Option #4: Mera Peak - 6476m

The second 6000m peak you find on the net when you're looking for mountains to climb in Nepal is the Mera Peak. It seems to be doable by anybody who's seriously fit and has used crampons and ice axe in his life. I have the crampons experience, and I can work on the fitness, so that could qualify me for a Mera Peak adventure. Of course because it is "the" obvious peak to pick, it's not as magic and you shouldn't expect to be alone at base camp. Still a nice objective, 500m higher than Kilimanjaro, Nepal style. Kilimanjaro was a hike up to 5895m, which you ascend in one week. With the added difficulty of snow, ice and crevasses, I shuoldn't be ashamed of attempting the Mera Peak. Those 500m make a massive difference, there is a point where every additional metre is a big battle and is even harder to conquer than the metre before.

Above you see what seems to be the non-climbed south face (although some nutters probably tried and might have even succeeded), the one below shows where you're supposed to arrive towards the summit -looks a lot friendlier for a 6476m mountain . As I said about the Island Peak, it's hard to be sure if you're looking at the right mountain when googling a random mountain in Nepal... Furthermore, depending on the season and the year, the place might look very different!! In fact at the following link they show two photos of the summit, 15 years apart: http://www.summitpost.org/mera-peak/150229

+ With 6476m, you don't just climb a 6000m peak to tick the "6", you go well beyond!
+ Some expeditions, although they require an even longer holiday, tackle the Island peak in the same package, ambitious but certainly seducing...
+ Nepal, the place to climb!
+ You can find an expedition of about 21 days, possibly manageable with work
+ I read you can see the 6 highest peaks in the world from the summit of the Mera Peak. I have doubts on the K2, but the other five I believe. Plus the Ama Dablam and a number of other magical summits!
+ Some agencies try to warn you about the dangers, some want you to buy their expeditions and tell you it's a straightforward walk. The descriptions of the routes that I have seen sound challenging enough for me, as much as I can represent it to myself from the other side of the world...
+ There is a time slot around November time, leaving me time to plan, prepare and train
- They keep saying on the internet that it's "the highest trekking peak in Nepal". I would like to call myself more than a trekker, but like I said I think this peak might be just challenging enough for me, regardless of where we categorise it!
- Still seems to be a "commercial summit" but I think the more I get into this project, the less I care. After all, I topped Kilimanjaro and Mont Blanc, they're much worse for that matter!

Not a lot of negatives, could well be a winner...

Description of the route (french): http://www.camptocamp.org/routes/56327/fr/mera-peak-voie-normale
Adventure Peaks expedition including the Island Peak: http://www.adventurepeaks.com/expeditions/mera-and-island-peak.htm
Mountain Madness expedition: http://www.mountainmadness.com/adventures/trek-or-climb/asia/mera-peak-trek-or-climb#trip-overview/description

Option #3: Island Peak - 6189m

The fact that you see a number of major summits from the Island Peak makes it difficult to be sure whether the photos you find on the internet are the Island Peak or another mountain which you see if you're stood on the Island Peak... I'm pretty sure the photo below is the Island Peak, and you even see people ascending what seems to be the normal route.


If you're looking for a 6000m peak to climb in Nepal, the Island Peak comes as the first obvious option. That's why it went directly to my list. With 6189m of elevation, it's slightly higher than the Kilimanjaro, but it is climbed with crampons, and it's in freaking Nepal!!! As most mountains it has a local name: Imja Tse. Below a picture of climbers reaching the summit. Looks just slightly more difficult than Mont Blanc, just that it's 1400m higher =)

