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慕士塔格峰登顶记
(2011-12-02 10:42:36)
在过去的一年中， 我感叹自己准备登山的经历之于那些面临人生中巨大挑战和宏伟目标的人们颇有借鉴意义。在前面的几篇博客中， 我试图证明我们如何可以从提高运动成绩的事例中获得灵感，借鉴经验，并且认为这不失为一种好方法。
Digest:
Over the last year, I have been amazed at how relevant my preparations for high altitude climbing have been to other big challenges and goals that people choose to attempt in life. In the earlier blogs I have tried to show how we can take inspiration and learn lessons from great sporting achievements and I think that this approach has worked pretty well.
http://s13/middle/7d72553bgb31327f7357c&690
前路回顾：
在讲述我试图攀登海拔7456米的慕士塔格峰的经历前，我想先来回顾一下此前的征程。
在这次登山的过程中，我大大加深了对自己的了解(我知道这听上去很“老套”，但事实的确如此)，令我不禁感慨为何此前这么久都迟迟没有付诸行动。一直以来，我都不断为自己设定富有挑战的目标，但是这一次我只追求挑战运动极限，令这段经历更为鲜活深刻。
在过去的一年中， 我感叹自己准备登山的经历之于那些面临人生中巨大挑战和宏伟目标的人们颇有借鉴意义。在前面的几篇博客中， 我试图证明我们如何可以从提高运动成绩的事例中获得灵感，借鉴经验，并且认为这不失为一种好方法。
我们先来回顾一下前面几篇博客的要点：
- 我们已经了解为自己的梦想而奋斗以及设定富有意义的目标的重要性。如果我们设定目标时仅为取悦他人或满足别人的期望，这不会阻碍你获得成功，但是这之于你又有何意义呢？你是在为别人而活，却迷失了自我。
- 然而，若未能制定计划，梦想永远只是梦想。明确目标后就要尽可能多地对其进行了解，确定需要做什么，如何做以及何时开始行动。学习计划是进行准备时的一件重要工具。
- 有时还需要根据实际情况适当调整目标。这并非易事，但你需要掌握自己的梦想与现实间的平衡点。
- 一项“挑战”只有具备一定难度才可被称为“挑战”，否则充其量仅为一项“任务”。如果你的目标不能让你不时为之紧张，那么你的目标可能还不够宏伟！同时，我们也知道运动员会使用各种方法控制自己的紧张情绪，发挥最高水平。我们可以在参加考试或面试时借鉴这些做法。
- 完成一项挑战需要一定时间，因此我们需要寻求方法保持动力，锁定目标，并将宏大的任务分解为自己能力所及的多个小目标，各个击破。
登山前的准备对于我来说也是一段难忘的个人经历。我十分乐于与各位分享，并且在这一过程中获益匪浅，远远超过仅靠我一个人思考的收获。感谢各位一直以来关注我的博客，下面开始讲述我在登山时的经历。
http://s3/bmiddle/7d72553bgb313290a38f2&690
忍耐是攀山的关键所在
海拔7456米慕士塔格峰登顶当日记录
凌晨3点 第三营地
当闹钟在凌晨3点准时响起的时候，我们都已经醒来半晌了。当时帐篷外的气温是零下二十度，帐篷里也只有零下十度。身边的一切都覆盖着我们呼出的水汽凝结的一层薄冰。因此，尽管我们依次打开头灯，却没有人愿意起床。
我让另外两位同伴先穿好衣服。我们三人挤在一顶狭小的双人帐篷中。我睡在中间，几乎连转身的空间都没有。更糟的是，我的睡袋里还装着煤气罐，长筒登山靴以及其它衣物。那一晚睡得非常难受！
第三营地非常寒冷，很狭窄，特别不舒服
我尽量保持烹饪用气的温度，尽管如此我们还是花了近一小时才点燃小汽油炉，终于喝到了通过融化雪水泡成的热茶！
清晨5点15分 海拔6800米
我穿好衣服，喝过一杯茶，竟然花了两个多小时，简直难以置信。我把头伸出帐篷外。粉红色的朝霞点亮了天空，分外美丽，但我们仍被覆盖在山的阴影中。空气异常寒冷，我可以感到自己的鼻腔已经被冻住了。
。。。但是日出却美得让人窒息
在了解过高纬度登山注意事项后，我第一个从第三营地出发。然而我只走出了五米便不得不停下来喘口气。三天前我们从山脚处的营地出发，一路背着沉重的背包前进，此时令我感到精疲力竭。我的靴子里好像是灌进了水泥，举步维艰！我知道等待我的将是漫长而艰难的一天！
早上8点30分
不久我便摸索出了一种方法，使我可以保持一定的速度前进。我边走边数着自己的脚步，迈一步喘一口气，迈出第二步再喘一口气，以此类推，每走五步便休息几秒钟。当我走完一百步后就多休息一会儿。
在此后的两个小时里，我就保持这种速度前进，一直落后另外两位登山者约翰和克里斯坦50米。每当他们停下休息时，我都会缩短与他们之间的距离，似乎只剩咫尺之遥，近得可以彼此说话。然而我知道，在这样的海拔，到达他们所处的位置还需要20分钟！然后当他们再次出发时，我又被落在了后面。
距离很有欺骗性，需要30分钟才能赶上前面的队员
上午10点 海拔7000米
那天天气极佳，天空一碧如洗，万里无云，然而却异常寒冷，又刮起了风 。此时太阳已经升到了山顶，于是我将护目镜换成深色的镜片，以保护我的眼睛不被雪地反射的阳光灼伤。我将脸和眼睛遮得严严实实，以防止强烈的紫外线。有好几次我突然产生幽闭空间恐惧症，感到自己快要窒息了，只得快速地脱去脸上的所有防护，做深呼吸。
全方位保护防止晒伤或冻伤
当时的温度可谓滴水成冰。尽管我将水壶放在我的外套里保温，水还是结冰了。此时已有登山者因为温度过低而返回。
10点30分 海拔7050米
途中我们经过一个深不见底的巨大沟壑。我向下望去，想要看看它有多深，却只看到无尽的黑暗。凌厉的雪檐矗立在天际，在耀眼的阳光照射下洁白无瑕。然而面对这美景我却没有力气拍下许多照片。
我遇到正在下山途中的探险领队阿诺德。他告诉我他已经准备返回了，而我则是最后一个仍在向上攀登的登山者。他说会派另一位雪巴扫尾，然而我每每回头却没有看到任何人。
正午12点 海拔7200米
