Posts by Ricketyship
I'm planning on Annapurna base camp or Manaslu circuit trek in December (mostly the end of December). I know December is the winter season in Nepal and is expected to be quite cold at that time. Ha...
What are the criteria used for grading a trek? One article that I came across provided the following set criteria for grading: Duration. Terrain (includes altitude). Exit routes. Weather/Climat...
We went climbing on a glacier recently. There was one issue which I couldn't find a solution to. While belaying from below (on the first pitch), it was pretty much impossible to protect self from r...
We had a few white browed bulbuls visit us recently. One of them seemed to have a peculiar interest in the chillies that grew in one of our pots (I believe these are bird's eye chillies [no pun i...
To add to the excellent answers already posted: Bats act as prey for larger birds like hawks, falcons, snakes et al. Bats (the larger ones known as flying foxes) help in seed dispersal as they e...
Disclaimer - The answer is purely based on research. I've personally only been up to 6400m and have never used an altitude tent to acclimatise. Background of altitude acclimatisation: With increa...
Usually firmness of a surface is measured in terms of the work that needs to be done to move across the surface (in other terms, the displacement of your body that occurs due to the force applied)....
Ear popping is due to the difference in the pressure between the outer and the middle ear. Popping of ear occurs at high altitude to allow for the two pressures to equalize. Now, there's no corre...
There's absolutely no reason why a guitar string can't be used for rabbit snares. In fact, I've seen rabbit snares which match the same thickness and quality as the guitar strings (these were illeg...
Elephants are a major threat in two situations (not that they are not a threat in other situations): The herd has calves. The elephant is a single male tusker. In the first scenario, the protec...
On some of my Himalayan treks I've seen people who wear shorts or wear single layer of clothing and shiver due to the cold weather (most of these people live in a tropical climate). When I've asked...
Apart from the obvious advantages of longer strides and reach, does a higher center of gravity make it more difficult for taller people to walk the slopes of a mountain? Or in other terms, do short...
I've heard this multiple times from different people that while buying a hiking shoe, always go for one size larger than what fits you perfectly. The most recent one being a local store where I wen...
Recently I saw a podcast of Alex Honnold with Rich Roll where Alex speaks about deliberately eating up and gaining weight before going on an Antarctic expedition (I'm assuming this is because of th...
Are there any possible risks of exercising (body weight, calisthenics only) at high altitudes? I'm talking of altitudes above 4500m. The whole premise is not to lose muscle mass. Background: I'll ...
I've to agree with @Dakatine on this. What also matters is how you descend. The gait and the positioning of the foot matters a lot. I've changed my gait over a period of time to avoid the knee pain...
Two scenarios are to be explored. Do you have mobile coverage? Yes? Then just find out your gps coordinates, send them to your rescuer. And stay put. In case your location changes, resend them ...
The rucksacks that I own, have extra long straps as well. But the manufacturer has provided an elastic band of sorts on the straps to fold them and tuck them within the band (I'll try to post a pic...
In many of the mountaineering expedition books that I've read, there are references to cutting of snow steps on slopes. What is the advantage of cutting snow steps? Why not use crampons and do a ...
From my personal experience, this is what I can tell: Using a flat/softer material lace is better. This allows for the lace to hold on the knots. I have laces made of harder material (Nylon types...
For night trekking, I use a headlamp. Couple of reasons: Keeps your hands free. (Useful when you are walking up steep slopes) No worry of dropping them flashlight (Had happened to me once where m...
I wouldn't recommend gaining 3700+ meters in 2 days. It's not about fitness. It's just about how well your body adapts to altitude. I agree that 3700 meters is not too high to get severely sick due...
When I participated in a couple of forest surveys in the Indian subcontinent, I was strongly advised by the forest officials to keep away from anything which would give off a strong scent (deodoran...
Agree with both LBell and Rory Alsop. I come from the leech infested Western Ghats of the Indian subcontinent. I must have been bitten by these guys innumerable number of times. Most of the times,...
Stepping on a rock during a hike is always riskier than that of stepping "Over" a rock/log. I must have lost my footing a gazillion times trying to step "On" a rock. Regarding startling a snake/cri...
