Chapter 19 Chapter 17 Advance to the Glacier

1 November 29 In the eight-person tent, Hanyu took out the items in his backpack and lined them up in front of his eyes. The interior is very bright because of the strong sunlight.Sunlight penetrates the thin blue tent cloth, filling the interior with blue light. The wind died down last night. From time to time, the deep sound of an avalanche came from the opposite side of the glacier. Hanyu Joji sat cross-legged inside the tent, doing things in silence. Even when Fukamachi pointed the camera at him, Hanyu didn't seem to care about the camera anymore. He laid out the climbing tools with a blank expression, and checked the equipment for challenging the southwest wall alone.

Final check. You can never have too much checking. Mark each item on the list with a pencil. A small pencil. The reason why fountain pens or ballpoint pens are not used is that those stationery items are not resistant to cold and height.On high mountains over 8,000 meters, the ink often freezes, and it is not uncommon for the ink to overflow due to low air pressure. There are also small notepad-sized notebooks. Fukamachi's eyes stopped there. The notebook and pencil lay at Hanyu's feet.Notebooks are thinner than they appear. Do you want to take it too?Fukamachi asked. Um.Hanyu replied.

He picked up his little notebook. A familiar notebook. It was the same notebook that Hanyu took notes on the rock shed and handed to Ryoko Kishi when he climbed the Great Cholas Peak. Take it and see. Hanyu handed the notebook to Fukamachi. Fukamachi tried to hold it in his hand, it was so light.Turn the page and see why.Because about half of the inside pages were cut off. This is? Because you want to bring items up the mountain, it's best to be as light as possible. Hanyu said he cut off the extra pages. This too. Hanyu showed Fukamachi the small pencil in his hand.The end of the pencil is chipped off.

Shortened by about 1.5 centimeters.Hanyu said. He took the notebook from Fukamachi and tore off the gray cover on the spot.Peel off the front and back covers to reveal the white interior pages of the notebook. When you think about it, it's also excess weight. Hanyu moved the torn cover aside, and placed the notebook on the edge of a row of equipment. The sundries that were placed in front of Hanyu and Fukamachi were all Hanyu's equipment this time. Using a wide-angle lens, Fukamachi put all the equipment together with Hanyu into the viewfinder, and pressed the shutter. Can I see it?

Fukamachi picked up the paper that Hanyu used to check the equipment, and carefully looked at the contents. Items of equipment are carefully written with a ballpoint pen, and even the weight is recorded. 2 Millet Mountaineering Backpack 30L Eight mm nylon climbing rope 40m Replacement socks five pairs Vacuum bottle 1L KAMOSHIKA single tent 1.2kg (expedition specification) Altimeter (Swiss Soman mountaineering watch) hard hat 1 walkie talkie 1 Headlight 1 AAA battery 8 candle 1 lighter EPI alpine gas cylinder 3 (burner 1) Universal pot 1 Small swiss knife 1 plastic spoon 1 1 plastic fork (both handles are shortened)

Roll toilet paper with core removed 1 Full feather sleeping bag (made in Tianshan, China. No sleeping bag cover) Rope loops, 15 pieces of 40 cm Shackle 10 4 ice wedges 5 wedge nails Sealing tape (half roll) notebook (no cover) pencil (shaved part) sunscreen Calcium vitamin tablets 5 tablets Powder soup 12 packets baby food Honey raisin Condensed milk in tube packaging chocolate candy portable radio This was the weight Hanyu carried on his shoulders when he set off. All add up to 14.5 kilograms. Then there are the items you wear on your body. □□□ Trekking poles ice ax 12-claw crampons (front kick)

watch ZERO POINT underwear cotton underwear Thick Rayon Underwear Triple structure Gore︱Tex windproof pants Inner gloves (left and right hands) Cold gloves (left and right hands) Wool socks (left and right feet) Double plastic boots (left and right) Long leggings (left and right feet) wool hat goggles The above is the equipment that Hanyu will wear on his body and climb up. Holding trekking poles and ice axes in each of the left and right hands, while knocking into the ice wall, they kicked into the ice with the front claws of the crampons installed on the hiking boots, stepped on the ice, and then climbed up.

On this winter mountain, underwear is the key to life and death. For example, in the case of mountain climbing in winter, having cotton underwear next to the skin is the worst.Although cotton is easy to absorb water, once it gets wet, its warmth retention effect will drop rapidly.Furthermore, although it is highly hygroscopic, it also retains moisture in the fiber.Wet cotton shirts stick to skin sticky. If you choose wool underwear, wool can absorb sweat, and use human body temperature to evaporate sweat and drain it from the underwear. So, if wool underwear is as thick as cotton underwear, they will hold about the same amount of warmth when dry, but will make a huge difference when wet.

