Talk:Kamet

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[edit] Major editing in progress

While there was a lot of good stuff in the previous version of this article, it was way too long, had too much minimally related stuff, and was not encyclopedic in tone. I redacted about half of it, and plan to return to the rest. In particular, I moved some stuff onto the talk page, see the next section. -- Spireguy 04:39, 8 November 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Stuff from the article about Himalayan Club

The following stuff is from the previous version of the article, and very little should be in the main article, as it is mostly about the Club.

The Himalayan Club and the 1931 ascent of Kamet :

By then The Himalayan Club (HC) was founded in 1928. Its membership comprising of men capable of “getting things done”, and selection was made on that primary consideration ; of highly committed, dedicated and enthusiastic individuals. Its association with Himalayan exploration is long. In pursuit of its objectives of disseminating knowledge about the Himalaya through art, science, literature and sport it had been said by Geoffrey Corbett, the first Honorary Secretary of the Club -- ‘So the Himalayan Club is formed and we hope great things of it : the geographer that the blank spaces on our map may be filled in ; the scientist that our knowledge of the Himalaya, its rocks and glaciers, its animals and plants, its people and their way of living, may continuously expand ; the artist that its glories may continuously inspire fine pictures .The mountaineer may dream of the ascent of a thousand unclimbed peaks. My hope is that it may help to rear a breed of men in India,. hard and self - reliant, who will know how to enjoy life on the high hills’.

Not surprisingly, it was reported in the Himalayan Journal IV by the then Honorary Secretary, G Mackworth Young – ‘Last year has been a memorable one for Himalayan exploration and mountaineering .Perhaps the most important expedition, because of its success, was Mr. F. S. Smythe’s to Kamet. Mr. Smythe joined the club in 1930 during Professor Dyhrenfurth’s International attempt on Kangchenjunga, so we may claim this perhaps as a Himalayan Club Expedition, more especially as his right hand man, Captain E. St. J Birnie, was the representative from India and was mainly responsible for the organization of the transport, on which success depended’. While Frank Smythe and Capt Eugene St. John Birnie ( later to become Colonel) were members of the HC at the time of the 1931 expedition , the other summiteers of Mt Kamet on this expedition, Dr Raymond Greene , R. L. Holdsworth and Eric S. Shipton become members of the HC in the years to come. Following the Kamet ascent (which had been the major objective of the 1931 expedition) they pioneered several exploratory climbs in the Arwa Valley and Bhyundar Valley, ascended unclimbed peaks in the Garhwal Himalaya and also discovered the famed ‘Valley of Flowers’. Moved by the profusion of flowers which was punctuated by waterfalls and trails crossing the lush alpine meadows, Frank Smythe had said ‘In my mountain wandering I have not seen a more beautiful valley than this ... this valley of peace and perfect beauty where the human spirit may find repose’. They explored also the source of the Alakananda River. Frank Smythe and Eric Shipton went on to become well known Everest personalities ( see ‘Homage by The Himalayan Club’ to them). To Frank Smythe may also be attributed the genesis of professional mountaineering photo journalism and mountain travel writing. Eric Shipton developed an amazing climbing partnership with another exceptional Himalayan Club member, Bill Tilman, and they made several remarkable climbs together, in their characteristic frugal manner. Dr Raymond Greene, brother of the famous novelist Graham Greene was the intellectual of the 1931 team, in addition to being its medical officer, and R. L. Holdsworth the botanist. Col Eugene St. J Birnie , the transport officer of the ‘31 expedition, served as the Hony. Secretary of the HC in the period 1939-1940.

Other renowned HC members associated with Mt Kamet explorations have been General G. C. Bruce, Col H. T. Morshead and Major Nandu Jayal. Major Jayal may be considered as the pioneer of Indian mountaineering and between 1952 and 1955 he was associated with three expeditions to Mt Kamet , succeeding on the third attempt in 1955. This was the second ascent of Mt Kamet, almost a quarter of century after the first ascent ( see ‘Homage by The Himalayan Club’ to him ). Recalling those pioneering members the HC boasts to have within in its fold several others who have successfully undertaken Mt Kamet expeditions.

A slight deviation here, in that it connects Kamet, and one of important significance of those early explorations of the high Himalaya, was the development of sturdy hill men into high quality porters and climbers. The best climbers among the hill men were considered the Bhutias (derived from the word Bhot meaning Tibet) as distinct from Sherpas, who were from the east (Shar-Pa indicating eastern, who were settlers of Eastern Tibet before moving to Darjeeling and the highlands of east Nepal, especially the Solu Khumbu district. Without their selfless support, the high peaks of the Himalaya would not have been easily climbed. Dr Kellas had spent a great deal of time travelling with them and had realised their usefulness. They easily learnt the skills of mountaineering techniques and due to their natural ability to acclimatise to the high altitudes, they became indispensable to large scale Himalayan expeditions. Frank Smythe acknowledging the contribution of his porter team to the eventual success of his 1931 historic ascent of Mt Kamet, had goaded Lewa Sherpa ( carrying a heavy camera) on towards the summit to become the first man to ascent Mt Kamet , to be followed by the British climbers. It has been said by Col H. T. Morshead of the Bhutia porters after the 1920 Kellas expedition – ‘I have nothing but praise for the Bhutia coolies of the higher Himalaya. On rocks they climb like goats, while on ice they readily learn step-cutting. It appears very doubtful if the present day expense of importing Alpine guides can ever justify their employment in future Himalayan exploration’. The Himalayan Club had also realised the potential of the early day Sherpas and rendered great support in developing and absorbing them as a community vital to the mountaineering world. The likes of H. W.Tobin and Mrs Jill Henderson lent immense contribution to their upliftment and development. The very best of Sherpas were awarded the “Tiger Badge “by The Himalayan Club to honour their outstanding achievements on the high peaks. A “Tiger Badge” awardee was, as a consequence, held in high esteem in the Sherpa community and the badge was probably the most treasured possession of the “Tiger” sherpas. Nawang Gombu, one of the three remaining Tiger Badge holders alive, is now an Honorary Member of The Himalayan Club.

Spireguy 04:33, 8 November 2006 (UTC)