Pulling the Plug

September 28

 It is with a heavy heart that I’ve decided to end my expedition on Manaslu.  We’ve had significant snow over the past weeks which has loaded up the mountain beyond normal levels.  Now we’re in a high-pressure weather cycle with clear skies and strong sunshine during the days and cold temperatures at night which can create instability in the snowpack.  The avalanche above Camp 3 two days ago was an indication of this instability and the consequences were dead and critically injured climbers.  The weather forecast is for increasing winds starting yesterday through October 2^nd with a direction from the SW which is on the opposite side of the mountain from our climbing route.  The winds from this direction will transport snow onto the mountain directly above the climbing route, further loading the snowpack and creating additional instability.  We have been watching the snow transport yesterday and this morning and can actually see the cornices above the climbing route becoming more distinct with the naked eye as time passes.  This is a photo from yesterday evening to be used for comparison to those below. 

My decision was made in my heart yesterday evening as I added all of these factors together and could not come up with a safe way to climb this mountain.  I decided to sleep on it and make a public decision this morning.  When we awoke, we saw that a massive avalanche had occurred sometime in the night.  The first photo shows the mountain for perspective and the second one is zoomed in to show the crown of the avalanche where the snowpack broke away.  Keep in mind that this spot is more than three miles away from our camp in a direct line and some 7,000 ft higher in elevation so the crown depth must be 15-20 feet high at a minimum to show up so distinctly from this far away.  This is significant because it means the crown fracture extended deep into old snow and down to another unstable layer.  A new scale of danger has revealed itself. 

 

We heard a little later this morning that the debris from this huge avalanche traveled all the way down to Camp 2 and damaged at least four tents.  That’s a very long way for it to travel and the look of concern was visible in the faces of our senior guides.  Further studying the mountain face this morning through binoculars, we can see significant snow loading and a fracture line in the bowl on the right side of the photo where the big shadow is.  That bowl is above Camp 3 and a massive avalanche from there would most surely put all of Camp 3 in danger.

So, basically the entire route from somewhere a bit below Camp 2 all the way up to the ridge near Camp 4 is dangerous and in the direct path of active avalanche zones.  In my mind there is only one logical decision to be made.

As today has progressed, we’ve heard stories from the senior guides who are listening to the radio traffic from other teams.  Apparently, the mountain above Camp 3 remains a complete junk show.  Climbers are continuing to head for the summit despite the known dangers and deteriorating weather conditions.  Sometime in the early morning, a group of climbers had to huddle together in a circle with their backs out bracing each other against the wind.  We’ve also heard that at least 4 emergency evacuations were needed for people with snow blindness and that multiple cases of frostbite are creating difficulties for other climbers. 

It’s become clear that many guiding companies on Manaslu (and I’m sure other peaks) are basically providing logistical support only and not proper screening of climber’s abilities nor are they providing any of the specialized guidance that can only be gained with experience on 8,000-meter peaks in the Himalaya.  In my opinion, this is symbolic of the Instagram type influence on an inherently dangerous endeavor and many inexperienced people will suffer irreversible damage to themselves in the process.  At some point, I hope the industry will open their eyes beyond the dollars and correct this dangerous trend before a major tragedy occurs like what happened in 1996 on Everest.  Unfortunately, the potential for such a tragedy exists right now on Manaslu and as I sit here writing this post, I’m watching climber after climber heading up the hill in pursuit of their summit dreams.  Blind adventurism!

So far, Matt and one other climber on our team is joining me on a departure plan.  The others on our team are evaluating the situation for themselves.  We all have a significant amount of personal climbing gear stashed at Camp 1, so this evening will be spent developing a logistic plan to retrieve that gear tomorrow so we can pack up and fly off the mountain on Friday the 30^th.

There is an unlimited supply of mountains in the world, and I look forward to climbing some more in the future. 

Namaste