Among the people who died on the mountain in winter, there were several cases of rescue, all of whom were in woolen underwear. ZERO POINT is a chemical fiber that further enhances this property of wool. There is a reason why the food is almost always turned into a liquid or made into a pastry. Once it exceeds 8,000 meters, humans can hardly eat solid food.Therefore, honey and soup become basic food. The powder soup is because of the lightness.Make the soup into a light powder and carry it up, dissolve it in water and heat it when eating.Water can come from the snow, and it is inexhaustible and inexhaustible, so there is no need to take it with you.

However, no matter how light the luggage was, Hanyu would end up carrying luggage that was nearly 20 kilograms heavier than empty-handed.Therefore, can humans really walk to the top of Mount Everest alone without oxygen? Fukamachi looked at the list, and at this juncture, he still felt trembling in his body. Hey, you're shaking!Hanyu who was sitting down said to Fukamachi. Fukamachi lowered his gaze, only to realize that his legs were trembling constantly. 3 The purpose of changing socks is to exchange them with the socks worn all day in the tent before going to bed at night. Wouldn't this increase the luggage?Fukamachi asked Hanyu.

Won't.Hanyu shook his head. If you move for a day, your feet will sweat a lot.Socks will absorb sweat.That means the socks get wet with sweat.That humidity can cause frostbite.Hanyu said. Climbing up to 8,000 meters will decrease your physical strength.It is difficult to warm one's feet with one's own blood flow, the body temperature drops, and the wet parts will freeze. If you get frostbite because of this, you will lose your balance subtly on the ice wall with a slope as high as 50 degrees.If you stumble and slip, you will die. By the way, Hanyu removed the core of the roll of toilet paper that he brought with him.I cut the small pencil for the memo pad out of it and shorten it.Even the cover of the notebook was torn off as unnecessary and discarded.Because Hanyu thought that he should reduce the weight of the luggage he carried himself to some extent.Even parts of the handles of plastic spoons and forks were cut off as excess weight. The chipped handle, the core of the roll of toilet paper, and a part of the pencil all add up to only a few grams, even if it is slightly heavier, it is probably less than ten grams. Even so, I still want to ease Lu Fukamachi's understanding of this feeling. Because Fukamachi also walks at an altitude of more than 7,000 meters. Once at that height, even if you move a little, you will be panting.At that time, there will be confusion in the heart. Did you do what you could? Is it possible to reduce the luggage a little more? Even with this anxiety, it will only get in the way of climbing.Even when doing nothing, the mind can be dulled by low oxygen and fatigue.At this time, if there is another disturbing thought in your mind, it will lead to accidents. If you do that job well, you don't have to think about it. I did everything I could. Therefore, Hanyu completely lightened his luggage. Having said that, why did Hanyu insist on lightness to such an extent, but he had to carry the extra weight of replacement socks up the mountain?Fukamachi was curious about this. Even if it will be somewhat heavier, it is best to bring replacement socks for the sake of your feet.This is Hanyu's conclusion. Weight can cause problems, above 8,000 meters.By that time, there were no replacement socks on my body.Because after each replacement, the old ones will be thrown away, and when the final attack is made, I will not wear other socks on my body except the ones I was wearing at that time. That's what happened.Fukamachi nodded. However, there was something else that made him curious. That was Hanyu's schedule for summiting Mount Everest.What kind of schedule does Hanyu want to capture the southwest face of Mount Everest? I have something to ask you.Fukamachi said. What's up? schedule.I want to know how you're going to conquer Mount Everest. As soon as Fukamachi said, Hanyu glanced at the top of the tent, and then turned his gaze back to Fukamachi. Four days and three nights Hanyu muttered. 