A New Way to Bag Peaks

[FOTG]

Well this is certainly a new one, Someone is being questioned for allegedly using a helicopter to bag Everest from a new route..Well I guess it is true what they say in the Army, "if you are not cheating your are not trying." Makes me wonder, has any HAZer ever used deception or exaggeration in making a hiking claim, maybe a poll topic...hmmm

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/nepal ... mb-n115241

KATHMANDU - Nepal said on Tuesday it was investigating whether a Chinese woman, this season's sole climber of Mount Everest from the Nepalese side, used a helicopter to reach a high camp after a deadly avalanche last month washed away part of the route.

Using a helicopter would constitute a serious moral violation of tradition in climbing the world's highest peak. But Wang Jing, 40, who completed the climb last Friday, denied she had used the aircraft to advance up the mountain.

The April 18 avalanche killed 16 Nepali guides, who were fixing ropes and ferrying supplies for their foreign clients to scale the 8,850-metre (29,035-foot) peak. Guides then refused to accompany foreign climbers out of respect for their dead colleagues and hundreds had to abandon their expeditions.

Wang completed her climb with five Sherpa guides arranged privately to become the first to go up from the Southeast Ridge route after the deadliest accident in the mountain's history.

Authorities said they were looking into reports that Wang took the helicopter and flew over the route damaged by the avalanche to the site of Camp II at 6,400 meters (20,997 feet).

"We have asked the helicopter company whether they flew Wang to Camp II as reported," Madhusudan Burlakoti, a senior official at the Tourism Ministry, told Reuters.

Nepal normally allows helicopters above Everest base camp located at about 5,400 meters (17,716 feet) to rescue climbers in distress or to drop climbing equipment and supplies.

Climbers must walk on ropes and aluminum ladders fixed on snow, including over the treacherous Khumbu Icefall, known for crevasses and avalanches.

Burlakoti said Wang, who returned from the summit at the weekend, had denied using any helicopter for climbing, but acknowledged having one drop her cook and a porter at Camp II with supplies. He declined to say what action Wang faced if she was found to have flown to Camp II.

Wang could not be reached for comment.

[mazatzal]

@chumley
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foot_(unit)

Historically the foot, which was used in Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, England, Scotland and many Continental European countries and which varied from country to country and in some cases from city to city, was part local systems of units. Its length was usually between 250 mm and 335 mm and was generally, but not always, subdivided into 12 inches or 16 digits.

The international yard and pound agreement of July 1959 defined the length of the international yard in the United States and countries of the Commonwealth of Nations as exactly 0.9144 meters. Consequently, the international foot is defined to be equal to exactly 0.3048 meters. This was 2 ppm shorter than the previous U.S definition and 1.7 ppm longer than the previous British definition.

:roll: :roll:

[Jim]

Also, interesting point raised by chumley there regarding feet vs. meters!

I recently expressed my sadness that I am very unlikely to get over 4,000 meters this year, or 13,123 feet. It is a person goal, but years ago I decided I wanted to get over 4,000 meters at least once a year. I managed to do so at least once a year, from 2007 to last year. 4000 m is the standard elevation when peaks are supposed to be hard, or something, over in Europe, so I went with it. Sounds nice, too. The feet vs meter thing usually comes up when people start getting into topics like, "why only 14,000?'", for why there are no 15ers or why there are 14ers basically just clustered in Colorado, or when people starting comparing a high 13er that is technical or much more difficult than an easy Sawatch 14er.

[BEEBEE]

@chumley
No that is the standard they use I have no idea who came up with it. Its meters in Europe and elsewhere here in the USA its in feet.