| There is something about the battle of man versus | | | | equipment to base camp, and expert guiding on the |
| mountain that captivates the imagination and has | | | | mountain above base camp. The most important |
| spawned a whole genre of books on the subject. | | | | thing an organized expedition offers is the close |
| High altitude mountaineering is an exciting way to see | | | | monitoring of team members for signs of Acute |
| the natural world but comes with significant risks. | | | | Altitude Sickness. This condition results from the |
| Safely summiting a mountain over 20,000ft requires a | | | | body's inability to deal with the decrease in air |
| lengthy preparation, a large financial commitment, and | | | | pressure experienced at altitude. It leads to impaired |
| over two weeks of hard physical and mental toil. | | | | cognitive function, followed by loss of consciousness, |
| Where to start? | | | | and potentially death. |
| To start climbing at altitude you need to choose a | | | | Each season, novice climbers suffer Acute Altitude |
| technically simple mountain. This means heading to | | | | Sickness due to a lack of understanding of the |
| Asia or South America. Mountains that are labeled | | | | condition. The easy nature of the terrain on trekking |
| "Trekking Peaks" are suitable for people with no prior | | | | peaks make people climb higher than their bodies can |
| climbing experience. The highest trekking peak is | | | | handle. The warning signs are subtle and it takes a |
| Aconcagua, the tallest mountain in the Andes, | | | | trained eye to pick up on them early enough to take |
| standing at 22,841ft (6962m). Nepal has a variety of | | | | the simple remedial action of descending. |
| trekking peaks with Mera Peak being one of the | | | | Summiting a 20,000ft mountain is the adventure of a |
| most popular at 21,247ft (6476m). | | | | lifetime and the commitment and endurance it |
| Organization. | | | | requires gives a massive sense of accomplishment. It |
| With no experience it is important to travel with | | | | is possible to live the adventure with no prior |
| someone who has a good understanding of the | | | | experience but to remain safe you must be guided |
| effects of altitude. This means going on a commercial | | | | by a team of people committed to safety. Getting |
| expedition. They arrange the logistical operations | | | | back down is more important than making the |
| including climbing permits, mule or yak transport of | | | | summit. |