Basejumper.com - archive

So. . . . .other than the big tower(s) that were jumped by Glen Singleman and his buddy awhile back, have there been any other walls jumped in the Himalaya to speak of?

Also, I'm curious to know what the laws are regarding BASE in countries like Nepal, Pakistan, etc. Is backcountry BASE in these countries tolerated?

No need to name sites. Pm's would be cool.

Cheers,

J.P.

I'm not a BASE jumper but as someone who has travelled extensively through the Himalayas I thought I would put in my 2c regarding laws & backcountry BASE in that region..

(I'm making the assumption here that you are looking for new exit points.)

The backcountry mountain areas of the India/ Pakistan region are truly truly isolated. Every few hours by car, you find a base camp/ village type area where there are a few people and a few shops. You'd start at one of these places- you pay someone local to take you exploring - usually by horseback. Once you are out - there is NO ONE around. There are hundreds of deserted mountain ranges and cliffs. This is when you'd scout exit points and do your jumps.. there is no one in a position of authority around to care. If, by the off chance you do get harassed by someone, they probably don't know the laws but are just milking the situation for what it's worth... smile, give them a few bucks and it's sweet. Really.
(I would be a bit weary about jumping in the Kashmir area though because it is still a military controlled zone.)

HOWEVER, if you screw up and need medical attention, you're fucked. Really really fucked.
True story - was about 3km by horseback into the mountains when my sister had an accident. There was blood everywhere and no one around. There was nothing to do except get back on the horse and ride out the 45 mins back to the base camp area. There we found an army base and they gave her emergency first aid but had no other equipment. We then had to drive (rented car & driver) 3 hours to the nearest village where she was stitched up by candlelight (expect no electricity for about 15 hrs a day). If you have a serious accident out there, you're in trouble.

Hope this helps!

I think some Frenchies jumped Trango with wingsuit last year. And Valerij Rozov did something as well (Ogre???).

VKB did some jumps in Kyrghiztan a couple of years ago. That would be the outskirts of Himalaya...
Anyway, jumping was no problem. But if anybody asked why we where there, explaining about basejumping was definitely a problem.

The buddy was Nic Feteris, who is for sure the real deal. Nic was the guy who famously jumped an American landmark so that he could get a ride home, courtesy of the US government.

The buddy was Nic Feteris

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Yeah I guess I got that one a little bassackwards. Obviously Nic was the one with all the BASE knowledge; I still can't believe Singleman didn't go in on that jump from TT. His out of control spin shown on the video is the epitamy of "pucker factor".

It was thin air (~21000 feet) that led to their out of control tumbling. Nic is now an overweight motivational speaker. Nic and Glenn were the fifth group to ever ascend T.T. Earl Redfern led a new route on T.T. and is credited with it.

I really don't know Nic.

But as for Glenn and Heather, they're currently off on another expedition, this time with Jimmy Freeman in tow.

http://www.baseclimb.com/

ha ha thin air..all airs thin till ya get some speed up....more like fumbled launch.

also are you implying Nic is now a bit portly or that hes helping fat knackers lose weight?

I think 460 is right. I'm not sure airspeed is relative in the thin atmosphere like that found high in the Himalaya.

Density decreases with an increase in alt of above sea level right?

True but they were head down from launch. Lack of density just made it harder/longer to recover. Think the thin air causing the tumble was just an excuse for the teevee audience.

Well. . . .it worked for me!!

I still cringe everytime I watch that.

Valery Rozov jumped Amin Brak (Pakistan) in 2004, it's on his second video Russian Extreme Project. He told me it was one of the scariest jumps he made. He had to clear a ledge after 4 or 5 seconds and drop tests where not very convincing. Anyway, he cleared the ledge.

Trango Tower was jumped wingsuit by a French jumper summer 2005. It's in Paramag.

About cliffs in Pakistan in general. Yes, they are extremely remote. But, there are helicopters. The downside it you need to register as an expedition in Islamabad (which means, apply for a climbing permit way ahead and pay lots of $$) and then they might send a chopper in case of trouble (weather and availiabillity permitting). Also, having spent several weeks there (northern pakistan), lots of cliffs, but not so many jumpable ones. They all tend to be underhung (with exceptions of course). A cheaper option would be to check mountaineering / bigwall climbing site.

Just my 2 cents,

Ronald Overdijk

Awesome, I hope jimmy does some arials off what ever big cliff they jump

He he he. He'll have more than enough on his plate with a wingsuit and his climbing gear...

You know someone was telling me about a jumper who was thinking about a jump from a hanging ice cliff on a steep, pyramid shape Himalayan classic. l

that would be pretty damn cool to see.

That and hypoxia. Nic always almost always did perfect exits. Watch the video carefully... Nic goes into a full body extension and doesn't recover. Thin air, exhaustion, and hypoxia seem like the most probably candidates for screwing up the freefall.