by Andrew Lock
Finally, thanks to Colette Vella from Melbourne University Press for having the faith to take on the publication of this book and allowing me the latitude to speak the truth where it needed to be told.
GLOSSARY OF MOUNTAINEERING TERMS
AAA – Army Alpine Association, a mountaineering club within the Australian Defence Force
Abseil – to descend a rock face or other near-vertical surface by sliding down a rope
Acclimatisation – the physiological process of the body adjusting to lesser amounts of oxygen
AMS (Acute Mountain Sickness) – brought on by the lower pressure of altitude, it usually occurs above 2400 metres and has symptoms similar to flu, carbon-monoxide poisoning or a hangover. While AMS itself is rarely fatal, it can develop into life-threatening cerebral or pulmonary oedema
Alpine style – climbing light and fast without fixed ropes, load carries or fixed camps
Anchor – a fixed point to which a rope is attached on the mountain to safeguard the climber/s. The anchor usually consists of a piton in a crack, a snow bar, an ice screw or a sling around a pinnacle of rock
Arête – a sharp mountain ridge
Avalanche – a mass of snow, ice and rocks falling rapidly down a mountainside
Base Camp – the camp located close to but below the mountain where the climbing starts
Belay – running a climbing rope through a fixed anchor to safeguard another climber. Usually the climber providing the belay uses a special knot or belay device to brake the rope in the event of the lead climber falling
Bergschrund – a crevasse at the junction of a glacier or snowfield with a steep upper slope
Bivouac – a temporary camp without tents or cover, used especially by soldiers or mountaineers
Buttress – a projecting portion of a hill or mountain
Carabiner – a metal coupling link with a safety closure
Cerebral oedema – excess accumulation of fluid in the intracellular or extracellular spaces of the brain
Chimney – a very narrow gully
Chorten – the Tibetan word for the rock structure built at basecamp for conducting Puja ceremonies
Col – a saddle between two peaks, typically providing a pass from one side of a mountain to another
Couloir – a steep, narrow gully on a mountainside
Cornice – great mushrooms of wind-blown ice that accumulate on exposed ridges and are easily dislodged
Crampons – metal frames with spikes underneath that strap or clip to a boot for walking on steep snow or climbing steep rock and ice
Crevasse – a crack in snow or ice, usually found on a glacier. They can be very wide and deep and are caused by the glacier bending or moving over the uneven surface below. Often they are hidden by windblown snow that covers the opening with a thin veneer that can collapse if a person moves onto it
Death zone – the altitude at which life cannot be sustained indefinitely without auxiliary oxygen. In general terms 8000 metres and above is referred to as the death zone. In reality it is probably lower than 8000 metres
Dexamethasone – a synthetic drug of the corticosteroid type, used especially as an anti-inflammatory agent. It is very helpful in reducing swelling of the brain in cases of cerebral oedema
Diamox – trade name for the drug acetazolomide, which aids acclimatisation by inducing deeper and faster breathing, which in turn increases the amount of oxygen in the blood
Face – a steep mountain slope between ridges
Fixed belay – a situation where one climber anchors him- or herself to a slope and feeds a safety rope to another climber
Fixed rope – rope that has been attached to a mountain slope for the duration of an expedition, allowing climbers to move up and down it independently. Fixed rope is usually used on long, siege-style expeditions or on dangerous or technical ground
Front pointing – using just the two points at the front of the crampons to climb a very steep ice or snow slope
Glacier – a slowly moving mass or river of ice formed by the accumulation and compaction of snow
Glissade – sliding down a steep slope of snow or ice, with the support of an ice axe
High-altitude porters – the Pakistani equivalent of climbing Sherpas
Hypoxia – deficiency in the amount of oxygen reaching the tissues
Ice axe – a mountaineer’s best friend. On 8000-metre peaks, my axe is about 70 centimetres long, with a spike at the bottom to use as a walking stick for balance or to probe the snow for suspected crevasses. On steep ground, the head of the axe has a sharpened pick that can be swung into the snow or ice for purchase to assist in climbing. An adze on the backside of the head can be used for cutting footholds
