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Here we are, back at base camp, after two days acclimatization at c1 (5900 m). On arrival, we discovered that our cook Waqar had just butchered a yak (zoo to be precise) = fresh meat for all carnivores in the coming days (Silvano, the only vegetarian in the group, was the only one who didn't enjoy the event). In the past few days the weather has been mostly bad: at least 50 cm of fresh snow have fallen at high altitude. However, it wasn't stormy and the uncertain weather of yesterday did not prevent our international team (13 climbers of Gerfried's team are on G1: 4 Italians - ourself -, 3 Basques, 1 Canadian, 1 British and 4 Austrians, including Gerfried) to track the glacier, plenty of snow and crevasses, that leads to the saddle between the two Gasherbrums, where one usually puts camp two. We have pointed the way with flags (in case of fog) and equipped with 80 m of fixed ropes a couple of steps leading to the impressive serac of Gasherbrum La (6450 m), which we have not reached. José Tamayo was the first one to overcome the key step (see photo) on the ice-fall of Gasherbrum La. If everything goes as planned, we hope to settle C2 during the next window of good weather, scheduled for middle of next week. The rest of our group, 11 persons, together with the members of all other expeditions to the G2 and G1, just spent one or two nights at C1.
So far the chronicle. Do you remember what I wrote about the Basques' reserve? I should point out that it was only the beginning, as it is normal when you meet people for the first time. In recent days, the ice has melted and it was very pleasant to talk to José Carlos Tamayo and Alex Trixon. Alex is a Basque from Bilbao, but this does not prevent him from being a convinced Ferrari fan and to appreciate Alonso (above all for his political positions). It 'also a fan of Valentino Rossi, and this makes me feel particularly close. Alex is 28 years old and was part of "El Filo de lo Imposible", a media circus with Edurne Pasaban: now he has started his own independent career climbing winter new routes. Keep an eye on Alex, Gerfried and Luis: in my humble opinion they are the young promises of Himalayan climbing. However, the true personality of the team is, without a doubt, José Tamayo: Basque, 53 years old, he is a great climber and a courteous and helpful person. Tamayo speaks Italian well and this facilitate contact with us. His stories on the climbs with people that made the history of mountaineering are fascinating also and especially for his modesty that keeps alive our memories of many Bigs now disappeared. For his part, he climbed K2 from the north and 3 other Pakistani 8000. Eight thousand aside, his climbs up the Trango Towers, G3 and G4 (top of the north) impressed me. In short, a strong, modest and companionship, that does not put on airs, as it rarely happen to meet among the celebrities of high altitude mountaineering. Star vs star, I must also tell you about Mario Panzeri, "ragno" (spider) of Lecco, with his 12 eight thousand. The G1 would be his 13-th. Panzeri is certainly the closest to complete the famous 14 eight thousand among all climbers today at Gasherbrums' b.c. We haven't yet had the pleasure and the honor to exchange greetings with Mario and have a chat with him. Panzeri is here with an entirely Italian expedition, an unlikely mix Milanese-Reggiano (there are, of course, the international ones, like ours, or the one with Giancarlo Corona). The day before yesterday, while I and my three companions were going to C1, Mario has passed without noticing us, his face set in stone. In camp 1, despite our tents were next and that the italic language was certainly not held back by weak veils of the tents, there was no occasion for a greeting between fellow countrymen. Gerfried attempted to approach him but received no response. Dear Mario, I realize that "de minimis non curat praetor" and that it is perfectly possible that our italics group within a large international expedition can easily go unnoticed, however, since you and your carrier will use the fixed ropes that we, disregarded 4 Italians, helped to transport and set at high altitude, and that you will follow our flags, come at least to get a coffee from us: we will not have class, but we have a mocha and a good coffee is always ready and waiting for you.
Please note that DISCLAIMER: The information above is provided for the sole purpose of this blog to chronicle, based on items collected directly or indirectly by me, and verified as far as possible. There is no claim to completeness and/or accuracy. Those who chose to use them elsewhere, they do it under their his sole responsibility.
In this dreary pre-Christmas day (because of snowfall in progress) devoted to rest, after shower, shaving and washing my dirty clothes, it is now time to tell something more about supply at our base camp. I state - to be honest - that we are NOT the ones who eat better, but the group does not feel quite envious of what others have. By a kind of unhealthy spirit of completeness of the information (I would have be a journalist) I will tell you about the kitchen of all other expeditions, because a man does not feed only on spirit and high peaks. My assistant and special envoy, incognito, at the other team was Silvano, who infiltrated even into hostile camps (not without taking personal risks), with the clever device of speaking ill of me. It worked! I'll follow the natural order in which the expeditions are placed at cb, ie from the foremost point on the moraine down.
