|
2008 K2 Disaster
The 2008 K2 disaster occurred on 1 August 2008, when 11 mountaineers from international expeditions died on K2, the second- highest mountain on Earth. Three others were seriously injured. The series of deaths, over the course of the Friday ascent and Saturday descent, was the worst single accident in the history of K2 mountaineering. Some of the specific details remain uncertain, with different plausible scenarios having been given about different climbers' timing and actions, when reported later via survivors' eyewitness accounts or via radio communications of climbers who died (sometimes minutes) later in the course of events on K2 that day. The main problem was reported as an ice avalanche occurring at an area known as "the Bottleneck", which destroyed many of the climbers' rope lines. However, two climbers died on the way up to the top prior to the avalanche. Among the dead were people from France, Ireland, Korea, Nepal, Norway, Pakistan, and Serbia. Expedition goal: K2 K ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mountaineering
Mountaineering or alpinism, is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending tall mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas. Indoor climbing, sport climbing, and bouldering are also considered variants of mountaineering by some. Unlike most sports, mountaineering lacks widely applied formal rules, regulations, and governance; mountaineers adhere to a large variety of techniques and philosophies when climbing mountains. Numerous local alpine clubs support mountaineers by hosting resources and social activities. A federation of alpine clubs, the International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation (UIAA), is the International Olympic Committee-recognized world organization for mountaineering and climbing. The consequences of mountaineering on the natural environment can be seen in terms of individual components of the environment (land relief, soil, vegetation, fauna, and landscape) and locat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fixed Rope
In mountaineering, a fixed rope or fixed line is the practice of fixing in place bolted ropes to assist climbers and walkers in exposed mountain locations. They are used widely on American and European climbing routes, where they may be called via ferrata routes, but are not used in "Alpine style" mountaineering. Many guided expeditions to any of the eight-thousanders normally set up fixed rope on steep or icy sections of the route. For example, on the Hillary Step of Mount Everest Mount Everest (; Tibetic languages, Tibetan: ''Chomolungma'' ; ) is List of highest mountains on Earth, Earth's highest mountain above sea level, located in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas. The China–Nepal border ru ..., fixed rope was used to reduce the bottleneck of climbers that typically results from climbing this technical section just below the summit. In changing mountain environments such as glaciers, ice falls and areas with significant snow, fixed lines must ge ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bivouac Shelter
A bivouac shelter is any of a variety of improvised camp site, or shelter that is usually of a temporary nature, used especially by soldiers, or people engaged in backpacking, bikepacking, scouting, or mountain climbing. It may often refer to sleeping in the open with a bivouac sack, but it may also refer to a shelter constructed of natural materials like a structure of branches to form a frame, which is then covered with leaves, ferns, and similar material for waterproofing and duff (leaf litter) for insulation. Modern bivouacs often involve the use of one- or two-man tents but may also be without tents or full cover. In modern mountaineering the nature of the bivouac shelter will depend on the level of preparedness, in particular whether existing camping and outdoor gear may be incorporated into the shelter. A bivouac shelter is colloquially known as a bivvy (also spelled ''bivy'' or ''bivvi'' or ''bivi''). Etymology The word ''bivouac'' is French and ultimately derives from ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Free Soloing
Free solo climbing, or free soloing, is a form of technical ice or rock climbing where the climbers (or ''free soloists'') climb alone without ropes, harnesses or other protective equipment, forcing them to rely entirely on their own individual preparation, strength, and skill. Free soloing is the most dangerous form of climbing, and unlike bouldering, free soloists climb above safe heights, where a fall can very likely be fatal. Though many climbers have attempted free soloing, it is considered "a niche of a niche" reserved for the sport's elite, which has led many practitioners to stardom within both the media and the sport of rock climbing. "Free solo" was originally a term of climber slang, but after the popularity of the Oscar-winning film '' Free Solo'', Merriam-Webster officially added the word to their English dictionary in September 2019. Public view Many climbing communities praise the ascents, while others have concerns regarding the danger involved and the message ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Death Zone
In mountaineering, the death zone refers to altitudes above a certain point where the pressure of oxygen is insufficient to sustain human life for an extended time span. This point is generally tagged as , less than 356 millibars of atmospheric pressure). The concept was conceived in 1953 by Edouard Wyss-Dunant, a Swiss doctor, who called it the lethal zone. All 14 peaks above 8000 m in the death zone are located in the Himalaya and Karakoram of Asia. Many deaths in high-altitude mountaineering have been caused by the effects of the death zone, either directly by loss of vital functions or indirectly by wrong decisions made under stress, or physical weakening leading to accidents. An extended stay above without supplementary oxygen will result in deterioration of bodily functions and death. Physiological background The human body has optimal endurance below elevation. The concentration of oxygen (O2) in air is 20.9% so the partial pressure of O2 (PO2) at sea level is abo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Summit (2012 Film)
