There's many a slip 'twixt the cup and lip
The two Himalayan expeditions I had been to in the years of 1995 and 1997 involved some 30 odd people each. They were organised by well known trekking institutes in India, and members on the expedition had a simple task at hand - following the instructions. When it comes to organising things oneself, planning for details, taking care of logistics, having contingency plans - it is a different ball game altogether.
My trek to Everest Base Camp (South Face, Nepal) was one such instance. I, along with Anup, did the required research for what it would take for us to get to the base of Mount Everest. Luckily for us, we had a few friends who had been there, which I must say helps tremendously. Yes, there are things that we had to do ourselves, yes we did get to learn a lot of things. But frankly speaking, having a group of friends share their first hand experiences - especially the tricks of the trade, the dos and the donts, and most importantly their failures, is what makes the job of planning a huge load simpler. I couldn't help giving an analogy in terms of software engineering. It's like the design part of it already being done, with just the implementation part pending.
Sunset at Mt. Everest Camp III (Advanced Base Camp).
Altitude: 6400m / 21000+ ft ASL
The dream trek to Everest Camp III (Advanced Base) from North Face, Tibet, brought along with it a lot of questions. None in our friends circle, nor in any wider reachable group had done this trek. With the challenges we had to face in order to be assured of departure along with a concrete plan in hand, was a classic learning curve. Optimism being the name of the game.
It all started in the month of March, along side the flurry of events described in the post Drawing first blood. The task at hand: Hunting for a trek organiser who operated in Tibet, who would help is in arranging the 'highest trek in the world'. This superlative kept on giving us adrenaline rushes from time to time. Good times.
We started shooting off emails to various trekking agencies based in Nepal, Australia, New Zealand, USA, asking them the standard pattern of questions:
All of March was spent in negotiations with Raj. This time though he did not seem to have the cost factor in his control given the fact that he was purely operating via Nepal, with the decisions being made in Tibet. With Shantanu Gogate managing to secure funds to cover part of his trek expedition costs, Anup and I got into an unsaid but 'understood' agreement to do this trek, whatever the price tag may be. Of course we had high hopes that the cost factor would either reduce or we would manage to secure some funds via sponsorships as well. That wasn't on our cards immediately, on the mind, very much.
April 4th was the day we last heard from Raj via email. The news all over indicated situation in Nepal as unhealthy, to say the least. On April 7th, BBC reported the following about Nepal's people protest against the direct rule of monarch King Gyanendra. Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal was under curfew, and news of a protestor being killed in the Nepal rally on the same day was aired. We decided to wait and watch for a while, this wasn't something that could be ironed out in a day or two.
Nepalese people protest against King Gyanendra's direct rule
By April 13th, the wave of unrest was seen increasing. Police had opened fire on Nepalese lawyers who had taken part in the protests. The situation had turned from bad to worse. On the 13th itself, we thought there was a ray of hope when King Gyanendra renewed election poll pledge, stating that as promised the general elections in Nepal would be held in April 2007.
People wanted to make sure they did not give up the freedom movement they had undertaken. Come April 14, and that ray of hope dwindled. After repeated failed attempts to talk to Raj, I managed to get a rare chance to talk right amidst this crisis - the mobile phone network used to be cut off for the major part of the day. Being miles away, we asked a brave question: Would it still be manageable to go by the earlier itinerary. Raj categorically said it wasn't a wise idea at all. He sounded stressed too. Bad times.
When we were thinking of going on a Himalayan trek this spring, at the outset we planned for Everest Base Camp (South Face, Nepal) and Gokyo Ri. Ever since the Advanced Base Camp bee stung me, being very honest, I would not at all have enjoyed being on an Everest Base Camp (South Face) trek if at all such a condition had risen. With the unrest in Nepal, I was glad in one corner of my mind that the EBC South Face option was washed out. If we had to go anywhere, it was Camp III (North Face, Tibet).
On the other hand, the Nepal unrest was going to cost us dearly. We realised that expenses were going to shoot in excess of INR 210,000. The airfare (to Lhasa via Beijing) itself would cost us INR 50,000 more. Another unexpected task had to be undertaken. Establishing direct contact with Tibet trek organisers, whose web presence was negligible. From those who replied to me, I learnt that the cost of the expedition was much the same, albeit controlling the itinerary wasn't possible. I felt like being trapped in a swamp. It was an all-time low in the planning phase. Instead of losing hope, we kept on finding ways to get the best possible way for our dream to turn into reality.