4 The southwest wall of Mount Everest has long refused to be climbed by humans, among which there is a long history. The first was the investigation launched by the Japan Mountaineering Association in 1969.Including this time, until the Ukrainian international team in 1992, there were a total of 23 teams on the southwest wall to investigate and attack the summit.Among them, only three teams successfully climbed to the summit, and each reached the summit in autumn.Among the three teams, one team managed to reach the summit, but after reuniting with other summit team members, their whereabouts were unknown.All four climbers died forever. After reaching the summit, only the British team in 1975 survived intact. □□□ Spring 1969 Japan Mountaineering Association (reconnaissance) In the autumn of 1969, the Japan Mountaineering Association (reconnaissance) tried to climb the southwest wall to 8,050 meters In the spring of 1970, the Japan Mountaineering Association gave up climbing the summit from the southeast ridge at 8,050 meters on the southwest wall. In the spring of 1971, the international mountaineering team gave up at 8,350 meters on the southwest wall In the spring of 1972, the All-European international team gave up at the southwest wall at 8,350 meters In the autumn of 1972, the British team gave up at the southwest wall at 8,320 meters In the autumn of 1973, the second RCC in Japan gave up at 8,380 meters on the southwest wall, and climbed to the summit from the southeast ridge It took thirty-three days from BC (Base Camp) for the British team to summit the Southwest Face for the first time in autumn 1975 In the spring of 1982, the Soviet team reached the summit from the left rock ridge of the southwest wall via the west ridge In the autumn of 1984, the Czechoslovakian team gave up their second summit on the South Ridge on the Southwest Face The Indian team gave up at the southwest wall at 7,000 meters in the autumn of 1985 In the winter of 1985, the Tokyo Mountaineering Association of Japan gave up climbing to the summit from the southeast ridge at 8,380 meters on the southwest wall. In the winter of 1985︱86, the South Korean team gave up at 700 meters on the southwest wall 1986︱In the winter of 1987, the South Korean team gave up at 8,350 meters on the southwest wall In the spring of 1987, the Czechoslovakian team gave up on the southwest wall at 8,250 meters In the autumn of 1988, the Czechoslovakian team climbed to the summit from the southwest face, and all the team members who made the summit climb were gone forever. 1988︱In the winter of 1989, the South Korean team gave up at the southwest wall at 700 or 800 meters In the spring of 1989, the French team gave up at 7,800 meters on the southwest wall In the autumn of 1990, the Spanish (Basque) team gave up at the southwest wall at 8,320 meters In the autumn of 1990, the South Korean team gave up at 700 meters on the southwest wall In the spring of 1991, the South Korean team gave up on the southwest wall at 8,300 meters 1991︱In the winter of 1992, the Gunma County Mountaineering Federation gave up at the southwest wall at 8,350 meters In the autumn of 1992, the Ukrainian international team gave up at the southwest wall at 8,700 meters As of 1992, 21 teams have challenged the southwest wall, except for the two teams of investigation. It can be said that all of them have failed. In the Czechoslovakian team in 1988, although one person climbed to the summit, everyone including one climber died and could not return from the summit triumphantly, so it felt like a defeat. In addition, including Hanyu himself who participated in the expedition of the Tokyo Mountain Association in 1985, five teams challenged in the winter, but all of them returned without success. In recent years, mountaineering equipment has been continuously improved, and technology and professional knowledge have also been improved day by day, but such a rock wall that continues to refuse humans to climb to the top is unique. How can Hanyu climb in winter and in a solo anaerobic way? From the base camp at 5,400 meters to the peak at 8,848 meters, conceptually, the climbing route can be divided into five sections. First of all, it is the ice waterfall belt where the Kumbu Glacier turned into an ice waterfall and fell down.Generally speaking, the first battalion will be located directly above the icefall climbed. From the base camp to the first camp, the straight-line distance on the map is about three kilometers, but in reality, the distance a person walks is more than twice as far.This is a glacier waterfall with a width of 1,000 meters and a drop of 700 meters.The slope would have house-sized chunks of ice caving in from about the height of four Shinjuku skyscrapers stacked on top of each other.Ice blocks, ice crevasses, snow bridges, and when people pass by, they also continue to move and collapse. There is a super huge glacial slope that extends from above the icefall to the west valley.Although the slope is not high, the approach road is very long.At an altitude of 6,700 meters, there is a huge crack between the glacier and the rock wall of Mount Everest: the Ice Gorge.So far is the second section. The third section starts from this ice gorge, passes through the battleship rock at an altitude of 6,900 meters, and reaches the gray rock peak at an altitude of 7,600 meters. The height difference is 700 meters. Forty to forty-five degrees is a slope formed by rocks and snow. From here, it is the so-called core area of ​​the true southwest wall. The biggest obstacle on the southwest wall is called the rock