When British mountaineer George Mallory was asked why he wanted to climb Mount Everest in the 1920's, his response was "Because it’s there". While Charan Alemblaseril might not give you the same answer, he has most recently summited Mount Kun which is 7,077 metres tall and situated in the Zanskar range in Ladakh. He was also the leader of the month-long expedition.
Also read: This premium property is a must visit for its scenic view and lip-smacking delights
The Coorg-born man who resides in Washington DC, USA, is a software professional, triathlete who loves scaling huge mountains. He sat down with Indulge for an exclusive interview about his month-long expedition and following are the excerpts from the conversation:
Q: Did your love for mountains come because you grew up at Coorg?
A: When you grow up there, you just can't help it. My family is in estates, so most of the time, we are out there, being one with nature. Once you get a taste of the fresh air and the view (from atop a mountain) you can't go back and you are always looking for the next one. I never knew where it would take me. I didn't have a clue. When I went to the Land of Opportunity, which has a lot to offer as well, I was looking at what views I could get, starting with the Grand Canyon. The more you see, you start wondering what the view will be if you start to go just a little higher and it (the mountains) draws you to it.
Q: Explain to us the allure of the Himalayas that draws mountaineers to it.
A: I've been to South America and got experience of what it is to be at high altitude. But, the Himalayas is always in the back of your mind. The Himalayas draws you. When you are at the summit, you see stars below you, the curvature of the Earth and you are on top of the world. There is so much to gain on the way there too, like the nature and the culture of the people of Ladakh.
Q: Talk us through how you got the certification needed from the Indian Mountaineering Foundation (IMF) to climb Mount Kun.
A: The IMF takes more interest in how you are coming to the mountain and what your qualification is. During the pandemic, I went to White Magic Adventures in the USA to obtain the permit to scale Kun and was turned down, for I did not have experience climbing glacier mountains. I had climbed the Andes (the mountain range in South America), which although tall, is not technical. You are not wearing crampons and carrying an ice axe with you. Since there was no way for me to do any quick learning with a course, I decided to earn the stripes. I scaled USA's Mount Baker and by doing so learnt things like self arrest, ice axe, roping, and going from climbing to rescue (if someone slips) to climbing again. Then, I joined the expedition that was set to scale Mount Kun. That was the qualification I had to get to scale the 7,000 m mountain.
Q: Who were your team members?
A: The team was supposed to have six people originally. Three of them could not make it. There were three of us and the fourth was a liaison officer from the IMF. The two other members were from Switzerland and an Indian passport holder who lives in the UK. All of them were very well trained.
Q: What skill set do you think is needed to be successful in the Himalayas?
A: The mountain I climbed is taller than any other peak in the world and it is not even the highest in the Himalayan region. That is the grand scale of the Himalayas. If nothing, just the altitude makes things tough. You start pulling in lessons learnt from all sports backgrounds that you have. The technical skills are difficult still, for one has to learn how to use the crampons in the blue ice that is very hard to kick in, how to grab the ice wall especially when you cannot see the crest and more. You learn by slipping, sliding and sometimes falling. But every failure makes you better.
Q: Were there situations during your expedition where pure instinct saved you and your team?
A: The biggest skill of all is deciding when not to go further. Two of our team members were coming down with altitude sickness. One person's brain started swelling at Camp 2 (C2) (above the base camp (C) and Camp 1 (C1)) and the other person, who was our main Sherpa (on the mountains, the Sherpas are the experts who go with the mountaineers) who had scaled Mount Everest, realised that his lungs were going to fill with fluids at Camp 3 (C3) (at 6,300 m). They did not make it to the summit with us and I applaud them for that. To put things into perspective, from C1 to C2, it is almost a kilometre up and along a 70-80 degrees ice wall that is seemingly endless. To make that call with the last bit of energy, which will make the difference between life and death at that altitude, is commendable. I hope, if I was in such a situation, such wisdom will come to me.
Q: Carrying heavy baggage, how do you live on the mountains for days?
A: My understanding is that up to 17,000 feet, the body can adapt to higher elevation and function normally. As you keep going higher, the body's functions start going down. So, at high altitude, digestion is the least of the body's priorities, for it has to keep the heart functioning, likewise the brain and kidneys, etc. You tend to live off soups and something that is easily digestible. At C3, for example, you only eat to provide fuel to your body. So, before you get out there, you try to put on as much weight as possible.
Q: People lose their lives climbing these mountains and yet more and more seem to be taking up the challenge...
A: If you climb from Nepal, you see corpses. Most of these deaths that you see along the way happen because they did not know when to turn back. Our team member who turned around between C1 and C2 had to take that call and had he not taken that, he would have joined those men, because there is no helicopter coming in to rescue him and he has to come back on his own. For somebody else to strap him onto his body and climb down in such a debilitated state, you might have two in the place of one. But, it is a sport and accidents do happen. That's the chance you take and that's part of the thrill.
Q: Once you climb these 6,000 m and 7,000 m peaks, you naturally tend to aim higher, would you say?
A: The Sherpas I worked with said that it is easier to climb the 8000 m mountains in the Himalayas than the 7,000 m ones, because you get your oxygen supplement and the logistics are well defined. While we were celebrating our achievement at the base camp, I was asked "what next?". Although I would like to experience the 8,000 m mountains, I don't think I would scale them. It takes longer to acclimatise and one needs more time off from work and family. Now that I have seen the grandeur that India and the Himalayas have to offer, my dream is to get as many of my friends in the USA to come over here and experience the mountain range. If I can get 10 people to experience what I have, that would be a dream come true. I would like to do some treks with my family in the Himalayas and have my kids experience their fatherland (his wife is from Russia)
Q: Would you say that mountaineering expeditions contribute to pollution in the region?
A: It is a controversial subject. From what I saw, the IMF is very stringent about all the trash that goes up and makes it clear that everything must come down and the trekking company I went with had its own strict guidelines on the same. So, it broke my heart to see trash thrown right up to C1 by the Indian Army. I hope this changes.