Wednesday. April the 26th. I remember being as jubiliant as the Nepalis were. Being honest, the reasons were not the same. I was first feeling jubiliant for my own selfish motive, then for the successful fruits that the people's protests had borne. King Gyanendra had finally bowed down to the anti-monarch rally. The victory rally brought amongst us a sense of relief. The very next day, communication with Raj was re-established via email. Good times.
People participate in the victory rally after
King Gyanendra restores parliament.
On asking for a couple of days more to be adjusted in the itinerary in a preventive mode for acclimatisation, we got a new price quote from Raj, hearing which I felt like being stabbed in the back. We would have thought about approaching any other trek organiser from Nepal had we not been feeling on cloud 9. Reason for being on cloud 9, did you ask? We were spared from travelling by air via China, which had resulted in an additional INR 50,000 for just the airfare.
Our passport does look a bit more colourful now because of the Chinese visa being stamped on it. Sadly enough it's of no use. We're driving into Tibet from Nepal, and that apparently does not require one to possess a Chinese visa. Though running around for obtaining it with the Chinese consulate going for a week long hibernation (Annual Labour Holidays) seemed to be a waste in terms of the energy, effort and money, the loss still does not outweigh the money saved owing to cancellation of flying via China. Royal Nepal Airlines (flight RA 202, 15 May - 16:55 IST, ticket #285-4222-926-284-0) sounds much more familiar a name and easy on the pocket.
With under 10 days to go, Anup and I still find ourselves in a crunch for funds. The trek organiser is in place, the itinerary looks all set, the equipment gear to be taken care of in Kathmandu and airfare in check, the question of how to obtain the bulk share of the payment towards the expedition cost still looms large. As I write this line, the date has changed over to the 9th of May, and we intend to leave on the 15th.
There's many a slip 'twixt the cup and lip. How better can I express this roller coaster ride?
My trek to Everest Base Camp (South Face, Nepal) was one such instance. I, along with Anup, did the required research for what it would take for us to get to the base of Mount Everest. Luckily for us, we had a few friends who had been there, which I must say helps tremendously. Yes, there are things that we had to do ourselves, yes we did get to learn a lot of things. But frankly speaking, having a group of friends share their first hand experiences - especially the tricks of the trade, the dos and the donts, and most importantly their failures, is what makes the job of planning a huge load simpler. I couldn't help giving an analogy in terms of software engineering. It's like the design part of it already being done, with just the implementation part pending.
Sunset at Mt. Everest Camp III (Advanced Base Camp).Altitude: 6400m / 21000+ ft ASL
The dream trek to Everest Camp III (Advanced Base) from North Face, Tibet, brought along with it a lot of questions. None in our friends circle, nor in any wider reachable group had done this trek. With the challenges we had to face in order to be assured of departure along with a concrete plan in hand, was a classic learning curve. Optimism being the name of the game.
It all started in the month of March, along side the flurry of events described in the post Drawing first blood. The task at hand: Hunting for a trek organiser who operated in Tibet, who would help is in arranging the 'highest trek in the world'. This superlative kept on giving us adrenaline rushes from time to time. Good times.
We started shooting off emails to various trekking agencies based in Nepal, Australia, New Zealand, USA, asking them the standard pattern of questions:
- Approximate cost for the trekking expedition
- VISA / Trekking permit details
- Equipment / Trekking gear needed for this expedition
- Dates possible and itinerary details
All of March was spent in negotiations with Raj. This time though he did not seem to have the cost factor in his control given the fact that he was purely operating via Nepal, with the decisions being made in Tibet. With Shantanu Gogate managing to secure funds to cover part of his trek expedition costs, Anup and I got into an unsaid but 'understood' agreement to do this trek, whatever the price tag may be. Of course we had high hopes that the cost factor would either reduce or we would manage to secure some funds via sponsorships as well. That wasn't on our cards immediately, on the mind, very much.
April 4th was the day we last heard from Raj via email. The news all over indicated situation in Nepal as unhealthy, to say the least. On April 7th, BBC reported the following about Nepal's people protest against the direct rule of monarch King Gyanendra. Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal was under curfew, and news of a protestor being killed in the Nepal rally on the same day was aired. We decided to wait and watch for a while, this wasn't something that could be ironed out in a day or two.