我的眼睛出了一些问题。我看到光一闪一闪，在雪地上跳跃。有好几次我都以为看到了山顶的旗帜，并且确信自己看到了约翰和克里斯坦站在天际。我认为自己看到了他们站在山顶的一堆岩石旁边向我挥手。然而这一切都只是幻觉，当我走近时才发现那不过是系在竹竿上用以标识方向的一条粉色丝带，心不禁一沉。http://s13/bmiddle/7d72553bgb3134d043f4c&690
我没有见到的山顶
下午2点15分 海拔约7300米
我知道距离山顶已不遥远，但是我在从第三营地出发前忘记校对手表上的高度计，因此不知自己究竟身处多高的位置。刚刚走过的50米格外陡峭，攀登时步履维艰，然而现在地势又趋于平缓。我最终到达了“山巅之穹”。我不断前进，但是我已在高海拔地带连续攀登了9个小时，此时孤立无援，全身冰冷， 精疲力竭 。
到达7456米山峰的4位中的1位
这时我遇到了第一批返回的登山队员。他们告诉我距离山顶还有2个小时的路程，甚至还要更多！我当时有如五雷轰顶——我以为山巅已近在咫尺。我又向前走了五步，然后毅然决定折返——此时我距离山顶仅有250米。
在某种意义上，折返并不是一个艰难的决定。如果当时我选择继续前进，我到达山顶时恐怕已是下午4点，然后还要返回山脚处的营地，时间显然不够。
我在下山的途中
实际上，在面临这个抉择时许多登山者都会头脑发热。他们一心想要登顶，于是会决定继续前进，无视面临的危险或体能状况不济。他们用尽全力到达山顶，然后却发现自己已无力平安地下山。正因如此，山难大都发生在下山的途中。
与自己过去一年中坚持为之努力的梦想失之交臂的确是一个难以接受的事实。然而我很庆幸，在我身心俱疲，不堪高原反应之苦时仍能及时做出理智正确的决定。
http://s10/middle/7d72553bgb3134c127a39&690
Muztagh Ata - Summit Day
http://s13/middle/7d72553bgb31327f7357c&690
The journey so far…
Before I tell the story of my attempt to get to the summit of the 7456 meter high mountain Muztagh Ata I want to reflect on the journey so far.
I have learned so much about myself in doing this climb (I know that this sounds “corny” but it is really true) I wonder why it took me so long to start! I have always set myself challenging goals but for some reason the purity of sporting challenges makes the lessons more vivid.
Over the last year, I have been amazed at how relevant my preparations for high altitude climbing have been to other big challenges and goals that people choose to attempt in life. In the earlier blogs I have tried to show how we can take inspiration and learn lessons from great sporting achievements and I think that this approach has worked pretty well.
Lets review the key points:
- We have seen how it is so important to follow your own dream, to set your own goals that mean something important to you. If you chose a goal to please someone else or to conform to other’s expectations, you may still succeed but what will you have achieved? You will be living someone else’s life not your own!
- However, a dream will always be just a dream unless you make a plan. Now you know what it is you want to do you need to learn as much as you can about it, work out what you need to do and plan how and when you are going to do it. A study plan is a key tool in your preparation.
- Sometimes you may have to modify your goals a little so that they are realistic. This is really hard but you need to balance your ‘dream’ with a good measure of realism.
- A “challenge” has to be something that is difficult to achieve otherwise it is just a “task”. If your goals don’t make you a little nervous at times then maybe they are not big enough! However, we also saw that there are lots of tricks that athletes use to conquer their nerves and perform to their best that we can use in other situations like examinations or interviews.