Icefall – where a glacier drops over steep ground and the ice breaks up to form blocks and crevasses. These blocks can be as large as multistorey buildings but tend to break up the further the icefall drops. Icefalls are extremely dangerous due to the unpredictable collapse of these blocks
Icefall Doctors – a team of Sherpas contracted by the Nepalese government to establish and maintain a route through the Khumbu icefall and the Western Cwm between Base Camp and Camp 2 on Mt Everest, during the climbing season
Ice screw – a metal tube or piton with an external thread and sharp teeth at one end that can be screwed into hard ice as an anchor point. It has a hole at the other end to clip a carabiner into it. The climber’s rope can then be passed through that carabiner
Jumar – a clamp that is attached to a fixed rope and automatically tightens when weight is applied and relaxes when it is removed
KKH – Karakorum Highway
Liaison officer – a government representative, often a military officer or official, who is appointed to accompany and oversee foreign expeditions, to ensure that they adhere to the rules of their climbing permit
Moraine – a mass of rocks and sediment carried down and deposited by a glacier, typically as ridges at its edges or extremity
Overboots – insulated gaiters that add a layer of warmth to mountaineering boots
Pitch – a section of climbing between two anchors or belay points
Piton – a metal peg hammered into a crack in the rock to support a belay
Porters – locals employed to carry expedition equipment towards or back from a mountain’s base camp. They are not climbers and do not go above base camp
Post holing – making such deep steps in soft snow that they appear to be holes that have been dug for posts to be inserted
Protection – a general term for equipment used as anchors or for setting up belays
Prussik – short lengths of cord to knot onto the main rope in a way that allows a climber to ascend a rope
Puja – traditional Sherpa ceremony of worship that is held close to the mountain to seek safe passage for the expedition
Pulmonary oedema – fluid accumulation in the lungs’ air sacs, making it difficult to breathe. It leads to impaired gas exchange and may cause respiratory failure
Rappel – another term for abseil
Rock band – a sheer wall of rock that stretches across a mountain face
Rope up – where climbers tie into opposite ends of a climbing rope, usually around 50 metres in length, to provide safety to each other when climbing on dangerous ground or steep
Running belay – using an intermediate anchor point between the lead and rear climbers. This allows both climbers to move up together until the rear climber reaches that anchor point. The rear climber then removes the running belay to be used further up the mountain
Serac – a pinnacle or ridge of ice, often poorly attached to the mountain
Sherpas – the ethnic group of people, formerly from Tibet, who now live in the high Himalaya of Nepal
Short rope – a length of rope or sling, about 1 metre long, used to tie two climbers to each other where there is a strong chance that one may fall. The short length prevents any buildup of momentum so the second climber can immediately stop the falli
ng climber
Siege style – the traditional style of climbing big mountains, using load carries, fixed ropes and fixed camps
Sledge – the sledge we made for Christian was a sleeping bag tied to a sleeping mat and dragged across the snow with a climbing rope
Sling – sewn-nylon-webbing loops of various lengths used in setting up belays, attaching to anchors and keeping hold of climbing equipment
Snow blindness – burning of the eye’s cornea by too much exposure to ultraviolet light. It is common at high altitude due to less protection from the thinner atmosphere. It is extremely painful and causes temporary loss of vision, sometimes for several days
Snow bridge – a bridge of snow that spans a crevasse or other gap in the glacier
Soloing – to climb without being roped to a partner
Technical climbing – climbing that warrants the use of safety ropes and anchors
Traverse – to move diagonally or horizontally across a mountain face. Also to cross from one side of a mountain to the other
Trekking – the term used locally in the Himalaya for undertaking long walks – similar to tramping, hiking, bushwalking, etc.