Picture from adventurepeaks.com


+ Nepal, I have to go there before I die. This is a big, big plus. Climbing a mountain is something different when you're in the middle of magical mountains and all you can see is white landscapes. I experienced the magic of this in the Mont Blanc range, Nepal is just the next level (or the one after)
+ From the summit, you have a sight on the amazing Ama Dablam (6812m), Mount Everest (8848m) and the Lhotse (8516m). Wikipedia argues that the Lhotse hides the Everest, but any case the panorama from up there must be pretty awesome!
+ There are 2 seasons. One of them seems to be in October/November time, and would pass perfect for my project.
+ Although you will read below that a number of people might undermine this mountain as a climbing objective, it also means it is safely doable...
- As I explained in my previous post, I might struggle to get more than 3 weeks off-work. Most trips in Nepal require 4 weeks, this one 26 days.
- It's technically classed as trekking, although ice/crevasse/snow/cold are daily companions on this peak. It seems to be "Himalayas for begginers" or "6000m peaks for dummies".  I can't claim to be a lot more than a beginner, and you don't find every day somebody who climbs in Nepal to tell you this, but still that's slightly annoying. I like the feeling that I'm doing something totally extraordinary, and if most of the people I come across in the area tell me I'm a beginner because I'm "only" attempting the island peak, I won't feel as good as I could! In any case the photos of the "normal route" seem challenging enough for me for that altitude!
- Because it seems to be the classic option of a first 6000m, it could be that it's a pretty commercial summit as my Chamonix guide says, and therefore possibly crowded. Don't want to go to the Himalayas to climb in a line behind many other climbers...
 
Wikipedia overview: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imja_Tse

Moutain Madness expedition: http://www.mountainmadness.com/adventures/expeditions/asia/nepal/island-peak#trip-overview/description
Adventure Peaks expedition: http://www.adventurepeaks.com/expeditions/islandpeak.html

Timings

One of the choice criteria might move further up in the list: length of trip. After initial screening I might have a rough time asking for more than 3 weeks holidays. The good thing is that 3 weeks in a row is more or less a given, especially if I go at a time outside of the normal holiday period.

Managing to get a few days more might make the difference in picking one expedition or the other. I'll keep looking out for options and describing them here.


I suppose if I build up a real project and a proposal, I can always try to have a discussion at work to try and get approval for it. In some way the choice of the mountain depends on the time I am given off-work to climb it, but to defend a request I need to have a real, workable, achievable project.

Option #2: Denali (Mount Mc Kinley) - 6194m

Let's be clear, the only 6000m peak I could name when this project started was Mount Mc Kinley. With its 6194m of elevation, highest peak in North America, one of the seven Summits, this mountain carries its lot of myth. You can read on the internet that Mc Kinley is the official but commercial name, and that like every major peak it also has a local native name meaning "big mountain" or something similarly inventive. So alpinists and mountaineers call it Denali.

It is a challenging climb, not for beginners. My high-mountain guide from Chamonix, who climbed a fair bit in Alaska, called it one of the "commercial" summits. Meaning a lot of people attempt it, few succeed, and a fair few have problems when they realise (often too late) that this climb is beyond their ability. It is tough because it is high, and because it is so close to the arctic circle. Meaning it can get ridiculously cold up there.

On my Chamonix holidays last year, I lost the feeling in a slight bit of my left big toe. By chance 7 months later I just start feeling stuff again. Could never determine when it happened, and whether it was due to a shock or to the cold. But this certainly makes me think twice about Mc Kinley. I would love to climb it one day, so the thinking is: "why could this not be the time to climb Denali?"...

Photo from Mountainmadness.com

+ This mountain is a legend
+ This mountain is beautiful, and the surroundings are amazing too. When you're in the high camps you're looking at spectacular mountain scenery
+ English speaking country! Wherever I choose to go on expedition, I'll be with people who will speak english to me, but the thought of being in an english speaking country is somehow reassuring.
- Weather will be one of two things: very cold, or even colder
- Even if the weather was acceptable, it's a very challenging climb, which can get technical depending on conditions. Sometimes in the Mont Blanc range I am absolutely crapping myself. The same stuff after 2 weeks in Alaska and above 5000m, sounds like trouble
- The season lasts only 2 months and is in the spring, it seems July is already too late. I don't think I can fit that in my job as it currently is. Climbing outside the season is, here again, unthinkable.
- Even if I could afford a month off work in June, that doesn't give the time to train, prepare, get the equipment and plan this. There is a specificity of the Denali park: you need to register 60 days before entering. So this will most probably stay on the wishlist for later!

