramping the air grew thinner and thinner. After about 3 hours Tammy turned to me with a tear streaked face and said ¨I am really not liking you right now¨. She was referring to the fact that this was all my idea.
The sun finally came up. It was one of the most magnificent sun rises I have ever seen. Of course it was accentuated by one of the darkest nights I have experienced. So it could be a biased statement. Also the light revealed the depth of the crevasses that we had been jumping across all night. Many were hundreds of feet deep.
We summated around 8:00 am. The final hurdle to reach the peak was a 10 to 15 foot ice wall climb. This is very difficult at 20,000 feet but once at the top the view was spectacular. It was like standing on the top of the world. To one side I could see Lake Titicaca the highest navigable lake in the world which also meant I was also looking across the boarder into Peru. On the other side I could see La Paz, Mount Illimani, and the ocean of clouds over the tropical zone of the La Paz department known as ¨Los Yungas¨.
I suppose that when you look at the numbers of this climb it does not seem that impressive. But when you are in a place where every 5 steps completely leaves you out of breath, you have to concentrate on not vomiting, and your head feels like it is about to explode things come into perspective.
Sunday, 27th of September 2009, El Alto International Airport, La Paz 10,000 feet above sea level.
10:00 am
As I sit here at a table I stare at a full view of Huana Potosi the mountain I now have a very intimate relationship with. There is somehow a holy presence to this mountain. There are many faiths that have deep respect for mountains. Christianity is one such faith. Moses was given the 10 commandments on the mountain. Christ’s most famous sermon was given on a mountain. But one of my favorites for the use of this blog is that fatherly love was taught through the story of Isaac and Jacob on a mountain. Many might say ¨No that is a horrible story to talk about fatherly love! ¨ I disagree. I think it is a great story to talk about the love a father has for his son. It is the basis for the Christian faith as a matter of fact. God tested Jacobs love and found it to be strong by using a very difficult test. Many times a mountain will not be easy on you, It will test you very nerve. But with time a sense of satisfaction will lead to respect and an intimate relationship that feels very much like the love that a father and a son will share….if that makes any sense to you my reader.
Also as I sit here and look and Huayna Potosi I see that it is now covered from top to bottom with fresh blanket of snow. It started to snow yesterday as we were descending. It seems that we got in the last good couple of days of the season.
I am now looking forward to Mount Illimani for next season. That one stands at 6438 meters/21,122 feet above sea level. It took out an Easter Airlines jet back in the early 80´s. He is one bad dude. We will see you there.
FeO2
Three Religiions
Facing the wall
