Reconnaissance on the Drop Zone at Shyangboche by the High & Wild Everest Skydiving Managing Team – A Success

The first ever skydiving program in the Everest Himalaya took place on the 14th & 15th of May, 2008. Four skydivers Ben Ian Wood, Andy Montriou, Nigel Gifford and David Ian Wood successfully skydived from a height of 16,000ft and 17,500ft at Shyanboche. All four divers belong to the management team of High and Wild, which is a  UK based adventure company. This was the test jump for the first ever program of skydiving in the Everest Himalaya to take place this Autumn.

Explore Himalaya, the local partner of High & Wild has received the permit to hold the first ever Skydiving program in front of Mt Everest (29,035ft.) this Autumn(Oct- Nov).
 6th May ‘08 – Everest SkydiveManagement Team Arrives in Kathmandu
On 6th May the management team of the High & Wild Everest Skydive arrived in Kathmandu. Nigel Gifford, the Managing Director of High and Wild, had arrived a few days earlier.

8th-13th May- The team Leaves for Shyangboche
After spending a day in Kathmandu, they flew to Lukla to make the final reconnaissance on the drop zone at Shyangboche. From Lukla the team trekked to Jorsale. On 10th May the team reached Namche bazaar. On the 11th the team walked to Shyangboche to inspect the landing area and returned to Namche.The team returned to Shyangboche again .But this time they stayed at Phinju Lodge.The next day, May 13th the team made a thorough aerial survey by Fishtail air helicopter.

14th -15th May – Test Skydive Over Everest 
On 14th May, two members Ben Ian Wood and Andy Montriou were ready for the test dive. They tried to do it at 6:30 a.m. but since it was too cloudy they had to give it up. At around 8a.m again they flew over by army helicopter piloted by Col.Pramod Lama and his assistant Major Subash Thapa waiting for the weather to clear. Now it had turned windy. At 9:15 a.m., the weather finally cleared. Flying to a height of 16,000 ft, Ben and Andy jumped. Though it was windy, the divers were successful in landing safely at  Shyangboche airport. The feat was again repeated the following day (15th May) at 8:30 a.m.by Nigel Gifford and David Ian Wood when they skydived after being flown by a helicopter belonging to Fishtail Air. Nigel Gifford, Managing Director of High & Wild, who is 62 years old, was delighted with the jump.  He opened the parachute after free falling for about 8-10 seconds. David followed closely. After a successful jump they tried for a tandem jump (skydiving carrying a passenger) but since the weather turned foul, they had to abort their plan. The team left for UK on the 16th.
This was the first ever program of skydiving in the Everest Himalaya to take place. After a successful dropzone test, the upcoming Everest Skydive mission (Autumn 2008) sure looks like a winner!
Nigel is confident about running this operation as a commercial activity. Explore Himalaya too is proud to be associated as a local partner of High & Wild in introducing the Everest Skydive as a new product.

Looking Back – GKN Everest Mission 2007
Explore Himalaya had an opportunity to organize a high profile aviation event over the Everest in May 2007 .The project named GKN Everest Mission 2007 teamed up with the explorer Bear Grylls for a breathtaking Himalayan adventure: to fly a powered paraglider higher than Mount Everest. This daring feat – successfully completed on 14 May – acted as the focal point of a global challenge for GKN employees to help raise an extra $1 million for charity. This unique aerial adventure, which was documented and shot on location by Planet Earth has been aired on the Discovery Channel and Channel Four.

Explore Himalaya was appointed as a logistic partner in conjunction with High and Wild (UK) for the prestigious project. The specially designated team from Explore Himalaya spent over six months on the various assignments required for the mission, such as getting several different permits from Government’s offices, handling entire arrangement during their stay in Nepal, getting whole team and their equipments to and from take off point, arranging sets of crew to cater to the mission team including their film shooting unit etc.
In the morning of 14th May (Monday), 2007, Bear Grylls and fellow pilot Gilo Cardozo took off from Pheriche situated at 4240 meter (13910 ft) in the Everest .
They flew to a height of 8,535 meter (28,000 feet) when, unfortunately a fault in Gilo’s machine forced him to abort his flight, when only 300 meter below the summit. He had to glide back to safety but Bear continued to ascend until, at 09:33 local time, he reached 8,990 meter (29,500 feet). Bear was able to look down on Everest as he circled above some of the most famous peaks in the Himalayas. Then his own engine developed problems and he too had to glide back to safety but he had achieved his goal. He had successfully flown over the Everest on his paramotor!
Bear Grylls, host of Discovery Channel adventure show Man Vs. Wild, author and seasoned adventurer added another feather in his cap, when he became the first person to fly over Mount Everest powered by paramotor.

