The Backpacker Kebonan

Mount Everest

Mount Everest is so famous for being so high that you've probably heard of it before. It has been known the world over since the early 1950s when Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzig Norgay first climbed to its awesome summit. Hillary surveyed Everest at the time and determined that it was 29,000 ft/8840m high - a figure amazingly close to the current reading of 29,035 ft/8850m, which was confirmed using radar and global positioning satellite (GPS) technology.

Using state-of-the-art technology Professor Brad Washburn of the Boston Museum of Science, the world's foremost mountain cartographer, and his team have calculated that earth's highest elevation is actually 7 feet higher than the previous record. That makes the official height 29,035 ft/8850m. Thanks to some engineering whizzes at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who developed really light, high-tech gear, the work of Washburn was made easier because he was able to hand carry a radar device to the top of Everest where it could be positioned to measure the actual height of the mountain - underneath all that snow. GPS technology was also deployed near the summit, which uses satellite signal relays to take readings from the top of Everest. After months of crunching numbers Washburn's team arrived at the new, official world-record elevation.

They've also determined that the Himalayan Mountains are still growing higher, at a rate of about 2.4 in/6.1cm per year. That's twice as fast as previously thought. A growth rate of 2.4 in/6.1cm per year doesn't sound like very much. But, if you think about it, that means in the last 26,000 years the Himalayans have risen almost a mile into the upper reaches of the earth's atmosphere!

When Hillary and Norgay climbed to the top of Everest they wore oxygen tanks. Because Everest is so high it juts into the upper reaches of the earth's atmosphere, where there are much lower concentrations of oxygen than at sea level. What that means to folks trekking up the side of Everest is that their bodies get less oxygen from each breath they breathe while climbing. But their brains and muscles require the same amount of oxygen to perform as they would at sea level. That makes it especially tough to climb Everest.

Try to imagine what it feels like to climb up a mountain with very little oxygen in your body - you get dizzy, your nose, fingers and feet get numb and tingly, your heart thunders in your chest trying furiously to keep up with the muscles' demand for oxygen. You feel sleepy, confused, downright stupid as your brain struggles to function on limited oxygen. Every step you take is extremely slow and plodding, requiring every ounce of will you have. Hillary and Norgay had extra oxygen to help them make the trip, but there have been a few people who have made the trip since who did it without the aid of oxygen - taking one step about every five minutes! Approximately 6,000 climbers have attempted the summit of Everest, but only 2,249 have made it.

Over 200 people have died trying and of those, at least 120 bodies are still missing on the mountain.

The Highest Mountains

Mount Everest is just one of over 30 peaks in the Himalayas that are over 24,000 ft/7315m high. Himalaya is a Sanskrit word meaning, "abode of snow", which is so true. The name of the mountain in Nepal is Sagarmatha, which means "goddess of the sky". The snowfields which dominate many of the peaks in the Himalayas are permanent. Yes, they never melt (not even in the summer). That means there are glaciers in the Himalayas - lots of them. Mount Everest is permanently covered in a layer of ice, topped with snow. The "top" of the mountain at which the elevation was measured can vary as much as twenty feet or more, depending on how much snow has fallen on its peak. Scientists believe that the actual tip of the rock lies tens of feet below the ice and snow on its summit. There are current plans to use ground penetrating radar to get a reading of the actual height of the mountain beneath all that snow. Although the Himalayan Range is only 1,550 miles/2480km long, the average height of all the major peaks in the Himalayas easily makes it the highest mountain range on land.

The Birth of a Mountain

Mountains aren't just big piles of dirt, they're made of solid rock. Believe it or not, the rocks that make up the Himalayan mountains used to be an ancient sea floor. Over millions of years, rivers washed rocks and soil from existing mountains on the Indian subcontinent and nearby Asia into a shallow sea where the sediment was deposited on the floor. Layer upon layer of sediment built up over millions of years until the pressure and weight of the overlying sediment caused the stuff way down deep to turn into rock. Then about 40 million years ago, in a process called "uplifting", the sea floor began to be forced upward forming mountains.

Fast Facts

1. British surveyors named the peak for George Everest (properly pronounced “I-ver-ist”) a Surveyor General of India in the mid-nineteenth century.

