Ama Dablam 2020 by High Altitude Mountain Cleaners

A MOUNTAINEERING FOCUS

We are going to clean and remove all old fixed ropes and abandoned garbage on the normal climbing route of Ama Dablam that is used by most teams as the preferred climbing route or descent itinerary for the other route. We’ll be climbing the itinerary and stay on it for 23 days to complete the project. The goal is to offer a better and safer environment for the local guides and climbers.

BEST PRACTICES IN MOUNTAINEERING AND
MOUNTAIN-BASED SPORTS

Nobody has ever cleaned Ama Dablam and removed all the abandoned fixed ropes because it’s a really technical route.  We will install fixed anchors to help prevent people from wrapping ropes over the boulders as an anchor.  The goal is not to climb the summit, but to perform an environmental reset of the mountain.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR VOLUNTEERS

We are working with the Nepal Mountaineering Association, a UIAA member, to offer places and for locals who want to volunteer to be part of the cleaning project. We also proposed a proper training for local guides to be able to install fix anchor. We will propose compensation since it’s the high season for them.

RELATIONSHIP WITH LOCAL COMMUNITIES

We want to be able to offer a safer climbing route for local guides who have to guide this mountain as it is becoming more and more dangerous with all the fixed ropes and the garbage left on the mountain. We are working with the Nepal Mountain Association, the Sagarmatha National Park and the Nepal Tourism Association. We also work with a local companies to negotiate at government level.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

The goal is to remove all the garbage and fixed ropes left on the regular route of Ama Dablam. We also want to install glue-in anchors to help the installation of new ropes and prevent people leaving their old ropes in place. We also want to raise awareness to the public about the problems that we are leaving in the mountain by releasing a documentary.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT

We’ll be on the mountain from the end of March to the end of April (23 days) and we hope to be able to train local guides at the same time. After we return, we’ll produce a documentary and present it during the next fall for the film festival season.  There are two people on the itinerary performing the removal and installation of the new anchors and ropes. One person will be in the high camp following the expedition. We will have one cinematographer. We will also hire a local guide and three sherpas for the transportation of all equipment. We are also negotiating with a private partner to help fund the project.

HOW WE COMMUNICATE

We have already started to host some talks about the project. We will also start releasing information via Facebook and we’ll increase the amount starting in the fall. We will be making one post every day during the expedition. We also want to release a documentary to raise awareness in the public and climber communities