Besides Bear and Giles, there were over 20 GKN employees supported by a team from Explore Himalaya, who trekked on foot to the take off point to witness the flight over world’s highest mountain in presence of liaison officers appointed by the Government of Nepal.
 

Explore Himalaya – In Support of the Spirit of Adventure
As an adventure company, Explore Himalaya champions extreme sports and events that test the limit of human endurance. Thus, the company was thrilled to be a part of an historic project like the GKN Mission Everest 2007. We are glad that the mission was successful.

Everest Skydive 2008 – Once Again Explore Himalaya Becomes a Part of a Historic Event
This year too Explore Himalaya is to be a part of a historic event: the Everest Skydive. This Sept/ Oct the Everest region will set the stage for a record breaking event. High & Wild in partnership with Explore Himalaya will organize the world’s highest skydive in  over Mt.Everest for more then 20 jumpers. Explore Himalaya is once again all set to be a part of another extreme challenge and unique event!

 Cheadle Hulme School Group Nepal Tour
A group of 14 students and 4 teachers from Cheadle Hulme School, UK completed their Nepal tour. The group led by Mr.Lee Richardson, an Economics teacher, had initially planned to visit Tibet but due to disturbances in the highland they had to cancel their trip.  They started their tour with a cultural tour to the medieval city of Kathmandu .They then visited Pokhara and trekked to Ghandruk and then to Ghorepani, Poon Hill, Hille and Naya Pool.After their trekking adventure, the group cooled down by rafting down the Trishuli river. They had some more of the jungle adventure and excitement  in the deep jungles of Chitwan – jungle safari in Chitwan National Park, with elephant rides, canoeing, educational slide shows on rhinos and elephants and cultural programs thrown in.
After their jungle adventure in Chitwan the group was driven to Nuwakot a small village, 75kms North West of Kathmandu. Explore Himalaya runs many community service programs and voluntary projects in this ancient but impoverished village. While in Nuwakot, the Cheadle Hulme School group got the opportunity to visit a real Nepali school, to interact with the students and get an insight on how their Nepalese peers learn in Nepal.An insightful tour for the young learners and their teachers from the distant British shores.

Cheadle Hulme School Group in Nuwakot Village
A few of us from the office joined the Cheadle Hulme School group in Nuwakot. The group arrived from Chitwan (on 31st March) while we drove from Kathmandu. The group of fourteen students and four teachers were to stay in the homes of local families. The host families received two guests each. Since this was a school group, Explore Himalaya took care to assign families with school going kids (of about the same age) as hosts. We wanted this trip to work as a cultural exchange tour for the kids. Cheadle Hulme School (CHS) is an Independent day school in Cheadle Hulme, in the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport, Greater Manchester in the North-West of England.

A warm welcome being given to Cheadle hulme school Group by the residents of Nuwakot

The next day (1st April), we toured the village. We headed up a hill and went to visit a sukul weaver.

 The basket maker (above) & the sukul weaver

Sukul is the traditional straw mat used widely in Nepali homes, especially in the villages. It is made from straw and comes in all sizes. After visiting the sukul weaver, we climbed up to the house of the basket maker. He was busy weaving strips of bamboo. The end product is the conical basket or ‘dokko’ which the villagers and porters use to carry heavy loads. There are two varieties of ‘dokko’ one with holes and one without. The one without the holes is used for carrying grains and rice.
We headed down and came to a place called ‘Viewpoint’.True to its name the place offered excellent views of the surrounding mountains and the valley below.We could see the Trishuli river meandering lazily.We were told that the treks for Langtang and Helambu started from the hill beyond the Trishuli. Mr.Shrestha, the headmaster of the local school, pointing at the foot of the hill said that it was the place from where the armies of Prithvi Naryan Shah entered Nuwakot.We could see a blue roof which he told was the temple of a roof built by Shah’s armies.The place was named ‘Subh (auspicious) Ghat’ because after the conquest of Nuwakot the Shah king successfully went on to win more battles, till he unified Nepal under his rule. Nuwakot was the capital of the Shah kings before Prithvi Narayan Shah invaded Kathmandu.