2. Mount Everest was once surveyed at exactly 29,000 feet but the surveyors didn't think people would believe that so they added two feet to its elevation, making it 29,002 feet.

3. Mount Everest is rising from 3 to 6 millimeters or about 1/3 inch a year. Everest is also moving northeastward about 3 inches a year.

4. Mount Everest was dissected by glaciers into a huge pyramid with three faces and three major ridges on the north, south, and west sides of the mountain. Five major glaciers continue to chisel Mount Everest—Kangshung Glacier on the east; East Rongbuk Glacier on the northeast; Rongbuk Glacier on the north; and Khumbu Glacier on the west and southwest.

5. Mount Everest has an extreme climate. The summit temperature never rises above freezing or 32° F (0° C). Its summit temperatures in January average -33° F (-36° C) and can drop to -76° F (-60° C). In July, the average summit temperature is -2° F (-19° C).

6. The best time to climb Everest is in early May before the monsoon season.

7. The Southeast Ridge from Nepal, called the South Col Route, and the Northeast Ridge or the North Col Route from Tibet are the usual climbing routes.

8. In 1978 Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler were the first to climb Mount Everest without supplemental oxygen. Messner later described his summit experience: "In my state of spiritual abstraction, I no longer belong to myself and to my eyesight. I am nothing more than a single narrow gasping lung, floating over the mists and summits." In 1980 Messner made the first solo ascent, which was via a new route on the mountain's north side.

9. Over 150 bodies of dead climbers are on the peak.

Mount Elbrus

The West Summit, the highest point of this twin-summited, massive, glaciated volcanic dome, is also the highest point in Europe. Asia and the border of Russia with Georgia lies along the main ridge of the Caucasus about 10km south of the summit. The East Summit, 5621m, lies about 1500m to the east and is separated from West Summit by The Saddle, 5416m, an icy and windswept broad gap. The remains of the Saddle Hut are just visible several hundred metres south of the gap itself and are testament to grand plans that had been made to develop the route to the summit.

The Priut of the Eleven, a grand and futuristic metal clad, three storey building, located at 4120m, now also is just a distant memory, only its charred ruins can be seen a few metres from the newly constructed Diesel Hut. This itself was built on the ruins of the fuel store once used to power the generators for the Priut 11. The much grander plan to build a cable car station at the site of the Priut never got off the ground and nobody remembers when the radiators that formed part of the steps up to the Priut where ever used as they were intended.

Over 70 glaciers flow down from the icy dome of Elbrus whose glaciated area covers about 130 square kilometres. Neither summit is particularly difficult and ascents could be attempted from a variety of directions but few ever venture off the standard route up the main summit which utilises the cable way and chairlift system leading to the Garabashi Barrels (huts located at 3800m) from where it is a short walk up to the Diesel Hut. Access difficulties, bad weather and extensive crevassed areas make other routes very serious propositions. In bad weather conditions the wind chill effect can take temperatures down to -50°C. It is worth bearing in mind that every year many people die on the mountain, some say that if you are successful on Elbrus you could well be able to tackle Everest.

The ancients knew the mountain as Strobilus and believed that Prometheus was chained here. The lower of the two summits was first ascended in 1868 by Douglas Freshfield, A. W. Moore, and C. C. Tucker, and the higher (by about 40 m) in 1874 by a British expedition led by F. Crauford Grove. During the early years of the Soviet Union, mountaineering became a popular sport of the masses, and there was tremendous traffic on the mountain. In the winter of 1936, a very large group of inexperienced Komsomol members attempted the mountain, and ended up suffering many fatalities when they slipped on the ice and fell to their deaths. The Germans briefly occupied the mountain during World War II with 10,000 mountaineer soldiers; a possibly apocryphal story tells of a Soviet pilot being given a medal for bombing the main mountaineering hut, Pruit 11, while it was occupied. He was then later nominated for a medal for not hitting the hut, but instead the fuel supply, leaving the hut standing for future generations.

The Soviet Union encouraged ascents of Elbrus, and in 1956 it was climbed en masse by 400 mountaineers to mark the 400th anniversary of the annexation of Kabardino-Balkaria, the Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic in which Elbrus was located.

