PRISTINE. LEAVING NO TRACE IN THE KARAKORUM

SO YOU THOUGHT ALL OF CLIMBING WAS LAWLESS ANARCHY HUH? WELL THE CLIMBING PRETTY MUCH IS, BUT OUR CONDUCT TO KEEP WILDERNESS AS WILDERNESS ISN’T.

THE NORTH KARAKORUM IS THE LAST REMAINING TRUE 8000m WILDERNESS AREA. VERY, VERY FEW PEOPLE HAVE BEEN OUT THERE IN THE LAST 15 YEARS, AND EVEN BEFORE THAT IT WAS RARELY VISITED. DESPITE SOME BAD BEHAVIOUR AROUND K2 NORTH SIDE BASECAMP IN THE 1990s THAT LEFT BEHIND TRASH OF THE ERA, THERE’S VERY LITTLE DEBRIS FROM EXPEDITIONS OUT THERE AND EFFECTIVELY NONE AWAY FROM K2.

WE WILL LEAVE IT THAT WAY.

ZERO IMPACT IS OUR OBJECTIVE, AND NOT BECAUSE WE HAVE SOME RADICAL AGENDA, BUT BECAUSE IT’S EASIER THAT WAY. YES, WE ARE IN A WILDERNESS RESERVE IN SOMEONE ELSES COUNTRY SO ARE GUESTS, BUT THAT’S JUST BASIC DECENCY, THE REALITY IS IT IS EASIER TO LEAVE NOTHING THAN IT IS TO HAUL IT ABOUT.

BEING IN A PRISTINE LOCATION MAKES IT VERY EASY TO SEE THE IMPACT WE MAKE, AND WE HAVE ADOPTED THE METHOD OF BURNING MAN BY USING THE TERM MOOP – MATTER OUT OF PLACE. IF IT’S NOT A ROCK, SNOW OR ICE IT MUST HAVE COME FROM US, WHICH MEANS IT CANNOT STAY OUT THERE. MOOP INCLUDES THE OBVIOUS LIKE TOILET PAPER, GAS CANISTERS AND FOOD SCRAPS, BUT ALSO MOST LIQUIDS, COFFEE GROUNDS, ASHES, XXX AND XXX.

WHERE THIS IS EASY IS THAT WE GO IN SO LIGHT, HAVING ALREADY STRIPPED THE VAST MAJORITY OF FUTURE-WASTE FROM WHAT WE HAVE. PEOPLE BECOME VERY AWARE WHEN THEY HAVE TO CARRY SOMETHING UP A GLACIER AT 5000m THEMSELVES, THEN DOUBLE THAT WHEN THEY CONTEMPLATE HAVING TO CARRY IT ALL OUT AGAIN.

A THIRD REASON IS THAT OUR PERMITS INCLUDE A CLAUSE SAYING WE WILL LEAVE NOTHING BEHIND, AND ONE OF THE LIAISON OFFICERS MANY ROLES IS TO MAKE SURE THIS IS ADHERED TO.

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THE RULES ARE;

ELIMINATE; DON’T TAKE IT OUT THERE

STRIP THE JUNK OUT IN KASHGAR, OR BETTER STILL BACK AT HOME. THERE WILL ALWAYS BE SOME REFUSE, BUT MAKE IT STUFF THAT EARNED ITS WEIGHT. WE WOULD EVEN GO SO FAR AS TO TAKE BIG BAGS OF FREEZE DRIED FOOD, BARS AND DRINK POWDERS AND JUST A FEW SMALL ONES TO DOLE IT ALL OUT AS NEEDED. FOOD WRAPPING IS NOTORIOUS FOR BLOWING AWAY

IT’S NOT HARD TO STRIP 1kg OF PACKAGING AND CRAP OUT, A kg THAT COULD BE A DAYS FOOD AND FUEL ON THE WAY UP AND WILL BE A kg NOT TO CARRY ON THE WAY BACK DOWN WHEN YOU REALLY FEEL IT.

WHATEVER PACKAGING MUST BE KEPT, TRY AND MAKE IT RESEALABLE SO IT CAN ALL BE REUSED FOR SOMETHING ELSE AND SO IT CAN BE SEALED OFF WITH THE AIR SQUEEZED OUT OF THE INSIDE. TRIPS OFTEN GENERATE A ‘PLASTIC BAG ECONOMY’ WHERE GOOD BAGS TAKE ON VALUE, SO SWAPPING OUT SINGLE-USE ONES MAKES A RESOURCE RATHER THAN A PROBLEM.

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RETAIN; NEVER LET IT HIT THE GROUND

IT’S THAT SIMPLE IT ALMOST HURTS. YOU DON’T HAVE TO PICK UP WHAT DOESN’T GET DROPPED ON THE GROUND TO BEGIN WITH. THIS MEANS PISSING INTO BOTTLES, SHITTING INTO BAGS, DUMPING GROUNDS AND SCRAPS INTO OTHER BAGS. THERE WILL BE ENOUGH TRASH BAGS TO ALWAYS HAVE ONE WITHIN EASY REACH, AND UNLIKE THE HUGE BASECAMPS ELSEWHERE, LIFE ON THE NORTH SIDE OF K2 IS PRETTY SIMPLE.