belt, where the rock wall is almost vertical.It is necessary to cross the Couloir on the left and on the right.This is the fourth section. Once you cross the rocky ditch in the rock belt, you will reach an altitude of 8,350 meters. From this point climb the wall below the Yellow Belt in a zigzag to the right.Then, come to the top of the southeast ridge, the col between the main peak of Mount Everest and the South Peak, with an altitude of more than 8,700 meters.This southeastern ridge is the so-called traditional route.As long as you come above the southeast ridge, the next part to the summit is not technically difficult. Climbing the top cone of Mount Everest.This is the fifth section. It is not possible to pitch a tent anywhere during this journey.Slopes full of snow or rocks are often in danger of avalanches and falling rocks.Although we are exhausted, we cannot pitch a tent anywhere. For example, just below the Battleship Rock on a 40-degree slope, there is a space of only about 60 centimeters, which is a rare safe zone. Because the falling rocks falling from the wide slope will fly into the air from above the Gunkan Rock and pass overhead.However, it's not really a safe place either.If you are hit directly by a fist-sized rockfall, the falling rock can smash the helmet, break the skull, and easily penetrate into the human brain. Moreover, falling rocks do not happen occasionally, but often. Whether they will be hit or not can be said to be pure luck. In addition, there are jet streams blowing on the rock wall of Everest, whose wind speed is often as high as 60 meters.The giant peaks of the Himalayas are often exposed to this kind of wind. anaerobic. act alone. avalanche. falling rocks. Difficult rock face. The air is twenty to forty degrees below zero. height barrier. Long approach. Bad weather. and strong winds. Under such severe conditions, how to capture the summit of Mount Everest in four days and three nights? Can it be done in four days and three nights? Because of four days and three nights, it can be done. How can it be. When Fukamachi said that, Hanyu looked at him provocatively.It can be done.Hanyu said. I was thinking desperately about this southwest wall.Since the failure in 1985, I have been thinking about the southwest wall day and night.I never forgot about the southwest wall for a day. Fukamachi thought, it should be. It is impossible for Hanyu to give up the once failed rock wall.Especially since it was a rock wall that no one had ever climbed, it was absolutely impossible for him to forget it.For Hanyu, "unforgettable" refers to the determination to climb that rock wall.Not just determination, but actually climbing. As Hanyu said, in the past eight years, he probably never forgot about it for a single day. If it's about the southwest wall, no matter how small the rock wall is, I know it all.I know exactly where the rock walls are and how they protrude.Even with my eyes closed, I can walk in the icefall.I know which crevasse to avoid, how to use a double axe, and which piece of ice to drive an ice stick into.With which foot to step into the icefall, which foot to step out.After climbing the icefall, choose the central route in the West Valley, and then change the route to Nubu Peak.The width of the ice gorge was also on my mind.From there, it turns into a forty-degree ice slope.After taking that slope to the Battleship Rock, climb to the left in a zigzag for 25 meters on the ice slope.From here, the slope changes to forty-five degrees.Climb that slope with the twin axes Hanyu's eyes flickered with determination. In his mind, the scene of himself walking in the picture he said must have appeared. I will never partner with anyone again.I'm going to climb alone.Even if it fails or goes smoothly, it is all my responsibility.Standing on the peak is also a person.I was the only one who had to give up and retreat. Hanyu murmured firmly. When you die, you are also alone.He added this sentence in a cold tone. I won't carry anyone's luggage, and I don't want anyone to carry it for me.I will not shovel snow to clear the way for other team members, nor do I want other team members to shovel snow to clear the way for me.Hanyu twisted his body in pain and said. Just now, you said that you can do it because of four days and three nights, right? I did. what does that mean? The British team in 1975 spent thirty-three days climbing the southwest face in autumn. However, thirty-three days is the shortest time so far, right? Still, it's too long.Listen, it takes less time to climb the Southwest Face in winter if you go it alone. Do you know why the British team took so much time? Why? for safety.They spent so much time on safety. They moved eight kilometers of fixed rope, eight hundred gas bottles, seventy oxygen bottles, a ton of food, and other miscellaneous items to the base camp and from there to the camp above.Twenty ladders, thirty tents.They used