From 1959 through 1976, a cable car system was built in stages which can take visitors as high as 3,800 meters. There are a wide variety of routes up the mountain, but the normal route, which is free of crevasses, continues more or less straight up the slope from the end of the cable car system. During the summer, it is not uncommon for 100 people to be attempting the summit via this route each day. The climb is not technically difficult, but it is physically arduous because of the elevations and the frequent strong winds.

The Caucasus Mountains are the result of a tectonic plate collision between the Arabian plate moving northward with respect to the Eurasian plate. They form a continuation of the Himalaya, which are being pressed upwards by a similar collison zone with the Eurasian and Indian plates. The entire region is regularly subjected to strong earthquakes from this activity, especially as the fault structure is complex with the Anatolia/Turkey and Iranian Blocks flowing sidewise, which prevents subduction of the advancing plate edge and hence the lack of volcanoes (though some minor dome structures, such as Elbrus' peaks, do exist).

Mount Elbrus should not be confused with the Alborz (also called Elburz) mountains in Iran.

Mount Aconcagua

The Aconcagua mountain (6962 meters above sea level) is located in the Argentine Republic, at 69º 59´ West longitude and 32º 39´ South latitude, in what is called Aconcagua Mountain Provincial Park in the province of Mendoza.

This province is situated in the Center West of Argentina, and it has an area of 150,839 square kilometers. Those who want to visit Aconcagua Mountain Park must go through the capital of the province, also called Mendoza, which is located 750 meters above sea level. Mendoza is well known around the world for the quality of its wines, mainly the Malbec variety from Luján de Cuyo, one of the best worldwide. Mendoza is a modern region with an international airport, all means of transport, and lodging capacity for 15,000 people (campsites, apartments, houses, hotels, cottages, etc.)

Aconcagua mountain is a preferred destination due to the physical and psychological demands it poses to climbers, its climate and the beauty of the surrounding scenery. It is the highest mountain in the Southern Hemisphere and one of the most sought after in the seven-thousand meter circuit. It is also special as an introduction to big heights since its elevation and geographic and weather conditions constitute an ideal setting both for moderate demands and as preparation for the more exacting challenges posed by the eight-thousand meter and other peaks in the Himalayas.

The "Colossus of America" is the goal of climbers from all over the world as well as an attraction to thousands of tourists per year who come enjoy its natural beauty and treasure this unique and magnificent experience.

The Aconcagua Mountain Provincial Park is one of the three high-mountain parks in Mendoza, along with Tupungato volcano and Diamante lagoon. It was created by Law 4807 on November 28, 1990; it is located in the district of Las Heras and comprises 71,000 hectares. The official season for visits goes from November 15 to March 15.

The harsh weather conditions of this reserve are due to the altitude of the ecosystem, and this explains its low bio-diversity. However, the local animal and plant species are of special interest and show an outstanding adaptation to the altitude. They are found in the lower areas of the park (up to 4000 meters above sea level).

The predominant vegetation is the steppe with low bushes, such as yellow firewood, yareta and goat horn, along with open height pastures made up of huecú and ichus.

Besides, over sixty varieties of birds inhabit the area. Among them, the most typical species are the condor and the purple eagle. The most common land animals are the mountain rats, the agachona and the red fox. Other species worth mentioning are some amphibians and reptiles indigenous to high mountain regions. Fertile plains and streams are home to spotted sandpipers, churrines and a variety of duck called torrente. There are also large herds of guanacos predated by pumas. European hares abound and are an exotic species growing wild in the region.

A few meters from the first park ranger camp and the international road, tourists can visit one of the most exotic lagoons in the province of Mendoza for its blue color and its cold temperature. This lagoon is home to a wide range of indigenous animals and wild plants.

Mountain Climbing in Mendoza

There are also several climbing clubs and federations, such as (MMC) Mendoza Mountain Climbing Club (CAM in Spanish) founded in 1935, which has one of the largest libraries on mountain issues in the country, as well as woodies and mountain shelters. The club also features a provincial school for mountain and trekking guides as well as a branch of the Argentine Association of Mountain Guides based in Bariloche and recognized by the International Union of Associations of Mountain Guides based in Switzerland. In Cordón del Plata, 70 kilometers from the city, it is possible to climb several peaks over 5000 meters and one over 6000 meters in 3 to 5 day journeys, which is ideal for training and acclimation.

