Image Courtesy of Brad Clement

From: Brad Clement
Nepal, October 9, 2008

Annapurna IV Summary PART 1 of 3

Hi. We are just off the mountain and wanted to send a summary of our time on the high slopes. We will be sending this 3 parts, and this is the 1st of 3...

PART I - Base Camp to Camp 1

Base Camp is located at 15,500 feet above sea level, and our trip to Camp 1 at 17,200 feet involved crossing a huge, dry glacial moraine until we reached a ridge of rock and snow at approximately 16,200 feet. We climbed this rock and snow all the way to Camp 1. The rock is very brittle and breaks easily, and the snow is slippery and deep. To help secure the way, we hammered metal spikes called pitons into the rock, and connected rope to the pitons through metal loops called carabiners. We used this rope to both climb up and rappel down the route. We placed over 1,200 feet of rope on the rock ridge leading to Camp 1.

It took about 7 hours to climb from Base Camp to Camp 1 and on this climb we carried backpacks full of climbing gear. Our packs often weighed between 45 and 65 pounds! Camp 1 is located on a snowy ridge - and we followed this ridge all the way to Camp 3 at 21,500 feet.

Go to the next postcard

Postcards from the Field: Annapurna

You might also be interested in:

Cool It! Game

Check out our online store - minerals, fossils, books, activities, jewelry, and household items!...more

Glaciers and Ice Sheets

For a glacier to develop, the amount of snow that falls must be more than the amount of snow that melts each year. This means that glaciers are only found in places where a large amount of snow falls each...more

Our Trek From Kathmandu to Humde

Hi, this is Brad writing from Humde, Nepal on the 14th of September. We left Kathmandu five days ago, and it has been a busy five days! From Kathmandu we drove north to the town of Besi Sahar, and from...more

Brad Clement

I am the owner of Spindrift Films and a freelance producer and camera operator specializing in high altitude mountaineering and wilderness adventure subject matter. I have traveled to some of the most...more

Packing for the Expedition

It is the night before we leave for Kathmandu, Nepal. Can you believe we will leave Denver, Colorado on Friday and land in Kathmandu on Sunday? It takes a long time to fly there, but also we will be crossing...more

Blessings for Safe Passage

We arrived in Kathmandu yesterday after over 30 hours of travel. We are literally on the other side of the Earth, very far from home. Given that we changed planes in Los Angeles, California and again in...more

Blizzard at Base Camp

Hello all! It's James McKee, Communications Manager for the Dare to Dream 2008 Expedition. I just received an update from Brad Clement, Expedition Co-Leader. He called on his satellite phone to share what...more

Storm Breaks, allows team to ascend to Camp I

Hello all: This is just a quick update to inform you that the blizzard that kept the team pinned to the Annapurna IV base camp has lifted and allowed the expedition team to ascend to Camp I. Brad reports...more

Windows to the Universe, a project of the National Earth Science Teachers Association, is sponsored in part is sponsored in part through grants from federal agencies (NASA and NOAA), and partnerships with affiliated organizations, including the American Geophysical Union, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Earth System Information Partnership, the American Meteorological Society, the National Center for Science Education, and TERC. The American Geophysical Union and the American Geosciences Institute are Windows to the Universe Founding Partners. NESTA welcomes new Institutional Affiliates in support of our ongoing programs, as well as collaborations on new projects. Contact NESTA for more information. NASA ESIP NCSE HHMI AGU AGI AMS NOAA