summit description (french): http://www.camptocamp.org/summits/107211/fr/mont-mckinley-denali
Mountain madness expedition: http://www.mountainmadness.com/adventures/expeditions/north-america/denali#trip-overview/description
Adventurepeak expedition: http://www.adventurepeaks.com/expeditions/denali.htm

Option #1: Aconcagua - 6962m

Aconcagua is the highest mountain in the western hemisphere as everybody says. I think it's technically the highest peak outside of Nepal/Himalayas area. Situated in Argentina.

+ One of the highest options I seriously consider, probably the highest one I can do (still got a couple 7000+ to check out, but seems like Aconcagua might be the max for someone like me at this stage
+ An Aconcagua expedition seems to be slightly cheaper than Nepal, although the flight to Argentina won't be cheap.
+/- The season is rather our winter time: November/December/January. I need it to be still in 2012 for the holiday. Gives me some proper time to train, but will not fit very well with work as this is the time of the year when I'm at the busiest in my current job. That can probably be worked around.
- I'm not so impatient to get to South America, and I'm a lot more impatient to get to the Himalayas. Doesn't mean there is no magic to the Aconcagua though, one of the "Seven Summits" - the highest peaks of all seven continents (maybe an idea for a further post?)
- The normal route is "simply walking", a bit like the Kilimanjaro except to get to 6962m you might need crampons, and maybe even an ice axe. I might want something a bit more snow-and-ice, even if it doesn't take me to such height... The other routes I'm not too sure about...
- I would imagine it will be crowded in the season, and such a peak can only be climbed during the season. I'm hoping somewhere in Nepal would be less crowded. Apparently in 2002, 3500 people attempted the Aconcagua, seems like an awful lot to me. I might be looking for a more intimate relationship to my mountain...
- The weather is one of two things on the Aconcagua: bad, or worse. I need to look into it a bit more, but it could well be that the chances of success are lower than some lower but snowier/icier peaks in Asia or South America
- Not the prettiest of summits on the pictures on the internet. I suppose it's not a problem in itself, but if this project is going to be like a dream, the scene has to be right too!

All in all that's a lot of cons, the only pro being the tick in the box of the 6962m (besides possibly the price but I think - within reason - the price shouldn't be the decision driver on my project).

Summit description: http://www.summitpost.org/aconcagua/150197
Normal route: http://www.mountainmadness.com/adventures/expeditions/south-america/argentina/aconcagua-normal-route#trip-overview/description
Polish traverse: http://www.mountainmadness.com/adventures/expeditions/south-america/argentina/aconcagua-polish-traverse#trip-overview/description
Alternative route: http://www.adventurepeaks.com/expeditions/aconcagua.htm

Grandes Jorasses

Non-neophytes will have noticed that the blog is currently topped by a picture of the magnificent arête de Rochefort from the Grandes Jorasses to the Dent du Géant. I don't intend to climb the grandes JOrasses any time soon, but I find this picture very inspiring. I took it from the Aiguille du Midi in the summer of 2011, my first alpine season. That day I went from the AIguille du Midi to the AIguille du Plan, it was technically my second tour with crampons, after the Arête des Cosmiques. Maybe pitched a little bit high for a second tour, but as you can see the conditions were optimal. THe snow had re-frozen pretty well the night before, and the cloud sea at around 3300 made the day just magic. I struggled on that day to cope with the altitude, with the crampning technique ( I did rip my pants open), but it was another milestone in my mountain experience. See below, just for your eyes, a couple of pictures I took on that day at 7am:

The ridge in the background starts with the Aiguille verte, then les Droites, les Courtes, at the far left the Grandes Jorasses seen from the side. At the foreground you see the ridge I took that day (behind my mountain guide!), we reached the summit of the AIguille du Plan, the highest point of that ridge. Further down that ride, the Aiguilles de Blaitière and the Grépon are just above the clouds...