The picturesque view from Viewpoint

We ventured downwards to visit more homes. As we headed down, we stopped by a mud walled home with a buffalo sitting outside. The owner of the house greeted us with a namaste and as we were a large group, we were ushered inside in groups of four or five.Inside a man was grinding maize on a traditional stone grinder.
The flour from the maize is used to make ‘dhendo’ the staple diet of the people in the villages.Outside a lady was busy pounding something with a long wooden staff. She explained that this was a ‘dhikki’ and she was dehusking the millets by pounding with it.After the husk is removed the millet is grounded to make flour, which is used to make pancakes.The millet is also used for brew beer too.
Our next stop was at the whey and butter maker’s place.As we approached the house , the lady of the house was busy churning milk on a large wooden pot with a long staff attched to it .We were offered some whey. The students remarked that it had a ‘cheesy’ taste.

 Grinding maize on the ‘jantho’

We headed down a narrow dirt tract, until we came to another red adobe house.This was the house of the ‘madal’(an oblong drum) maker.Madal is the traditional Nepali drum.It is made from hollow wood.The two hollow ends are covered with goat skin which is darkened with a dark paste made from straw, boiled rice and ferric oxide  to make the sound of the drumbeats more resonant.Strings made from buffalo hide is tied around the madal.
As we proceeded down we came to a shady grove. Beneath the grove, water spouted from the mouths of carved elephant heads. There were some girls washing clothes.Known as Tikhe dhara this is where the villagers come to bathe and wash their clothes. There is no running water system in this village.

 ’Tikhe Dhara’, where the villagers come to wash their clothes and take bathe

Although there is a village community tap, the water comes just for a few hours each day.
After touring the village, we headed to our respective ‘homes’have lunch.After lunch and a brief rest we decided to meet at Tundikhel in the afternoon.There was to be a football match between the visitors and the home boys.Tundikhel turned out to be a wide open field in front of the local school.But by now the previous clear weather had turned murky and by the time the match began, a light drizzle had started.But the players decided to go ahead with the soccer match.

An Interesting Football Match: The match was an enjoyable affair . Nearly half of the village turned out to watch the match.The linesman found a red flag with stars handy to do his duty (the flag of a political party tucked on a tree).While we were there the election campaigning was going on in full swing. On one side were the visitors, Manchester United in Blue and on the other were the Nuwakoti team in red and black. The visitors put up a brave fight but the homeboys emerged victorius .The game ended at a close score of 5-4.The winning team recieved a cash prize of Rs.1500/- from Mr.Suman Pandey.
 

Traditional Farewell :The next morning the group was given a traditional farewell by the families they were staying with. With bright ‘tikas’ and floral garlands they assembled at the local school, Bhairabi Madhyamik Vidyalaya. The school headmaster showed them around and later the students and teachers, in two groups, sat in the Accounts and English class. After their class the former headmaster of the school offered a farewell gift, a small statue of Saraswati , the goddess of learning, encased in a glass case, from the school’s side to the leader Mr.Lee Richardson. We would like to add that Cheadle Hulme  School has pledged to donate a sum of US$3000 for a new building that would serve as a hostel and auditorium for the school.The hostel would be for those students who come from remote villages.

Taking an English Class 

An interesting moment during the game 

The players pose for a group photo before the start of the match

More Adventures in store: After the school group returned to Kathmandu , they toured Bhaktapur and went on an exciting biking trip from Nagarkot to Dhulikhel.Two teachers ,Mrs.Susan Mary Matthews & Mrs.Annette Kathleen Badger chose to visit  Kirtipur and Bungamati village instead of taking the biking tour.
On April 4, the Cheadle Hulme school Group bade goodbye to Kathmandu. The group leader Mr. Lee Richardson, expressed his, as well the groups delight and satisfaction over the completion of an interesting, enjoyable and well planned tour.
A very grateful parent, Mr. Alistair Macdonald, in an email sent to Mr. Suman Pandey on 10th April had this to say:

Hi Suman
 
A very warm thank-you to yourself and Bimal for organising such an excellent trip for my daughter Hannah and the Cheadle Hulme School party.
 
