Alan Hinkes attempt on Dhaulagiri has got off to slow start thanks
to a general strike, or 'bandh' caused by Maoist insurgents in
Kathmandu.
Alan arrived in Nepal last week to attempt his penultimate
8,000-metre peak and is currently staying in Kathmandu. On arrival,
he contacted his Nepalese agent Bikrum Pandy and has been busy
finalising the details of his climbing permit.
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Hinkes on Annapurna two years
ago.
He has just two summits to go if he's
to become the first Briton to climb all
14 of the 8,000 metre peaks.
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For the past few days though, the capital has been in the throes
of a general strike with all shops closed and the roads empty of
traffic - quite an impressive achievement if you've ever been to
Kathmandu. As a resuly, Bikrum's office is unmanned and Alan has
struggled to sort out the admin or even to get his kit out of storage
and trek it over. On the plus side, bicycle travel is still
permitted, so he's been able to get around the city and the ever
present pollution smog has lifted a little.
Once the bandh has ended in the next day or so, it'll be full
speed ahead to Dhaulagiri base camp. The problems with Maoists may
not be over however. The roadhead at Beni is in the middle of an
active Maoist area and there's every chance that Hinkes will have to
pay a 'voluntary donation' to the group in order to continue his trek
into base camp. As a good Yorkshireman he'll be haggling hard for a
modest one-off payment and making sure he has a receipt to avoid
paying twice...
"Nothing is ever simple in Nepal and there's always something
other than the mountain to test me!" commented Hinkes from Kathmandu.
"Despite delays, I should be able to get cracking with my final
preparations over the weekend, pack my Berghaus expedition backpack
and head off on the trek early next week.
"This all means that a mid-May summit is still possible, with a
couple of summit windows available after that if necessary. Keeping
in touch with the outside world will be tricky during the trek, but I
will do my best to send updates through Bikrum's office and by
satellite telephone to the team back at Berghaus."
Here on OM we wish Alan all the best on the trek in and the climb
and we'll bring you more updates on his progress as soon as we have
them. Watch this space.
