The recent Nepalese Snow Storm

[Ray]

I'm not sue what coverage this tragic event has received on the America and Canada news media. I don't think any American or Canadian trekkers lost their life. However, I believe there's a couple of Australian trekkers still unaccounted for.

For me personally this event was quite a shock because I had trekked the same route precisely one year earlier where the storm hit. If I'd postponed that trip until this year, I could have been one of the casualties.

The storm occurred in the vicinity of the Annapurna Circuit, which is a 3 week trek (or 2 weeks for the ultra fit), and which is renowned for an exceptionally high pass along the route, which some trekkers consider a challenge.

The high pass is called Thorong La and its height is 5,416 metres, or 17,769 ft. No climbing tackle or ropes are required. One can walk all the way, (I walked in Nikki Joggers), but the atmosphere is a bit rarefied and many folks suffer from altitude sickness. Some hire a pony if they find the going too arduous.

Okay! So that's the preamble to the following photograph. As a result of the news of this storm I was motivated to review the shots that I'd taken in the vicinity of the Thorong La pass when I was there last year.
The attached photo was taken very close to the pass, as I looked back at the terrain I'd just crossed. I estimate the height from where I took the shot to be about 5,300 metres. When I set off at dawn from the lodge known as the Thorong High Camp, at about 4,800 metres, it was snowing lightly and the sky was overcast. Fortunately the weather cleared up later.

On the day of this storm the reverse would have happened. The trekkers would have set off at dawn feeling anxious about the weather. They may have been reassured by their guide and hotel staff that the weather would likely clear up. But it didn't.

The attached image shows the sun attempting to break through the clouds as the weather gradually cleared. I like the shot because it's 'atmospheric', for want of a better word. However, I have reservations that the image can stand by itself, outside of the above context, because the foreground is a bit plain and boring. What do you think? 

I've included a 100% crop of the figures near the centre, which lend some sense of scale to the scene. However to see these figure at this size on a print, the print would have to be about 36" x 54".

Comments are welcome, even if derogatory. 

http://www.australiaplus.com/international/2014-10-22/nepal-calls-off-search-for-survivors-of-annapurna-circuit-snowstorm-that-claimed-at-least-43-lives/1381935

[Slobodan Blagojevic]

Ray, the shot can certainly stand on its own.

[BernardLanguillier]

I was also shocked by these news. It seems that snow storms of this intensity are very rare in October which must have been an aggravating factor.

Since you have been there, a few questions I was wondering about:
- How steep/avalanche prone is the terrain around the path?
- How many kms do walkers have to walk till the next hut?
- What is the normal walking time for that section?
- Are these easy navigation landsmarks immediately around the track?

Nice picture btw.

Cheers,
Bernard

[SanderKikkert]

Hi Ray,

I think the shot serves its purpose well in combination with the story. I also share your reservations as to if it could stand on its own.

This is becasue alltough the light and atmosphere caught here are certainly intrigueing and special and very well captured I think it's the symmetric shape of the foreground ( it's not boring to me)  and the placement of the small figures in the frame that make the image less interesting.  

Of course I don't know íf there where any other angles available to shoot the scene, space tends to be limited on mountain ridges ;-) but to me the image might gain that little something if it had been shot either from more to the left or right, with the group of people placed off centre and with even more of a diagonal line between the group and the sun, this would create some tension in the frame and more dynamics from left to right, emphasizing the depth of this immense vista you are showing here.

That said..I still can only dream of making images of such a wonderful unique location. Kind Regards, Sander

[Ray]

I was also shocked by these news. It seems that snow storms of this intensity are very rare in October which must have been an aggravating factor.

Since you have been there, a few questions I was wondering about:
- How steep/avalanche prone is the terrain around the path?
- How many kms do walkers have to walk till the next hut?
- What is the normal walking time for that section?
- Are these easy navigation landsmarks immediately around the track?

Nice picture btw.

Hi Bernard,
The Annapurna Circuit trek is very popular so there are lots of lodges on the way, allowing one to have a choice of either a long walk or a short walk almost every day. I never pre-book a hotel. I found if one particular hotel at a particular destination was full, which happened on just one occasion, there would be another one close by that had room, although perhaps not quite as 'posh'. 

Even in the vicinity of the Thorong La pass, one has a choice of a couple of lodges not too far apart, which makes it easier for the inexperienced trekker. For example, at a height of around 4,400 metres there's a lodge at Thorong Phedi. Those who are young and fit might like to set off from this lodge very early in the morning, trek up to the pass at 5400 metres and then down to Muktinath at 3,800 metres, all in one day.

I'm not so young so took it easy, trekking from Thorong Phedi to the next lodge on the way, Thorong High Camp, which is about 4,800 metres in altitude. From Thorong High Camp to the Thorong La pass is then less arduous, an additional height of a mere 600 metres. What can be arduous for some who are prone to knee problems when walking down hill, is the long trek down from Thorong La to Muktinath, a descent of 1,600 metres.
However, even on this stretch there is a lodge about halfway down if one finds the descent too stressful.

For me, the hardest day was definitely the trek from the Thorong High Camp lodge, up to the pass, where there's actually a small tea house by the way, then all the way down to Muktinath, which seemed to be a never-ending descent.
I don't recall passing close to any potential avalanches, glaciers or other threats. However, when trekking in the snow one is advised to stick to the beaten track, otherwise one might slip down into a hole that is covered in ice and snow.

As regards navigational landmarks, one might occasionally have a problem when trekking without a guide, but I always hire my own personal guide and porter when trekking. As I mentioned, I take it easy. I'm not out to break any records. I hire the guide and porter for a greater period than I believe the trek will take because I like to change my schedule according to the weather conditions, or stay an additional day or two at any particular village on the route that takes my fancy. If one gets behind schedule, there are stretches of road between certain locations on the route where one can take a local bus. Very bumpy though. Not recommended.

I understand that as a result of this recent tragedy, the Nepalese government will introduce legislation making it compulsory to hire a trained guide when trekking.

[Ray]

Of course I don't know íf there where any other angles available to shoot the scene, space tends to be limited on mountain ridges ;-) but to me the image might gain that little something if it had been shot either from more to the left or right, with the group of people placed off centre and with even more of a diagonal line between the group and the sun, this would create some tension in the frame and more dynamics from left to right, emphasizing the depth of this immense vista you are showing here.

Hi,
I tend to agree. I'm not entirely happy with the shot. If I were to revisit the area I would try to spend more time walking around, taking shots from different angles. As it was, I was puffing and panting heavily because of the rarefied atmosphere, and wearing heavy gloves which I occasionally took off in order to handle the camera. I was also very reluctant to wander off the track in the snow, in case I had an accident.

[MoreOrLess]

Obviously no details have come out yet but one potentially dangerous thing that's always struck me about the Annapurna circuit is that because the Thorong La is about 2/3rds of the way round(or more if you finish at Jomsom that seems to be becoming popular). Compared to the "there and back again" style treks to Annapurna and Everest basecamps that puts pressure on trekkers and guides to get over the pass as turning around could mean significantly lengthening a trek and potentially missing a flight in Kathmandu.

[SanderKikkert]

I was also very reluctant to wander off the track in the snow, in case I had an accident.

Very wise given the situation, it's the M.O. of those who return in one piece And you came back with still a very good image, taking a second look at it now I tend to think it will probably look awesome in a very large print, with those tiny coloured figures in the middle, the kind of image where composition is of lesser importance because you walk up towards the large print to have a good look at those miniature figures and appreciate the vastness of the scene like that, when you step back again to take it all in that is what remains in your head and composition is of lesser importance.

All the best, Sander