Gold Fork is for the chef Armand, of ATP group which includes Giampaolo Corona, Leila, Santiago and others. It was Corona who declared that their chef is a true artist, capable of sophisticated and customized laden dishes, able to present even a single clove of garlic with elaborate carvings. On the kitchen of the Japanese expedition I declare my incompetence: the abundance of rice pilaf, nori seaweed, tuna infusions and other similar oriental delicacies put it on a not commensurable plan for an ordinary Michelin Guide. The Polish-Kazakh neighbors have married the local tradition, without excessive demands: their cook prepares a cuisine mostly Balti (little or no meat, chapati, rice, dhal bat, cabbage and canned). Judging from the shrill laughters of the young mountaineers, I assume that the kitchen is not the main entertainment of our noisy neighbors. In the absence of more detailed information, I can not assign them any fork. The next one is the team to which I belong to. Not to seem partisan (Waqar was the cook in my past expeditions and he works for 24 + 8 persons three times a day, and it should not be easy) I will describe our menu, leaving the assessment to the good reader. As a main course stands pasta, reinvented by the imagination of Waqar. Unpublished his overcooked fusilli in delicate white sauce with top of fruit salad. Our rice is never completely white, but reinterpreted by the chef with an air of local spices. Since joining the yak, we have stew with potatos (and here, unfortunately, I must say that the delicate stomach of Mario Vielmo surrendered, raising the white flag). Luckily, Mario has a good fairytale private pantry, over 450 euro of delicacies, that he offers generously. Silvano is the sole beneficiary, since he should do wonders to keep faith with his vegetarian diet. Then there are the vegetables stewed with corned beef, accompanied by the same sliced, breaded and fried. The inevitable chapatis does not charge more the success of the first days and the morning is the Porotto that goes for more as basis for breakfast, or the Somoza filled with Cheddar cheese craft made in Bahrain. Not only our team is international, but also the raw material. Besides the already mentioned Cheddar, we have tuna canned in Dubai, still served with plenty of mayonnaise made in Karachi. The mixed jam are made in Malaysia (Adri claims that they are not bad). For drinks we rely on large multinational companies: Nestlé on Nescafé and Cappuccino, AB Thai for Ovaltine. I can not swear to the origin of the honey, however, given the large plastic containers, I would say that it is a local product. To end with drinks, Tang orange and black tea in abundance. Overall, our diet is varied and plentiful and no one complains. Continuing down the moraine, we meet the Swiss expedition. The strong point is the imported cheese(s) to complement the usual Pakistani basis. Overall, half fork. About the Hong Kong expedition it worths what has been said about the Japanese. Last (in order of placing) is the Milanese-Reggio Emilia expedition. I must say that here the level rises suddenly, and for the presence of Emilian cured meats and the quality of imported Italian pasta (Barilla) topped with Barilla pasta sauces among which a great pesto. The meat and Trentin stew in the maxi-restaurant-cans complete the picture. The question remains whether all this is available to the whole group, or reserved for a sort of inner circle. The only drawback, the absence of a mocha. Silver fork. This guide has no claim to completeness, but wants to be a help and guidance for those who, pilgrims, trekkers, immigrants and defectors want a lunch at the base camp of Gasherbrum, Baltistan, in this year of grace 2011.
Today was a rest day but, just as we had breakfast, we heard on the radio that a carrier of the Japanese team, Sadik from the village of Machulu, was in big troubles descending the glacier from c1 to b.c., probably for hypertension and a principle of pulmonary edema. The poor man was helped in the descent from C1 (5900 m) by three porters and a Sherpa of Kobler's Swiss team. Sadik, however, was not able to do more than twenty steps without stopping and he was bleeding from nose and mouth. Luis Rousseau and José Tamayo, hearing the news, stopped their breakfast and climbed up like a shot with stretcher and oxygen, followed shortly after by Mario Vielmo and Silvano Forgiarini (for the Italian component), together with Gunther Unterberger, Alex Txikon, Juan Ramon Madariaga and, of course, doctor Stefan Zechmann (all of Gerfried's team) to bring first aid and assist the porter in the downhill in the more crevassed part of the glacier. At about 10 am they reached a height of 5500 m on the plateau above the ice-fall and provided the first treatment (liquids and oxygen). Then, holding him in two (with the victim between them) they begun a very slow descent until they cross the rest of the rescue team. In the meantime, the other Italian group present at b.c., had sent two people, Nicola Campani (leader expedition) and doctor Annalisa Fioritti, helped by their cook to bring up liquids. The whole group alternated in support Sadik during the descent, giving oxygen and helping him to come down on his two feet rather than on the stretcher, almost impossible to use in the narrow passages and deep crevasses of the glacier. Around four o'clock in the afternoon, Sadik has finally managed to reach base camp. A successful rescue operation, coordinated by Gerfried Goeschl. Among all the expeditions at base camp, were committed to the operation of emergency ONLY: the porters of Kobler's Swiss team, 9 members of our group (Gerfried's one) and the Italians, doctor Annalisa Fioritti and Nicola Campani. The Pakistani army has kindly provided two doctors of the military base for first treatment at base camp. After their visit they will evaluate how to proceed with care and possible evacuation. Bravo!