wedges, climbing ropes, and ice axes to move an unimaginably large amount of materials up, so that the twenty-three team members and Sherpas could move and eat safely. Fukamachi could also understand what Hanyu said. In the case of Icefall, there is also work to clear the way there.Inside its labyrinth, pull up the fixed rope.In order not to get lost in the interior surrounded by seracs, but also in order to pass there safely and efficiently.There are countless large and small ice crevasses inside, which must be fixed by erecting aluminum ladders according to their width. As for the dangerous rock field, the same is true. Drive pegs into the rock, install a carabiner, pass a climbing rope through it, and climb using a ascender. If it is on snow, once the vision becomes poor due to fog, it will be difficult to distinguish the direction.So put up the flag there, too, and pull the rope. For the British team, most of the 33 days were spent on that kind of thing: carrying luggage, taking climbing ropes, and climbing from C1 and C2 to the summit. It's all about getting a few, sometimes a team member safely to the summit. However It wasn't just the British team that did that. Many teams climb the Himalayas in the same way. There are so many things one has to do to climb the giant peaks of the Himalayas, and yet even with so many things, people get killed and die.This is the Himalayas. At the 8,000-meter peak of the Himalayas, several mountaineers managed to climb the summit alone without oxygen, but many of these solo climbers took advantage of the routes set by other teams that entered the mountain at the same time. If you are alone, it doesn't take thirty-three days. However, four days and three nights are Over the past eight years, I have racked my brains to come up with a conclusion.I'm not just dreaming.It is the conclusion obtained by actually climbing on the southwest wall several times.If you want to climb the southwest wall alone, you must make a quick decision. You are listening.It is assumed that all the opening work to the summit is completed. Hypothetical topic? That's right.The weather is good, the altitude is good, the physical strength and technology are first-class, the body is in good condition, and is fully rested. I am more familiar with the mountainous area of ​​Mount Everest than anyone else. I have climbed on the southwest wall several times. 1,000 meters in height.What if that person uses oxygen and takes the route that's already been laid out? Four days and three nights is not impossible. Hanyu said as if he wanted to confirm what he said, but also as if he wanted to tell himself. From base camp to C2, it actually takes only six and a half hours.It only takes six and a half hours from C2 to C3.From C3 to C4 is eight hours.It is eight hours from C4 to the summit.It takes three hours and ten minutes to go down from the peak to C4.These are all records set by the British team.Days of action range from six and a half to eight and a half hours.Adding up these times, it was four days and three nights. However, it must have been a record set by several team members on a day with good weather.It is impossible for a team member to continuously move that distance in four days and three nights. At least, not completely fanciful. Fukamachi, listen to me!Hanyu turned up the volume. You listened well, starting from the base camp in the morning, it took two and a half hours to cross the icefall with a pair of axes, and then it took four hours to go to the West Valley at 6,500 meters.Spend one night there. The next day, cross the ice gorge, pass through the Battleship Rock, and reach the gray rock peak of 7,600 meters.it takes eight hours Spend the second night at the base of the gray rock peak and set off the next morning.It takes eight hours to go through the gully, climb the rock belt, and spend the night there.There is my final camp.The next morning, leave the tent there, reach the summit in eight hours, and return to the tent in three hours, which is exactly four days and three nights. But Listen carefully, you can also reach the Gunkan Rock on the first day.If you plan to speed up the pace a little, walk an extra hour and a half.However, I will not do that.Do you know why?Hanyu's eyes sparkled with a determined light. What's the meaning?Fukamachi asked. Because Fukamachi asked, Hanyu twisted his lips contentedly.He looks like he's smiling.In reality, however, it was just a twitching upward movement of the right side of the lip, where the white teeth showed. There was no smile in his eyes. To minimize the time spent at high altitudes. Even if you spend the night at Warship Rock on the first day, you will spend the night at Gray Rock Peak on the second day anyway.The schedule will not change.In this case, it is better to spend one night at the West Valley at 6,500 meters than at the Battleship Rock at 6,900 meters. do you know?No matter how