What would Sir Edmund Hillary think of the line of climbers on Mount Everest?
What would Sir Edmund Hillary think of the line of climbers on Mount Everest?
Opinion
I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the line of climbers waiting to conquer Mount Everest on telly recently.
How has this happened?
Everest is a mountain that takes no prisoners. Hundreds of people have lost their lives over the years, many of their bodies still on themountain and as reported recently the Nepalese Government thinks the discovery of more bodies is due to climate change and the rapidly melting snow.
That along with the fact that already this season there have been at least 11 deaths should be ringing alarm bells for anyone contemplating the climb.
What I was thinking when I saw that line of humans spiralling up the mountain was what would happen if the person at the top toppled backwards. How many climbers below them would they take out before stopping?
It's just over 66 years ago that the mountaineer and explorer and Nepalese Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers confirmed to have reached the summit of Mount Everest.
That was May 29, 1953. I think he would be horrified.
I was horrified — the poor mountain. However it's not the only place that's getting a hard time from humans.
Closer to home, earlier this year concerns were raised over the state of Lake Waikaremoana. Visitors have left trash everywhere.
I really don't understand this. People who make an effort to go to such beautiful places in nature must surely enjoy the views, the fresh air and the beauty of the place.
Why then would they leave their rubbish behind to spoil it for the next person? It's not hard to take something with you to put your rubbish in. More than likely in among the rubbish would be a bag of some description to gather it in.
They either have no respect for nature or they are just plan lazy. Either way it is people like this that spoil it for others.
Eventually these place of beauty will be forced to close to the public to give them a chance to regenerate.
Then to top it all off I watched in horror as a gigantic cruise ship crashed into a river boat.
Why was that huge ship allowed in that tiny space? The ship was in Venice's Giudecca Canal and, unbelievably, out of control. It looked as if it was headed right into the heart of the city. People were filming from apartments.
It must have been terrifying for those on the wharf and the river boat as the ship came barrelling down on them.
I know tourism is important for many countries including New Zealand, however, we have to remember that many places on this planet simply can't handle a never ending line of visitors.
There have to be rules. The first one could be to anchor gigantic cruise ships where they have room to manoeuvre even if there is a mechanical breakdown which is the reason cited by the ship's owners for the crash.
Second one, limit the number of people allowed on Mount Everest at one time. Third one, huge fines and hours of picking up other people's rubbish for those caught littering — anywhere.
We need to be much more mindful and kind to the land we live on and the land we visit.
Linda Hall is Hawke's Bay Today's premium content editor.
