Mountain full.pdf

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MOUNTAINS


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MOUNTAINS

Mining Te Inerno

Dantes Inerno, Indonesia

Te Bat-Netters

Yongora Boiken Hunters, New Guinea

Sweetness From Te Sky

Himalayan Mountains, Nepal

Te Men Who each Eagles

Berik and Sailau (Kazakh), Altai Mountains, Mongolia

2 - 31

6 - 74 - 5

12 -

15

8 -

11

16 -

17

Gelandas And Grass

Te Aweta Family, Simien Mountains, Ethiopia

Closer o Heaven

Introduction

Avalanches o Order

Martin and Andreas, Eiger Mountain, Switzerland


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THE TOUGH PLANTS

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Some say that on a mountain you are closer to heaven. Tis is true

in the sense that mountains tower above the clouds, and out o

mountains ows most o the worlds resh water, as well as most othe topsoil gits that are easy to see as heaven sent. But living on

a mountain heaven or more like hell?

Mountain communities are among the poorest, most marginal-

ized people on earth, enduring some o the greatest o hardships.

Te problem is the sheer verticality, which has a proound efect on

every aspect o mountain lie. You have to climb up or down to get

anywhere, and rock-aces orm a barrier to the outside world. Te

higher you go, the harder it gets.

Very ew people live at high altitudes, and or a good

reason. Te higher you go, the lower the atmosphericpressure and the less air there is to breathe. Our bod-

ies are adapted to lie near sea level, where our blood

receives the right amount o oxygen or constant reresh-

ment. As soon as we start to climb higher than about

2500 meters (8200 eet), we are in a place that a lowland

ape isnt designed to be.

Hand in hand with the oxygen-thin air comes the cold

and the poor-quality soil. Tis limits both the crops that

can be grown and the number o meat-providing ani-mals to just a ew mountain-adapted ones - not ideal at

altitude, when the body actually needs more uel to keep

going. Yet humans by nature have always reached or the

stars, whether theyve been pushed there by conict or

simply because they want to. Against all the odds, spe-

cialized groups o people have lived at high altitude since

prehistoric times, adapting physically to the extremes.

Mountain-adapted men and woman have larger lung

capacities and more ecient circulatory systems than

the rest o us. Tey also tend to be short and stock withbarrel chests-all adaptations to the high lie.

Te Earths highest landmass is the Himalayas the

land o snow. For the rst hunter-gatherers moving eastrom Arica and across India, it was a natural barrier to

migration. Archaeological evidence suggests that the rst

actual Himalayan settlements were on the vast ibetan

plateau to the north, some 25,000-20,000 years ago.

It seems to have taken much longer or humans in

populate the highest heartland o the mountains. Nepal

sits at the top o the world, with eight o the ten highest

mountains within its borders. Te earliest evidence o a

Nepalese population dates to about 9000 years ago.

Perched higher still, to the east o Nepal, is Bhutan. Hu-mans appear to have arrived here only some 4000 years

ago. Bhutans isolation has meant that it has remained

practically ree rom the global inuences o the modern

world - until television nally arrived in 1999.


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MOUNTAINS

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MINING THE INFERNO

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I proo were needed that mountains can be hell on

Earth, von dont have to look arther than Indonesia.

Tis story begins at the bottom.

Deep inside a volcano, a human shape emerges rom

billowing clouds o poisonous sulphur. Its a scene rom

Dantes Inerno: the man struggles with his devilishburden, bent over by the weight o the huge basket

overowing with large spikes o bright yellow sulphur.

His clothes are rags, his eves bloodshot, his exposed

skin blistered by the toxic gas. Ahead he aces a steep

climb out o the caldera, ollowed by a long walk down

the mountain to deliver the sulphur to the company

paymaster.

Like most Indonesian sulphur miners, the mans toil

may shorten his lie. Evidence o the sulphuric ruin lohis lungs can be heard in his voice. But he is living proo

that humans can survive in the most extreme condi-

tions, and he laughs at the health risks. He can support

his amily, and unlike some he knows, he doesnt need

to beg. He is a proud miner who competes with his

colleagues to earn the heaviest load. He knows how to

navigate inside a rumbling volcano and avoid the toxic

clouds. Not every man can say he works in a place as

dramatic as this. Once he has collected his wages - high-

er than average or the region - he lights up a cigaretteand walks home down the rice terraces.