''The Summit'' is a 2012 documentary film about the 2008 K2 disaster, directed by Nick Ryan. It combines documentary footage with dramatized recreations of the events of the K2 disaster, during which – on the way to and from the summit of one of the most dangerous mountains in the world – 11 climbers died during a short time span. Reconstructions were filmed on the North face of the Eiger and on the Jungfraujoch glacier in Switzerland in March 2011. Pemba Gyalje Sherpa was present for the reconstructions along with Pasang Lama, Tshring Lama, and Chhiring Dorje Sherpa, all of whom were on K2 in August 2008 during the events. Footage from the various teams was used and includes Hoselito Bite, Ger McDonnell, Wilco van Rooijen, Cecilie Skog, Fredrik Sträng, and Alberto Zerain. The film premiered at the 2012 London Film Festival. Reception On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, of critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of . Metacritic, which uses ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rolf Bae
Rolf Bae (9 January 1975 – 1 August 2008) was a Norwegian Arctic adventurer and mountaineer. Bae operated an adventure company called Fram, specializing in Arctic and Antarctic travel and survival courses. Biography In 2000/2001, Bae crossed Antarctica with fellow explorer Eirik Sønneland, completing what was then the world's longest ski journey, 3800 km long, taking 105 days to complete; the record was beaten by Rune Gjeldnes in 2006. On 27 December 2005, he arrived at the South Pole, after skiing from the ice shelf, and on 24 April 2006, he reached the North Pole unsupported, both expeditions together with Skog. In 2008, Bae together with Stein-Ivar Gravdal, Bjarte Bø and Sigurd Felde reached the top of Great Trango Tower (6286 m) in Karakoram, Pakistan, via the "Norwegian Buttress" (VII 5.10+ A4). The team spent 27 days ascending and 30 hours descending the peak. This was the second complete ascent via this route. Death Rolf Bae died on 1 August 2008, in a climb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Self-arrest
Self-arrest is a technique employed in mountaineering in which a climber who has fallen and is sliding down a snow or ice-covered slope arrests the slide by themselves without recourse to a rope or other belay system. Self-arrest can be performed by using ice axe and a combination of a climber's boots, hands, feet, knees and elbows. Use of an ice axe greatly increases the probability of effectively stopping a fall down a snow field, ice field, or glacier. Techniques Widely used self-arrest techniques involve placing one's body weight on top of an ice axe to drive the head into the slope. Lack of an ice axe reduces the probability of successful self-arrest. Effectiveness The likelihood of being able to self-arrest depends on skills of the climber and three main factors: * Angle of the slope: The greater the angle of the slope, the harder it is to arrest a slide. On very steep slopes, the chance of effective self-arrest may approach zero. * Hardness of the slope: The harder the s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Abseiling
Abseiling ( ; ), also known as rappelling ( ; ), is the controlled descent of a steep slope, such as a rock face, by moving down a rope. When abseiling the person descending controls their own movement down the rope, in contrast to lowering off in which the rope attached to the person descending is paid out by their belayer. This technique is used by climbers, mountaineers, cavers, canyoners, search and rescue and rope access technicians to descend cliffs or slopes when they are too steep and/or dangerous to descend without protection. Many climbers use this technique to protect established anchors from damage. Rope access technicians also use this as a method to access difficult-to-reach areas from above for various industrial applications like maintenance, construction, inspection and welding. To descend safely, abseilers use a variety of techniques to increase the friction on the rope to the point where it can be controlled comfortably. These techniques range f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fredrik Sträng
Fredrik Sträng (born March 25, 1977) is a Swedish mountain climber, adventurer and documentary film maker. Climbing career In 2003, Sträng participated in the Swedish Dhaulagiri expedition which consisted of six Swedes altogether (Joakim Ahlin, Magnus Flock, Martin Emanuelsson, Fredrik Jönsson, Hans Bornefalk and Sträng). Sträng reached the summit, together with Kami Sherpa, who was also part of the expedition. In 2005, in a commercial expedition led by Ryan Waters, with six climbers and six high-altitude porters, Sträng attempted to climb the north wall of Mount Everest via the northeast ridge. He turned back only 240 m from the summit because the oxygen did not work and because of an outbreak of a throat infection. During the autumn of 2005, Sträng climbed to the central peak of Shishapangma at an altitude of 8013 m. During the spring of 2006, in another commercial expedition guided by Scott Woolums and Jamie McGuinness, Sträng climbed Mount Everest. He used oxygen s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cecilie Skog
Cecilie Skog (born August 9, 1974) is a Norwegian adventurer. She studied and worked as a nurse, but since summiting Mount Everest in 2004, she has worked as a professional adventurer, guide and lecturer. In August 2008, she climbed K2. Her husband, Rolf Bae, who had been climbing with her on K2, perished during the descent, as did ten other mountaineers. In January 2010, she finished the first unassisted and unsupported crossing of Antarctica. Together with Ryan Waters, she took 70 days, from November 13, 2009 to January 21, 2010, to complete the more than 1800 km long journey across the Antarctic continent. Summits * Mont Blanc 4807 m, 1996 * Aconcagua, 6962 m (South America) 1999 * Denali, 6194 m (North America) 2001 * Cho Oyu 8201 m, 2003 * Elbrus, 5642 m (Europe) 2003 * Mount Everest, 8848 m (Asia) 2004 * Kilimanjaro, 5895 m (Africa) 2004 * Mount Vinson, 4897 m (Antarctica) 2006 * Mount Kosciuszko, 2228 m (Oceania/Australia) 2006 * Carstensz Pyramid, 4884 m (Ocean ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Traverse (climbing)
A traverse is a lateral move or route when climbing or descending (including skiing); going mainly sideways rather than up or down. The general sense of 'a Traverse' is to cross, or cut across and in general mountaineering, a road or path traveled traverses the steep gradient of the face. In civil engineering, road bed cuttings (or 'traverses') dug by construction operations creating an navigable incline into a hillside traverse the slope, also cut across the gradient as does the skier, climber, or builder. Climbing In climbing, Traversing a climbing wall A climbing wall is an artificially constructed wall with grips for hands and feet, usually used for indoor climbing, but sometimes located outdoors. Some are brick or wooden constructions, but on most modern walls, the material most often used i ... is a good warm-up exercise. When moving laterally, the technique of ''crossing through'' is more efficient than shuffling. In this, the limbs are crossed so that the moves are ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
