Quote of the Day:

“Somewhere between the bottom of the climb and the summit is the answer to the mystery why we climb.” – Greg Child

Did You Know?

Apa Sherpa holds the world record for the most Mount Everest Summits at 21 summits. They call him Super Sherpa.

Activity Suggestion:

Leave No Trace

Objective: Inform students about respect for the environment through the use of Leave No Trace Principles.

The increase in climbers on Mount Everest has also meant an increase in debris being left behind. Climbers are now asked to bring back at least eight kilograms of their own waste to base camp (Brandlin, 2014). Respecting your environment and leaving no trace in nature is important to mountaineers and explorers. Leave no trace principles are an important part of exploring and participating in outdoor recreation. The leave no trace ethics are built on a set of seven principles.

1. plan ahead and prepare
2. travel and camp on durable surfaces
3. of waste properly
4. leave what you find
5. minimize campfire impacts
6. respect wildlife
7. be considerate of other visitors. (http://www.leavenotrace.ca/principles)

For this activity the class will focus in on leaving what you find and respect for wildlife. This means, take nothing from the environment and leave nothing behind.

Activity: Students are Everest climbers at base camp. They must tidy up the camp before making their way through the Khumbu icefall. The challenge is that a herd of yaks have made their way on to base camp and they are known for taking garbage to eat. The climbers have to stop the wildlife from eating the garbage and properly dispose of it.

Materials:

• An open space, as this activity is a tag game and requires running
• Four hula-hoops
• Small balls or bean bags, any object that can act as garbage
• Tape or four pylons, something to divide the space in half

Instructions:

Set up:

1. Arrange the space into three zones, one for the climbers, one for the wildlife and a neutral zone. The link below is an example of setup.
2. Divide the class into two groups and assign one as Team Climbers and one as Team Yak.
3. Each team goes to their respective sides of the space.
4. When the game begins students are to attempt to collect garbage from the opponent’s hoops.
5. No one can be tagged in the neutral zone.
6. Climbers can be tagged in the wildlife zone and wildlife can be tagged in the climber’s zone.
7. When someone is tagged they join the other team.
8. The team who collects all the garbage wins.
9. Reflect on the importance of respecting the environment.

Leave No Trace Tag Setup