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MOUNTAINS


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THE BAT-NETTERS

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Indonesia is one o the most active volcanic regions

on the Pacic ring o re-a circular band o volcanism

that includes countries as diverse as Japan and Costa

Rica - and the rich volcanic soil is the primary wealth o

the region. Not all the worlds mountains are volcanic,

though. In act, the majority, including the Himalayas

and the Rockies, were created by laud masses pushing

against each other and crumpling up near where they

met. But whichever way they were created, most moun-

tain ranges continue to shape human history. One o

the most striking examples o this can be ound in New

Guinea.

Mountains dominate the island - the worlds second

largest and more than three times the size o Great Brit-

ain. And down every mountainside, rivers gouge valleys.

Tis rugged geography has given use loan anthropolo-

gists dream. A diferent group o people has settled in

almost every valley system - some 700 distinct groups,

cut of rom one another by the mountains. Tey have

developed diferent cultures and languages. Some o the

languages are as diferent rom each other as English is

rom Mandarin.

Marcus is a Yangoru Boiken hunter rom the Prince

Alexander coastal mountain range. Like mountainpeople everywhere, he aces steep slopes every day o his

lie. But ar rom being oppressed by the mountains, the

Yangoru Boiken people have turned the ridge lines to

their advantage. Centuries ago, they observed that, in al

least one respect, bats and humans arc similar: both look

or shortcuts. With this in mind, Marcus makes his way

along the top o a ridge. He climbs a tree to assess the

spot. It meets his criteria, and he begins to chop. Only

a ew trees need to come down. Seen rom the side, the

ridge now has a rectangular notch cut out o its top, like

a doorway-and thats exactlly what it is.

As the sun goes down, Marcus sits by the opening and

listens. On their journey between their roost and the

ruit trees they eed on, they must y up and over the

ridge. Marcuss newly created gap is a handy shortcut- it

saves them a little wing-power.

Marcus allows them to get used to the new route beore

springing his trap. Hes made a huge net specially to

snare the bats - its loose enough to be invisible to their

senses, but tight enough so that they cant escape once

caught. In the black o night, several ruit bats crash into

the net. Marcus is alerted to their presence by a tin can

ull o seeds that hes xed to the net. He rushes to lower

both net and prey using pulleys and rigging hes created

rom vines and canes. He then dispatches the bats with

a club.

Once he has a ew, he brings them hack to his village.

He sears of the ur over an open ame and then boils

the bats in a pot, with local leaves or avour. He serves

this rare source o protein with rice and vegetables. Each

bat can eed up to ve people.


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MOUNTAINS


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SWEETNESS FROM THE SKY

7

Te Himalayan mountains o Nepal are much higher

than those o New Guinea, but like them, they are

bisected by an endless succession o valleys, oten so

isolated rom each other and the world at large that they

contain species ound nowhere else.

Animals adapted to these heights include the worlds

largest honeybee. Apis Laboriosa, which lives at altitudes

up to 3600 metres (1180 eet) and may orage even

higher. o keep the honeycombs out o reach o preda-

tors such as bears, it hangs them rom clifs, including

those ound in the Annapurna region. It can be a shock

to look up at a clif ace and see a hive the size o a

postbox dangling rom a ledge. Just one hive can contain

30kg (66 pounds) o honey. For the people o aprang

village, such a bonanza is worth risking a precipitous

climb and possible death.

wice a year, villagers gather at the base o the clif and

ofer up a prayer and git o owers, ruits and rice.

Ten they light a re. Te smoke rises to the hive above.

Tinking it to be smoke rom a orest re, most o the

bees evacuate. Te honey hunters then approach rom

above, descending on ladders suspended rom the top

o the clif. When a honey-hunter reaches the level o a

hive, he is likely to be attacked by the giant guard beesthat remain on the combs. So he has to work quickly,

sometimes protected by just a blanket. He wields a long

pole with a attened end like a paddle blade to carve of

chunks o comb. Tese all down to the waiting men

below, who gather them ready to take home.


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8

Te honey-hunters resourceulness highlights a human

shortcoming when it comes to lie in the mountains

- people cant y. But ying is a skill that some people

have attempted to co-opt. Te dry climate o Mongolias

Altai Mountains and the high winds mean that there

is virtually no cover, which or a human hunter poses

a problem. How do you catch an animal when it can

see you coining rom ar away? Even on horseback and

armed with a rie, a man is lucky to catch a rabbit, oxor wol.

MOUNTAINS


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THE MEN WHO TEACH EAGLES

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Berik needs a emale, which is larger and more aggres-

sive than a male. Both o these edglings are emale,

and both have our scutes. So he takes the larger bird,

reasoning that she has been more active than her sister at

eeding time. He wraps his chosen bird in a blanket and

slings the bundle over his shoulder. Climbing back up

to his ather, he unbundles his catch. Sailau approves: A

queen o the Altai!

