Dudeman Met a Mountain Climber

Dad and Dudeman saw a presentation about mountain climbing today! Here is what Dudeman learned:

Dad: So, what is it like to climb Mount Everest?

Dude: Well, there is a good chance you could die in every step you take. It takes about a day to get from, like, one side of a gym to another. There's these things called crevasses and they go 200 feet down under the snow and they put ladder things so you can cross, and the guy who climbed Mount Everest, his boot had spikes on it and they got stuck in the ladder and he had to bounce the ladder to unstick his foot.

Dad: What do they have to do with their tents?

Dude: They have to put nets on their tents. Even with 6 men and all their gear, the wind up there is so strong it could blow everything away.

Dad: Is it hot or cold?

Dude: It's usually over 90 degrees. If it's day or afternoon, it's really hot. And since you're over every last cloud, you can see every star and there are shooting stars every 20 or 30 seconds.

Dad: What do they do if they have to use the bathroom?

Dude: They just poo in the snow, or pee in a bottle. No bathrooms!

Dad: How did they get up to the final part of the climb? Was it day or night?

Dude: It was night. He climbed from 8 at night to dawn the next morning.

Dad: What did they see?

Dude: Well, if you looked to their left, they saw 10,000 feet down, and if they looked to their right, they saw 9,000 feet down. And this was in the dark. All they had was moonlight. It was like this! (Dudeman turns out the lights.) I bet a lot of the men said, "I hope I make it down alive!"

Dad: What was that big pyramid in the photo?

Dude: Mount Everest's shadow. A perfect triangle.

Dad: What does it mean to be buried in the sky?

Dude: Well, if you're under 7 yards of snow, no one can dig you out and bring you back to your family. You just have to be buried in the sky.

Dad: Tell about how sherpas get their names.

Dude: They're named...well, every sherpa, their last name is Sherpa, and their first name is the day they were born so if you're born on Monday, you'd be named Monday Sherpa.

Dad: What wanders around in the streets of Katmandu?

Dude: Cows! Because the people there worship cows! And I love cows, too!

Dad: What do the sherpas use for fuel?

Dude: They take yak poop, and they stick it on their walls, and then when it's dry, they use it for cooking.

Dad: What did you learn about yaks?

Dude: They don't lose their antlers. And they like to knock you down and toss you off the cliff! And here is something else: Mount Everest grows about the rate of your fingernail. It used to be underwater. You could hunt for fossils on top of Mount Everest.

Dad: What was that guy carrying in that photo?

Dude: A huge rock from here to here, perfectly smooth, maybe about 1,000 pounds or so, and he was going to use it for bricks.

Dad: Do you remember what the mountain climber is going to do next?

Dude: The next thing he's going to do is row a boat from Australia to Africa.