- A challenging goal will also take a long time to achieve so we looked at ways to keep motivated and focussed on your objective as well as ways to break down a big task into smaller more manageable smaller objectives.
It has been a great personal journey that led me to where the story starts. I have really enjoyed sharing it and have learned a lot more this way than if I had just got on with things quietly on my own. So, thanks for following me so far and here is what happened on the mountain.
http://s3/bmiddle/7d72553bgb313290a38f2&690
Endurance is the key to mountain climbing!
A Chronology of Summit Day on Muztagh Ata, 7456 meters.
03:00 am. Camp 3
By the time the alarm sounds at 3 am we have all been awake for a while. One by one we turn on our headlamps but still no one feels like getting up since it is about 20 degrees below zero outside, 10 degree below inside, and everything is covered in a thin film of icy condensation from our breath.
I let the others get dressed first. There are three of us packed tightly in a small two-man tent, I am in the middle and there is almost no room to move. To make matters worse I have got the gas cylinder, my climbing boot liners and other extra clothes inside my sleeping bag as well. It was a very uncomfortable night!
Camp 3 was very cold, cramped and uncomfortable.
Even though I had tried to keep the cooking gas warm it still takes us about an hour to get the small hanging gas stove lit so that we can start to melt some snow for tea.
05:15 am. - 6,800 meters
I cant believe it has taken me over 2 hours to get dressed and have a cup of tea. I stick my head out of the tent. The sky is lit up by a beautiful pink sunrise but we are still in the shadow of the mountain and it is so cold I can feel the air freezing the inside of my nose. http://s1/bmiddle/7d72553bgb313297f4e30&690
After the high altitude guides, I am one the first to set off from camp 3 but I have only gone about 5 meters when I have to stop to catch my breath. The last three days climbing up from base camp with a full backpack have taken their toll and it feels like my boots are full of concrete! I think it is going to be a very long day!
08:30 am.
Before long I manage to settle
into a routine to keep me moving at a reasonable pace. I count my
steps… 1 step then breath; 2 and breath, 3 and
breath
At this pace I manage to keep about 50 meters behind two other climbers, John and Christian, for the last 2 hours. Every time they take a rest I get close enough almost talk to them but I know that at this altitude it will still take me another 20 minutes to get to where they are! Then they set off and I fall behind again…
10:00 am. - 7000 meters
It is a beautiful day; clear blue sky and not a cloud in sight but it is very, very cold and the wind is beginning to pick up. The sun has risen over the mountain and I change the screen on my goggles to a darker one to protect my eyes from the reflection from the snow. I am completely covered to protect my face and eyes from the extreme UV rays and a couple of times I get an attack of claustrophobia and feel like I am suffocating. I have to quickly pull everything off my face and breath deeply.http://s6/bmiddle/7d72553bgb31367bf08b5&690
Total protection from the sun and the cold.
It is really cold! My water bottle has frozen despite being inside my down jacket! Some of the other climbers are turning back due to extreme cold.
10:30 am. - 7,050 meters
The route takes us past a huge
crevasse, I try to see how far down it goes but it just goes down
and down into blue-black darkness. There are other jagged cornices
silhouetted against the skyline.
Beautiful but
dangerous!
I meet Arnold, the expedition leader, coming down. He tells me he is going back and I am the last of the climbers who are still going up. He says he will send another Sherpa to follow up the rear but every time I look around I can’t see anyone behind me.
12:00 am. – 7200 meters
Something is happening to my eyes. I can see flashes of light dancing on the snow. Several times I think I can see the summit flags and I am sure I can see John and Christian against the sky-line. In my imagination I think I can see them standing next to a pile of rocks at the summit waving at me. As I get closer I realise that it is just one of the pink ribbons attached to a bamboo stick used to mark the route and my heart sinks.
The
02:15 pm – 7300 meters approximately
I know the summit is close but I forgot to calibrate the altimeter on my watch before we left camp 3 so I don’t know how high I am exactly. The last 50 meters have been quite steep and very hard going but it starts to level out again. I have finally reached the ‘summit dome’. I keep pressing on but I have been climbing at high altitude for 9 hours already and I am alone, cold and exhausted.http://s2/bmiddle/7d72553bgb3134d80c051&690
One of the 4 climbers who made the summit at 7,456 meters.
Then I meet the first of the
returning climbers who tells me I have another two hours to go,
maybe more! This is as real shock! I thought I was almost there.
I
In some ways turning back was not a difficult decision. If I had continued I would have made the summit by 4 pm and I would still have needed to get all the way back to base camp - there just wasn’t enough time.
Me, on the way
down.
In fact, when faced with this decision many mountaineers get ‘summit fever’; they are so focussed on reaching the top they keep on going higher despite the dangers or their physical condition. They use all their effort to get to the summit and then find themselves too exhausted to make it down again safely. For this reason, most accidents in the mountains happen on the way back from the summit.
It was tough to accept that I wasn’t going to achieve a dream that had been driving me on for the last year but I was pleased that I despite being very tired and suffering from the effects of altitude I could still make the right decision at the right time.
http://s10/middle/7d72553bgb3134c127a39&690
A last look back to the mountain on the way home.
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