The growing modernization and specialization of sports stores will soon make it possible to obtain lyophilized foods and other specific products related to mountain climbing, which are not available now due to the eating habits of our climbers and the excellent quality of our fresh and natural products, which are much cheaper than in Europe and The United States.

Mount McKinley (Denali)

Height: 6194 meters or 20,320 feet. The difference in the barometric pressure at northern latitudes affects acclimatization on Denali and other high arctic mountains. Denali's latitude is 63° while the latitude of Everest is 27°. On a typical summit day in May, the Denali climber will be at the equivalent of 22,000' (6900M) when compared to climbing in the Himalayas in May. This phenomenon of lower barometric pressure at higher elevations is caused by the troposphere being thinner at the poles.

Location: 63° 07' N, 151° 01' W

Denali (The High One) is the Native (Athabascan) American word for North America's highest peak, Mount McKinley in the mountain chain called the Alaska Range. Denali was renamed Mount McKinley for William McKinley, a nominee for president, by the Princeton graduate and gold prospector, William Dickey. Dickey was one of the hundreds of prospectors seeking gold in the 1896 Cook Inlet stampede. He had written an article for the New York Sun where he described the mountain as the highest in North America at over 20,000 feet.

"When later asked why he named the mountain after McKinley, Dickey replied that the verbal bludgeoning he had received from free silver partisans had inspired him to retaliate with the name of the gold-standard champion. "

Mt. McKinley: The Pioneer Climbs by Terris Moore

Since the turn of the 19th century, the official name of this great mountain has not rested in peace. In 1914, following his historic first ascent of the mountain in 1913, Hudson Stuck wrote in the preface of his book, The Ascent of Denali: "Forefront in this book, because forefront in the author's heart and desire, must stand a plea for the restoration to the greatest mountain in North America of its immemorial native name."

In 1980, the name Mount McKinley National Park was officially changed to Denali National Park and Preserve. The State of Alaska Board of Geographic Names has also officially changed the mountain's name back to Denali. Negotiations continue today to officially return the original native name to this magnificent mountain. (from the Denali park website)

There are many different routes up Denali some extremely technical. Denali's most used route is the West Buttress route (80% of all climbs), which has seen more than 20,000 climbers, Roughly 50% of the climbers have reached the summit.

Until 1997, about 400 accidents were reported on the West Buttress route, which claimed the lives of 34 climbers, mostly while descending.

"The fact that the West Buttress route is not technically difficult should not obscure the need to plan for extreme survival situations. Of course, some climbers manage to get up and down in perfectly nice, but rare period of weather; when back home, they encourage others to climb this 'easy walkup' of a mountain. Little do they realize that it was only by sheer luck they weren't trying to keep their tent up in the middle of the night in a 60mph wind at 40° below zero, with boots on and ice axe ready in case the tent suddenly imploded. Because of the non-technical reputation of the popular West Buttress route, it is a terribly underestimated climb."
— Peter H. Hackett, M.D., from "Surviving Denali" by Jonathan Waterman

The lower north peak was first climbed on April 3, 1910 by a group of climbers bringing a 6 by 12 foot American flag and a 14 foot spruce pole.

Denali's higher South Summit was first climbed by Hudson Stuck, Harry Karstens, Walter Harper and Robert Tatum on June 7, 1913. The first ascent of the West Buttress route was made in 1951, by the party of Dr Bradford Washburn, well known for his excellent photographs of the Alaska Mountains

The first winter ascent was made by Dave Johnston, Ray Genet & Art Davidson; the title of their book says it all: 'Minus 148°'. Read this before you even mention the words Winter and Denali in one sentence…

Snow and weather conditions for climbing major Alaska Range peaks are usually best from May through July. Colder minimum temperatures and strong northwest winds commonly occur in May. Late June and July are warmer but more unsettled. By late July, travel on the lower glaciers is made difficult by melting snow bridges over crevasses and by more inclement weather with heavier snowfall and increased avalanche danger. The highest success rates occur in June. April is an excellent month for many of the lower peaks with conditions often cold and clear while the winter extremes still linger on Denali and Mt. Foraker. The coldest weather on Denali is found from November through April with average temperatures ranging from -30F to -70F recorder at the 19,000 foot level. It is not uncommon to find it -50F at the 17,200 foot camp in early May.

