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The other damning aspect Joe writes about is the complete disregard that many climbers have for their fellow mountaineers, stepping over people as they are dying with no thought of consoling or trying to help them, in their single-minded summit fever. Joe is rightly livid that this happens, seemingly regularly. Is this what people become when pushed to the limit?
The one aspect of this book that I really disagree with Joe about is his constant sniping about trekkers / hikers in mountain regions. He seems to feel that the only people allowed to climb mountains are those that do it by the hardest routes and in the purest sense. Whilst I agree that mountains should be climbed by "fair means", if this means that it can be walked up by a person with no technical skills, than this person has every right to enjoy the mountain too. Joe seems to forget that he too is a tourist in these mountainous regions of the world, not only the hordes of walkers. I agree that Sherpas and other porters should be paid and treated fairly, but many trekking companies have a good policy on this so for him to tar them all with the same brush is unforgiveable.
All in all this is an eye opener on the state of Everest, but also has a snobbish element from the climbing community. A very good read though!
Conservationists should take heart. The author is disgusted by the conditions found on formerly pristine mountains. The once unsullied beauty of many of nature's wonders is being fouled by human detritus. The amount of garbage being left behind on Mount Everest by expeditioners is disgusting. Get off Everest, if you cannot or will not clean up after yourselves. There is no maid service on Mount Everest!
The author tackles head on the deplorable way that Sherpas and other native peoples are treated by expeditioners. Often ill clothed and ill equipped for the harsh climatic conditions found at higher altitudes, there is evidence of little regard for their welfare. In catering to an expeditioner's needs, however, these are the very people who make it possible for expeditioners to attain a certain level of physical comfort. Yet, when disaster strikes, they are often left to die by the mountainside by members of a throwaway society. How quickly some forget that it is the Sherpas who make expeditions possible, and who are oftentimes the unsung heroes when a calamity occurs. Talk about a thankless job!
It is incredible that human beings are so easily discarded, as if they were nothing more than a disposable can of soda. Putting a higher value on material goods, which can easily be replaced, or on a so called thrill over the life a fellow human being is one of Joe's pet peeves and rightly so! It is always startling to read that a climber has passed over or by the body of a still living, sentient human being, who is in distress or at the cusp of death, and not offered any assistance or succor to that person, but instead has raced on to try and summit or even just returned to one's relatively warm tent under the premise that there isn't much one can do. You have to wonder at the total self-absorption and lack of humanity inherent in that person. Joe calls these people to task in no uncertain terms.
Joe Simpson's feelings about mountaineering recall to mind some of those voiced by world class climber and Chamonix guide, Gaston Rebuffat, in his book "Starlight and Storm'. They both seem to share the same purity of vision and exultation in the climb itself. They both seem to share a belief in the brotherhood of the rope. Unfortunately, Gaston Rebuffat is no longer amongst us. One can only hope that Joe Simpson is not a lone voice crying in the wilderness.
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