Sept 1, 2011 From Nyalam 3700m to 4000m Camp
Sept 2, 2011 From 4000m Camp to 4700m Camp

Finally, after nearly a week of traveling from city to city, we started hiking!

It didn’t come across my mind before that how huge a team we actually are. I was shocked to learn that we actually need 60 yaks to carry our bags to base camp (and it later evolved into 85 yaks and 30 yak men total as a more stuff need to be sent up later). Though this is almost the smallest climbing team I have been on with only 4 climbers, we are also taking 20 students and faculties from ShanTou University to base camp for experiential learning. Accompanying the student group, there is a filming crew of 11 to document their learning experience. To manage such a big crowd of people who had no previous experience in mountaineering and have never been to such high altitude, there is a support group of 10 who would help organize the huge logistics details and supervise the student group and filming crew.

The first day is an easy day, just three hours easy walk along the valley to our first camp at 4000m. It’s just after the river and at the foot of a steep uphill. The river crossing was an interesting one. The water was running so rapid that I felt like I would be washed away while making my steps across the simple bridge made of two pieces of narrow metal plate.

The second day is a hard one for many people. 700 meters of elevation gain is quite a lot in one day for normal people, and 6-7 hours walk at such an altitude is quite a challenge for many people. Half of the elevation gain is to go up that steep hill behind our campsite, followed by a long walk on the high plateau with gradual elevation gain. It started raining during the last couple hours as we walked into the rain clouds typical for an afternoon in the mountains. The student group handled the long and hard day pretty well. They kept a good pace as a team and arrived mostly in good energy to help setting up the camp site. Even though some of the camping equipment got messed up during yak transportation and rain, students still coped with the imperfection impressively well. The filming crew also worked really hard. Just managing oneself at high altitude is already a lot work, not to say try to focus your mind on the lens and the shooting objects. They need to be in working mode at all times, when students are walking, when students are resting, even when they may be feeling pain of altitude themselves.

Having been to high altitude enough times that my body remembers how to handle it well. So far it has been pretty easy for me to feel ease at each camp.

9月1 日 从聂拉木3700米到4000米营地

9月2日 从4000米营地到4700米营地

从北京到加德满都到聂拉木，在城市间穿梭了一周后，我们终于迈开双腿进山了！

在这之前，我没意识到我们的队伍其实有多么庞大。当我得知我们要用60头牦牛把物资运到大本营（最后又有些后续物资要运进来，最终演变成了85头牦牛和30名赶牦牛的），着实吃了一惊。虽然就攀登队伍来讲，我们才4个人，但我们同时还要带20名汕大的师生一起到大本营进行野外探险生活的培训。同时，还有11名摄影团队将跟随学生团队记录他们的学习体验过程。对于这些学生和摄影团队，不仅登山生活对他们来说是新鲜的，这样的高海拔对他们来说也是全新的经历。要保障他们的安全，我们不得不需要一支十人的协助团队帮助组织管理这样大的队伍。

第一天还比较轻松。从聂拉木到4000米的营地，只有3小时的轻松路程。到达营地前要过一条河，算是这段路上最有意思的一段了。河水好急啊，两条金属板做成的小桥摇摇晃晃挺恐怖的，感觉好像人要被水冲走了。

第二天要辛苦多了。700米的海拔爬升对多数人来说都不是轻松的，不要说还要在这样的海拔上走上6、7个小时。最开始的300多米爬升就是爬我们营地背后的那个陡坡，然后是漫长的缓缓的爬坡。最后几个小时开始下雨，因为我们走入了积雨云当中了。在山里，几乎每天下午都是这样。虽然今天的行程很辛苦，学生团队保持了整齐的节奏。到达营地时，虽然大家都挺累，大家依然积极地参与营地的建设。由于下雨和牦牛们的小脾气，一些宿营的装备出了偏差，大家依然很团结、态度积极地一同解决问题。摄影团队们也很辛苦。不仅要跟着大部队适应海拔，还要关注镜头。不管学生们是在行进还是在休息，他们都要忙着工作。

本人状态很好。毕竟到过高海拔好几次了，身体是有记忆力的，所以很快就能适应。

The beautiful walk

The hike has been like a walk through alpine gardens for the past couple days. What looks from far away just some beautiful grass land is actually a botanic wonderland that I often even felt guilty to put my step down. Once I started to aim lens at one follower I noticed, I would immediately discover many more next to it that I found myself glued to the ground. It’s amazing just how many varieties of plants you can find in one small patch of soil. Try to see how many varieties can you find in my pictures! Alpine followers are also surprisingly colorful and they adapt to the environmental challenge with their unique shape. I realized that I have never looked into alpine plants with so much detail and was so impressed with their surviving skills. I felt like becoming an botanist on this trip.

