Page 23 - 2000 AMA Millenium

A certain 3 star and her husband. General Sir Sam and Lady Cowan .
radios. Our ascent was steep and unpleasant until the snow line at 4500m and by now the affects of altitude were beginning to tell. Having bragged to the lowly trekkers at base camp though, we could hardly return unmuddied. Unblizzarded perhaps but unmuddied no. My team, led by Captain Kev Edwards, took three days to reach the headwall of Tharpa Chuli. To my knowledge only Tim Bird had climbed this mountain In recent years because of the headwall and the rare times that it is in condition. As dawn broke in icy conditions on the final glacier we had to haul through a final 200m climb on a thin crust of ice covering thigh deep powder and the vertical headwall thus proved too much. We descended in the same day, the altitude forcing all of us to take an hour to pull pole on the tents. We looked back at the hill and wondered if it could have been done by other routes. Had we done
what we could?
Exhausted at base camp though the team began to see the event differently. We had pulled together for ten days having mostly only met briefly at some time in the distant past. We knew more about each other than we would ever let on. The slightest mention of crosswords and star wars brought us to tears of laughter. We had fun. The experience was some thing quite unob­ tainable in green conditions and outside anything that any of us had ever done. It could not be repeated and we came back alive, as close friends and, as they say, doing it.
Tharpa Chuli headwall.
In appreciation of the warm provided detailed medical
Lt Sal Ahsan and Major David Baggaley discuss matters in Wales.
Founded by Major David
Baggaley, of JSMTC INDE­
FATIGABLE, in 1997, the
expedition has gone a long
way to developing moun­
taineering expertise within the
Army. Of the peaks attempted,
only four were not summited
as a result of dangerous snow
and weather conditions in the
wake of the monsoon. The
peaks were spread across the
whole of Nepal and included sponsored by the Army
some in the Khumbu, Annapurna, Manang, Paldor and Mera regions.
Website, where further details may be found. In addition to this, the expedition has
FACTFILE
Sgt Mai Thomas dreams o f Annapurna.
Patron: General Sir Sam Cowan CBE KCB CDL Chairman: Major David Baggaley BEM JSMTC (I)
01248 715635
Secretary: Captain Fergus Smith 4 PARA 01904 664523
Objectives: Mardi Himal, Hiunchuli, Tharpa Chuli, Singu Chuli, Chuii West, Chuli East, Paldor, Naya Kanga, Ramdung, Parchamo, Kusum Kanguru, Kwangde Ri, Lobuje, Kongma Tse, Polkalde, Imja Tse and Mera.
Trekking Agent: Steve Bell of Jagged Globe 0114 276 3322
Personnel: 180 from all units including those deployed on operations: 3 Gurkhas, 12 females (two of whom were team leaders), and roughly 25% TA. Sponsors: Rab Carrington, Polar Wrap, Babcock, Vickers, HB Equipment, Delphis, Air Craft, High Places and EDS. Project Nepal:
www.army.mod.uk/projectnepai
KATHMANDU TREKKING
FAMOUSLY TOUGH GEAR AT REASONABLE PRICES
LIGHTWEIGHT BASHAS, FROM lOoz £17
THE BASHA-TENT, WEIGHS 1 5 Kilos, sleeps 1 to 4 £94 BIVIS, (BREATHABLE) FITS IN YOUR WEBBING POUCHES, £45 ALSO, RUC-SAC COVERS. STUFF-SACS, MOS-NETS,
STASH-BAGS. HAMMOCKS, and more
ALL A V AILABLE IN OLIVE, OR DPM, etc
CATALOGUES. WRITE-UPS, AND THE GOODS, AVAILABLE DIRECT, or from ;
John Bull, Catterick, Silvermans, London, Soldier of Fortune, Corwen,
JJ Army Surplus, Sheffield & Brecon, Troopers, Exmouth; Stringtown, Polegate;
Ranger. Surbiton, Adventure 1, Glasgow; Esma, Fleet; and many others KT. 5 Crabtree Lane, Gt Bookham, Leatherhead KT23 4PG,tel 01372-454773
welcome and support provided by the people of Nepal during the expedition, the Army is establishing a long term medical project to supply doctors to the country from universities in the United Kingdom. It is also hoped that military personnel will be able to enlist in this project from the start of next year. This project, founded and organised by Captain Alison Everest from the MRS at Sandhurst will be
research Into some of the effects of high altitude on the body and hopes that further expeditions will benefit from this study. The results of the experiments will be available from the Expedition Advisory Centre at the Royal Geographic Institute in London.
The expedition would also like to offer a huge debt of thanks to all the sponsors and the staff across the Army who helped with the monumental task of getting the trip under way.
Army Mountaineer
21