Among all other islands all over the world, Taiwan has the highest density of
mountain peaks. Besides the highest mountain in East Asia, Jade Mountain, there are 268 peaks over 3000 meters high. In recent years, outdoor activities have exploded in popularity, and thus, Backpacking has become popular all over Taiwan. But in this documentary series, I won't be introducing any particular mountains. What's more interesting to me are the people who have different attitudes and ideas about the mountai
ns. I'm a director. I love mountains. This is Shen Chi. Today is Oct 25th. Friday. Where are we? We are at Camp 1. A crazy Camp 1. It's freaking cold. How can there be a place this cold? Look, it’s just noodles and a spoon. That noodles. -I can't get the spoon off.
-It's stuck. The characters are
two adventure-loving middle-aged men. We're headed for wild stream off-roading in Yilan, listening to their stories about mountaineering in Nepal. I used to organize a Jeep team, and I had a web page fo
r it. Kooye came and left messages. I like fishing for Kooye minnows, so everyone calls me Kooye. We first met off-road on vehicles. We first met off-road on vehicles. Soon, it turned into off-road in human form. Soon, it turned into off-road in human form. Off-road on feet. Kooye took me on my first backpacking experience. After that trip to Xue Mountain, I fell in love with backpacking. I later went to fifty mountains or so. We saw some mountains abroad through websites and magazines, and wond
ered what they are like. For mountain lovers, there's always a longing to visit Nepal. It's kind of like if you are Jewish, you'll want to visit Jerusalem. So for our honeymoon, my wife and I decided to go hiking in Nepal. The most unforgettable part was the route my wife and I took. We took our wedding photos there. My wife did her own makeup,
and put on false eyelashes herself. It was freezing. After she got her pose ready, the Nepal guide rushed there, quickly snatched the coat away, and ran
back. After the shot, the guide rushed back and covered her with the coat. When I stood at the base camp, I saw rows of snow walls in front of me, all exceeding 8000 meters. It's such an excitement. Then I came up with an idea. Maybe I should try to go to these mountains. Before returning, I asked the guide which mountain I could attempt first. He suggested Island Peak. So I started doing the research after returning to Taiwan. When it comes to backpacking, it's a never-ending journey. I’ve been
to 6000-meter-high mountains twice,
and I thought it was enough. However, after a couple of months of work, I started thinking about the 7000-meter-high mountains. It's like fishing. You'd become eager for bigger fish. Same for the mountains. You'll always seek higher mountains. When we were selecting
from the 7000-meter-high mountains, we thought about picking one that no Taiwanese have ever been to. I told Kooye, “Let's pick this one.” This is our captain, Ramesh. Hey Ramesh, say something. H
ello, welcome to Himlung Himal base camp. So which one is Himlung? -Himlung is this one.
-Okay. Kooye looked at the summit
through the binoculars every morning. He wanted to see if any team succeeded summiting. He kept observing and came to tell me which team retreated. We've seen so many teams retreating along the way. When passing by them, their facial expression doesn't look too good. On the way to Camp 2, we met two foreigners. One English and one French. They've decided to retreat. I asked
him why and he answered, “Super cold!” Then I started thinking, we came from Taiwan, a subtropical country, we are used to a warm climate. But if they couldn't take it there, could we? When climbing a 6000 or 7000-meter-high mountain, it’s much more dangerous than going to Baiyue in Taiwan. But when you are doing something risky, you shouldn't be completely unprepared. You must make all the preparation, do the research. Whether it's physical strength, equipment, and mindset, you must be well-pre
pared. You must be responsible for yourself. Then leave the rest to fate. On Discovery or National Geographic channels, they’ll show the protagonist’s name and profession. Some people are called an "adventurer," and I wish to be like them. Because there is a saying that, "The riskiest thing is not to take risks." When you refuse to take risks, you are staying in your comfort zone, There will be no breakthroughs in life, and that applies to our society and country, too. The license plate is gone!
My grandma often asks me not to go backpacking. If Columbus' grandma had asked him not to go on his voyage, and he listened, there will be no new world. When climbing 7000 or 8000-meter-high peaks, you can't keep going up. You will spend each night at different altitudes. After staying in Camp 1, Camp 2 and Camp 3, your body gradually adjust. But we always do things that others can’t imagine. We told the foreigners, we were going to reach the summit from Camp 2 directly. They asked us why we sk
ipped Camp 3? We told him that it was too cold up there. We hoped to stay one night less. They wondered how could this be a reason? When your mental, physical, all conditions were at their best, including the weather. If you don't go up now, the weather would get bad. It was our last chance. We're currently at an altitude of around 6100 meters, equivalent to the summit of Island Peak. We are at Camp 2 of Himlung Himal. Tomorrow we are going to push for the summit. Actually, we are at the foot of
Himlung. Can you see it? There is a small slope going up. -That's Himlung Himal.
-The sharp tip. Let me move a little. Tomorrow... -Not tomorrow.
-It's today. We're going to set out at 9 or 10 p.m. We will go through Camp 3 on the way. They say this short distance will take more than ten hours. I don't get either. Pushing to the summit at night gives you an advantage. You couldn’t see anything at all. -Right.