Sailau and Berik are Kazakhs, and Sailau is teaching his

son to become a Kazakh eagle-hunter. Over the next six

months, Berik and his eagle train almost even day. Te

bird learns to y and lo dive onto a ox skin pulled on

a rope. Berik rewards her with chunks o meat. As the

birds skills improve, Berik learns the importance o pa-

tience and discipline. I he changes the routine just once,

the bird could lose aith in him as a reliable master.

In November, the rst snows hill. Sailau cant contain his

excitement. At rst light, he and Berik set out on horse-

back. Each has a golden eagle perched on his let arm

and is clothed in heavy ur or protection rom the cold

- now averaging -20C (-4F). Tey ride up a canyon to

gain height. It doesnt take long beore they nd resh

ox tracks in the snow. Sailau points to the ridge above.

He tells Berik to nd a place with a commanding viewand to wait there. When he hears Sailaus signal, he has

to remove his birds hood. With her acute eyesight, she

will be able to see the ox, even i Berik cant. I she does,

Berik has to release her.

Moments later, a ox bolts out into the open. As Berik

releases his eagle, he shouts the same command theyve

used all summer. Te eagle is emboldened by the sound

and knows just what to do. She circles once to keep her

altitude. Ten she olds her wings into her chest anddrops like an arrow unleashed rom a longbow. Even

at ull sprint, the ox has no chance o reaching cover.

Just above the oxs head, she ares her wings to control

her speed. Te ox wheels around and gnashes its teeth

and inates its ur to increase its size. Te young bird is

utterly surprised - this ox is not behaving like urs shes

been used to. She veers away at the last second and set-

tles nearby.

Sailau has released his eagle as well, but too late. Teox escapes into the rocks. Both eagles rest on the snow,

wailing or their masters to ride down. Once in range,

the men call their eagles, which obediently y onto their

arms. As the sun sets, the hunters return to their gers

(tents). Sailau consoles his son, explaining how a young

eagle that has never seen a live ox beore can be startled,

But, he adds, it wont happen twice.

Te ollowing morning they again nd the trail o a ox.

Sailau ushes it out. As Berik releases the bird, he can

sense her excitement. Te ox runs. Te bird traces its

movements. Flying high above, she suddenly dives. As

she strikes, her let talon closes on the oxs haunches

above the tail. Te ox turns to bite its assailant, and the

eagles right claw closes on its jaws. Eagles claws have tre-

mendous crushing orce, but this eagle has been trained

to rerain rom killing the prey and tearing into its vital

organs with her beak - at least or a short time. And so

it is important that Sailau gets to her quickly, beore she

shreds the valuable pelt. He coaxes her to let go with a

chunk o goat meat and then dispatches the ox with a

crushing blow.

Tis is the rst kill or Beiiks bird, and the tradition

is to allow her to eat the oxs lungs. Its pelt will be

made into a hat that Berik will keep or many years.

For Kazakh boys, a successul hunt is a rite o passage.Sailau seems even more pleased with the outcome than

Berik- his greatest pleasure is to see his sons grow up the

Kazakh way.

Te partnership between man and eagle is a dramatic

illustration o how humans living in the mountains

depend on partnerships with other animals. And the

higher they live, the truer this becomes.

THE MEN WHO TEACH EAGLES

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MOUNTAINS

Animals Tat Give Everything

Te Andes o South America are the worlds second

highest mountain range. Here at altitudes above 4000

metres (13,125 eet) humans depend on the llama. A

domesticated member o the camel amily, the llama

has a long neck and an expressive ace reminiscent o

its desert cousins. But its body is stout, more like a very

large goat, and along with its South American relatives

guanaeos, alpacas and vicunas - it has sot ur that can

he woven into amazingly sot, warm wool.

Te uses or llamas are endless. Tey can carry nearly a

third o their body weight on their backs and are sure-

ooted even on the steepest clifs. Teir meat is nutri-

tious, and their milk can be drunk on its own or made

into dairy products. Even their dung, once dried, makes

excellent res - critical or lie above the treeline, where

wood is non-existent. Its little wonder that the llama

eatures heavily in Andean olklore and religion.

In the Himalayas, people have an analogous partnershipwith the yak - a shaggy, long-horned relative o cows.

