In times of crisis

So how are the two main crises of recent times affecting Everest? Well the first, climate change, is having pretty much the same effect as elsewhere in the Himalayas. Melting glaciers with glacial lakes so swollen they threaten to burst their banks, flooding further downhill, bridges and houses of locals washed away - all this has been plain to the sherpa population and it's accelerating.

And the global financial crisis - has it affected tourism? Not so apparently, at least not yet. 27,000 people disembark in and around Everest annually, compared to only 3,000 local sherpas. Aherm...we'll leave the ecological effects of this to another posting.

Crowded up there

I decided to forget about the 4 and half big ones for the moment. Worst comes to the worst I can always sell my flat. Instead I've been on a virtual tour of Big-E to see what I'm up against (video).

See, there are all sorts of ways to train. I'm choosing the smart, armchair hillwalking one. One of the hardest parts is the psychological challenge. I reckon it's best to work on that first - healthy mind, healthy body. Don't expect much peace up there though. There are more tents than T-in-the-Park.

Busking...

Oh no...forgot. I've got the guitar. But I never learned to play it. So just signed my life away to raise an impossible amount of sponsor money AND get frostbite, and I can't even go down the high street and sing for it. (Always a bit pathetic when you see those people busking with no musical instrument, you have to agree.)

Oh well, I'll just have to grub it all off my colleagues, although since there's only 9 of them I'm going to have to be extra specially nice to get that kind of lolly out of them. (What's four and a half grand divided by 9?)

Might have to go onto plan B. Face-painting - always works a treat - especially if you can target the kids that get a bit more pocket money than everyone else.

In a quandary

So here I am wondering what I've let myself in for. It'll probably be freezing up there. I can just feel the frostbite already.

But then you can't say no when someone asks you if you want to go up to Everest Base Camp, can you? Really, come on. If you say no, a) you'll get that sinking feeling afterwards that no one will ever ask you to do anything exciting ever again, and b) you'll feel like a right wimp.

And it's hardly an interesting conversation piece is it? "Well, I was going to go up Everest and all that, but then I thought, nah, I'll nae bother the noo."

It's all in a good cause after all. Hmmmm, hope we don't have to sleep in tents like Hillary and Norgay - I'll need to get more than a moonbag.