Mount Manaslu 2022

  August 26-28 We arrived in Kathmandu late in the evening of the 26 th and were greeted at the airport by Ngima’s family.   Phunuru on the far right is getting to be well known in the mountaineering world and we’ve climbed with him a couple of times in the past.   It’s been three years since my last visit and was good to see everyone again. Our first full day in Kathmandu was focused on relaxing and recovering from jetlag.   There are nine members of the overall team that I arranged, and this was the first time that we were all together.   An hour or less after introductions were made, it became clear that everyone was compatible.   Personally, I’m happy to be able to bring so many friends together for such a great experience.   It’s rewarding to see things through the eyes of people experiencing Kathmandu for the first time.   We all went out in the afternoon for a walkabout mostly to see the great Boudhanath Stupa.   This is one of ...

August 24-26 It’s just about “go time”!   The amount of gear necessary for an 8,000 meter peak expedition is amazing.   We’ll start the trek in 80 degree humid weather and summit day 5 weeks later could be 40 below.   The name of the game is layers for clothes, a huge pile of down jackets, parkas, summit suits and sleeping bags.   At one point on the climb, we may have gear spread out into three camps, so organization is important. Trying to be as prepared and efficient as possible, I rigged our harnesses for fixed line ascending with backup repel devices.   With extreme exposure and the reality of needing to pass others on the route, having a second safety tether is mandatory.   This should meet the expedition leader’s requirements. It took a solid 5 hours to pack everything up into four, less than 50# duffels, two carry-on roller bags and two daypacks.  It’s something like 300# for the two of us and the idea of getting it all safely to Kathmand...

  August 20 This is our last big training day, and we picked another mountain relatively close to home.   There isn’t much time now before we head to Nepal and our team is feeling the pressure.   It’s a time for last minute purchases, gear sorting and packing and a bit more exercise to keep the body fit and ready for action. The trail begins with a series of switchbacks through the forest and eventually to treeline while gaining elevation at a steady rate.   There’s a nice draw between an unnamed peak next to Vasquez and Stanley that we traverse while enjoying some late wildflowers and a flowing stream.   The steep climbing starts after the traverse, and we quickly gain elevation until reaching the ridge on another mostly sunny and windless day.   The weather gods really have shined on us this summer during all of our training days.     The view from the summit is always nice, especially when you’re in a place that you know.   As we l...

 August 13 With a goal to climb Mt. Manaslu comes the responsibility to train hard and be prepared.   This is why I’ve been carrying a cast iron pot, two cast iron lids and a variety of other heavy things around in the mountains of Colorado.   So, in the company of my wife Kriss, our Doberman Tessa and our good friends Alan and Debby, I put my heavy pack on, and we set out to climb up Mt. Parnasus.   The trailhead is beyond overcrowded and one of my least favorite to visit but we were after a strenuous day with lots of elevation gain and this route fit the bill.   The climb is almost 7 miles round trip with 3,300 ft of elevation gain.   It follows a trail mostly until well above treeline after which people tend to pick their way up the final steep ridge to the summit.   Ever the competitor, Alan wouldn’t let me catch him on the steep pitch with my burden and my heart was pounding hard by the time the slope eased and the summit was in view.   ...

  A famous quote attributed to John Muir states, “The mountains are calling, and I must go”.   I understand this quote and periodically feel the call myself.   We live in the mountains at 9,400 ft and are close to nature every day but the mountains near home are 12,000-14,000 ft high.   When I get the calling, it’s for big mountains.   Mountains that are far away and require significant travel to reach the point where the adventure begins.   Mountains that take many days to climb.   Mountains that make you work hard and suffer as you pursue your goal of reaching the summit.   The universal truth for mountaineers as I think it is for people who do triathlons, marathons, big wall rock climbing, ultra-distance bike races, etc. is that over time, memories of the suffering fade.   When the event is done, we rehydrate, we eat, we gain strength, we reacclimate to normal life and we heal.   When that’s done, we’re left with photos, stories, an...

  August 6 th Feeling the need for quick elevation gain during a busy weekend, Kriss and I grabbed our packs and our Doberman Tessa and headed to a local spot for some training.   The drive is short until we get to the rough 4WD road after which it’s another 15 minutes of bumping and weaving to the reservoir.   This hike is one of those little known or traveled routes which provides solitude during our exertion.   There really isn’t a trail, but we’ve been here before and generally know the way.   Our warmup consists of 15 minutes walking along the edge and then through the woods to the base of a steep couloir while gaining maybe 100 ft.   Then the real fun begins as we head straight up the center of the couloir, which is mostly devoid of trees, to the shoulder of Mt. Bancroft slightly higher than where the normal route from Loch Lamond arrives.   It’s a leg burner, especially with weight on one’s back and gains us another 1,200 ft towards our goal...

 July 17, 2022 It was a sunny Colorado Sunday morning, and we already had a plan.  Today my wife and I would retrace our steps from yesterday and then explore a ridge and mountain that has become a familiar view from home.  After studying the topographical map and doing a few quick calculations, we realized that our planned popsicle loop route would make for a long day.  Estimating at least 10 miles and well over 3,000 ft of elevation gain, I decided to eliminate the cast iron pots and take a reasonable pack with me. Moving more quickly than yesterday with a combination of purpose and reasonable loads, we reached our treeline point after climbing about 1,500 ft in less than an hour and a half.  Treeline in Colorado lies roughly between 11,000 ft and 11,500 ft depending on slope aspect.  It’s a favorite range for me to hang out in and explore because of the specialized things that live there.  Trees and plants are stunted and grow lopsidedly to the down...

 July 16, 2022 It was a beautiful Saturday morning, and we were looking for somewhere to hike with a good deal of elevation gain.  I remembered a trail that we hadn’t been on in many years with some switchbacks starting pretty much out of the car and suggested it four our family outing.  “Great” my wife Kriss said, and we had a plan.  My pack held a menagerie of blankets, cast iron pots and lids, rope, water and some useful things like a jacket, snacks and small first aid kit for a total weight of about 50#.  Heading uphill with such a load and starting at an elevation of over 10,000’ is a rude way to begin a weekend hike for most normal people but if you’re reading this, you already know that I’m not normal.   We quickly gained a thousand feet in elevation within the first hour and could tell that the slope was easing off a bit thankfully.  Our goal was at least 1,500 feet in gain pretty much as fast as we could get it because other weekend tasks...