It is so adapted to high altitude that it doesnt are well

at lower elevations. As in the Andes, Himalayan people

depend on their domesticated yaks or everything -

transport, ood, uel, clothing and even shelter. Without

yaks, it is hard to imagine how some Himalayan villages

would survive.

But not all relationships with mountain animals are

partnerships. In many cases, people are in direct compe-tition with wildlie.


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GELADAS AND GRASS

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In Ethiopias Simien Mountains, people live higher than

anywhere in Europe or North America - and more than

twice as high as the Kazakh eagle hunters. But these

mountains, with their spectacular spires, giant lobelia

trees and unique wildlie, are distinctly Arican. For

Aweta and his amily, carving out a lie in this rugged

landscape is a challenge. Like so many mountain people,

they depend on a combination o livestock and crops.

But here there is precious little at ground or cultivat-

ing wheat or barley. Like his ancestors beore him over

thousands o years, Aweta has ploughed or planted on

every available clif ledge, even i it means he must use

ropes to get there. Tis is extreme arming, with drop-

ofs that make even experienced mountaineers eel giddy.

But in the Simiens, humans arent the only primates that

like to eat cultivated crops. Geladas are mountain spe-

cialists ound only in the Ethiopian highlands - the only

surviving species rom a once-widespread genus o grass-

grazing primates. Tey mainly eat native grasses, but

probably ever since humans have planted domesticated

grasses, geladas have helped themselves to their crops.

Geladas are easily distinguished rom baboons by the

bright patch o skin on their chests. Te brightest chests

those o the alpha males, who also have long tuted

tails, sabre-like teeth and owing manes, giving them alion- like look. Geladas roam the highland grasslands in

groups o a hundred or more (groups as large as 800 are

regularly recorded) and are natural climbers, scaling rock

aces with abandon.

For Awetas amily, saving their crops rom raiding

geladas is a major challenge. Te species is protected by

Ethiopian law (killing them is punishable by huge nes

and prison sentences) and so hill armers have no choice

but to employ ull-time guards - a job that most otenalls to children such as Awetes younger brother Dereje,

aged 12, aided by his sisters Debre, 10, and Maza, 6,

who also tend the livestock.

Dereje has a wide area o crops to watch over and must

use his wits. At night, the geladas take reuge rom pos-

sible predators, mainly hyenas, by clambering down the

clifs to ledges. But i there is no moonlight, the children

darent risk travelling home. Instead they shelter in caves,

herding their goats and cows in with them and cuddlingtogether or warmth- temperatures oten drop below


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MOUNTAINS


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together or warmth- temperatures oten drop below

reezing at night. In winter, the Simiens are one o the

ew places in Arica that regularly see rost and sleet, and

even snow.

As soon as the sun hits the clifs, the geladas are on the

move. Using the clifs or cover, they can appear almost

anywhere in a eld and then dive of again. o end

them of, Dereje throws rocks. Hes an expert in mak-

ing slings out o grass and can throw 30 metres (98 eet)

with accuracy. And he doesnt rely just on his own ob-

servations to spot a raider. I a neighbour or goat herder

in the valley below sees geladas, he will relay a series o

alarm calls that echo of the clifs.

Te alarm goes of - a aint yodel-like sound rom the

valley below. Dereje springs to his eet and replies, Let

or right? Again the reply is aint, but Dereje can hear

let, and he sprints of, pausing only to scoop up a

rock and load it into his sling. Avoiding trampling the

barley. Dereje runs so close to the clif edge that he

dislodges pebbles that tumble hundreds o metres onto

the boulders below. Away, away, he cries, and in the

eld in ront o him, gelada aces pop out o the barley,

their cheeks pufed with stolen goods. Tey screech and

run of, the babies swinging onto their mothers backs.Te males stand their ground, but a whirling rock rom

Derejes sling changes their minds. His charge wasnt a

moment too soon. A large troop o geladas can strip a

eld bare.

GELADAS AND GRASS

15

As the geladas disappear over the dill edge, Dereje catch-

es his breath. Te battle has been going on or months

but is most intense now, just beore the harvest. Its as i

the geladas can sense this is their last chance. Teyre so

clever. he marvels, beore returning to the eld. Below

him, he can hear harvesters singing as they cut the stalks

and pile them into slacks. Tey have already begun

threshing and winnowing, and when Aweta comes to do

the same up here, Derejes work will be nished.

Scaring of geladas has been Derejes ull-time occupa-

tion, including holidays and weekends, since April. Hes

missed a lot o school, and he cant wait to return. He

misses his riends, and he dreams o learning English

and getting a good job that can bring in money and an

easier lie or his amily.