Nepalese people protest against King Gyanendra's direct ruleBy April 13th, the wave of unrest was seen increasing. Police had opened fire on Nepalese lawyers who had taken part in the protests. The situation had turned from bad to worse. On the 13th itself, we thought there was a ray of hope when King Gyanendra renewed election poll pledge, stating that as promised the general elections in Nepal would be held in April 2007.
The protests continued, in fact they strengthened.
People wanted to make sure they did not give up the freedom movement they had undertaken. Come April 14, and that ray of hope dwindled. After repeated failed attempts to talk to Raj, I managed to get a rare chance to talk right amidst this crisis - the mobile phone network used to be cut off for the major part of the day. Being miles away, we asked a brave question: Would it still be manageable to go by the earlier itinerary. Raj categorically said it wasn't a wise idea at all. He sounded stressed too. Bad times.
When we were thinking of going on a Himalayan trek this spring, at the outset we planned for Everest Base Camp (South Face, Nepal) and Gokyo Ri. Ever since the Advanced Base Camp bee stung me, being very honest, I would not at all have enjoyed being on an Everest Base Camp (South Face) trek if at all such a condition had risen. With the unrest in Nepal, I was glad in one corner of my mind that the EBC South Face option was washed out. If we had to go anywhere, it was Camp III (North Face, Tibet).
On the other hand, the Nepal unrest was going to cost us dearly. We realised that expenses were going to shoot in excess of INR 210,000. The airfare (to Lhasa via Beijing) itself would cost us INR 50,000 more. Another unexpected task had to be undertaken. Establishing direct contact with Tibet trek organisers, whose web presence was negligible. From those who replied to me, I learnt that the cost of the expedition was much the same, albeit controlling the itinerary wasn't possible. I felt like being trapped in a swamp. It was an all-time low in the planning phase. Instead of losing hope, we kept on finding ways to get the best possible way for our dream to turn into reality.
Wednesday. April the 26th. I remember being as jubiliant as the Nepalis were. Being honest, the reasons were not the same. I was first feeling jubiliant for my own selfish motive, then for the successful fruits that the people's protests had borne. King Gyanendra had finally bowed down to the anti-monarch rally. The victory rally brought amongst us a sense of relief. The very next day, communication with Raj was re-established via email. Good times.
People participate in the victory rally afterKing Gyanendra restores parliament.
On asking for a couple of days more to be adjusted in the itinerary in a preventive mode for acclimatisation, we got a new price quote from Raj, hearing which I felt like being stabbed in the back. We would have thought about approaching any other trek organiser from Nepal had we not been feeling on cloud 9. Reason for being on cloud 9, did you ask? We were spared from travelling by air via China, which had resulted in an additional INR 50,000 for just the airfare.
Our passport does look a bit more colourful now because of the Chinese visa being stamped on it. Sadly enough it's of no use. We're driving into Tibet from Nepal, and that apparently does not require one to possess a Chinese visa. Though running around for obtaining it with the Chinese consulate going for a week long hibernation (Annual Labour Holidays) seemed to be a waste in terms of the energy, effort and money, the loss still does not outweigh the money saved owing to cancellation of flying via China. Royal Nepal Airlines (flight RA 202, 15 May - 16:55 IST, ticket #285-4222-926-284-0) sounds much more familiar a name and easy on the pocket.
With under 10 days to go, Anup and I still find ourselves in a crunch for funds. The trek organiser is in place, the itinerary looks all set, the equipment gear to be taken care of in Kathmandu and airfare in check, the question of how to obtain the bulk share of the payment towards the expedition cost still looms large. As I write this line, the date has changed over to the 9th of May, and we intend to leave on the 15th.
There's many a slip 'twixt the cup and lip. How better can I express this roller coaster ride?
posted by Aniket Anikhindi @ 12:32 PM
2 comments
2 Comments:
I am damnnnnnnnnn impressed! The very Best of Luck for your 'dream' trek. Though I must say, you will go for the Summit next time!!!
Thanks for the good wishes! They are much appreciated and will come in handy :) And you caught me right there, the summit is the goal I've set for myself, amongst other mountaineering expeditions..
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