THE EFFICACY OF OUR SYSTEMS CAN BE DETERMINED BY HOW MUCH PICKING UP IS DONE, WHERE A TEAM THAT HAS GOT THINGS RIGHT WILL DO VERY LITTLE. SIMPLE TOILET SYSTEMS AND MEALS DONE SIMPLY AND SMOOTHLY PRODUCE VERY LITTLE WASTE ISSUES, THE TRASH AND HYGEINE CONCERNS CONTAINED TO THE EVENT WITH NOTHING TO PICK UP LATER.

CLEAN WATER CAN BE POURED BACK ONTO THE GLACIER, AFTERALL THAT’S WHERE IT CAME FROM, BUT THINGS LIKE COOKING AND WASHING WATER CAN’T UNTIL STRAINED AND EVEN THEN MUST GO INTO SUBSURFACE CAVITIES SO IT DOESN’T MESS UP THE SURFACE.

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CONSOLIDATE; CONTAIN THE SPREAD

ALL WASTE GETS REDUCED BY BEING DRAINED, DRIED OUT, CRUSHED, FOLDED, COMPRESSED, DESSICATED OR SEALED, AND GOES INTO CENTRALIZED PLACES WHERE IT LIMITS THE SPREAD. EVERY PISS GOES INTO A BOTTLE TO BE DECANTED INTO DESSICANT, EVERY SHIT THE SAME THING, GAS CANISTERS PUNCTURED AND STOMPED FLAT, FOOD WASTE COMPRESSED AFTER SUBLIMATING, BATTERIES AIR SEALED AND ALL THE BITS OF JUNK LIKE TRIMMED CORD, USED TAPE AND SPENT GLUE TUBES CAN BE BASHED INTO SMALLER BITS WITH AN ICE TOOL TO TAKE UP MINIMAL SPACE.

THE ENVIRONMENT OF A HIGH ALTITUDE GLACIER IS IDEAL FOR CONSOLIDATING HUMAN WASTE, BASICALLY BEING A HUGE FREEZE DRYER THAT BOMBARDS MATTER WITH UV, LOW HUMIDITY AND COLD. ONCE CONTAINED STUFF LIKE FOOD WASTE AND EXCREMENT CAN BE SAFELY EXPOSED TO THE AIR, TO BE RAPIDLY FROZEN THEN SUBLIMATED AND THE MASS REDUCED FOR REMOVAL.

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DELINIATE; THE GLACIER IS NOT A TOILET

IN FACT, WE DON’T DO TOILETS IN GENERAL, FINDING THEM JUST A VECTOR FOR PROBLEMS, SO EVERYONE PISSES IN THEIR OWN BOTTLE WHEREVER THEY CHOOSE, AND SHITS INTO A BAG THAT CONTAINS A DESSICANT. INVEST IN A GOOD PISS BOTTLE – WITH A CLIP LOOP – AND CARRY IT AS NEEDED, LIKEWISE IT IS FINE TO CONSTRUCT A ROCK SEAT THAT MAKES USE OF THE TOILET BAGS EASIER.

EACH PERSON LOCATES AND DECLARES THEIR OWN TOILET AREA TO AVOID PROBLEMS WITH OVERUSE, AND KEEPS IT CLEAN SIMPLY BY MINIMAL USE. OVER THE COUPLE OF WEEKS USING THE CAMP A TOILET SHOULD ONLY SEE A FEW MINUTES A DAY, NOTING THAT A PISS BOTTLE CAN BE USED FOR ITS PURPOSE ANYWHERE AT ALL.

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DEDICATE; USE THE RIGHT STUFF

WE PROVIDE ONE SORT OF PAPER FOR EVERYTHING FROM THE TOILET TO SPILLS AND HANDS, USING RECYCLED BAMBOO WASTE AND A PLY THAT IS STRONG FOR ‘EXPEDITION GRADE’ USE. LIKEWISE THE TRASH BAGS WE USE ARE A GOOD GRADE THAT DON’T DISINTEGRATE

WET WIPES CAN BE THE SCOURGE OF PLACES LIKE THIS – BUT THEY CAN ALSO REDUCE WATER FOR WASHING. WHILST HEAVY TO CARRY THEY SOON EQUAL OUT WITH THE GAS USED TO MAKE WATER, WHICH CAN BE RESERVED FOR WASHING JUST THE BITS THAT REALLY NEED IT FOR HEALTH.

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AS A TEAM OUR IMPACT IS A SHARED CONCERN. EXPEDITIONS ARE MADE UP OF MANY SMALL SUCCESSES, AND LEAVING A CAMP SITE AS PRISTINE WILDERNESS IS A MAJOR SUCCESS THAT NO OTHER 8000m TRIP KNOWS. NONE OF THIS IS DOGMATIC OR STRICT, AND MAKES SIMPLE AND EASY SENSE DURING THE DAY TO DAY LIVING. OUR MAIN OBJECTIVE, OTHER THAN TO MAINTAIN THE WILDERNESS, IS TO SIMPLIFY AND STREAMLINE ALL PROCESSES, SO THINGS LIKE WASTE AND HYGEINE DON’T BECOME DISPROPORTIONATE PROBLEMS.

GLACIAL WILDERNESS IS INHERENTLY VERY CLEAN, SO WE KEEP IT THAT WAY AS IT PLAYS A SERIOUS ROLE IN RUNNING GOOD EXPEDITIONS. IF YOU’VE ONLY SEEN THE DESPERATELY FILTHY CONDITIONS OF CAMPS AROUND OTHER 8000m PEAKS THEN THE NORTH KARAKORAM WILL BE A REVELATION.