Sadik is in his forties, native of Machulu, Hushe Valley, married and father of five children. Until last year, he was a driver, and he changed his work choosing the most profitable job of HAP, High Altitude Porter. Besides the base camp, just to understand us. Unfortunately, his first experience at high altitude was about to end in tragedy. It is true that you earn more, but on the other hand, you are risking your life. In addition, among the dangers of the profession, there is also the risk of running into an unscrupulous client who charges you like a beast of burden and scolds you in the bargain. The same "customer" can even prohibit you from going to the aid of a fellow porter in troubles. Exaggeration? Not at all. It happened right here. Yesterday. Fortunately for us, and Sadik, the foreign climbers are not all alike: there are also generous and caring people, ready to get involved to help. Anyone. It happened. Right here. Yesterday.
This morning we went up first (Adriano, Mario, Silvano and I) to Gasherbrum La (camp 2 to 6350 m) and we fixed our tents for the night. Around 10 am, they came the three Basque, Gerfried, Luis, Stefan, Hans and Ricky, who will stop and sleep here for the acclimatization. At 11 am, Mario Panzeri has arrived with his hap: they pitched their tent and went back down.
Here we are, back at base camp, after a quiet night in c2, spent together with the other 11 climbers of our group engaged on the G1. This morning, Kobler's Swiss commercial expedition took off the tents from c1. Unfortunately, their time is running out and they must prepare for the return, after reaching only c2; they were among the first to arrive here at cb, on July 17, but they have the return flight and can not linger over. The teams involved on the G2 - including the members of our group -, they have reached the c2 (passing the "banana") spending there somebody one and somebody two nights. They fixed only a few hundred meters of rope between c2 (6350 m) and c3 (6900 m): to proceed further, it wll be necessary to wait until two or three days of sunshine setting the abundant snowfall of recent days. Giampaolo Corona was one of the few on the G2 who, aided by Kilian, managed to get below the serac at 6600 m, but today nearly all teams have returned, in view of weather deterioration in the coming days. To end up with the news, yesterday a climber of the Hong Kong team was evacuated by helicopter for contracting a painful herpes zoster infection at his back, not curable with the limited resources available at base camp. For the record, one-hour flight (in case of recovery from bc) now costs $ 8,000 and the security, that every group has to leave the Askari Aviation, amounts to $ 10,000! Not exactly cheap, even by European standards. Dear Simone Moro, no lack of work here, too bad it's all for now in the hands of the military.
While the foundations of stone and ice constantly threaten to collapse my tent, my laziness prefers to keep me here in the mess tent, updating the blog and answer to my friends, and she wants me to put till tomorrow the imposing building maintenance jobs that my friends are making more diligently now to prevent the landslide of their tents. So I can report that this morning, arrived at the base, with my big surprise, I noticed that the hill above our unsafe tents, which I dubbed "Hamburger Hill", was empty. Not even a single tent. Only a few refused abandoned. Investigating the reason, it jumped out of a strange story: in recent days the Polish-Ukraine team has been relegated to last position on the moraine, as "punishment" for trying - it seems - to buy fuel illegally from nearby military base. The more, the base Commander (who plays the role of god in this remote area of Baltoro) was very angry and has relegated them as far as possible, about 500 m further downhill. I didn't told you (to avoid misunderstandings between Mario Vielmo and his young, beautiful and jealous girlfriend) that in recent days, the Polih girls of the relegated group (may be as for the fact that Mario dared to mount his tent so close to them, may be for opportunistic reasons or for simple common sense and absent the concerned) papered the roof of his tent with their clothes, socks, sweaters, pants and even a sleeping bag. I have carefully documented everything, but Mario has asked me not to publish the "compromising" photos without first giving him time to call the better half ... I respected his wishes, then we went for c2 and I had more important things to do. Until now. But now the situation has changed and the site left vacant by the Poles is under occupation by the expedition of Carlos Pauner, just arrived at the base camp with 4 climbers and 10 trekkers. We do not know if the change will be for us a good or a bad thing. Only time will tell, but certainly we will not miss the stockings stretched and night ringing laughter of the young Polish mountaineers, who are now slipped down, to "cheer up" the troubled group of Nicola. Greetings!
P.S. There are new photos for the past days
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Con il patrocinio del Club Alpino Italiano |
