Page 109 - EVS Class 05

Equipments Used for Mountaineering

A mountaineer carries sleeping bags, tents, ice-axe, rope, slings, crampons
and pitons with him.

Equipments Required for a Mountaineer

Sherpa Tenzing Norgay (India) and Sir Edmund Hillary (New Zealand) were the first
persons to climb the world’s highest mountain peak, Mount Everest (8,848 m).

Risks and Dangers while Climbing

Mountaineers face the following risks while
climbing dangerously high mountains.

Weather Conditions

The weather is rather unpredictable on the

mountains. Whiteout is a weather condition that
reduces visibility. Thunderstorms produce Whiteout
lightning. Many climbers get struck by

lightning while climbing high mountains.

Falling of Climbers Due to Avalanches
and Ice Cracks

An avalanche is a large mass of snow, ice
Avalanche and rocks that falls down the side of a

mountain. Many climbers have died in
avalanches.

Ice cracks are big cracks in mountains.
They are not visible as snow freezes on
the top. Sometimes, mountaineers

cannot locate these ice cracks and fall
into them. Ice cracks

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