Not surprisingly, so many followers are not only a feast for the eyes, but also a luxury enjoyment for the nose. The refreshing smell from some special plants comes from time to time that reminds me of the smell of sierra deserts. Comparing to the dusty trail on the way to Everest base camp, the lush greenness on this trip is such a treat.

Another factor that makes this trip very different is the non-existence of tourist traffic. Comparing to Everest, Shishapangma is a much less climbed mountain and the south face is even less so. As the only group going toward the south face, we had the whole mountain to ourselves. There is no village, no residence, and barely any human trace for the whole way except occasional yak herds. As one of students said, we selfishly hope this mountain will never become a tourist spot so we could keep the beautiful mountain as it is forever.

在花园中行走

徒步进山的一路就像走在花园里。远远看来，满山就是一片片的草地和花的海洋，令我不忍心下脚，只能小心地择步，尽量少踩那些让我心动的花儿。每当我把镜头对准一朵花时，就发现旁边的一朵更美，然后那边还有一朵更美的，令我干脆趴在地上别起来了！这里实在就是一个植物园。我一次次地惊叹在小小的一块地皮上能发现多少种不同的植物！试试你能在我的照片里（有几张特意照的是很多种植物在一起）找到多少品种？而且，高寒地区的花儿在为适应环境长成其独特的形状时，还不忘了各具夺目的灿烂颜色，他们真是很懂得时尚的！据当地人说，叫不出名字的花就叫格桑花。我真希望自己是植物学家，而不必带着惭愧地都叫它们格桑花。

在视觉盛宴的同时，这一路也是嗅觉的享受。有几种植物的芳香气味特别强烈，在我不经意时，一阵阵地扑来，提醒我时时感激它们的存在。

这段进山的路还有一点特别就是独特，就是没有游客的踪迹。相比于珠峰，爬希夏邦马的就少多了，特别是南坡。这一路上，我们就是唯一一支队伍。一路上，没有村庄，没有居民，除了偶尔看到放牦牛的，几乎没有人迹。像一位学生谈感想时提到，我们自私地希望这座山永远不要变成旅游胜地，让大自然永远保持其本来的美丽。

昨天（8月30日）下午，我们顺利到达了聂拉木，进山前的最后一个县城。

为了方便交通和适应海拔，我们这次的希夏邦马之行是从尼泊尔的加德满都开始的。从1300米的加德满都到3700米的聂拉木只有一天的车程。一路上穿过风景如画的兰唐山区，每一个转弯过去就是一道不同的风景，让人应接不暇。深深的山谷底下是咆哮的冰河，做白水漂流应该是不错的地方。一路上交通状况都比较方便，特别是过了樟木口岸后，崭新的盘山公路绝对一流的建设标准。路边很多容易发生塌方的地方都修建了人妨的岩壁，和自然岩壁融合得天衣无缝。

聂拉木是樟木口岸过来到拉萨、日客则去的第一个有点规模的县城，有不少旅店和饭馆。饭店的伙食还不错，蔬菜不少，就是很难见到肉类。我们在这里休整两天，明天开始徒步前往大本营，我们的重装将让牦牛帮忙驮着。从3700米的聂拉木到5200米的大本营，我们计划用四天时间以保证充分的时间慢慢适应海拔，一路上当然就是风餐露宿了。我们带了卫星通讯设备，如果调试顺利，到达大本营后应该能定期发回进展报告来。

谢谢大家的关注！

We arrived at Nyalam in Tibet yesterday (Aug 30th, 2011), the last civilized stop before we head into mountain.