hard humans try, there are heights that they cannot fully adapt to.Although it varies from person to person, it happens to be around 6,500 meters.Listen carefully, once you exceed that altitude, no matter how smoothly you acclimate to the altitude, if you just sleep without doing anything, you will get more and more tired.So, 6,500 meters.If you spend one night there, you can start the next day's itinerary with almost no fatigue.Anyway, if you adapt to the altitude smoothly, you don't need an oxygen cylinder before 6,500 meters.In other words, only the three days and two nights starting from the second day count as anaerobic climbing. Hanyu stared at Fukamachi and said. but Fukamachi stuttered. No matter how feasible it is in theory, things will not go according to theory after arriving at the scene. However, Fukamachi doesn't need to point out that kind of thing, Hanyu probably knows it well. That doesn't take the astronomical phenomena into account.You're probably assuming four days of good weather in a row.Maybe wait for the weather to improve during the climb? I brought four more days' worth of food. However, the weather I know.You are right, the point is the weather.To be more specific, it's the wind.The area around Mount Everest is exposed to stronger winds during the Christmas period in December than before.Mountaineering is no longer possible during this period.Even if the wind stops halfway, it will take a day or two at most.Strong winds will pick up again on the third day, and this will continue until spring.If you encounter this kind of wind while walking on the ridgeline of Mount Everest, you will be blown away immediately.Therefore, the summit attack must be completed before this wind blows.However, that kind of wind does not always start from mid to late December.It varies from year to year, sometimes earlier.So, December 15th is a benchmark.In other words, the mountaineering must be completed by that day. To think of waiting for the weather to improve during the climb, you have to start from base camp before December 10, right? That's right.Hanyu nodded. Fukamachi thought, probably Hanyu would go. Hanyu will probably go. If Hanyu climbed up the Oni Rock with Inoue, and later climbed up the Oni Rock alone, he would probably go. Where can I climb with him? Peak is impossible. If so, where can it climb? Icefall is no problem. Although I didn't pull the rope, if I was fully adapted to the height, I should be able to use the double axes to cross the icefall at the same speed as if I pulled the rope. As for other places, it should be the same. If you have Hanyu's technique, stamina, and willpower but I Fukamachi bit her lip. 5 November 30 During the day, Angarin came up from the mountain. As soon as Angarin unloaded the backpack, he reached out to Fukamachi. I'm going to take pictures of Bisalu sap.Fukamachi held Angarin's hand, and I will not prevent him from acting alone. I know. Angarin said while patting the intertwined hands of the two with his other hand from above. No matter who you are, you have the right to live your own life. This short conversation turned into a greeting. After the meal, Pucha was held.In May of this year, Fukamachi also experienced the ceremony of the Sherpa people praying for the safety of mountain climbing. The three of them stacked stones to build an altar as high as the chest, and then erected a stick on the altar. From the top of the stick, a rope attached to many prayer flags was pulled to the ground in all directions. red. blue. green. yellow. white. Five-colored flags sway in the wind. The three sat in front of the altar. Burning incense, in the cool and cold air, came the smell of juniper. Angarin began to chant sutras quietly. After chanting, An Jialin stood up and handed out a pot filled with white powder to the two of them. Sprinkle this into the sky. Tsampa Tibetans and Sherpas are the staple food of highland barley powder. The three of them grabbed a handful each. An Jialin winked, and the three of them threw the highland barley powder into the sky.The white powder scattered in the blue sky, and immediately scattered with the wind, and then returned to the original blue sky. 6 December 1st It's December. From this day on, it can finally be regarded as winter mountaineering. In the morning, the temperature was seventeen degrees below zero. Temperatures are rising. Three degrees higher than yesterday. The sky is clear, but there are cirrus clouds brushed with a few fine brushes in the distant sky above the Nubu Peak. Hanyu sat down on the rock, staring at the cirrus cloud. Beautiful white snow smoke leaps into the blue sky from the rock peak of Nubu Peak, which is 7 to 861 meters above sea level. Strong winds flow at high altitude. On this day, Hanyu obviously had no intention of climbing. How about it?Fukamachi asked. no.Hanyu said briefly. Hanyu only answered this sentence. After entering December, Hanyu