Whiteout – a weather condition in which the features and horizon of snow-covered country are indistinguishable due to uniform light diffusion. It is very common in blizzards
Wind blast – a strong gust of wind caused by rapid displacement of the air when an avalanche occurs
Wind slab – a hard crust of snow formed by strong wind that sits tenuously on older, weaker snow. A slide can easily be triggered and as it does so, the slab breaks up, usually swallowing any climbers who are standing on it
INDEX
8000-metre peaks, attempts to climb all of x–xi, 173–4 see also Summit 8000 project
Abruzzi Ridge 58, 60, 63
accidents, fatal see climbing fatalities
acclimatisation 34–5
Aconagua expedition 24–5
Adventurer of the Year award 313
Afzal, Sher 115–16, 119
Aleksov, Trajce ‘Alex’
on Everest expedition 41, 43–7
on Manaslu expedition 176–83, 186–8
Alexander (Manaslu climber) 179, 181–2
Alexandra (girlfriend) 321
Ali, Rosi 137–8
Allan, Sandy 84, 88, 165
Allen, Rick
on Broad Peak expedition 110–21
on Everest expedition 165
on Nanga Parbat expedition 84, 88–9
alpine style climbing x, 117–18
altitude conditions 16–18, 38–9
Alvarez, Al 78
Annapurna (book) 223–4
Annapurna expeditions 223–35, 263–74
Antarctica, author’s work in 156–8
Antonio, Tose 242–4
Army Alpine Association
Aconagua expedition 24–5
author joins 12
Dhaulagiri expeditions 96–110
Mount McKinley expedition 14–18
Asia, lack of hygiene in 21, 31–2
Askole town 54–5, 114
Atkins, Ted 210–12, 214–15, 290–1
atmospheric pressure 34
Australia, wins Cricket World Cup 147–8
Australian Alps, skiing trips in 3–5, 10
Australian Antarctic Division 133, 156–7
Australian Army Reserve 6
Australian Geographic Society 313
Australian Himalayan Foundation 319
Australian Wild magazine 11
Baintha Brakk (The Ogre) 84
Balcony, The 167, 169, 212–14
Baltoro Glacier 56–7, 144
Baranowska, Kinga 294–5, 297, 299, 310
Beijing Olympics 281–2, 293
Berbeka, Jacek 90–2
Bhotia, Lobsang 42–3, 45–6
Bidner, Daniel 64, 72
Bierling, Billi 236
Bird, Tim 158, 161, 165
bivouacs on mountains
Annapurna 305–8
Broad Peak 127–9
Everest 127–9
Manaslu 185–6
Mount Cook 14
Nanga Parbat 140–1
Black Pyramid 60
Blanc, Abele
injured by icefall 232
on Annapurna expedition 228, 230
on Gasherbrum expedition 143, 148–50, 152–4
Blue Mountains, climbing practice in 12
Blum, Arlene 224
Bogomolov, Sergey 263, 267–9
Bonatti, Walter 49–50
Bond, Annabelle 207, 209
Bonington, Chris 224
Booroomba Rocks 18
Boskoff, Christine
dies in avalanche 203
on Everest expedition 165, 169–70
on Gasherbrum expedition 151
on Kanchenjunga expedition 192–4
Bottleneck chimney 64–5
Bradey, Lydia 222
British expedition to Everest, 1953: 30
Broad Peak expeditions 79–83, 96, 110–31
Budawang Range walk 2–3
Buhl, Hermann
Broad Peak expeditions 80
death of 146
first ascent of Nanga Parbat by 85
quote from 173
techniques developed by x
Bukreev, Anatoli
author meets at Everest Base Camp 37–8
climbers saved by 77
climbs all 8000-metre mountains xvi
death of 77, 224
in Russian expedition 193
loses contact with Peter Metzger 71, 73
on K2 expeditions 50, 61–7, 75–6
Buri Gandaki River 181–2
Burke, Shaunna 205, 209, 216–17, 225