Winter climbing in Denali borders on the ridiculous more because of its unfathomable risks than because of its mountaineering challenge. Some of the world's best climbers have either disappeared or perished form literally being flash frozen! In winter months, the jet stream, +100mph (160 km/h), will often descend over the mountain's upper flanks. Combine this wind with the naturally caused venturi effect that doubles wind velocity in such areas as Denali Pass and you will find one of the most hostile environments on this planet. The combined effect of ferocious wind and extreme cold easily and routinely send the wind chill off the charts.

Kilimanjaro

Original name: Kilima Njaro (Swahili) Oldoinyo Oibor (Masai)

Height: 5895 meters or 19,340 feet; Looming some 16 000 feet (4900 meters) above the plains that spread out from its base, the mountain dominates its surroundings.

Location: 3°04' South Latitude, 37°21' East longitude; although it's close to the Kenyan border, Kili is completely in Tanzania

Composed of three separate volcanoes, massive and complex Kilimanjaro covers an area 60 miles (100 kilometers) long and 40 miles (65 kilometers) wide.

First (western) Ascent: H. Meyer & L. Purtscheller, 1889

Kilimanjaro is an extinct volcano, with 3 peaks: Kibo, Shira & Mawenzi. Kibo is the highest one (5895m) in the center, Mawenzi is lower (5,149m or 16,896 feet) and east of Kibo, but more technical. Kili's 3rd peak Shira is less obvious, but it's also an extinct volcano. ( 3,962m or 13,000 feet, west of Kibo)

The volcanoes, whose lava fields overlapped and partially obliterated each other, began erupting approximately 2 million years ago.

The peaks of Kibo and Mawenzi are joined by a broad saddle 7 miles (11 kilometers) long.

All year long it is possible although most avoid the rainy season: The long rainy season is from April to May, the short rainy season is mostly in November/beginning of December. Always be prepared for wet days and cold nights on the mountain any time of year!

Because of Kilimanjaro’s great height, the mountain influences its own weather. Winds incoming from the Indian Ocean are deflected upward by the slopes and drop their moisture as rain and snow. This moisture results in a variety of vegetative zones that contrast dramatically with the savanna grasses and semidesert scrub on the surrounding plains. The mount’s lower slopes, probably once forested, have been cleared for the cultivation of coffee, corn, and other crops. At higher elevations [approximately 9800 feet (3000 meters)] lies a belt of tropical rain forest that gives way to grasslands and moorlands. This belt, in turn, is replaced by high-altitude desert [near 14 500 feet (4400 meters)]. At the highest elevations is a zone of permanent ice and snow that is responsible for the name Kilimanjaro, which in Swahili means "the mountain that glitters." (from the Nasa site

Kilimanjaro National Park is the area above 2,700 meters (8,850 feet) on the mountain. It includes the moorland and highland zones, Shira Plateau, Kibo and Mawenzi peaks. In addition, the Park has six corridors or rights of way through the Kilimanjaro Forest Reserve. The Forest Reserve, which is also a Game Reserve, was established in 1921; the Park was established in 1973 and officially opened in 1977

Vinson Massif

Discover: 1957, after being sighted by US Navy aircraft

Height: 4897m (16,067ft). It is also 13km (8 miles) wide

Location: 78°35’S, 85°25’W. Part of the Sentinel Range and 1200km (746 miles) from the South Pole

Vinson Massif was named after Carl G. Vinson, a US congressman who persuaded the US Government to pledge support for exploration of Antarctica in the 20th century. The mountain was first climbed by a US expedition team sponsored by the American Alpine Club. They reached the summit at 11.30am on 18 December 1966 – the first of many climbing teams who would come to conquer Antarctica’s highest peak.

