Day 6: May 24, 2018, as told by student Cassie Cooper

Name: Cassie Cooper

Age: 19

Home Town: West Monroe, NY

Area of Study: Health and Exercise Science

Year in School: Rising Junior

I joined the Everest Base Camp Expedition because… I love the outdoors; I have always enjoyed hiking, camping, kayaking, you name it. So, when Dr. Tom Brutsaert came into my Anatomy & Physiology class during the fall semester I was in awe at the fact that this course, “Everest Base Camp: The Human Response to High Altitude,” was real. I immediately decided that I was going to go, and no one was going to talk me down from that. As it turns out, I was also the first person to apply. How could I not? It’s Mt. Everest Base Camp! So many individuals have attempted to climb Everest, and though many have been unsuccessful, being given the opportunity to see this famous mountain that causes so much heartache and happiness is a once in a lifetime opportunity that I could not pass up.

I also joined because I wanted to get out of my comfort zone. I am a shy person and normally keep to myself but I wanted to try something different. I see almost all of these people in my classes but I don’t know much, if anything, about them, and what better opportunity to get to know them better then on a long trek.

On another note, I am a big fan of the Olympics and have always heard about athletes going to higher altitudes to train. This fact has always fascinated me, in part because I never understood the process of increasing their oxygen intake.  With that in mind, I wanted to experience altitude for myself and gain a better understanding about the physiology of altitude.

I’m involved with the SU research studies by… participating in daily measures, where they take our blood pressure (the amount of pressure exerted on the blood vessel walls), determine our blood saturation (amount of oxygen diffusing through our tissues), basic weight measure, and two cognitive tests (deciding which way an arrow is pointing and memorizing a ‘sandwich’ of numbers).

I also participate in “Daily Plus” measurements, which are additional measurements – our hemoglobin count (red blood cells), our hematocrit count, squeezing our finger and trying to get out as much blood as possible to put onto a piece of paper, and spitting into a tube twice (~2mL each) (which is a lot harder than it seems).

The blood onto the paper and spitting into the tube is a research study by Ainash Childebayeva. She is using our saliva and blood to determine how our genetics plays a role in how we respond to high altitude. The cognitive tests are run by Dr. Wesley Lefferts and Jacob DeBlois. They are attempting to understand if altitude plays a role in our cognitive thinking.

My favorite part of the trip so far has been… the constant games with my fellow trekking pals. I have learned a hand full of new card games that I plan on forcing my family to play (I promise they are fun). The games get so intense and our ‘American’ comes out with the screaming and yelling at one another. But fortunately with our large group we just about fill up every lodge we stay at. The laughter that comes with each game is very contagious and brings everyone closer together. So far it seems that Wes and Lucas are the key guys to target and their reactions are priceless. These are definitely memories I will laugh at for a while. Categories is another very fun game that can go in any direction at any given time. Card games are usually the first thing to happen once everyone gets settled, even though some of us should be reading.

The worst part of the trip so far… seeing all of the stray and wild dogs on the paths with matted fur. I know I should not touch or pet them because they most likely have not had any types of shots. It has been so terribly difficult holding back my will to pet these dogs. So, when I get back home I am going to show extra love to my dog!

A few things I’ve thought were interesting… we have to purchase toilet paper and bring it along with us to every bathroom we decide to use. Most of the time that bathroom is a hole in the ground, and then we throw our toilet paper into a trash can – not the toilet. I am still getting used to that and I truly do not know if I will. What also blows my mind is the fact that most of the porters (sherpas that carry luggage, items, etc. up/down the mountain) zoom past us wearing blue jeans and open toed sandals. It’s amazing! These trails are so rocky that I have a tough time walking up/down the hills in my hiking sneakers, let alone in flip flops. Another thing I found interesting is that the kidneys play a role in respiratory function: when carbon dioxide increases in the body the kidneys secrete carbonic acid to bring the body back to homeostasis.

One thing most people don’t know about me… I love water sports and am obsessed with surfing. Although I have never gone surfing, it is at the top of my bucket list. I am not sure how I started to fantasize about surfing, but I think it has something to do with the movie “Soul Surfer”.

I love the warm weather and doing activities in the water, such as tubing (where you tie an inflatable tube to a rope, then tie the rope to the back of a boat and drive around). Some might call me a professional tuber. It is so much fun, especially with two people on the tube. When you tie the rope to the back of a jet ski, everything changes. The difficulty gets much tougher but it is so much fun! The key thing is to lean with the boat, the same way the boat is turning, which creates a ’sling shot’ effect on the tube, sending you out from behind the boat and onto the flat water which can be dangerous and fun! I am hoping to try water skiing this summer and hopefully wake boarding, if possible.

Daily Recap

Today the group was in Debuche, Nepal (3820 meters, ~12,606 ft) which is located in the heart of a beautiful forest. A short hike up the hill brought us to a little town called Tebouche, where there is a monastery and bakery. Right after breakfast a group of us went up to the bakery for some highly bragged about chocolate cake. There was half a chocolate cake left, but I’m not a huge fan of cake so I went for the apple pie, instead. Let me say, it was very good even if it was cold. To add to the happy moment, when the clouds broke we were able to see the tip of Everest. You could hear everyone gasp and stare: the mountains are right in front of us and not just some sort of back drop.

 

After the bakery, I came back with a few others and decided to read for the time being, since it was only 10 o’clock in the morning. I was able to read a chapter until someone brought out the cards. After that we played card games until 2 o’clock in the afternoon. We continued playing even though lunch was served – it was that intense. At 2 o’clock we had an hour lecture about acclimatization. I learned that there are two types of acclimatization: ventilatory and hematological. Ventilatory acclimatization is the increase in ventilation (exchanging gases [oxygen and carbon dioxide]) after days without concomitant perturbations in the blood chemistry. Hematological acclimatization is an increase in red blood cells due to a decrease in hemoglobin saturation when altitude increases. And when altitude increases, the amount of oxygen decreases resulting in oxygen sensors in the kidneys to produce erythropoietin, which starts the creation of new red blood cells.

After the lecture we were given a small break and then sat back down to watch “The Wildest Dream: Conquest of Everest.” It is about an American mountaineer, Conrad Anker, who found the body of a British explorer, George Mallory, 75 years after Mallory mysteriously vanished on his climb to the summit of Everest. Mallory was trying to become the first man to summit the worlds tallest peak in 1924, but unfortunately no one knows whether or not Mallory made it to the summit. After finding the body, Anker then went out to finish Mallory’s quest, climbing the same route with similar equipment. In the film, Mallory’s granddaughter was interviewed and mentioned that when he was asked by The New York Times, “why climb Everest?” Mallory replied with his most famous words, “because it is there.” He tried numerous times but was never fortunate enough to make it to the top. Overall, I thought the film was interesting because it showed how strong some people’s love for the mountains are and how something you love can kill you. After the film two groups cracked out the cards again and started playing until dinner. All in all, I’d say it was a fabulous rest day in Debuche. Now onto Pharache (4370 meters, 14,421 ft)!

P.S. Hi family! I am doing well and I am healthy, no worries.
Love you guys and we’ll talk soon.

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(All photos by Andrew Burton, © 2018)