butterflies, author’s attitude to 235–6
California Himalayan Expedition to Makalu 283
Canada, climbing in 206
Cassin Ridge route up Mount McKinley 26–8
Cesen, Tomo 189
Chand, Lokendra Bahadur 197
Chilas village 90
Child, Greg 325
China, Autonomous Region of Tibet see Tibet
China Tibet Mountaineering Association 201
Chinese Mountaineering Association 199–201, 281–3, 318
Cho La pass 281
Cho Oyu expeditions 141, 219–22, 236–7
Chogolisa 146
Chomolungma see Everest
Climb, The 77
climbing fatalities
attitudes to 78–9
from heatstroke 94
on Aconagua 24
on Annapurna 224, 226
on Broad Peak 124
on Cho Oyu 220–1
on Dhaulagiri 97, 266
on Everest 29–30, 40, 41, 77, 189, 329
on Gasherbrum 1 144
on K2 49–50, 53, 57, 64
on Manaslu 175–6
on Nanga Parbat 85–6, 136, 142
on Pumori 22
on Shishapangma 237–8, 301
Alfred Mummery 135
Anatoli Bukreev 77, 224
Andres Delgado 218
Christian Kuntner 232–4
Christine Boskoff 203
Daniel Bidner 71–2
David Hume 47, 251
Denali Schmidt 240
Felix Inurrategi 131
Goran Kropp 94
Hermann Buhl 80, 146
Ian Clough 224
Iñaki Ochoa de Olza 274
Inigo de Pineda 240
Jerzy Kukuczka 174, 188–9
Lobsang Bhotia 46
Lobsang Tshering 211
Mario Merrelli 240
Marty Schmidt 240
Michael Rheinberger 47
Mick Parker 203
Nanda Devi Unsoeld 283
Park Young-Seok 154
Pepe Garcés 155
Peter Metzger xvi, 71–3
Reinmar Joswig 72–3
Roger Payne 77
Scott Fisher 151
; Willi Unsoeld 283
Clough, Ian 224
Clyma, Julie Ann 61
coffee-making 146
Colibassanu, Horia 263, 267, 310
Collins, Ian
on Everest expedition 28, 30, 40–1
on Pik Korzhenevskaya 23–4
commercial climbing 159–62, 331
Concordia 57, 145
Conway Saddle 147
Cooper, Adrian ‘Ace’ 2–3
Corvini, Armando 22
Couzy, Jean 284
Cricket World Cup 147–8
cross-country skiing in Australian Alps 3–5
Cross, Will 207, 209
Crowley, Aleister 193
Cusick, Brendan 225, 228, 233
David (climbing client) 164, 167
Dawa (Sherpa) 259–61
de Olza, Iñaki Ochoa 236–7, 263, 267, 274
de Pineda, Inigo 236–9, 240
‘death zone’ 34
deaths see climbing fatalities
Delgado, Andres 212–13, 216, 218
Deosai Plain 87
Dhaulagiri expeditions 37, 96–110
Diamir Face 90
Diamir Valley 134
Diemberger, Kurt 80, 96, 134, 143
Discovery Channel Canada Everest expedition 204–18
domestic violence in Redfern 8–9
Dujmovits, Ralf
Kanchenjunga expeditions 241, 244, 255–6
marries Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner 187
Emil (climber) 264
Endeavour Club 2–3
Erberhardt, Ernst 51, 62–3, 75
Everest
as seen from Lhotse 191
author attempts without oxygen 317–25
author’s ambition to climb 12
author’s first attempt on 29–41
Discovery Channel Canada expedition 204–18
European discovery of 29
fiftieth anniversary of first climb 197
height ix
Jagged Globe expedition to 157–72
Macedonian–Australian expedition to 41–5
Everest Book Report 174
Everest, Sir George 29
Fairview Inn, Talkeetna 17
fatalities see climbing fatalities
Ferran (base-camp manager) 266, 295
Fisher, Scott 151
Fowler, Charlie 203
Franco, Jean 284
Franklin River rafting 10
Friendship Highway 200–1, 220
Frog Buttress 18
frostbite 165, 289
Gafgo, Nicolas 79, 81
Gammow bags 98
Gangdal, Sven and Jon 183–4
Garcés, Pepe 144, 148–55
Garcia, João
death of 94