They had a fabulous time despite the disappointment of not going to Tibet. Please thank all your team who were involved in reorganising things at such short notice.
 
The whole trip had a very profound effect on everyone and Hannah just loved Nepal and all the wonderful people she met. I do hope the elections go well today and that greater stability returns to the country. I feel sure this will be good for Nepal and for tourism.
 Kind regards
 
Alistair
 
Alistair Macdonald
amtv

April 4, 2008: The Cheadle Hulme school Group departed Kathmandu this morning .The group leader Mr.Lee Richardson,expressed his as well the groups delight and satisfaction over the completion of an interesting, enjoyable and well planned tour. As we had reported earlier, the group’s initial plan was to visit Tibet.They had to change their plan because of the trouble in the Tibetan highland.According to Lee and some of the teachers,they enjoyed their visit to Nepal so much that they were already planning for a future visit!
 
Soon to be posted - A Special Report on the Group’s Nuwakot visit - Watch this space!  
 

>Mr. Suman Pandey in NTB’s Advisory group
Mr.Suman pandey, the President of Explore Himalaya, has been selected as a member of NTB’s Industry Advisory Group. The advisory group plays a vital role in proposing and planning policies, programs and activities for Nepal tourism industry.
(Congratulations to Suman Sir from all of us at EH!)

>Lukla Airport & EBc route renamed
The Nepal Government has named Lukla airstrip and route to Everest Base Camp (EBC) after pioneering mountaineers-Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa, who first scaled the world’s tallest peak in 1953. Following a Cabinet decision in early March, the mountain airstrip of Lukla, that Hillary built some 43 years ago, and the trekking trail from there to EBC will now be called -Tenzing-Hillary Airport and Tenzing-Hillary Route, respectively.

>Air Berlin set to offer the first direct link between Nepal and Europe
Air Berlin, a fast-growing low-cost carrier, has plans to operate direct flights between Nepal and Germany. The Germany-based airline’s operation, set to be the first direct link between Nepal and Europe, will contribute in promoting Nepal’s tourism that has suffered from shortage of air seats in the European market.

> ‘Send Home A Friend’, a tourism promotion campaign launched in Belgium and Germany
‘Send Home a Friend’, a tourism promotion program was launched in Belgium and Germany. The program is to be implemented by the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoCTCA) and Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) in partnership with the growing NRN diaspora abroad. It is aimed at boosting the tourist arrivals to Nepal through the ‘Word of Mouth’ publicity of the destination.

Mr. Suman Pandey attends four international tourism fairs -the daily telegraph, uk, Fitur 2008 Madrid, ITB berlin

Explore Himalaya has been duly represented at the international tourism fairs by Mr. Suman Pandey, President of Explore Himalaya. He participated in the Daily Telegraph Adventure Show, UK (25^th – 27^th Jan’ 08) .In the same month he participated in Fitur 2008 Madrid (30 January – 3 February 2008).

March took him to be the biggest global trade fair, the ITB Berlin (5 - 9 March 2008) and at ITM Moscow (15 March 2008 - 18 March 2008).

Mr. Bimal Chettri, THE Executive Manager attends the Borsa International Destination Expo in milan

Mr. Bimal Chettri, Executive manager, of Explore Himalaya attended the BIT (Borsa Internationale del Turismo) Expo held from 21^st to the 24^th February 2008 in the city of Milan, in Italy.

Explore Himalaya Ties Up with Asia World Enterprise, Thailand
Explore Himalaya Travel & Adventure signed an agreement  with Asia World Enterprise, on 8th Feb 2008 in Bangkok, making Explore Himalaya the partner of Asia World Enterprise in Nepal.
Asia World Enterprise is one of Thailand’s leading destination management companies. The company has been operating since the last ten years, focusing on quality travel programs around Thailand. Asia World is one of the few tour operators in Thailand to provide insurance cover for its clients via ‘New Hampshire Insurance’.
Asia World has marketing representation offices in United Kingdom, U.S.A, Germany and Australia. The company shall now be promoting the tourism products of Explore Himalaya  through their vast marketing network.
During the Elephant Festival & Race held in Chitwan, Nepal in December 2007, the elephant race was won by the elephant jointly sponsored by Asia World and Explore Himalaya.

