Mountain troubles

Mountain misadventures.

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What troubles and misadventures in the mountains threaten to a beginner?

In this text, I will answer the question of what troubles an inexperienced person can face in the mountains when doing mountaineering, trekking or mountain hiking.

To be honest, the question is slightly incorrect. After all, the very fact of a civilized person getting into the conditions of the mountains is already a nuisance. Given the toxicity of this natural terrain and the high likelihood of getting into a dependence on it, the most important "trouble" to keep in mind (if you are not already stuck in it) is the possibility to get the mountain infection for the rest of your life. All further problems will be secondary.

Speaking, in fact, about troubles - they can generally lie in wait for a person anywhere, and the mountains have nothing to do with it. The quality and quantity of trouble depends more on the person than on the environment in which he is.

Nevertheless, mountains, as an environment that is totally unusual and hostile to people, pose a danger to any normal person, especially to those who are not mentally or physically ready for them.

Before moving on to the list of possible troubles, I want to draw your attention to the fact that the global cause of all troubles in the mountains, from the smallest inconvenience to the serious accidents in the mountains, is an irrational motivation that brought a person to these mountains.

I have already spoken about this more than once and will continue to say it - two decades spent in the mountains confirm this truly truth!

If you are drawn to the mountains by the desire to prove something to someone, to receive a Darwin Award, or become famous, or to gain some special social status – perhaps such climbing not even worth starting. 

Mountains are something else and more than that. It is like an expensive wine, which in a small dose and in a good company will be an exquisite pleasure. But if you choose the wrong quantity, quality, company and reason to drink, you can vomit and earn a hangover.

And yet, the mountains do not forgive pathos, hypocrisy and vanity, they teach and usually punish severely. That is nothing to them, they are mountains... But people get hurt and sometimes even die. Well, it was everything, I want to say about the main thing about climbing mountains, now I will list the ordinary prerequisites for gaining unforgettable mountain (mis)adventures. There only will be four. After these I give some examples.

Body fitness is a critical factor in comfort and safety in the mountains. In case of lack of physical fitness, the mountains may turn out to be higher and more difficult than they seemed in the picture before the hike.

All health problems, lack of acclimatization, fatigue conditions due to illness or overwork are troubles associated with a lack of physical health. Consequently, it is necessary to start preparing for the mountains not a week before, but at least 3-4 months before the trip.

Lack of tactical or technical training - any, even the simplest route, requires competent planning and preparation. Without this, you can "stuck in completely out of the blue."

Tactical errors are the result of a lack of theoretical and practical training in navigation, route planning and climbing schedule. Examples for this paragraph can be taken out in a separate section of the analysis of accidents. Because if in the mountains you go astray or you can lack the necessary equipment to overcome obstacles, and that will not be a misadventure or nuisance, but a serious emergency.

· Wrong choice of team - a classic misfortune. If you find yourself one goofy for a group of trained and experienced participants (which is ideal) - your problems are likely to be solved by others, you will be helped and taught. And if a whole herd of goonies gathers together (led by the highest quality dunce - the leader who assembled such a group) - with their critical mass they will suppress any glimpses of common sense, make hell in the group for themselves, and possibly drag into this hell those who happen to be nearby, occasional innocent neighbors. Read the history of the Dyatlov group. The example is harsh but expressive.

· Economy on the most necessary things in the mountains - on clothes and equipment - a classic cause of many troubles in the mountains. For example - blisters everywhere - on the legs because of bad shoes, on the back because of uncomfortable backpack.

The equipment must comply with the climbing program, be modern and reliable – it is not only your pleasure, but also safety of your life and health. It fully depends on the quality of equipment in the mountains and in general in any outdoor event.

I will give a couple of examples on the equipment fails. Suppose, for a summer program in the Caucasus mountains - for example, climbing Bazarduzu in Dagestan - you purchased an expensive and high-quality downy sleeping bag - with that I congratulate you – although definitely you did not read my recommendations for this program!

Further, on the way to the first overnight stay, the group got caught in the rain, and everyone was soaked to the skin. Including yourself and your new down sleeping bag. Is this already a misfortune? No, alas. This is already a big problem.

Let's say you are a pretty girl. In this case, it is likely that the leader of the group will let you spend the night in his sleeping bag. The real trouble can come later – not for you but for this poor guy - if his wife will find out about it.

As for your own problems - you will have a wet sleeping bag, which is almost impossible to dry without special devices. This situation may result in early termination of the program for you or even for the entire group. The original mistake was - for the summer climbing in Caucasus it is better to take a sleeping bag with synthetic insulation. It costs less and dries much faster if occasionally wet.

Or here's an even worse example - a boot with a broken sole on the route is also not a small trouble but rather a real disaster. You will not have a change of shoes - no one takes spare shoes on the route, and jumping on one foot over large and slippery stones is a dangerous gamble bordering on recklessness! Even a simple escape from the route along a mountain path of 15-20 km (half a day's journey) in slippers or in torn, tape-wrapped shoes is a big nuisance, with the risk of injury and consequent accident. Got it? Not only the success of the whole climbing program, but also your life and health depends on the quality of your equipment.

To summarize the above, the mountains repeatedly aggravate any small fail, mistake or inaccuracy in actions, sometimes extremely cruelly suppressing attempts to play a game that a person wants to play with them according to his own rules.

At the end of this story I will exaggerate a little the view of the subject, and tell about one accident which, unfortunately, I saw with my own eyes. Going on an mountain ascent in a snowstorm, the head of a Russian group of militaries who were training in the mountains for some of their top-secret military goals, said - we don't care at all about the weather, we are special forces, which is the worse is the better for us. What kind of mountain skills the military wanted to work out in bad weather in the mountains stood unknown ... The commander did not have time to write a memorandum. A few days later, the weather calmed down, and five stiffened corpses were found on the glacial plateau. In torn clothes and in very strange poses.

No one ever figured out exactly what happened, but it is not that important now. The cause of the accident is clear - overestimation of one capacities and irrational motivation for climbing, wrong choice the weather conditions that were completely uncontrollable and dangerous.

Be careful and reasonable in the mountains. Take care and good luck.

The author of the text and photos is Alex Trubachev

 MCS EDIT 2023