Adventure Network International first arranged a climb of Vinson Massif in 1984. The expedition was unsuccessful due to weather and engine problems, but in 1985, Adventure Network International organised and completed three successful expeditions. Since the inception of the Vinson Massif climbing program, Adventure Network International has taken over 500 clients to the top of this coveted Seventh Summit.

Adventure Network was aquired by Antarctic Logistics who continued the services, up til beginning of 2005 about 950 people have summited Mt Vinson.

(F rom Damien Gildea's Shinn report of te Omega Foundation:)

"Mt. Shinn has long been considered Antarctica’s third highest mountain. The first surveys of the Ellsworth Mountains were done by US parties during the 1961-62 season, when the first ascents of mountains in the range were also done. The area was re-surveyed in the 1979-80 season, again by a US party. This expedition included, however, two German and one Soviet climber, who climbed to the summit of Vinson Massif in the course of their work. They placed a ski-pole and red flag on the summit, which assisted the ground parties in obtaining a height for Vinson that was more accurate than had previously been ascertained. Thus the height of Vinson’s main summit was reduced from 5140m to 4897m. The official height of Mt. Tyree was also reduced to 4852m, but no height was ever published for Mt. Shinn – either before or after the 1979 work."

Shinn was measured by Gildea and found to be 4661m.

Antarctica Facts:

1. Antarctica is the Earth's 5th largest continent, measuring 14 million square kilometres (5.4 million square miles).

2. The ice sheet that covers almost all of Antarctica is the largest body of fresh water on earth, containing about 90% of the world's ice and 68% of the fresh water.

3. If Antarctica's ice sheet were to melt, it would raise the level of the world's oceans about 60 metres (200 feet).

4. The thickest part of the ice sheet extends about 4,800km (2980nm) (15,700 feet) into submerged basins in the rock.

5. Antarctica has the greatest average elevation of any continent at 1,860 metres (6,100 feet). The average elevation of North America is 720 metres (2,300 feet).

6. The highest mountain on the continent is Vinson Massif,4,897 metres (16,067 feet), situated in the Ellsworth Mountains (see the waypoints page for details about variation of the measurements).

7. The snow fall in Antarctica is so minimal that the continent has been called "the world's coldest desert". The interior receives less than 3 cm (1 inch) of precipitation a year, making it the driest continent on Earth.

8. The Antarctic dry valleys in Victoria Land are among the driest places on Earth. Some scientists believe that no rain has fallen there for two million years. Astronauts have visited the dry valleys because of their similarity to lunar landscapes.

9. Mean temperatures in the inland during the coldest month from -40 F to -94 F and in the warmest month from 5 F to -31 F. At the coasts, the temperature ranges between 5 F to -22 F in winter and about 32 F in summer. On July 21, 1983, the Soviet station, Vostok, reported a record-breaking 128.6 F below freezing.

10. During winter months, low temperatures cause much of the seas around Antarctica to freeze. At maximum sea ice covers an area larger than the continent itself.

11. The South Pole experiences a six month period of darkness in winter and a six month period of sunlight in summer.

12. Antarctica is the only continent in the world with no permanent or indigenous human inhabitants. Larger than the United States, the frozen land is populated by approximately 2,500 people during the summer and fewer than 1,000 in the winter.

Puncak Jaya (Carstensz Pyramid)

Height: 16,023 feet (4,884 meters)

Location: Irian Jaya (Or Papua since 2000), Indonesia, Australia/Oceania

Lat/Lon: 4.08°S, 137.18°E

First climbed by Harrer, Temple, Kippax and Huizenga in 1962. (Heinrich Harrer is known from his '7years in Tibet'.)

This is technically the hardest of the 7 summits. Although Dick Bass climbed Kosciuszko as the last of his 7 summits quest, this is in fact the highest mountain of the oceanic continent, but the discussion is still going on.

First climbed by Heinrich Harrer who wrote his book "I come from the stone age" about this period. It's a steep granite wall with sharp good climbable rock. Only a few hundred people have climbed Carstensz due to the political instability and the fact that it is hidden in dense jungle. Be prepared to climb in snow, rain, with your gloves being torn by the sharp rock, while seeing the Freeport company tearing down other nearby mountains, the last glaciers near the equator and men wearing nothing but penisgourds!