For reasons of easy transportation and better acclimatization, our Shishapangma expedition started in Kathmandu, Nepal. It takes one day’s drive from Kathmandu of 1300m to arrive at Nyalam of 3700m, with 5-6 hours from Kathmandu to ZhangMu of 1800m, then then another 2-3 hours smooth ride to arrive at Nyalam. Along the way, we enjoyed the pleasant ride through the beautiful Langtang Valley, with roaring glacier water underneath and breath-taking views at every turn. The road condition was pretty good, especially after we crossed border at ZhangMu into Tibet. The recently built high way was smooth and safe, with man-made walls protecting spots that are susceptible to landslide or rock fall.

Nyalam is the first major town from ZhangMu to Lhasa. There are quite some hostels and restaurants. Food is decent here with a lot of vegetable but rarely any meat. We are resting here for two days and will start hiking towards base camp tomorrow, with the yaks help carrying our heavy equipment. We are planning for 4 days for the trip to base camp at 5200m.

We brought satellite communication equipment with us on this trip. Hopefully we will get it to work when we arrive at base camp so that I can report our progress every now and then. Thanks for your support. Please stay tuned!

第二次到加德满都了，我没有了初来的戒备与好奇。前两天也就是有需要才上街，对所谓的购物没什么兴趣，就是出去买点水和水果而已。对除了印度和尼泊尔本地的菜之外的其他风格的菜也没兴趣，所以楼下的花园餐厅就很让我知足了，环境好，味道足，价格也合理。走在街上逍遥自在，好像走在自己家，对来往的车流和街边的小贩没有紧张或防备的感觉。

今天陪汕大的师生团去了几个景点。虽然是旅游景点，却并不拥挤，倒多是当地人在歇凉或重复着每日摆摊的营生，感觉本地人远大于游客。当然，到处都有穷得可怜的孩子或老人乞讨，还有许多流浪的狗安详地在香炉下整天睡着。这样的景象在第三世界国家的旅游地区都是常见的，然而，奇怪的是，在这样一个似乎应该很嘈杂的环境中，我却感到分外的平和。

细想想，每日在川流不息的街上行走时，从没见过人争吵或吐粗。虽常有小贩招呼，却从未被纠缠过，不用像赶苍蝇似地逃跑；即使买东西讨价还价也是静静地慢慢地。虽然加德满都是个又穷又脏又乱的地方，我却从中品味出分外的安全感。也许是因为佛教的缘故？似乎空气中的分子震荡的频率和别处不同，同样的频率传递给其间的每一个存在，本地人，游客，流浪的狗或牛。想起去年在去珠峰的路上在Khumbu Valley 中那种奇妙的心灵感应，其实就是这样一种内心的平和，让你能够听到自己的心声，敏感地响应环境中的能量震荡。原来这种震荡在Valley之外原来也是有的，虽然要弱得多。其实这种的能量的震荡和传递，是我们每一个人共同影响的。

在出加德满都的路上看到一个大广告牌，上面写的是“我们修的这条路是国际水准的，我们的举止呢？”

This is my second time in Kathmandu. Without the anxiety and curiosity typical of a first-time visitor, I no longer feel like a tourist. I had no interest in shopping and would only go out when I need to buy water or fruits. Preferring local food, the Nepalese Dal Baht or Indian styled dishes from the restaurant downstairs is nice enough for me. So I barely need to walk into the crazy busy street. But when I did, I actually felt home. I found it so easy to meander through the chaotic traffic and felt no need to put on a guard against those street venders.

Today, to accompany the student group from ShanTou University, I revisited a few tourists spots. I normally would have some kind of anxiety when going to tourists spots because it’s normally so crowded. As if I didn’t notice last year, I was surprised to find that it’s not so in Kathmandu, though Kathmandu is famous for being crowded. (well, maybe being in China for the past year changed my perceived or expected level of crowdedness also) It seems that there are more local people hanging out than tourists. Hanging out there for fun or selling something, it’s just part of their lives. Though, like any other third-world countries, there are a lot of poor kids or old people begging for money, I don’t find them so annoying as I would in many other places. Even homeless dogs are enjoying their peaceful lives napping under the prayer bells all day long. There’s a strange sense of peacefulness in this apparently chaotic city.

When I was walking around here everyday, I never saw anyone yell at each or speak foul language. Even cars or carts don’t get into trouble with each other when they fight for a pass. Though street venders are everywhere, I never felt being bothered to the level of harassment as I would feel in many other places. Even people who are bargaining are talking in quiet voice.