A group of 14 students and 4 teachers from Cheadle Hulme School, UK are currently on a visit to Nepal. At the time of writing this blog, the group is taking the trail to Ghandruk a picturesque traditional Gurung village. After their sightseeing trip in Kathmandu and Pokhara, the group commenced their trekking. From Ghandruk they shall proceed to Tadapani, and from there to Ghorepani, Poon Hill, Hille and Naya Pool.

After their trekking adventure, the group shall cool down by rafting down the Trishuli river. More adventure and excitement awaits them in the deep jungles of Chitwan – jungle safari in Chitwan National Park, with elephant rides, canoeing, educational slide shows on rhinos and elephants and cultural programs thrown in.

The group shall be driven to Nuwakot a small village, 75kms North West of Kathmandu. Explore Himalaya runs many community service programs and voluntary projects in this ancient but impoverished village. While in Nuwakot, the Cheadle Hulme school group shall get the opportunity to visit a real Nepali school, to interact with the students and get an insight of how their Nepalese peers learn in Nepal. Overall, an insightful tour for the young learners and their teachers from the distant British shores.

The group had initially planned to visit Tibet but due to disturbances in the highland they had to cancel their trip. But we are sure, Nepal won’t disappoint them. Mystical, magical Nepal shall work her charm; she has for ages and she will in times for come…mesmerize visitors.

MICE(Meetings • Incentives • Conventions • Exhibitions)TOURISM IN NEPAL

MICE tourism is fast gaining popularity in the International tourism market.In South-east Asia, Nepal is fast becoming a popular MICE (meeting, incentives, convention and exhibition) tourism destination . MICE tourism converts the dull annual business meetings and conferences into an enjoyable and refreshing event for the delegates and attendants. Be it a meeting for bringing people together either from within one company or from a broader spectrum or an international conference of 100 delegates or product launch party or exhibition, MICE tourism caters to all.

Nepal has a vast range of hotels, convention centers and conference facilities. In Kathmandu there are several five- star hotels with convention and conference facilities. Some of them are the Soaltee Crowne Plaza, Yak & Yeti, Hotel Everest, Hotel de l’Annapurna, Hotel Radisson, Hotel Hyatt, Hotel Shangri-La and Hotel Le Meridian. 

Besides the conference facilities at the five star hotels, there are alternative centres like the Birendra International Convention Center (BICC).Located in the heart of the city Birendra International Convention Center has state-of-the-art facilities for conferences and conventions with sophisticated audio-visual, lighting, communications, catering, ventilation and parking facilities.
Other venues in the capital include the Royal Nepal Academy, Rastriya Sabha Griha (City Hall) and Russian Culture Center.

If you prefer a more natural and scenic setting you can always choose the hill resorts in Nagarkot, Dhulikhel or Godavari. These places are located just a few hours drive from Kathmandu and have some finest hotels and resorts. 
Pokhara, the second most important tourist stop in Nepal, offers The Fulbari one of the finest hotels in South Asia. Over here there are numerous ways to mix business with pleasure.

First Ever Skydiving Event Over Mt.Everest  in Oct 2008 - Explore Himalaya, a Key Operator

The first ever skydiving event over Mt.Everest is scheduled to take place this October. Explore Himalaya in partnership with High and Wild, a UK based adventure company is all set to organize the event, the first of its kind. Nigel Gifford, the promoter of High and Wild, formally announced this bit of news at a press conference recently held at ITB in Berlin. According to him the event would be repeated again in May 2009 after the successful completion of the ‘08 skydive. He also added that so far 25 skydivers ranging from 16 to 72 years have confirmed their participation. This event he believed would help promote Nepal as an adventure destination.
According to Suman Pandey, the President of Explore Himalaya, they will sponsor the first Nepali skydiver to take part in this event and thus set a record for the highest skydiving event. He also added that they plan to raise US$ 1 million for different charities in Nepal from this adventure event.
The cost for participants in this momentous event has been fixed at 16,870 British pounds for a tandem jumper,12,675 pounds for a solo skydiver and 3,750 pounds for an observer.
The skydiving over Everest will be done from a Swiss made Pilatus Porter aircraft.