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MOUNTAINS

Martin and Andreas make small talk on the rst gondola

car up the mountain. Martin looks out o the scratched

plastic window to scan the north ace o the Eiger, one

o Switzerlands most notorious mountain walls. He

watches the spindrit blowing of the top and notes the

direction o wind. Te snow will be here soon. he says

in a matter-o-act tone. Andreas nods in agreement.

By the time they take their skis of the gondola and walk

lo the patrol hut. Martin has been proved right. Large,delicate akes smash into their patrol jackets. Ater


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AVALANCHES TO ORDER

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opening the door and turning on the lights, Martin hits

the power button on his computer. While it automati-

cally logs onto his avourite website, he makes cofee.

Weather charts and graphs spring up on the screen, de-

tailing the storm. Tough the satellite suggests the snow

wont hit or a ew more hours, the whiteness outside

proves otherwise. Martin laughs - mountain weather

is still too unpredictable even or the best orecasting

equipment in the world. Over a metre today, Andreas, I

reckon. again, Andreas nods.

Later in the day, while the skier yo-yo up and down the

slopes, the snow keeps alling. Martin and Andreas nd

a spare moment to prepare their weapons. Martin pro-

duces a special key and then types in a secret code. He

swings open the heavy door o the sae and lits out what

look like giant sausages made rom bright red PVC.

Tis is what modern dynamite slicks look like - just a

little atter than those drawn in cartoons. He assembles

various saety devices and nally attaches a long use.

Explosives armed, Martin puts them back in the sae.

Tey are ready or tomorrows battle.

By the time its dark, Martin and Andreas ski home,

sweeping or any missing skiers. More than 45cm (18

inches) resh snow has accumulated. Later that night, anadditional 60cm (24 inches) alls. Te patrolmen get up

extra early - all bombing has to be nished beore the

ski runs can open. Its still dark when the snowcat drops

them at the highest point. By the time their skis are

on and Martin has made the nal check on his bombs,

there is enough light to move.

Even in the white-out, they recognize the drop zones

by the large red and white patrol poles, the only things

visible on the mountain. Martin pulls out a dynamitestick and lights the use. With an underarm slinging mo-

tion, he losses it into the whiteness, over the edge o an

unseen clif. He chats casually to Andreas or a moment

and then glances at his watch - all o Martins uses are

timed or two minutes, but it isnt an exact science. He

counts down, ve, our, three, two, one, and both men

cover their ears and run away.

Te explosion is ollowed a ew seconds later by a thick

thudding sound, as the snow settles and cracks in a linealong the ridge below them. Te newest layer o snow

begins to slide, picking up momentum as it goes. It

builds into a roar and then hisses to a halt - thats the

point o setting of avalanches: you keep them small so

that they never get big.

Te Alps - and especially these peaks around the Eiger

- are amous or avalanches. Even some o the nearby

medieval churches have old avalanche walls to protect

them when the big one sweeps into town. As recently

as 1999, an avalanche smashed into Montroe, France,

killing 12 people and destroying 20 buildings. It was a

wake-up call to everyone in the Alps: dont let avalanche

zones build up too much snow - destroy them when you

have the chance.

Martin and Andreas work their way down the ridge,

setting of avalanches as they go. Most o the chutes they

blast will protect the ski area, but as the men return to

the hut, a helicopter awaits. It will lilt them to a peak

whose avalanches threaten not just the skiers but roads

and the town as well.

Hanging out the side o a helicopter, bufeted by the

wind, Martin has a harder lime lighting the use. But

he is experienced enough to keep a cool head. He leans

inside the door and gets it working. Ten its bombsaway. Te avalanches rom higher up are larger and leave

a cloud o snow hanging in the air or minutes ater

theyve discharged. Finally, Martin drops the last bomb.

He radios the ski-patrol hut: You can open the ski area

now. As they ride the lit, the skiers are blissully una-

ware o the drama that has taken place this morning.

Mountains can he dangerous places, and or some, thats

part o their allure. Mountaineers regularly risk their

lives in the hope- o reaching the summit. But its not

enough to dismiss mountain-climbing as simple thrill-seeking behaviour. Mountains speak lo our spiritual

side. All over the world, mountains are revered as sacred

places. Spiritual leaders build monasteries, i not on

mountains then on places with commanding views. Its

almost as i mountains might help us see into a world

beyond this one.

Death comes to us all no matter where we live. But in

some mountains, death brings extra hardship-and this

question: what to do with the body once the soul haslet it?


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MOUNTAINS

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