-Nothing at all. You could only see the ass of the person ahead of you. This approach
was actually quite nice. Otherwise you’d feel very helpless. It was uphill climb all the way, and it was freezing. With the crampons on, our feet were splayed out, like a frog perched on a rock, on a block of ice. I felt like I was a frog. After reaching the ridge, you’d feel a sense of exposure. By that time, the day was about to break. Suddenly you realized that it was all empty around. Nothing. Just a step away to say goodbye forever. You'd meet your end once you fall, from whichever side. Yo
u had only one main rope. You had to rely on your carabiners, arms and legs to propel yourself upward. This leads you to a snowy platform about 30 meters away from the summit. I actually asked myself at one point, "Can I push 30 meters more to the summit?" We thought about giving up. We might as well take photos on this platform. It looked quite like the summit and more spacious too. So, we told Karma our thoughts. Karma heard us but he just ignored us. Then he pulled out a main rope from his ba
ckpack and connected all five of us together. He just said, "Come on! Everybody can do!" Then he charged! All of us were tied behind him, so we couldn't stay still. We ended up being pulled up by him the entire way. Either we got pulled up by him or we pulled him back. Either we got pulled up by him or we pulled him back. I feel like that last 30 meter was a test of willpower. You need a crazy Sherpa, like Karma, who thinks he can get everyone up. Otherwise, we really would've given up there. I
believe on the day we reached the summit, there must be other teams watching us through binoculars. In such environment, we Taiwanese climbers have to take two steps while foreigners only take one. I need to catch two breaths while they only need one. So, standing on the summit of Himlung Himal, receiving congratulations messages
from other teams at the base camp, I felt happy and proud. Because when you saw teams from other countries retreating, fear would crawl into you. You began to wonder i
f others can't make it, can I? You began to wonder if others can't make it, can I? I was touched. After reaching the summit, your energy would be drained. But at that time, you wouldn’t think too much. You just knew you wanted to make it to the top. People call it the "summit fever." After reaching the summit on the eleventh hour, I had almost depleted my second oxygen tank, which meant that during the descent, I could run out of oxygen anytime. So, our guide asked a Sherpa to return to Camp 2 a
nd bring up the spare oxygen tank for me. Climbing up is easier than coming down. While descending, we were far away far each other. When I reached the gentle slope, I couldn't see Dennis. Even if you wanted to wait for someone, you wouldn't expose yourself on a steep slope, you wouldn't stay on the spot. The wind was really strong. It was too cold. I couldn't feel my limbs. But there's still a long way to Camp 2. I was very thirsty. I had hot water in my thermal bottle. But I couldn't open it.
When I shook it, I couldn't feel the water inside. It had froze. I could only eat ice. On my way to Camp 2, I walked and walked, then I knelt down to eat ice. Then I had a dry cough. My throat was injured and it started bleeding. The blood went onto the snowy, icy ground. Actually, what kept me moving forward was my family. Before leaving, I assured my wife that I would return safely. I had prepared well, no worries. I also told my child, daddy is going mountain climbing abroad, I'll be back nex
t month. I couldn't accept it if I had lost my life there. I can't. It would be unfair to my family because they were willing to let me go, and I should return safe and sound. So I kept imagining that they were at Camp 2. I remember when we were setting out, Chu, Dennis' wife, said something to me. She said, “Please bring him back safely.” At that time, I returned to Camp 2 first before Dennis. When I went back to my tent, I found our Sherpa was lying there, sleeping already. I was like, oh no!
At that point, a strong urge to sleep hit you. You really wanted to sleep first. But if you did, you’d have slept for so long. I was waiting for him, and I remembered her words again, Chu's words. I consider myself a very careful person. I constantly remind myself of the information I've received and what I need to pay attention to. I was thinking, the deadline was until 5 o'clock. If I didn't see anyone coming, I’d go look for him. Even though I was lying down,
I kept sitting up and looking out
side the tent. Around 5 o'clock, I saw someone doing spacewalk on the moon. When I returned to Camp 2, I was exhausted. I knelt down in front of our tent. At that time, someone opened the tent from the inside, and pulled me in. I was already dazed, and when he pulled me inside, I remembered the crampons scraping against the tent, creating a sharp sound. That sound startled me awake. Then I wondered how I suddenly arrived here. I saw Kooye and I said to him, “You didn't die after all.” Then Kooye
said, "I thought you were dead. You were the only one that hasn’t returned." -Our adventure this time has come to an end.
-Yeah. I'm very grateful for the encouragement from family and friends, and for the medication from my parents. Kooye and I took pills every day, all sorts of pills. We took everything. We were direly afraid of dying. Medicines, vitamins, all of them. Also, my wife and children, I want to thank them… I have made many friends. When I was young, I lived a different life, so th
e friends I made were different from now. This friend has shaped the inner world I have today, a world I couldn't have achieved or imagined on my own. I'm very grateful for the friend sitting beside me now. He has given me a completely different perspective on life. Whether the climb is successful or not, it's important to fully experience that moment. You must truly embrace it. There might be another climb or even more climbs to come. Successful or not, you can always learn from the process. Yo
u must experience every step and keep them in your memories. I think it is really important. For instance, at work, if I must complete certain tasks this week, I will reach the goal with determination. If I want to eat something this weekend, I’ll have to have it. It’s the determination of a middle-aged man. I don't drift along life because we are getting old. We should live everyday the fullest before dying. Actually, when I was young, I've never really excelled at anything, never truly devoted
myself to anything. I don’t know how to express this. Or you didn't do anything good? Now I'm trying my best to do everything well in my life. That's my philosophy as an middle-aged man. A middle-aged man who still got it. Yeah, I still got it. Realizing that the second half of life is already underway. Of course. The whistle has been blown. If you don't start now, how much time do you have left to persist? Dennis once said something that I find quite sensible. “That mountain will always be the
re. But your age won't stay the same forever.” You keep aging. Most people say, "It's okay, the mountain will always be there." But they forget that "you will age." (Director: Shen Chi) (Translator: YISI Language Services) (Copy Editor: Chen Man-chia) (Post-production: Kasdia Lai)
Comments