immediately stopped talking. Hanyu was originally a man of few words, but at a certain point he would become talkative. Is he such a talkative man? Sometimes when he speaks, it makes Fukamachi think so. However, he who talked too much disappeared.Hanyu turned into a solid rock, silently staring at the sky. It's like trying to see the invisible summit of Mount Everest hidden behind the west edge of Mount Everest, staring at the blue sky high above. Number three can't do it, Angarin said to Hanyu from behind Fukamachi. Once the temperature rises and those clouds appear above, it will turn overcast.Can't move for the next three days. Angarin said as if interpreting for Hanyu. Hanyu silently stared at the air. 7 December 2 Twenty degrees below zero. The weather turned cloudy. Dark clouds covered the top of Nubu Peak, and it was invisible above 7,600 meters. Clouds are overhead, flowing towards Tibet in overwhelming momentum. From time to time the clouds would split open, revealing an astonishingly clear blue sky.A thick ray of light fell from a gap in the clouds, and the halo could be seen passing over the gray ice.The halo crossed the glacier, rushed up the rock face of Mount Everest's west ridge, and disappeared from the ridge to the sky.In fact, the light disappearing on the other side of the ridge would spill down the slopes on the Tibet side towards the Khumbu Glacier, but from the ground it would appear to be heading towards the sky. Majestic movement. The weight of the scene was overwhelming. In the dynamic of that scene, Hanyu sat alone on the rock. Fukamachi held the camera and took pictures of the surrounding scenery and Hanyu from a distance. Hanyu became even more reticent than before.Rarely wants to talk unless necessary. The boxer who is about to start a fight might turn into what Hanyu is at this time. Hanyu seemed to be immersed in the depths of his heart. 8 December 3rd. The temperature is twenty-two degrees below zero. cloudy day. The wind was strong. 9 December 4th. The temperature is twenty degrees below zero. Sunny in the morning, occasionally cloudy in the afternoon. The wind was strong. 10 December 5th. The temperature is twenty degrees below zero. cloudy day. The wind was strong. 11 December 6th. The temperature is twenty degrees below zero. snow. In the morning, Fukamachi woke up to the sound of snow falling. Patter patter, the snow made a cold sound when it touched the tent. Fukamachi already knew what that sound was. It is snow.Snowing. The sound of snow falling from the sky, touching the outer tent of the tent. During this period, the air is dry and snow does not fall often. Fukamachi felt the tent shaking constantly. The wind suddenly strengthened and suddenly weakened.Whenever this happens, the sound of snow touching the tent will be stronger and weaker at times.There is no set rhythm. Fukamachi listened to that voice for a long time in the warm sleeping bag. GORE︱TEX sleeping bag. No sleeping bag cover. If you put on a sleeping bag cover, although it can effectively prevent external moisture, the moisture inside cannot be discharged smoothly. Even at an altitude of more than 5,000 meters, the human body still sweats.The sweat will be evaporated by body temperature, absorbed by the down, and then discharged by the GORE︱TEX film. GORE︱TEX fabric gaps are smaller than water particles and larger than air particles.In other words, it has the property of allowing gas such as air to pass through, but not allowing moisture such as sweat to pass through. When the water vapor evaporated by sweat due to body temperature is released outside the GORE︱TEX film, once there is a sleeping bag cover there, it will cool down there and freeze on the inside.The ice will melt due to body temperature, wet the sleeping bag, or freeze the sleeping bag. Hanyu's equipment also does not include a sleeping bag cover. Fukamachi unzipped the sleeping bag, sat up and checked the camera. Confirm the movement of the lens focusing, and lightly press the shutter button. will move. Put down the camera, climb out of the sleeping bag, and put on the hiking boots that were frozen like ice in the tent. Then put on a down jacket. The temperature inside the tent was minus fifteen degrees. It should be colder outside. The inside of the tent is freezing. Fukamachi unzipped the entrance and stepped into the cold air. A whole sheet of snow. The field of vision is less than 100 meters, and the rock faces and glaciers of Nub Peak cannot be seen. Only the gray snow that fell from the sky filled the huge space. Nearly three centimeters of snow had accumulated on the rocks at his feet. On the side is the tent of the base camp, swaying gently with the wind. On the opposite side were Hanyu's tent and an Angarin's tent. The wind kept blowing the hood of the down jacket. Fukamachi glanced in the direction of Hanyu's tent. There are footprints on the snow around the entrance.Those