BEYOND THE BASE RUNNING COSTS THAT ARE UNCHANGABLE, MUCH OF WHICH IS SET BY THE XMA, THERE ARE SEVERAL WAYS TO KEEP COSTS REALISTIC. DON’T GET CARRIED AWAY WITH GEAR: BRING WHAT WORKS, NOT WHAT YOU LIKE THE LOOK OF. EXPEDITION GEAR IS EXPENSIVE BUT YOU ONLY NEED A SET OF GOOD STUFF THAT WORKS WELL, NOT A HUGE PILE OF STUFF THAT NOT QUITE THERE. WE HAVE DONE 8000m TRIPS WITH NO NEED FOR EXCESS BAGGAGE
.
SOURCE STUFF IN CHINA
ASIDE FROM VITAL CLIMBING GEAR, MOST FOOD & BASICS ARE NO PROBLEM IN CHINA AND IT SAVES A FORTUNE OF SENDING IT OVER. NON-TECHNICAL GEAR LIKE BASECAMP SLEEPING MATS, SLEEPING BAGS, APPROACH CLOTHES, DRY BAGS, EVEN BASECAMP TENTS ARE ALL AVAILABLE IN CHINA AND USUALLY WAY CHEAPER THAN EUROPE.
BE EFFICIENT
CLIMBING CONFIDENTLY MEANS YOU CAN CHOOSE A MORE STREAMLINED SCHEDULE AND TRIM OFF EXCESS LOGISTICS & TIME. SPREAD OVER A TEAM THIS SAVES REAL MONEY WITH LESS MESSING ABOUT BEFORE THE TRIP, LESS BULK GEAR TO MOVE & LESS TIME DISTRACTED BY IT. UNLIKE OTHER EXPEDITION DESTINATIONS THAT OFFER EITHER BASIC ‘LOCAL’ TRANSPORT & ACOOMODATION OR HIGH-END TOURIST STUFF WITH NOTHING IN BETWEEN, CHINA HAS A HUGE MID-RANGE MARKET THAT’S FINE AND OFTEN MUCH MORE FULL OF CHARACTER THAN THE EXPENSIVE OPTIONS.
EAT PROPERLY
A MAJOR EXPENSE IS THE WEEKS OF FOOD AND THE MORE FOREIGN CRAP YOU WANT THE FASTER THINGS GET EXPENSIVE. A GOOD BLEND OF EUROPEAN AND CHINESE FOOD FROM LOCAL SOURCES, WITH AS LITTLE FANCY FREEZE DRIED STUFF AS POSSIBLE, IS RELATIVELY CHEAP TO LIVE OFF. LIKE IN NORMAL LIFE, REAL FOOD WORKS OUT CHEAPER THAN ARTIFICAL SPECIALITY STUFF DOES, MORE SO OVER WEEKS. CHINA DOES HAVE THE INDUSTRY OF SPECIAL OUTDOOR BARS & VACUUM SEALED MEALS, BUT THIS IS MORE THAN MADE UP FOR WITH THE VAST ARRAY OF REGULAR FOOD THAT WORKS JUST AS WELL.
GO SIMPLY
CONTRARY TO INSTAGRAM, MODERN CLIMBING TRIPS DON’T NEED AN ARRAY OF EXPENSIVE ELECTRONICS & DEVICES. GET USED TO ANALOG LIVING AND REDUCE THE NEED FOR CAMERAS, BATTERIES, DRONES, SAT COMMS & LAPTOPS. BOREDOM IS RARELY AN ISSUE EVEN ON THESE LONG TRIPS, AND EVEN PEOPLE WITH ALL THE DEVICES EVENTUALLY TIRE OF THEM. ASIDE FROM THE SPECIALIZED HIGH ALPINE ELEMENT, APPROACHES & BASECAMP LIVING CAN BE VERY SIMPLE AFFAIRS. YOU DON’T NEED $500 BOOTS AND BIG LOGO CLOTHES JUST TO HANG AROUND CAMP.
ASSESS YOUR NEEDS
BASECAMP DOESN’T REALLY NEED FOUR-DIGIT GEODESIC TENTS, 8hr FLIGHTS DON’T REALLY DEMAND BUSINESS CLASS, YOUR WATCH DOESN’T REALLY NEED COMPLEX BIOMETRICS DISPLAYED, YOUR BASECAMP CLOTHES DON’T ALSO REALLY NEED TO BE BRAND NAME TECHINCAL STUFF. HAVE A LOOK THROUGH PHOTOS FROM THE EASTERN EUROPEAN EXPEDITIONS OF THE 80’s TO SEE WHAT LITTLE OF THIS SORT OF THING CAN ACTUALLY BE DONE WITH. THE ABSENCE OF OF THE GLOBAL PARADE AND INSTA-FEEDS IN TIBET & XINJIANG ALLEVIATES THE PERCEIVED DEMAND TO SHOW OFF THESE TRIPS AS A DISPLAY OF AFFLUENT COOL AND GET THINGS BACK TO FUNCTIONAL BASICS.
.
THESE ARE ALL PROVEN WAYS TO BRING 8000m CLIMBING BACK FROM THE HYPER-INFLATION OF BOTH COSTS & LIFESTYLE VALUE SO THAT ‘NORMAL’ CLIMBERS CAN GET OUT THERE AND DO SOME WORLD-CLASS CLIMBING IN THE ONE 8000m LOCATION IT HAS NEVER TAKEN HOLD.
