Alan Arnette continues his post-climb debrief on the 2008 Everest Season with the second part of the real story of what happened on the mountain this season.
Both part 1 and part 2 of this very well written report are contained in a single PDF document so you can get the entire story, thus far. In part 1 we learned about the fluid nature of the politics of Everest this year. Alan arrived in Nepal, amidst rumors of new rules, censorship, and the Chinese calling the shots. As we all know by now, those rumors turned out to be true, and of course the entire season was thrown into disarray.
Part 2 continues the story, with teams arriving in Base Camp and the rumors continuing to fly. Soon the Nepalese army shows up, and phones start getting confiscated. Communications start to get monitored, and the mood in BC is one of oppression, even if it's more on the subtle side. The Nepali soldiers come across as thugs just waiting for one of the climbers to step out of line, and when Alan makes a move to smuggle his own phone back to his tent, it reads a bit like a James Bond novel.
The writing in both parts is top notch and Alan does a great job of telling us the story of what really happened on the mountain. We knew from team reports that things were on edge in camp, but Alan confirms the situation. And when things actually started to improve and return to normal, William Brant Holland went and got himself tossed off the mountain.
By the time I finished reading this, I was already looking forward to the next part. The REAL story of Everest 2008 is still coming out, and thankfully Alan is willing to tell us the tale. Don't miss this one.
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