were the footprints of Hanyu going out from the tent, not the one coming back. Hanyu seemed to have gone somewhere. Fukamachi decided to try to follow that trail. After walking about ten meters, I saw a figure on the opposite side. Hanyu sat in his usual place, on the rock where he usually sits. He sat and stared at the snow-falling sky. 12 Will it snow during this period? Fukamachi thought so. Air dry.Before the wind reaches this height, the moisture in the air will evaporate completely halfway, so it rarely snows. However Not absolutely not. In the middle and early December, there is basically no snow, but that is basically at best.It will still snow some days.One of the days when it snowed was this day.That was December 6, 1993, when Hanyu was at the base camp of Mount Everest, and he was very anxious. A few hundred meters above the base camp, there seemed to be strong winds in the area above the altitude of 6,000 meters. The wind roared and whizzed past from a high altitude, as if there were a group of countless beasts running around in the gray sky directly above the head. Bad thoughts floated in Fukamachi's mind. Is it reasonable to say that the snowstorm that will come in the middle and late December should report early at this time in the middle and early December? If so, Hanyu must give up climbing to the summit. But if this is not the case, if this snow and wind are temporary, there is still hope. 13 December 7th. seven in the morning. It was minus nineteen degrees. snow. The wind was strong. Hanyu didn't say a word. 14 December 8th. seven in the morning. It was minus nineteen degrees. snow. The wind was strong. Hanyu remained silent. 15 December nine. In the morning, six thirty. Twenty degrees below zero. snow. The wind was strong. 16 December tenth. In the morning, six thirty. Twenty-two degrees below zero. snow. In the afternoon, clear the clouds and see the sun, and the blue sky shows your face. The wind was strong. 17 December eleventh. Twenty-three degrees below zero. sunny. Fukamachi opened his eyes in his sleeping bag. The bright light that was different from the past filled the tent.The degree of brightness makes people forget the difficult weather of the past ten days. There is no wind. The wind that kept shaking the tent was gone. Straighten your upper body. Unzip the sleeping bag. The water vapor frozen on the surface of the sleeping bag crystallized and fell down with a rustle. Before putting on your shoes, unzip your tent and poke your face out. It cleared up.Overhead was a blackish blue sky. Wear your shoes and go outside. The rock peak of Nubu Peak is in front of you. Pure white snow smoke was blown from that rock peak into the blue sky. Even though there is no wind on the ground, the towering rock top is still in strong winds. Also, the sun didn't hit base camp. The rock edges and ice waterfalls on the left and right sides of the West Valley are still submerged in the dim blue light.Yet only part of the Nubu Peak and the adjacent ledge are exposed to sunlight. Hanyu Joji and Angarin stood beside the rock directly opposite, looking up at the sky. Fukamachi walked towards the two of them and said to them: It's sunny. Um.Hanyu looked at the sky above Mount Nubu and nodded. Of course there was no smile on his face, and he gritted his teeth hard. It was clear that the sun had cleared, but Hanyu showed a more serious expression than before. what to do?Fukamachi asked. What do you mean? Are you leaving today? don't want.Hanyu shook his head. We have to wait all day for the snow that has just fallen to stabilize before starting tomorrow. What's the weather tomorrow? Of course it was sunny.Hanyu said. The temperature also dropped.This is a good sign.Fukamachi said. There are things that must be paid more attention to than temperature.Hanyu stared at a corner of the sky and said so. The biggest enemy of the southwest wall in winter is not the cold.but the wind yes. It doesn't matter, anyway, it's not like going there in a day.It depends on how the wind will change in four days and three nights from tomorrow.Hanyu glanced at the white snow smoke blowing from the top of Nubu Peak. What a nice view. 然而，深町也十分清楚，不管從遠方看起來如何，實際上處於那片雪煙之中，會是多麼駭人的狀態。 風速是四十公尺，或者五十公尺。說不定那裡正颳著瞬間風速更快的強風。從這裡看不見聖母峰頂，但想必會把同樣的雪煙吹得更高吧。聖母峰頂比努布峰更高上一千公尺。 深町想到要去那片雪煙中的羽生。 這個男人要去那陣風中嗎？到了稜線之後，八成連半步都走不動吧。 必須在那道稜線上移動時，要將腹部毫無縫隙地緊貼在岩坡或雪坡上。如果有一丁點縫隙，風就會灌入那裡，使得身體浮起來。一旦身體浮起來，大概就會被吹到半空中，立刻被拋到西藏的空中。 要好好固定身體，趁風平靜下來時移動。風有節奏。並不是經常以同樣的強度吹，而是有強弱之分。雖然不會停止，但只有轉弱時能夠行動。 然而，深町猜不透風停止的瞬間，長一點是十多秒，還是三十多秒。 如果是自己，無論有任何理由，都不想前往處於那種狀態下的稜線上。 因為前往那種風中，等於是一種自殺行為。即使是羽生，應該也是一樣。 如果那不是十二月中下旬會來的喜瑪拉雅山特有的風，就還有希望。如果做好心理準備，要在頂端的營區待三天，等待風止息，八成會有機會。 明天吧安伽林嘀咕了一句。 明天可以出發。安伽林拍了拍羽生的肩。 Bisalu sap啊，明天，你將從這裡出發，然後知道 what do you know?羽生瞇著眼睛擡頭看白色的雪煙問道。 自己是不是受上天眷顧的人 受上天眷顧啊 你必須去那裡，問上天那件事。 There 前往那片美麗而狂野的雪煙之中。 前往超越人類領域的眾神領域之中。 有資格能問上天那件事的人少之又少。但是你有那個資格。安伽林又拍了拍羽生的肩。 羽生只是沉默地，瞇著眼睛眺望斜吹上藍天的白色雪煙。 18 一九九三年十二月十二日。 零下二十二度。 晴空萬里。 早上七點出發。