Climbing Mt. Everest, 1968
Armand once recalled the physical effects of high altitude to his body and I thought I would impress him by telling him about the research and work done by LabMan Hawaii. I told Armand that elite athletes were housed on the slopes of Mauna Kea and taken down to sea level to train. He gently told me that the idea was nothing new, he had heard of blood tests being done on Everest although he conceded that there was no sea-level training site nearby.
Armand trekked the Himalayas in 1968 and what did I find as I looked for photos of Mt. Everest expeditions circa 1968? Scientists performing red cell studies, of course. Armand was the original search engine, acquiring his data year after year and bit by bit. The following is an excerpt from his Christmas 1968 letter:
Speaking of age, Armand, who has been climbing and scrambling in the mountains for the past forty years, finally realized that he isn't getting any younger. Hence, he thought that if he was ever going to do the Himalayas, he better go now. He left for Nepal in late April, and was met in Katmandu by two guides, four porters, and the requisite camping gear for a twenty-five day trek to Mt. Everest.
The weather was on the whole superb, the mountains were unbelievably beautiful, and all goals were reached. To wit: a visit to three lamaseries (one lama showed a scalp and mummified left hand of a reputed yeti --- abominable snowman to the uninitiated; Armand reserves final judgement but guesses it could have been an ape or previous trekker), a fine batch of spectacular photographs, three nights at 17,000' with a side trip to the Mt. Everest Base Camp, 17,500' (where climbers try for the summit 11,500' higher), and scaling of Kala Pattar, 18,000', directly in front of Everest itself.
After the return to Katmandu, none the worse for wear, he went into the wild game county of southern Nepal and hunted rhinoceros from the back of an elephant (with camera, not gun; in any case, an elephant affords a rather uncomfortable ride).
Then on to Dacca , Pakistan and Thailand, where he jumped two steps into the safety(?) of a Buddhist temple to avoid a sudden tropical downpour, slipped on a wet marble floor, fell and broke his left arm near the shoulder, in three places. A California doctor in the Seventh Day Adventist hospital there checked it, gave him a sling (but no plaster cast) to protect it, sent him on his somewhat painful way. O.K. now but a bit sore for several weeks to say the least.
After two uncomfortable days of sightseeing in Bangkok, on to Singapore, Manila and Pagsanjan Falls (including a wild trip up a "white" river in a canoe to see the falls; the falls were disappointing but the canoe trip, what with a bad arm, was exciting), Taipei with its marvelous Chinese antiquities collection, a week in Japan, over the North Pole via Japan Airlines to Paris. A few more hours put him at Shannon Airport to meet his Humanities Summer Culture Tour group, including the welcome sight of daughter Ann. Mary stayed home to be with her mother who is well along in years and no longer able to care for herself.
Two months in Ireland, England, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Italy, southern France, Spain and Portugal. All most rewarding, with a fine group of students and just plain travellers. Mid-August saw us reunited for an especially busy fall semester.
A busy fall semester? I counted twenty countries visited during that summer jaunt, and what became of his broken arm? There was no mention of it in the rest of the letter, only more trips during the school year and a 'short drive' to the west coast for a month in his new car. Oh, and a wish for his readers to have a Merry Christmas!
Armand trekked the Himalayas in 1968 and what did I find as I looked for photos of Mt. Everest expeditions circa 1968? Scientists performing red cell studies, of course. Armand was the original search engine, acquiring his data year after year and bit by bit. The following is an excerpt from his Christmas 1968 letter:
Speaking of age, Armand, who has been climbing and scrambling in the mountains for the past forty years, finally realized that he isn't getting any younger. Hence, he thought that if he was ever going to do the Himalayas, he better go now. He left for Nepal in late April, and was met in Katmandu by two guides, four porters, and the requisite camping gear for a twenty-five day trek to Mt. Everest.
The weather was on the whole superb, the mountains were unbelievably beautiful, and all goals were reached. To wit: a visit to three lamaseries (one lama showed a scalp and mummified left hand of a reputed yeti --- abominable snowman to the uninitiated; Armand reserves final judgement but guesses it could have been an ape or previous trekker), a fine batch of spectacular photographs, three nights at 17,000' with a side trip to the Mt. Everest Base Camp, 17,500' (where climbers try for the summit 11,500' higher), and scaling of Kala Pattar, 18,000', directly in front of Everest itself.
After the return to Katmandu, none the worse for wear, he went into the wild game county of southern Nepal and hunted rhinoceros from the back of an elephant (with camera, not gun; in any case, an elephant affords a rather uncomfortable ride).
Then on to Dacca , Pakistan and Thailand, where he jumped two steps into the safety(?) of a Buddhist temple to avoid a sudden tropical downpour, slipped on a wet marble floor, fell and broke his left arm near the shoulder, in three places. A California doctor in the Seventh Day Adventist hospital there checked it, gave him a sling (but no plaster cast) to protect it, sent him on his somewhat painful way. O.K. now but a bit sore for several weeks to say the least.
After two uncomfortable days of sightseeing in Bangkok, on to Singapore, Manila and Pagsanjan Falls (including a wild trip up a "white" river in a canoe to see the falls; the falls were disappointing but the canoe trip, what with a bad arm, was exciting), Taipei with its marvelous Chinese antiquities collection, a week in Japan, over the North Pole via Japan Airlines to Paris. A few more hours put him at Shannon Airport to meet his Humanities Summer Culture Tour group, including the welcome sight of daughter Ann. Mary stayed home to be with her mother who is well along in years and no longer able to care for herself.
Two months in Ireland, England, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Italy, southern France, Spain and Portugal. All most rewarding, with a fine group of students and just plain travellers. Mid-August saw us reunited for an especially busy fall semester.
A busy fall semester? I counted twenty countries visited during that summer jaunt, and what became of his broken arm? There was no mention of it in the rest of the letter, only more trips during the school year and a 'short drive' to the west coast for a month in his new car. Oh, and a wish for his readers to have a Merry Christmas!
Photo: Berkeley Lab/Research
