SummitPost.org

Hi, I'm hoping to get a few friends to climb a 6000er in Qinghai to raise funds for poverty alleviation- possibly Yuzhu in Golmud or Animaqen in Golog. This will be a first for us- we know Qinghai & have been over the last few years for volunteer work, but don't know where or who to start asking to make this happen. I've written to gordonye and chemist14 about Yuzhu on summitpost.org so far.

Anyone else have ANY tips or info? Qinghai Mountaineering Assoc are not replying to my emails. Also, welcome suggestions for other peaks and your reasons.

Also, if we have to go thru Qinghai Mountaineering Assoc, does that mean we don't need a tour company?

Thanks!
Littlesurfergirl

Where in Qinghai are you now? If you're close to Golmud/Geermu it may pay off to go there and talk to the PSB. I think only they can really answer the question about the status of road travel for foreigners past the check point outside the city (approx. 30 km out Golmud, direction Yuzhu Feng). The problem is that it's the main road to Tibet, so the army, the PSB etc think you are heading for Lhasa and therefore it's easier to say no than give you a permit or let you pass the check point. Sometimes it doesn't even help with a normal ATP (Alien's Travel Permit). When I was there last time the PSB told me: Sure we can issue the permit, but at the moment it doesn't help. The army wont let you pass anyway.
The travel agent in Golmud Binguan can help you with a tour/permit to Yuzhu Feng, but make sure to double check with the PSB. One CITS employee told me all was ok, only to be contradicted by the PSB. It's a bit messy and difficult with the permit situation in some of the provinces at the moment, but it should get better now when the celebrations are over.

Hi Corax,

I'm so sorry I didn't get any notification that anyone replied to me! Well, it is one year on and I've raised double the amount of funds I had hoped for, for a Mobile Clinic to be used in Yushu & Golog prefectures for the nomads who can't get medical care. Australian supporters have been generous, along with some o/s friends.

I formed a team called Adventure 4 Aid & we climbed Yuzhu on the 7th Oct 2010. PLEASE HAVE A LOOK AT OUR WEBSITE www.adventure4aid.com

Out of the entire October season (2010) of around 50 people attempting the summit, only TWO got to the top, mostly because of bad weather. We also turned around before the summit because the weather was closing in fast & if we kept ascending, we would have been descending in the dark & subzero temps at the expense of the team.

I know we made the right decision, because we were able to call for help for an atlitude-stricken climber who was semi-concious at Camp 1 (5,500m) on our way down, who had been there far too long & exposed to the elements. After trying to help him, as it was, our small team descended in the dark to Base Camp (5050m), but there was definately One watching over us this expedition- because we tried to do the right and proper thing, I boldly asked for calm weather so that we could make it down alive in the dark, and indeed, there wasn't a bit of wind for those few hours. Also- why would you think of trying a mobile phone on top of a mountain?? Why I even brought it with me was bizzare.
When I turned my phone on as the first thing I could think of to help this guy, I had no bars of battery left in the phone (because of the cold), but miraculously was able to make 4 phonecalls & receive 1, to the necessary departments before my phone died.

We are now back in Xining, grateful to be alive, although with (maybe) initial signs of frostbite from calling for help on my phone etc. my hands were exposed.
Apparently, even though Yuzhu is 6178m, people make the fatal mistake of thinking it's a walk in the park when they've done 7 or 8,000ers. More people have died at Yuzhu BC than at Everest BC something to do with the fact that it's in a valley and the low pressure makes it a very inhosptitable environment. I certainly felt worse at BC than i did at C1.