At the foreground the Aiguille du Plan, our target for that day. In the background, the Aiguille Verte, a target for this year or next year. No easy route to get up there. Although I can't possibly go there without someone guiding me, I always said I would only call myself an alpinist when I succesfully make it to the summit of the AIguille Verte and safely back down. A big project in itself, for a beginner like me!

Bloggy blog...

In the last 3 days I spent an incredible amount of precious hours figuring out how best to start a blog for this proejct...

I used to have a self-designed blog, still available at: http://jeffou6182.chez.com I would have loved to just revive it (no posts since 2009), especially as back in 2009 I spent a lot of time adding the facility to add comments. The advantage is that I could customise the layout as much as I wanted.

Unfortunately the wesite provider has blocked its ftp access to foreign IP addresses. Meaning if I'm outside of France I can't upload new pages or update my website. There's a couple of ways to go around it, but unfortunately the french authorities are blocking more and more of these, to the point that for a non-proficient internet user like me it's not feasible to update my own website as long as I'm sitting in Germany. A number of people started using the ways to bypass such limitations for illegal purposes such as downloading or watching french television without paying the appropriate fees...

I then tried to open accounts with website hosts in germany or worldwide, but among those which provide mysql facilities, few are free, and those are not always stable. I started with heliohost, but had to change a number of lines in my programming, and I faced a server crash on the second day. THis discouraged me to keep doing the geeky programming. I don't have time for this like I had in the past...

I went around the providers of "blogs", and this extension of google seems to be the most customisable and easiest. Sadly it won't bend exactly to what I wanted to design, but I've learnt to be flexible, I've learnt that sometimes I shouldn't be so stubborn about my visions, and that imposed changes should be taken as opportunities to review and improve my plans.

This is the story of how I failed the medical visit because of a slight ear deficiency at a given frequency. I wanted to join the french army as an officer, to command troups and save the world. Took me some time to bite the bullet and accept that mother nature didn't want me to join (it's an interesting story, ask me about this=)). So instead I enrolled into capitalism, and suprisingly after some time I find myself thankful as by making the most of it it took me to a couple of other countries, developped a new verison of me, made me discover the mountains, without which this blog and this project wouldn't even exist, and most importantly made me meet Anja.

This is to say: let's try out a ready-made blog format and see where that takes us!

The Big One?

One day in early April 2012, I realised that:
1) I would have a lot of holidays to take this year.
2) my girlfriend wouldn't.
 
So I might have up to 4 weeks to spare. Make the most of it? Of course! Let's do something BIG! I wanted this year to be the year of the Aiguille Verte, the Frendo, the Innominata, the Kufner. One, maybe two of these routes would have made this year a success. Now it would seem I might have the time to try that, but also to try something bigger, more remote, crazier...
 
My chances of success at the AIguille Verte are not anywhere near 100%, but in 4 weeks the same engagement could take me up something BIG. I'm not sure when the next time will be that I can afford to take 4 weeks on my own, but right now I'm young, fit (I'd like to think so) and free.
 
So I basically want to have a go at a mountain of some description, higher than anything I've done before. I want to take part in an "expedition". This simple word gives me the creeps and makes my heart jumps. Fly far away, walk high up and measure myself to a summit.
 
I am still trying to grasp what is going on in my mind, but an expedition sounds like the right thing for me, a new start, a new horizon.
 
Hopefully this blog will see how I progress with the idea, it will include the philosophy in which I'm envisaging this crazy thing, it will review the possible options, it will explain the steps I take to prepare, it will detail the steps of the planning process. Let's see what happens...