Irian Jaya is Indonesia's "wild east". Much of it was still unexplored by outsiders as recently as the 1930s. The Dutch began serious exploration in about 1898. After the Indonesians defeated the Dutch in 1949 and 1950, the Dutch insisted on keeping Irian Jaya. They finally gave up the colony in 1963, under a combination of military and diplomatic pressure.

In 1969, a UN-sponsored referendum of village elders led to Irian Jaya becoming a province of Indonesia. Since that time, more noticeably since the late 1970s, there have been separatist movements seeking to make Irian Jaya an independent country, particularly the OPM or "Organisasi Papua Merdeka" guerilla group.

Under the Dutch in the 1930s, Irian Jaya or West New Guinea was a place to which many political prisoners were sent. Mohammed Hatta and Sutan Sjahrir, nationalist leader who were later major figures in the independence struggle, were sent to the Boven Digul prison camp in the southeast of the region.

Jayapura is the main city. It was formerly called Hollandia by the Dutch. Allied (American and Australian) forces passed through here in 1944 on the way to the reconquest of the Philippines. Irian Jaya province was officially renamed Papua on December 31, 1999.

The mountain is about 100kms from the nearest sea. It has taken a few expeditions in the 1930's to get even close to the base as the explorers had to find their way across steep walls and dense jungle. Heinrich Harrer used local tracks coming from North of the range.

Old climber's route: in the old days the Freeport mine gave permission to use their road to the mine. This is a long gravel road all the way from Timika at the coast through and over the mountains. You pass Tembagapura, which is a 20,000 people town in the middle of the mountains, built especially for the miners. The road continues up the mountain, through some tunnels until it ends up at the pit. Instead of driving through the tunnels you can also use the Swiss made cable car to get from 2700m to 3500m quickly. At the east side of the the pit is a narrow muddy track where you enter the park.

From the mine it is a few hours walking to the mountain. You climb up a muddy track, pass the "Zebra Wall" en continue along some small lakes in the Merenvalley until you climb up to the Basecamp valley.

Beware that this route takes you from sea level to BC within 7 hours if you do not sleep at Zebra Wall and severe altitude problems can occur for the not acclimatized. Even when sleeping at Zebra wall (3700m) this is a serious problem.

Because the miners don't like too many nosey people in this polluting place anymore the only option is to do a 5 day trekking from Ilaga through the jungle, moors and hills of Irian Jaya or take a helicopter ride to Zebra Wall In 2002 the regular trekking route has changed again as it is getting harder and harder to find a way around the bureaucracy, war zones and the powerful Freeport mine.

You need several permits from different places (ministries, army, police etc) to travel to the island in general and climbing the mountain specifically. Permits are very hard to get, best is to team up with an organized trip as it will cost you months, even years to organize it yourself and even then the permits may not be valid when you get there... Also as happened often the last few years, the entire area can be sealed off without warning and all permits will be void if anything happens. Irian Jaya wants to be independent since 1969 and the free Papua movement (OPM) sometimes attacks Indonesians or Westerners to attract attention for their cause. Even though most actions are peaceful, like raising the Papua flag, this is enough reason fro the Indonesian army to seal the area for an indefinite period of time, which has happened last year and is still going on. Currently the Ilaga, Singa and mine routes are all closed due to the violence in the country; the only possibility for climbing Carstensz is to fly in and out the area by helicopter. But you still need a permit and these are not being issued right now.

CP can be climbed all year round as it is very close to the equator and there is bad weather all year round.
It is really raining a lot as the wet winds are pushed upwards from all sides. When climbing the narrow summitridge there are serious chances
of snowstorms, so be prepared.

The advice is to grab the chance when you are able as the mountain can be closed without warning and for longer than you might like.

The mining area including Tembagapura is off-limits for everybody, but the Merenvalley offers a few good spots for basecamp. From there you can not only climb Carstensz, but also Ngga Pulu and other peaks.

Water can be taken from the lakes and is quite clear, but filtering mostly is a good idea, as both climbers and porters often do not see the connection between peeing in a lake close by and the resulting illnesses.