New Photos on southcol.com

Log onto http://www.southcol.com/ for a new set of photos "Faces of the Himalaya"

Best months to trek in Nepal

  I have been getting some enquiries about which are the best months to trek in Nepal. More specifically, people want to know which is the  most busy month and how does spring trekking (March/April) compare to autumn (Oct/Nov)? Weather wise post monsoon Oct/Nov is the most stable and clear but Oct is also the most crowded. I generally like to avoid Oct as lodges are busy, trails are full and there are far too many people around.
Recently we have been trekking in December which is suitable for the foothills but not ideal for the high mountains e.g. Kala Pattar, Annapurna Base Camp etc.
So my recommendations would be for high altitude treks in  Nepal try April or mid to late November. For foothills trekking November-December would be fine. In fact Everest Kala Pattar trek would also be good in November before the winter snows set in.
Here are the statistics of trekkers in Everest and Annapurna for the last five years which gives a good idea of the numbers on the trail:

EVEREST REGION
	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009
Jan	426	486	566	642	576
Feb	524	455	592	853	658
Mar	2343	1977	3029	3688	3041
Apr	2458	3439	4246	4661	4513
May	937	886	1679	1986	1629
June	201	110	284	297	298
July	204	184	209	294	229
Aug	260	352	434	450	509
Sept	1016	1190	1458	2135	2535
Oct	6242	6595	7750	9260
Nov	3448	3323	4188	4830
Dec	984	1039	1379	1503
ANNAPURNA REGION
	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007
Jan	1842	2106	1877	2570	2555
Feb	2325	3096	1527	3029	3574
Mar	2955	5147	4621	6575	6473
Apr	5484	6021	3216	8261	7324
May	2228	1794	1051	3022	2377
June	782	789	390	1325	680
July	864	881	712	779	774
Aug	1489	1488	1445	2186	2112
Sept	4315	3353	3525	5306	5231
Oct	9576	9314	9547
Nov	5698	5116	5319
Dec	3110	2242	2954

The figures for Everest were collected from the entrance of the Sagarmatha National Park ( Jorsale) and the Annapurna data from the ACAP office at Birethanti.

Live Mint Story on South Col Expeditions May 22nd 2010

Everest made easy

Expeditions to the world’s highest peak are now available for the time-starved who want a taste of it

Footnotes | Sumana Mukherjee

 You read about Sujoy Das when we profiled him as one of our “how-to” men and women in our 25 August 2007 issue. If you were impressed by his single-minded devotion to the mountains, here’s your chance to share his adventures. A chartered accountant by training and a photographer by calling, Das has launched South Col Expeditions, which specializes in guided treks for people with little or no trekking experience, including children. Departures have been scheduled for the Annapurna foothills (December), Everest Panorama trek (April 2011) and Everest Base Camp/Kala Pattar (April 2011). The Annapurna trek (seven days, Rs15,500) route lies through the picturesque landscape of the eastern Himalayas, with a maximum of 6-7 hours walking daily. The Everest Panorama trek (10 days, Rs13,500) is perfect for those who can’t spare the time required for the Base Camp visit. And the “dream trek” to the Everest Base Camp (18 days, Rs22,500) takes you into hallowed climbers’ territory, past Sherpa villages and glacier trails.

“All the treks are rated easy to moderate,” says Das, “and accessible to children in the 8-12 age group. The days are divided so that there are no drastic altitude changes. Kids are more likely to get bored than tired, so we have ingenious ways of keeping them entertained and engaged.” With ample time to get into shape, this is the best time to sign up for one of his trips. Visit www.southcol.com for details. All costs per person, on Kathmandu-Kathmandu basis.

http://www.livemint.com/2010/05/21224117/Everest-made-easy.html

Conversations with Raghubir Singh

In the summer of 1987 in Calcutta,  I had the opportunity of spending an hour with the late Raghubir Singh, one of the finest colour photographers of his generation. One of his photographs shot in Kumartuli, Kolkata is reproduced here.  For me the discussion was a revelation and possibly did more for my photography than anything else. For what happened in that one hour please visit
Conversations with Raghubir Singh

Hi everyone,

I want to thank all of you for the overwhelming response to the launch of my trekking site www.southcol.com!

Many of you have given me excellent suggestions which I am in the process of incorporating in the site. A new website takes some time to develop and evolve but I am on the job so do be a little patient!

Everest 2010 Climbing season

For full details about climbing expeditions on Everest in summer 2010 and also to track expedition progress please visit the following link

http://www.alanarnette.com/news/

Vittorio Sella- Mountain Photographer

23^rd September 1899. A forty year old Italian photographer is standing on the Zemu Glacier in Northern Sikkim at an altitude of around 15,000 feet below the massive north east face of Kangchendzonga. It is five o’ clock in the morning, dark and bitterly cold. His large tripod is sunk in almost three feet of snow. It has been snowing for almost four days. From the north, a chill wind is blowing across the Green Lake plain biting into his tweed jacket. But Vittorio Sella, the legendary mountain photographer, is undaunted. He mounts his large forty pound plate camera on the tripod and slows pans it away from that sheer face of the third highest peak in the world. Sella carefully frames his photograph, inserts the two pound film plate and waits for dawn. And, as the first light touches Siniolchu, one of the satellites of Kangchendzonga, Sella presses the shutter to capture possibly the finest view of one of the most beautiful mountains in the world.